The first step toward ending an addiction is admitting you have a problem.

As I zoomed through a 10th cup of coffee on my way home from work one night in an attempt to soothe a brain I assumed needed caffeine, I realized I might have consumed a little too much java that day. I suppose the fact that my coffee tally for the day had reached double-digits should have been enough to make me admit my problem.

But coffee is magical. It’s delicious. So many people in my family drink a lot of coffee on a daily basis that it can’t possibly be a bad thing.

But I decided to lay off the coffee for a few days, anyway. And boy was that the wrong plan. I made it to 6 p.m. before I desperately hunted around for a drop of caffeine-laden goodness.

And I thought that maybe I was looking at this all wrong.

My mom drinks coffee for breakfast and often ends dinners out with another cup.

Visits to my grandmother’s house always include a cup — or two — of coffee, regardless of the time of day or the duration of the visit.

My grandfather reportedly drank two pots of black coffee a day. That’s about 20 cups total, depending on the size of the pot.

So why should I limit my caffeine intake when a need for the beverage is seemingly imprinted in my DNA?

It turns out my doctor has a host of reasons why I shouldn’t.

When I went for my yearly checkup, which was about three years overdue, I scanned the list of symptoms you check when filling out the new patient forms.

Migraines? Check. Heart racing? Check. Insomnia? Check. Random muscle spasms? Check.

My doctor barely glanced at the list before interrogating me about my coffee-drinking habits.

She blanched at my number and immediately recommended that I cut my intake.

And then she barely listened as I cited numerous horror stories from friends who had dropped coffee altogether.

I must have gotten through to her, because she backed off her original recommendation and gave me hope with one word: “Moderation.”

Apparently, two to four cups of coffee is perfectly fine for a healthy adult to drink. And since I didn’t have high blood pressure and I was relatively in shape for someone who hasn’t exercised since college, I should be fine.

So now, a month later, I’m still struggling to drink less coffee, but I’ve managed to keep it at two cups most days. (In the interest of full disclosure, I’m writing this column while swigging my third cup of coffee today. I won’t tell my doctor if you won’t.)