littlewheel2

Hi All,

I was up to a bottle and 3/4 of red wine a night, every night. To black out point and oblivion. I'd wake up through the night hearing my heart pounding in my ears and heart bursting out of my chest and the feeling of total dehydration. My tongue the color and texture of jerky. Very very bad.

Made it through withdrawal this past weekend somehow. The first 3 days are done. So glad! That's the first (Do you think hardest?) part out of the way.

The weekend withdrawal was pretty bad and worst of all my internet crashed! Nearly lost my mind: No SR = Awful. I just kept thinking that you are all still out there kicking on sober and that is the proof it can be done, by more than a few people.

Feel pretty low this morning. Why would I be nauseous on the fourth alcohol-free morning? What is that about? Does the nausea go on forever?

Also, I start to cry at the drop of a hat? When will my emotions even out?

Food tastes like cardboard, but I'm consciously shovelling it down every couple of hours even if not quite hungry yet to stave off that bad bad
sugar-crash-empty-craving-grabadrinkquick-feeling that has blasted me out of the water before on quit attempts. I am determined not to let it happen this time.

Any advice on which foods help? I'm carrying around bananas, oranges and walnuts. Drinking 3 litres of water a day, and gobbling vitamins (esp B complex)...making sure I have breakfast, lunch and dinner (no junk food).

I'm withdrawing on my own: my doctor recommended no meds as they are also addictive to the same regions of the brain as alcohol. It's hard, but I can see myself just switching from alcohol to pills which would be bad.

I am reluctant to go to AA (yet) as I think I can do this on my own if I have a proper plan and stick to it...I'd rather not be around people, as I am always the "listener/support person/mother type" in social situations; which is also something that will drag me down and wreck me in my current raw state.

I just can't be around people...Work is going to be trial enough (it's Monday here now...I've got a week of work ahead)...Did anyone else have this feeling of just wanting to go into their cave for a month?

My heart-rate/thumping out of my chest heart has slowed to normal today thankfully. My plan now is to start exercising today as I know this will help with mood and sleep...maybe half an hour on the treadmill would be a good start?

How much exercise do other sober-types do every day? (there's alot of spare time now that my head is out of the toilet bowl and I'm not sleeping off a binge)...

Please let me know if it's true that I am over the worst: i.e. physical withdrawal, the first 3 days?



LW

BobGT

Hi lw2,

I've been where you are way too many times so I'm not going to offer any "how to" tips. But your food and vitamin plan seems good to me. I always seem to want protein, like a steak or hamburger after drinking, but that may just be a personal preference.

On the 3 day question, I usually start to feel "somewhat normal" on the 3rd day and as normal as I can be, lol, on day 4.

Hope that helps and best wishes. Other people here can give you some good advice.

Ghostly

Hey Wheel - This is my first time going sober...the first few days were actually ok for me except the sleep. I'm 30 + now and still ok, have some cravings though.

I too chose to do this without AA, just a personal choice for now. I do like your idea of exercise, there will be a lot more time for it now. When I woke up without alcohol in me it gave me a extra time for a lot of stuff. I think that will def help with your mood and sleep. I also cut back on caffeine big time, and usually won't have any past noon, if even that late.

Hang in there. You're doin great. I'm sure someone will answer you about withdrawls, for whatever reason that wasn't too bad for me.

littlewheel2

Thanks you guys!

I found the "What to expect" Sticky just this morning and it has alot of my answers. Glad to be back online today!

I read that the nausea is due to acetaldehyde...which must still be getting flushed out of my system...scary: google the word "acetaldehyde" and it's a pretty freaky chemical to have anywhere near you...yuk!

Thanks again!

LW

topspin

Hi LW and welcome to SR !!

This site has been a lifesaver for me on several different levels the past 6 weeks. ---as I'm just now beginning to realize.

I'm not really the biggest fan (certainly no critic either ! ) of AA, ....but , I did (and do ) find it really helpful to be around some people with a common purpose. It helps me not to isolate, for one , and two; it helps me to put my recovery efforts in perspective. Meetings usually leave me feeling lighthearted ( and I have a pretty lighthearted personality anyway ) Thank goodness, there are absolutely no expectations for the newcomers to say anything , unless; of course, they feel like it.

My W/D's lasted around 11 days, ......so please be patient . Sounds like you have a great attitude already on what you consider "healthy "

Should serve you well these next days ahead

topspin

Hi LW and welcome to SR !!

Oops , must've hit the wrong button .