I hope you’ve gotten some contact with a doctor at this point. I know for me, the anxiety of worrying about getting medical care caused symptoms that were almost as bad as the withdrawal itself. I also want to add, as far as the shame around people knowing that you sought medical help for withdrawal management goes, I am a Psychotherapist and had a severe relapse in November, 2019, and ended up in the hospital, and then spent a night in a withdrawal management facility being treated by a peer of mine who I had spoken to professionally before checking in there. It really was no big deal. I’m very public about my addiction, as I feel it’s important for Mental Health professionals to destigmatize addiction. But I really had nothing but support and positive response from others in my field for being public about my relapse and my recovery journey. It feels a little scary at first, but when your recovery becomes your priority, it gets so much easier to hold your head high around people who know you got help to safely get alcohol out of your life.
Great work taking steps to get help!