Senorita

I thought that I was supposed to get smarter from quitting drinking? Lately I can barely form a sentence. It is the strangest thing. Not once and awhile, but all day long. This is a little over two weeks into sobriety. Please tell me this will pass, my boss is starting to look at me funny. I feel like I should put a shot in my coffee to function (I won't but I will do anything to fix this situation).

Is this like,,, my mind is so clear that there is nothing left in it??

Dee74

I was a bit foggy headed for a while senorita - if you're like me you gave your mind and body quite a workout when drinking - it can take a few weeks, but it does lift...

D

nandm

Dee said it better than I could have said it myself. Be patient with yourself. Your mind and body have much healing to do.

MycoolFitz

For the first couple of weeks of sobriety I sometimes couldn't recall names of people I knew well, it was either the fog as Dee says or dysnomia. It got better or I could be delusional. When your boss looks at you funny look back at him like can't you understand simple English? Or not.

wheresthefun

I'm feeling the exact same way. I was never a good speller, now I can barely spell "the" (I have a spell checker running constantly).

I find it funny, because I know it'll clear up in time, but yes I feel my IQ has fallen to a single digit.

Boleo

I'm no doctor but I found that a good vitamin B supplement such as B-Complex or Balanced-B50 made a big difference in my first weeks of recovery.

Also check to see if you see anything of yourself here:

Post Acute Withdrawl - Relapse Prevention Specialists - TLC The Living Center

Reset

It happened to me too, and lasted for more than a few weeks. But it does go away eventually. Hang in there.

Hevyn

Add me to the list, senorita. It lasted longer for me, too - a few months even. I was very disoriented. It does go away, as everyone said. Then look out world - you'll be sharper than ever.

bellakeller

Me too. I thought it was permanent brain damage due to my drinking but it went away. Mine took 6 months.

bmwcycle

Yup! same here

tooling

I was a C student before I drank and a C student after I quit. Such is life. And here I thought I was getting smarter while I drank.

Muunray

When I first quit drinking, I had difficulty finding words at times, and difficulty processing at times, and definately not as sharp as I should be. It was scarey and embarrassing. I worried I would lose my job.
It has taken me a while, but I continue to improve every day. But what do I expect after abusing myself for so long?!
Hang in there!

indakut

I this was just happening to me. I am still going through this phase. It is getting better but it is annoying to say the least.

Guess we just have to hang in there Senorita

TwelveSteps

Google "post acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS)". It may be what some of you are experiencing.

GG

Peter G

Can't remember who and it's laborious scrolling up from my phone - but I will add that whoever mentioned vitamin B in it's various forms is spot on. It really helped me with the foggy brain early in recovery.

MrDavid

Those hazy pastures that seem to fog your memory will eventually become clear once again. All you have to do is give time, time and recovery that much more. Both of which will benefit you for years to come, guaranteed.

~God bless~

Senorita

Wow thanks everyone, this is encouraging news. I was beginning to think that maybe I was actually this absent minded and the alcohol actually helped. It is so so frustrating.... one of my most dreaded words is "time". When I lost much of my family to cancer, I used to call it "the four letter word" because everyone would say 'it just takes time to get over'. Thanks again!!!

Peter

I became very forgetful when i got sober.
When i was drunk I never once locked myself out of my house or car but somehow in recovery it became a regular occruance ....