kmae89

Hi, I was just wondering what your worst withdrawal symptoms were??

DisplacedGRITS

Seizure in bed while my husband slept beside me. I stayed up all night after that fearing that if I slept my husband would wake up to a dead wife. Did that stop me from drinking? Nope! Even that fear wasn't enough for me.

Dollyangel17

Thankfully, I didn't really have any. The only recognizable physical change was that I had to go to the bathroom constantly. I was nervous I had a bladder infection or something, but then after a few days that went away. That's pretty much it for me.

I guess I am a lucky one.

akashamisi

Insomnia is the worst for me..when I can't get comfortable I can't sleep..when I can't sleep I can't function!!

SNST

It was all bad IMO, but the restless legs were agonizing

Mrbeagle

The anxiety, good lord the anxiety. What I'd give to just be able to chill out for even 5 mins.

Coming up to the end of detox day 1, never again

ScottFromWI

I ended up in the ER once. Fortunately I was fine and walked out the door.

Why do you ask - are you experiencing some or contemplating quitting drinking?

LazyBonez

hot/cold sweats, restless legs (i don't just get RLS, I get it in my whole body), shaking, anxiety, depression, insomnia, stomach pain, vomiting.

luckily never had a seizure, or else that would certainly top the list.

LDT

Atrial Fibrillation was my worst withdrawal symptom. It was torture. Thank God I will never have to go through that again.

pattyj

All of the above lasted for a week or two for me.
But I continued to not feel comfortable in my own skin for almost two months. It's hard to explain but once you feel it you will know what I am talking about. It was like I just needed to jump out of my skin, very different from anything that I had every experienced before.
I still get super tired some days.
Sugar cravings were super bad in the beginning and I went through a pint of ice cream a day but now it's just a lollipop or two a day.
I had lots of bowel movements through out the first few days and now I have very regular ones. It's like my body is cleaning itself out.
My face has exploded in zits. I have never had bad breakouts until I quit drinking. My liver is able to function properly now and it's trying to rid myself of all the toxins.
Weird things happen when you get sober and continue to do so for months.
I also felt like my brain was extra foggy when I first got sober. I drank a ton of pomegrante juice and took green tea supplements. Your brain is trying to heal as well.
What are you experiencing??

Sinderos

For me it's the night sweats, anxiety and mental fog. The nausea is tolerable.

least

For me the overwhelming anxiety was the worst. Couldn't sit still, constantly pacing the house, thoughts going a million miles an hour... Glad I never have to feel that again.

MIRecovery

The worst alcohol withdrawal symptom is death. That is why it is highly recommended to see a doctor before attempting alcohol cessation

ImperfectlyMe

Realizing i was an alcoholic!!!!!

Ethos23

ANXIETY. That was the absolute worst. It was absolutely debilitating and completely consumed all of my attention. I could not focus on anything else. It was horrible. I really would not wish it on any human.

joygirl

Overwhelming anxiety... which caused a near mental breakdown.
The first few weeks I definitely wanted to jump out of my skin. Totally get that!

kmae89

I successfully went through detox about a month or so ago. Well, I am young, 23 years old and I started going out with my friends again, but definitely slowed down my drinking. But I drank all wknd this past weekend and I feel like i'm back to square one.

My withdrawal symptoms are shaky, feeling shaky inside as well(if that makes sense) I get so nervous and sometimes can't even look at someone without panicking. But the worst symptoms I had was when I was in detox. I was shaking all over, restless, EXTREMELY anxious(and I already have GAD, and panic) twitchy, can't concentrate, racing thoughts, sometimes intrusive thoughts to be honest.

This time however, they are bearable, but I know I need to slow down even more. After this past wknd, I woke up today restless, shaky, can't concentrate, anxious, nervous, and nauseaus. This isn't nearly as bad as it was when I was admitted into detox.

I know I have an alcohol problem, i'm young and I would like to go out with friends every once and awhile.

AnotherPaul

Fully body shakes, as if I'd just been pulled out of the Arctic sea, loss of balance and hand coordination, covered in sweat, nausea and no appetite. This was all within about half a day of the last drink. I have no doubt that without several days worth of Librium I'd have been in some real trouble. The Librium killed off most of the symptoms, except for insomnia and night sweats, which passed within a few days.

CharlieNoogan

I'm fairly certain I had a seizure two or three days into detox. I don't know for sure because I was alone and as far as I know, I'd never experienced a seizure before. All I know is I was watching a television program, dealing with all of the other withdrawal symptoms, and I "lost" about 20 minutes of time. Basically I came-to and had muscle soreness all over my entire body. Very scary.

If I had to do it over again, which I pray I don't, I would detox under medical supervision.

Apart from that, withdrawal usually meant a day or two of continuous vomiting and inability to keep any solids or liquids down for more than 15 minutes. Coupled with extreme anxiety. I'm so glad I never have to go through that crap again.

exponential

When I was drinking every day I had anxiety and brain fog every morning, until I could get my hands on a drink, which I suppose was a type of withdrawal. In actual detox I didn't have any physical withdrawal symptoms, and as time went on and I adapted to sobriety, the residual anxiety mostly faded away. In subsequent years with the relapse/abstain cycle I have continued to have no physical withdrawal (no shakes, seizures, etc.), but the hangovers after even moderate drinking have become excruciating -- about 36 hours of feeling like I have been poisoned.