Desperately craving...sugar!!!
 

I have about 23 days of sobriety, but I'm battling sugar cravings now. Right now, I couldn't care less about a beer, I want to dunk my head in a bucket of sugar!
I read that alcoholics are chronically hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) and crave sugar to boost blood sugar. I was fighting off a cold last week and gots lots of fruit juice for the vitamin C. Well, fruit juices are also loaded with SUGAR! So, I'm walking around today pouring out the fruit juice, just like I did with the beer three weeks ago.
I really need to look into diet and learn how to moderate my blood sugar, so I don't get the cravings. I've read that while AA does so much good, they kind of miss the boat on addressing physical needs, like proper nutrition. You go to the meetings and people are eating cookies, drinking coffee like it's going out of style, and puffing away on cigarettes! Ugh!!!
What good does it do to stop drinking but then turn around and trash your body with caffeine, nicotine and sugar?!?!?

Ok, I'll stop ranting.

Disclaimer: This is not to be taken as medical advice! Please consult with a family physician any concerns with health/diet/nutrition!

Sugar cravings are common indeed. And while caffeine, nicotine and sugar are not good for you, you cannot possibly believe alcohol would help can you?

Chances are your nicotine and caffeine consumption would not change if you got drunk, and your sugar consumption would likely go up.

I went through the same thing. I have a blood sugar test kit(it was my moms ,she passed away about a year ago). I found my blood sugar low (just barely) a couple times. So I started thinking I was hypoglycemic. I kept taking it on a regular basis, and found it tipped the scale on the high side also. I have also always craved lots of water (a diabetic symptom). At about 5 or 6 months sober I quit craving all that water.
Yes they say most alcoholics are hypoglycemic, at first I believed this but I don't know. They say that sugar will elevate your cravings. Idon't know. Once I found out my sugar levels were within reason, I would eat half a chocolate cake at one sitting. It didn't make me crave alcohol, it made me happy. I craved cake and cake fulfilled my craving. And I sure didn't want a beer after all that freakin cake. (but if you drank all day, maybe they are talking about tomorrow). (I was an after 5 drunk).
I am now right at the 7 month mark, and I still crave sugar, but nothing like at first. I limit myself to a cupcake a day, maybe 2. But after 2 it just doesn't sound good.
They say with hypoglycemia, you have to test your sugar every couple hours, so a doctor visit will only tell you what it is at the time of the visit. A test kit is around 100 dollars, or a little over (about a doctor visit). If you are going to eat a bunch of sugar it is good to know where your blood sugar is. (doctor disclaimer) I'm not saying not to see your doctor. (see your doctor).
I am saying my sugar craving receded after a few months , and is still receding. My blood sugar level also leveled out. Just my experience with it.
Fred

That's why a lot of people keep hard candies around for when they get that sugar craving. I know people who use "dum-dums" (small suckers in different flavors) to help in that area.

So far as the caffeine and nicotine go, I'll tell you what my doctor told me...one thing at a time. I've been a smoker for years, and when I was leaving rehab, my doctor mentioned that if I choose to stop smoking, to wait at until I have at least six months of sobriety under my belt because trying to stop two things at once only increases the chances of relapsing on both. Made sense to me.

Hi WakeUp,
With alcohol, you trash your health AND YOUR DIGNITY

Sugar cravings are not an unusual thing and I experienced them too, especially in the first 6-8 weeks.
The daily intake of let's f.e. say 10 to 12 beers add much more than 1000 extra calories in carbohydrates/sugar to one's regular nutrition . (1 can of normal beer= roughly 150 calories/ 14g of carbohydrates/sugar.) The body has adjusted to these amounts and it tries to procure them elsewhere now that you quit drinking. It will take a while for your body to adjust to these changes. If it is a problem that really bothers you or you have other medical conditions you could consult a physician/nutritionist who knows how you can manage blood sugar levels, f.e. trough a hypoglycemia adapted diet.

As for the smoking and coffe thing, I don't know, because I quit smoking and drinking on the same day. (I still don't know how I managed to do this, and maybe it is not recommendable either)
I still drink coffee, in the beginning of my sobriety it was a more than usual but it has gone back to mormal. When I quit drinking I had no other medical problems, so to be honest for the first two and a half months I was too focused on my sobritety to worry about my intake of sweets. I did also exercise a lot to stay focused so I didn't gain much weight from it. I made some healthy dietary changes a bit later on though.
Take care, it takes some time but it gets better,
S.

From this link, CERI: Living with Alcohol
You're not "trashing" your body with sugar
You have been getting the suger all along from the alcohol. Take away the alcohol and you still need the sugar in your system. Chocolate chip cookies are a great source.

Like everyone has said, what you're going through is normal. All the alcohol you drank was converted to carbohydrates/sugar. Take away the input and your body screams "What's up with this?" Hence, the desire for sugar. I first got my fix with ice cream which is not a real smart idea. I then switched to orange juice, but only in moderation. I got a certain amount of sugar plus some vitamins etc. After a while the craving goes away, so bear with it. Exercise helped me a lot here, too.

