alphaomega

While I do feel that I am a highly,sensitive person by nature, the years of alcohol abuse messed with my brain circuits to such a degree that I rewired it to an almost permanent state of anxiety. It only gets worse also. Last time I seriously quit two years ago, I was in a much more balanced state that allowed me to return to almost normal within a month. This quit, has taken far longer. Far far FAR longer.

I know that if I have another slip, it will actually render me totally agoraphobic and with seizures.

There won't be a next time.

NorCaliGal

This decribes my experience too. Thankfully sobriety makes this go away!

NCG

zjw

I recall feeling like iw as talking in circles and no one would listen to me. the anxiety and panic where unbearable. I had tried everything short of meds to get rid of em. One day i read an article about alcohol causing it. I thought how can that be i've drank for years with no issues this cant be possible! I also new other people who drank with no issues if it cause panic how come they didnt all have panic? I also new a couple folks tho who drank that did have panic. As a last ditch effort i figured i'd quit alcohol for a bit and see if it would help. but I new i had to give it a fair shot the more i read the more i realized it was causing me a lot of problems this helped me stay sober but it was not easy in the begining. now the panic and anxiety is practicly gone i have my moments but its much more manageable.

Galactus

Everyone is crazy, everyone thinks I am crazy and they believe I am the worst ever, I must be crazy , am I crazy, they know I am a waste, they all wish I was dead,

That's just the tip of the iceberg of how I felt (somewhat still feel but it's less and less each day as I start to add the days I feel that I am doing the right thing and feeling better)

Alcohol is the biggest liar.

needtostopthis

Wow thank you all. You have no idea how happy I was to get up this morning and see all these responses. Although not so happy we all have dealt with this. Glad to know this will go away. This is what is going to keep me sober this time. Knowing I can feel normal again. I live in panic all the time these days.

Aellyce

Yes ~constant anxiety and frequent panic attacks. Especially at night... I think I'm prone to anxiety by default (w/o drinking, I started to drink a long time ago to self-medicate this). But drinking has made it much worse for me over the years. Even when I go w/o alcohol for one day, I notice a big difference.

Ptcapote

Yep, the panic and anxiety also were the main factors in making me stop and keeping me stopped. I also understand the death obsession thing. I was never, even in my most morbid moments, suicidal. Just wasn't part of my makeup.

By the end, however? I wanted to die just to get away from myself and my racing mind. Anything, anything to make it stop. Alcohol would only work for shorter and shorter amounts of time at keeping the anxiety at bay and I would need to drink earlier and earlier in the day to stop a full blown panic attack. I began to realize that, at the rate I was going, I would soon be drinking around the clock.

I got very close to that.

Since I quit? Virtually no anxiety and certainly no suicidal thoughts.

I can't imagine how I lived that way for as long as I did.

And I have no plans to revisit it either. Quitting drinking is the best decision I have ever made. I think you'll find that to be true as well.

Take good care of you and thanks for the post!