Holds1325

Anyone experience this during recovery? I'm not talking about the type where you think ugh I have to start this day but the anxiety where you literally dread the day and feel like holing up in your house and not doing a thing.

been about 7 weeks or so since I quit the alcohol and its ever so slightly getting better. I am doing alot to take care of my anxiety, counseling, exercise, eating right, trying to have fun, etc. and it seems like its always in the evening or afternoon that I feel calm and okay although I have slight anxiety about work which is normal, feels normal anyway.

I wake up every morning though and its a different thing, its almost as if I wake up and the first thought that enters my brain is "you're going to PANIC!", its horrible its like my brain can't help it.

Anyone deal with this type of anxiety?

Soberwolf

Yes, I've gotten help in the way of medication & therapy the medicine has helped but tbh the biggest help is SR I've addressed so many things because of the help I've received here it has litrelly changed my life & I'm in a lot better place because of SR

Seeing a Dr really helped aswell sorting out therapy sessions etc keeping my health & my body in check

hpdw

Yes, I know what your talking about "exactly" . I've struggled with this too and the good news is it will pass with time and some work at retraining your thoughts . It has become a subconscious habit and is bewildering when it happens . There are ways to relieve these thoughts and feelings and if I may id like to point you in the direction of Anxiety Attacks - anxietycentre.com

I find the information on anxiety over there the best around the internet .

Of course SR is a goldmine of information too .

Good luck

D122y

All the time.

Morning, noon, and night. New places etc.

..it is a living hell.. but, I am getting used to it..why?

It is my body reacting to normal.

I hate it, but I love it, because I know I am healing.

It gets better every day. Thanks for asking the question.

I haven't seen a Dr though (yet?).....

I come here and get help...no meds...just clean food, drinks, vits, and sleep, sleep..repeat..

Like sober wolf said, this is our recovery center...

D122y

biminiblue

The other thing about first thing in the morning is that cortisol production peaks just before you wake. It's a normal physiological response to being prepared for action (waking.)

In the first few months I had a lot of trouble with this, but in reality it's always been an issue. Early morning with a hangover is worse, lol.

What helped me was to get up and put on happy music right away, and do 50 jumping jacks or pushups, or squats, sit-ups, or any kind of moderate exercise - right away. Takes the edge off and only takes a few minutes.

Just so you know, it completely went away for me at about 10-12 months. Unless I have a disturbing dream, I'm able to transition from sleep to wake without anxiety, and without extreme coping tools.

ScottFromWI

My anxiety is alwasy worst in the morning too. Lots of good suggestions here on how to get through it, my therapy has involved meditation and mindfulness exeercises. Taking a walk or moving around seems to help too.

Holds1325

Retraining the thoughts is tough to do and I have several people helping me with that its great. I guess my next question is how do you retrain the thoughts when you're sleeping :P. It is getting better though, I will say that I no longer have that feeling of jumping out of my bed into a full-blown panic attack. However, I still wake up anxious.

You ever have a therapist that just helps you get rid of the symptoms, blames everything on your past? I need to switch!

sleepie

Hi Holds! I used to start my day with music while I was getting ready. It's something how just that can take you elsewhere when you are preoccupied with things or anxious. Have you ever done that? I still find it to be helpful, when I can remember to do it!

biminiblue

For me the realization that there is a stress hormone being produced at its peak right as I wake was enough to push me to find ways to see it as "readiness" not anxiety. The problem for me was that "readiness" or excitement or excess energy feels like anxiety/fear in the body and my go-to response to fear was to panic: I caused this reaction by the way I viewed the actual physical-body feeling and by the way I treated it.


There is a moment in that wake/readiness/fear cycle where you can break the habit - make a plan for first thing in the morning. If it involves exercise, it will help you. Exercise bleeds off the excess energy and regulates your breathing and heart rate. The trick is to stop the brain from going into that fight/flight reaction to the initial feeling. Start with sitting on the edge of the bed and doing some deep belly breaths when you first wake, that is a great start.

hpdw

Yes ,Ive had a therapist that has you delving into the past and it made me worse . See I never knew if anxiety caused me to drink or drink caused the anxiety !!! I now know that when I drink my body is in a state of sheer panic next day ,cortisol and adrenalin pumping into my body in order to fight or flee , its sheer hell nothing like what is termed a hangover by most . I believe that my binging over the past 5 years or so has caused this imbalance with my adrenals and only time and sobriety will heal . Im eating better , gentle exercise , meditation, better sleep ( which I hope eventually returns ) all help.

