I was 35 when I quit. I had all the anxiety symptoms when I was still drinking. My first year, I was anxious and depressed in alternating waves. I still remember at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and a year still feeling like, "why am I not back to normal yet?"
I had read all about brain chemistry, and knew that brain cells take 90 days to grow, so there was something to that "two steps forward, one step back" thing that was going on with me. The way I figured it, my brain was recovering from an injury, much like a wound or scab. (Thus, it itches!)
If I had felt completely golden at 3 months, I probably would not have been motivated to go through the steps and have my thinking changed. And I would have felt so good I'm sure I would've drank again in short order.
The fact is, after almost a year and half, I feel well on my way to cultivating a way of living that will keep me grounded, no matter what is going on in my head or in my body.
Good luck to you.
M