Can you have paws from just weekend binging
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Join Date: Jun 2009
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Can you have paws from just weekend binging
I drank a 12 pack of coors light or 350ml of vodka every saturday night for the last 8 years. I believe alcohol is the root of all my anxiety problems so I am trying to quit. I am on day 54 of sobriety this time around. I am suffering from some serious brain fog, memory problems, bad anxiety and panic attacks after quitting his time. Last time I made it to 90 days before breaking down for 5 weeks before getting back on the wagon but I don't remember having this bad of symptoms before. I guess I am withdrawing all over again. I was wondering if it is possible that I am suffering from PAWS even though I drank heavily only once a week. My doc says no and blames anxiety but he has never been through alcohol problems either.
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Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Toronto, ON
Posts: 1,591
Wish, I don't have a medical opinion on this that I can share. I also don't know if you are dealing with alcohol addiction, but it could be. I do think it is a myth that one is not an alcoholic by drinking on a weekend - or "infrequently." Alcoholism knows more than one rhythm style; it's about the relationship with alcohol, why it is put in the body, not when.
There have been posts recently about recurrent "relapses" becoming worse each time around for some people, I don't know if you have found those.
Do you think you can look into finding out what a different doctor thinks about these symptoms you are having? They might have something else to say about the anxiety issue too.
There have been posts recently about recurrent "relapses" becoming worse each time around for some people, I don't know if you have found those.
Do you think you can look into finding out what a different doctor thinks about these symptoms you are having? They might have something else to say about the anxiety issue too.
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Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Back in the USA
Posts: 2,661
Wish,
I am thoroughly convinced it probably is the bingeing. I used to do it. Yeah, every weekend I would tell myself......let my body recuperate thru the week....
Yeah, right. Works for some, not for me.
Long after drinking Im still dealing with anxiety. It just takes time to get used to not drinking.
Intro
I am thoroughly convinced it probably is the bingeing. I used to do it. Yeah, every weekend I would tell myself......let my body recuperate thru the week....
Yeah, right. Works for some, not for me.
Long after drinking Im still dealing with anxiety. It just takes time to get used to not drinking.
Intro
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Posts: 343
I guess I am withdrawing all over again. I was wondering if it is possible that I am suffering from PAWS even though I drank heavily only once a week. My doc says no and blames anxiety but he has never been through alcohol problems either.[/QUOTE]
I was also a week-end drinker: Felt lousy on Monday, a little better on Tuesday, and I was healed by Wednesday. Come Friday, well I was so "well" that I did it all over again. Even though it was just 2-3 nights/week, I did some damage, and my nervous system had to repair itself. But the physiology is not all there is to PAWS: There is the stress of learning to cope without alcohol. I had memory loss, free-floating anxiety, occasional meltdowns...all of those things.
I was also a week-end drinker: Felt lousy on Monday, a little better on Tuesday, and I was healed by Wednesday. Come Friday, well I was so "well" that I did it all over again. Even though it was just 2-3 nights/week, I did some damage, and my nervous system had to repair itself. But the physiology is not all there is to PAWS: There is the stress of learning to cope without alcohol. I had memory loss, free-floating anxiety, occasional meltdowns...all of those things.
Forward we go...side by side-Rest In Peace
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Serene In Dixie
Posts: 36,740
Hmm....
here is the PAWs info....perhaps it will give you facts
Post Acute Withdrawl - Relapse Prevention Specialists - TLC The Living Center
I know by the end of 2 months of AA recovery
I was back in balance physically and mentally.
Well done on your sober time...
here is the PAWs info....perhaps it will give you facts
Post Acute Withdrawl - Relapse Prevention Specialists - TLC The Living Center
I know by the end of 2 months of AA recovery
I was back in balance physically and mentally.
Well done on your sober time...
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 107
I was a daily drinker for several years. The immediate withdrawl/recovery was pretty intense, but PAW is post acute withdrawal. I am almost 6 months sober and still have symptoms from time to time.
Please don't misunderstand - I am very happy in recovery and have a quality of life I didn't imagine possible. I work a 12 step program and did find that once I completed the steps that the promises did, and continue, to come true for me.
However I went through a phase around 90 days sober. I actually get physically clumsy, trip over my words and say silly things, etc. I had a bit of depression for a week or so in December. I just kept using the tools that worked for me before - didn't pick up - and it passed. I mention this because if it only had to do with how often I drank, I am not sure why that would impact me this far out.
I still get strange symptoms from time to time, but less severe. I've heard it can reappear just before anniversarys - 90 days, 60 months, 1 year, etc.
Best of luck to you.
Please don't misunderstand - I am very happy in recovery and have a quality of life I didn't imagine possible. I work a 12 step program and did find that once I completed the steps that the promises did, and continue, to come true for me.
