mental health after I quit drinking
 

Hello everyone,
I am new here but I have been drinking for about 4 years now...
I developed depersonalization after smoking weed a little over 4 years ago. I was completely sober from weed and alcohol for 6 months then started drinking to help with what i was going through.
Anyways Ive been drinking everyday for most of those 4 years and only stopped for a month last year, and then recently from 12/1/2016 to 12/28/2106. towards the end of my drinking I was at about a pint a night but never drinking during the day. I have still had depersonalization this whole time and some anxiety these 4 years, but even when I quit last month I didnt have such severe anxiety and or depression. Well 12/28/2106 I started drinking again up to 1/5/2017 where I was doing heavy drinking all day and all night pretty much none stop. The last 2 days of my drinking I was basically sleeping all day and night only to wake up to take shots of alcohol. Then 1/5/2016 i went to the ER after waking up from a black out with a major panic attack and still drunk...Turns out I could have died if I didnt go to the hospital due to severe dehydration and other problems due to the booze..So now to my concern..Is it normal for me to still feel soo anxious and depressed and my head so out of wack 4 days after I stopped (this is day 4 sober)? Since other times I quit I didnt experience this intense anxiety? Is it because I drank so much all day and night with no breaks that my brain is taking so long to recover? Sorry If I haven't composed this so well, im just needing opinions of people in hopes of that someone can tell me my brain will eventually go back to not being so anxious and depressed.

I can not tell your for certain if your brain will go back to not being so anxious, but I'm pretty sure it will. It is very normal for it to take a while to "normalize" your mind and body after a heavy bout of drinking. The tough part is getting through a week or two so you can start to feel normal again. Other people will be along to offer their advice.

If possible, I advise trying to eat at regular intervals and drink Gatorade or something that will help restore your electrolytes.

Hi khyzer35, welcome and congratulations on 4 days, that is wonderful.
Alcoholism is a progressive problem.
The anxiety and depression are quite normal symptoms for many of us. Many mental health problems will simply resolve themselves once we stop drinking. However, some can still be present long after we quit drinking and need to be addressed.
It is important you stop drinking and drugging for several months to allow the mental health specialists make an accurate diagnosis. Take care.

I heard the other day that the number one symptom of alcoholism is depression, drunk or sober. Probably closely followed by anxiety. It is normal for alcoholics, especially in the first we while of sobriety. I couldn't have been more miserable, depressed and fearful when I sobered up.

However, I got into a program of recovery and it did not take too long for those symptoms to leave and be replaced by a sense of purpose and a feeling I was on the right track.

A small percentage of alcoholics have coexisting conditions which may continue to manifest after the alcohol has gone from the picture, and progress he's beeen made in recovery. With the alcohol gone it is much easier for the professionals to treat other disorders because the symptoms can be more easily seen, and of course the subject is more likely to follow directions with a clear head.

So yes it is normal and the problem may vanish if your alcoholism is treated. If it doesn't, it is wise to consult a professional.

During withdrawals after a five day relapse I had a completely new symptom I hadn't experienced before... My brain felt like it was acting at half speed. This really worried me because I have heard about people getting wet brained... I couldn't formulate sentences well or access words to finish sentences. I'm thankful this faded over the next week. I suppose my point is withdrawal symptoms vary widely. I'm glad you got medical attention initially. If the issue continues to worry you, definitely see a doc about it.

I drank beer and a lot of coffee and the next day more beer I had the opposite thing happen. I drank so much my sodium was so low I was hospitalized and could of died. It shook me up pretty bad. I felt better as more time passed over a week.

when i sobered up i went through a depersonalization / derealization phase for months? in and out of it. it was scary at first but then I figured it was my brains way of protecting me from the sobering scary shock of reality and that it was ok. In time it got better. I acutally miss the depersonalization / derealization stuff and sometimes will slip back into it here and there.

For me it felt like i was watching my life take palce as a play as if i was sitting on the outside looking in. it was a lot less scary from that perspective.

Hi! I can't give a medical opinion bit I can say with a fair amount of certainty daily drinking at high levels will make your mental health worse. Because it does. Statistically, heavy drinking affects mental health negatively.

P

Anxiety is very common in withdrawal - I also think it's pretty normal to feel anxious if you went to the hospital a few days ago and they told you could have died.

How long it might last depends on a lot of factors - like if you were anxious in the years before you started drinking, or whether this is a new thing that's happened recently.

If you're finding it debilitating I really recommend you see your own Dr. - they may be able to help at put you at ease :)

D

I am slowly but surely starting to feel a little better, I guess I have to give it more time and see how it goes. This has been a very frightening experience one for me..hopefully enough to scare me sober for good! Thank you all for taking time out of your day to respond to me, it means a lot!