I'll put up with a couple of cups of coffee a days with no guilt. Nicotine is an entirely different animal, and causes more deaths that alcohol. Bad, Bad, Bad! Fortunately I quit smoking 3 packs a days 22 years ago, about a year after I joined AA. But If folks want to smoke then that's their problem, not mine. I focus on alcohol recovery. That's why we have AA meetings.

I'm at week 4 and my sugar cravings are insane! I was never a big sweets person but these last few weeks have been crazy.

I treat myself to a lot of coffee now as my way to "reward" myself for not drinking, but I'm having a hard time drawing the line for cookies and candy. It's probably not the most healthy thing to do, but I figure anything is better than all the alcohol I was drinking before!

I'm on day 8 and I'm diggin the sugar thing, too....as I sit looking at Oreos....

Just poured out the rest of the grape juice, two bottles of root beer, and a bottle of Mexican vanilla, (sponsor's orders.) I'll have another slice or two of chocolate cake, then the rest is going into the trash.
Just back from the store, and the selections include lean meats, broccolli crowns, cashews.
God, my food bill is enourmous lately. :(

That sounds like you were consuming pretty huge amounts of sugar and getting rid of it was probably not a bad idea.
The food you bought sounds good-it can actually help reduce sugar cravings: lean protein, nuts and complex carbohydrates. Drinking liters and liters of uncarbonated water helped for me too. Eating some small portions more often throughout the day can also help to keep your sugar levels more balanced.
Experimenting with different foods and cooking your own meals can also be fun. You will eventually find the right types of food that you like and that can help you curb your sugar cravings.

Haha, I am a few days shy of 10 months and still loving the sweets. I was on weight watchers a year before I quit drinking, so I have all sorts of alternative sweets that aren't as caloric, but I dont try and really fight the cravings. I drink lots of diet pop (and tons of water, no worries), I make skim milk, sugar free milk shakes, fat free/sugar free pudding. I allow myself low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream for desert and fat free vanilla yogurt for snacks. I am still steadily losing weight, and frankly I think trading the 12 pack of beer a night for a bowl of ice cream was a pretty sound move nutritionally speaking :lighter:

thanks for the vivid mental image! :lmao

oh the sugar the sugar!!! i hear you so loud and clear. I've been stuffing in so many lollies over the last 3 weeks that i'm starting to break out in spots!!!! I woke up this morning with a sugar hangover, headache and all.

In saying that, I'd rather be replacing the booze with a packet of gummy bears any day!

:Xmasbstar

my god, have some sugar already!!!

sugar never led me to shootin' dope and smokin' rock!

ummmm. . . now that I think about it. . . gonna get me a bowl of peanut butter crunch!

Not all sweets are bad! If you are craving sweets there are lots of ways to get your fix w/ out taking in a bunch of processed sugar.
Foods/sugars that are lower on the glycemic index (that don't require your body to produce as much insulin to process) don't turn to fat as easily and won't give as much of a sugar rush, or the subsequent crash. (which just increases the cravings because your body wants that rush again)
Better sugars are less processed, in or close to their natural state. Cane sugar, molasses, maple syrup, honey, fruit juices that are NOT from concentrate.

As you probably know, some of the worst for this are high fructose corn syrup, white sugar, and sugars derived from rice. The more sugars are processed, the harder they are for your body to deal with.


Emergen-C is one of my fav 'sweets' these days...
Have you ever tried it? The little packets of 'flavored fizzy drink mix" :) They do have some sugar (fructose) but also 1,000 mg's vitC, minerals (including calcium) and lots of B vitamins. It comes in many flavors, my fav is the cranberry! (it also has 1,000 mg's cranberry powder) Yummy stuff, and great if you're feeling like you're getting sick...

Of course I did also bake tollhouse cookies today:)

Sure wish I'd had some sugar tonight instead...

Honey by the spoonfulls (2 spoons usualy) did the trick if I had a bad craving, 13 days gone, 2nd time from sept to dec that I slipped on the 14 day... I said I wouldnt come here tonight because this time I was done with quiting, I also said I'd never drink again 2 weeks ago, I spent the last few days failing, thinking of sotch, brandy, rum and anything i didnt drink regualy, i was even going to buy some off brand beer but came home with my regular 12 pack... ask me how many are left...

:)
In early sobriety my doctor suggested and I followed
an eating plan for hypoglycemia for 6 months.
I consider this helped me immensley with healing.
I also walked daily. Took a Multi and a B12.

I've been sober 20 years ..6 years ago
I was diagnosed as a Type 2 diabetic.
It is a family problem..even with the non drinkers.

I do take 2 daily med's for diabetes and watch my diet
most of the time. I want to share something about
testing your blood sugar leverls
I take mine 2x a day.

Mine vary .swings of 100 points are not unusual.
At first this really upset me....but checking with other sober
diabetics I found this happens with them too
None of us exercise probably a factor re wide swings.

To be accurate about your blood sugar ...a doctor will do
a fasting blood sugar panel with a blood test. Every
3 months a urine test will accurately acess where you
are as well as protien levels.

Plese do see your doctor and be honest about your drinking.
:yup:
I do regularly attend AA non smoking meetings
rarely see sweets there and I don't drink coffee.
No one there cares about anything but how to
recover from alcoholism.

one week out of every month...

it behooves everyone who comes in contact with me

to be certain I have chocolate.

Don't get between me and my chocolate, man.