However I went through a phase around 90 days sober. I actually get physically clumsy, trip over my words and say silly things, etc. I had a bit of depression for a week or so in December. I just kept using the tools that worked for me before - didn't pick up - and it passed. I mention this because if it only had to do with how often I drank, I am not sure why that would impact me this far out.
I still get strange symptoms from time to time, but less severe. I've heard it can reappear just before anniversarys - 90 days, 60 months, 1 year, etc.
Best of luck to you.
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Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 8
I really wish I would have quit drinking years ago when I started having my problems and I might be over this crap by now. I knew I had a drinking problem but just never thought I was drinking enough days a week to hurt me. I would begin craving in the middle of the week and once I got started drinking I just couldn't stop until I was hammered. I even see symptoms of an addict because I would freak out and get mad if I couldn't have my Saturday night binge. I have friends that drink about 2-3 beers a day with no problems but I guess its the binging that causes the neurological damage and anxiety problems.
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: London, UK
Posts: 92
Originally Posted by wishmaster1980 
I really wish I would have quit drinking years ago when I started having my problems and I might be over this crap by now. I knew I had a drinking problem but just never thought I was drinking enough days a week to hurt me. I would begin craving in the middle of the week and once I got started drinking I just couldn't stop until I was hammered. I even see symptoms of an addict because I would freak out and get mad if I couldn't have my Saturday night binge. I have friends that drink about 2-3 beers a day with no problems but I guess its the binging that causes the neurological damage and anxiety problems.
For example I once went on holiday and drank every day for 2 weeks but then went 2 weeks without and didn't notice. However because I've now drank so regularly for so many years that addiction is there now no matter what I do. I had 2 months off and within days of relapsing I was back on a regular schedule which was too often.
This is what's happened to you I think, you've drank too regularly and now your brain won't let you enjoy it as a regular person. There's only one solution for me and that's to go without permanently. It sounds awful but it's got to be done. Maybe you're on a similar path...
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Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 7
I believe the answer is yes. I was a weekend binge drinker as well. When I quit I went through similar issues, and they lasted a lot longer than I expected. I definitely experienced physical withdrawal, including extreme anxiety and mini panic attacks after week one, and the worst lasted about 3-4 weeks, but some anxiety persisted much longer. Whether you are a daily drinker or a weekender, I believe your body becomes accustomed to it, and when it is taken away, it reacts accordingly.
I think withdrawals may be more extended for someone who drinks heavily once or twice a week. Most say the worst of alcohol withdrawals is over in 3 or 4 days. For me it was 3 or 4 weeks. Almost like one week of sobriety = one day of sobriety for a daily drinker when it comes to withdrawals. That's how it felt to me. There is no doubt that your body and mind became accustomed to your 8 years of drinking only on Saturday. Your body knows your schedule.
I also read that binge drinking and withdrawing over and over again creates a "kindling" effect. Do a google search on "alcohol kindling". It means that repeated withdrawals over and over get worse over time. So in that sense being a weekender may be worse than a daily drinker, b/c you have gone through many many mini-withdrawals over the past 8 years.
I think withdrawals may be more extended for someone who drinks heavily once or twice a week. Most say the worst of alcohol withdrawals is over in 3 or 4 days. For me it was 3 or 4 weeks. Almost like one week of sobriety = one day of sobriety for a daily drinker when it comes to withdrawals. That's how it felt to me. There is no doubt that your body and mind became accustomed to your 8 years of drinking only on Saturday. Your body knows your schedule.
I also read that binge drinking and withdrawing over and over again creates a "kindling" effect. Do a google search on "alcohol kindling". It means that repeated withdrawals over and over get worse over time. So in that sense being a weekender may be worse than a daily drinker, b/c you have gone through many many mini-withdrawals over the past 8 years.
Originally Posted by wishmaster1980
I drank a 12 pack of coors light or 350ml of vodka every saturday night for the last 8 years. I believe alcohol is the root of all my anxiety problems so I am trying to quit. I am on day 54 of sobriety this time around. I am suffering from some serious brain fog, memory problems, bad anxiety and panic attacks after quitting his time. Last time I made it to 90 days before breaking down for 5 weeks before getting back on the wagon but I don't remember having this bad of symptoms before. I guess I am withdrawing all over again. I was wondering if it is possible that I am suffering from PAWS even though I drank heavily only once a week. My doc says no and blames anxiety but he has never been through alcohol problems either.
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Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 4,682
Jeez im glad i didn't read that PAW thing when i first got sober!
It took me a couple of months to get back in working order through AA...mind you i did do a lot of work in that time on the steps...and i was an everyday drinker.
It took me a couple of months to get back in working order through AA...mind you i did do a lot of work in that time on the steps...and i was an everyday drinker.
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