Night panics are common and will settle once your body and mind become calmer but it takes time .Just notice the symptoms without judgment and without adding fear ( passive acceptance ) . Even say hello to them , yes speak to the feelings ......" I see your there but I don't mind , I know its only temporary and that's OK " or something like that . This might sound crazy but by doing that you are not adding any more fear because its fear of the feelings that cause more stress hormone to be released and this perpetuates the cycle. In time the symptoms will go .

Holds1325

That sounds like a great plan,

Exercise, breathing and of course music!

Thanks I'll see how it works tommorow morning!

zjw

check out some zen music on youtube or pandora etc.. I find zen music almost too relaxing it really helps calm me down. I always forget about it tho when i'm freaking out.

fishface

I've dealt with anxiety for years and for me it is partially why my drinking spun out of control. I started self medicating and although I was killing myself, it did help relieve my anxiety.

But when I stopped drinking (I'm 7 weeks today) my anxiety skyrocketed. Old triggers that hadn't bothered me for years were suddenly causing panic attacks again. Having read up on this, I truly believe it's the brain "rewiring" and getting the GABA levels back under control.

Although my anxiety is more sporadic and triggered by events, I have noticed that it's getting a little bit calmer each day for me. Hopefully that is the same for you and you will be feeling better as time goes on.

Holds1325

Almost slipped up last night and had a drink! I didn't though I stuck in there and just ended up going to bed,

However I realize that is a red flag now and I should've contacted somebody or did something but I woke up way earlier than usual and almost went into a full blown panic attack. I had a nightmare (again) and woke up extremely nervous, heart rate going, hands feeling weak, wanting to jump out of bed and react. I breathed through it and it did go away (the panic feeling). I tried doing stretches and listening to music and it might've helped I'm not sure. All I know is that the anxious feeling is sticking with me.

ScottFromWI

Have you considered seeing a counselor/therapist? My anxiety at the end of my drinking was off the charts. I can remember simply pacing the halls of my house because I couldn't calm down. It definitely improved with sober time,but never completely went away. Turns out I've probably had an anxiety issue my whole life, and now I'm finally dealing with it properly, rather than running away from it to a can of beer.

biminiblue

The nightmares have almost completely stopped for me. I can't tell you the last time I had a bad dream - I used to have them all the time.

It's good that you started the breathing and music and stretching. Keep practicing the breathing: deep breaths whenever you feel anxious. Part of the fight or flight response is shallow breathing, and it makes anxiety worse.

Here is a good article about shallow breathing on an anxiety website.

It was mentioned to you yesterday that meditation is helpful, and I found that to be true as well. When I was drinking, I did a lot of damage to my brain and nervous system. It takes time. Hang on.

Continuous sobriety is the cure and it is so worth it.

Holds1325

Yes I was getting counseling and all the therapist did was have me put in psychiatric for awhile which sorta helped me realize I'm not crazy but didn't change anything. All this therapist wants to do is delve into my past and diagnose me with something which only makes things worse. I feel like its beside the point and I keep telling her, this is all in my head I know it! this stuff isn't helping.

Anyway for now I'm talking to my pastor and his wife regularly which actually helps a ton because they have gone through exactly what I'm going through. I come away from those talks with tips on retraining my thoughts, routines on helping me get over the panic/anxiety etc.

The article really helps biminiblue with the breathing, could explain why when I do start the deep breathing I get super lightheaded.

I have about 50 days or so sober and hopefully this will pass with time. It is getting slightly better though it seems as if the times of feeling normal are starting to last a little longer. At first it was like 2 days then 5 days of despair, then slowly getting to 3, then now its 4 so I do see some change, I just always get worried its going to slam back down again.

Thanks for your help.

hpdw

I hope your anxiety lessens with time . In my experience psychiatrists are not good at helping anxiety as all they did was hand out pills . psychologists have better techniques . I've been plagued with anxiety/panic for years on and off .
The last year has been really bad due to binge drinking but now that i,m here Im slowly healing . 10 days ago I was a mess .
Got a psychologist appointment in a few weeks .

Glad you didn't drink

Soberwolf

Glad your with us Holds