1 year of drinking then quitting. Things DO get better!
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1
1 year of drinking then quitting. Things DO get better!
I'd like to just make a post to tell my story and maybe give some encouragement to people!
I was a heavy drinker for 1 year. I was drinking "socially" at bars and clubs and I thought this was just normal behavior... the kind of stuff young people should do. But I was getting hammered about 5 nights a week, drinking up to 15 or 20 drinks a night.
I started to notice I was feeling depressed, anxious and irritable all the time, and I couldn't understand WHY I had these horrible symptoms. I'd also have nightmares and terrifying sleep paralysis. Sometimes I'd have hallucinations right before falling asleep. I didn't realize until later, after researching online, that I was having alcohol withdrawals on the nights that I didn't drink.
I would feel irritable or anxious when I wasn't drinking so I'd drink some beers to "relax myself". It was a vicious cycle but I didn't realize that it was the alcohol that was actually CAUSING these negative symptoms in the first place. Once that finally clicked I knew I had to give up the drink to cure myself.
My timeline of quitting went like this:
Day 1-3 insomnia, sleep paralysis, night terrors, hallucinations, horrible anxiety. This stage was awful! I used some Valium to help me through these days.
Day 4-7 the sleep paralysis finally stopped. Thank god. But I still wasn't sleeping well and still had severe anxiety.
Day 8-14 I was finally managing to sleep well. It felt good to get a rest but I was quite depressed. The anxiety was getting better but still there.
Day 15 It was around this day I had a breakthrough. For the first time I was actually cheerful: happy and joking around with people. Feeling naturally happy. Feeling "normal" again. I had been eating better and taking b vitamins which I'm sure helped.
Day 16-22 Anxiety is pretty much GONE. I had started reading, and taking up new hobbies. Alcohol cravings were pretty much gone. I was feeling really good. How I felt before I started drinking.
Day 23 A MISTAKE - I thought "hey, I'm not an alcoholic anymore, I can drink once in a while, just like normal people do. Plus I've had a 3 week break to recharge my brain".
Well I got drunk that night and the next day all the horrible symptoms came right back (anxiety, irritability, depression). I felt like garbage for a whole week.
I guess this is the "kindling" effect I've read about. It kind of sucks that I might not be able to ever drink occasionally like a "normal person" again, because a week long hangover after drinking a 6 pack of beer just isn't worth it.
So I'd like to say to forum members who are quitting to hang in there. Things WILL get better with ABSTINENCE. With enough TIME, good diet, and supplements your brain will heal, and all those horrible mental symptoms will lift.
I was a heavy drinker for 1 year. I was drinking "socially" at bars and clubs and I thought this was just normal behavior... the kind of stuff young people should do. But I was getting hammered about 5 nights a week, drinking up to 15 or 20 drinks a night.
I started to notice I was feeling depressed, anxious and irritable all the time, and I couldn't understand WHY I had these horrible symptoms. I'd also have nightmares and terrifying sleep paralysis. Sometimes I'd have hallucinations right before falling asleep. I didn't realize until later, after researching online, that I was having alcohol withdrawals on the nights that I didn't drink.
I would feel irritable or anxious when I wasn't drinking so I'd drink some beers to "relax myself". It was a vicious cycle but I didn't realize that it was the alcohol that was actually CAUSING these negative symptoms in the first place. Once that finally clicked I knew I had to give up the drink to cure myself.
My timeline of quitting went like this:
Day 1-3 insomnia, sleep paralysis, night terrors, hallucinations, horrible anxiety. This stage was awful! I used some Valium to help me through these days.
Day 4-7 the sleep paralysis finally stopped. Thank god. But I still wasn't sleeping well and still had severe anxiety.
Day 8-14 I was finally managing to sleep well. It felt good to get a rest but I was quite depressed. The anxiety was getting better but still there.
Day 15 It was around this day I had a breakthrough. For the first time I was actually cheerful: happy and joking around with people. Feeling naturally happy. Feeling "normal" again. I had been eating better and taking b vitamins which I'm sure helped.
Day 16-22 Anxiety is pretty much GONE. I had started reading, and taking up new hobbies. Alcohol cravings were pretty much gone. I was feeling really good. How I felt before I started drinking.
Day 23 A MISTAKE - I thought "hey, I'm not an alcoholic anymore, I can drink once in a while, just like normal people do. Plus I've had a 3 week break to recharge my brain".
Well I got drunk that night and the next day all the horrible symptoms came right back (anxiety, irritability, depression). I felt like garbage for a whole week.
I guess this is the "kindling" effect I've read about. It kind of sucks that I might not be able to ever drink occasionally like a "normal person" again, because a week long hangover after drinking a 6 pack of beer just isn't worth it.
So I'd like to say to forum members who are quitting to hang in there. Things WILL get better with ABSTINENCE. With enough TIME, good diet, and supplements your brain will heal, and all those horrible mental symptoms will lift.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Northern CA
Posts: 19
Thank you for posting this. I can relate to your story so much. I decided to quit drinking due to many of the things you mentioned...I was sober for 2 weeks and was feeling GREAT! I figured, hey, I can have "just one" right? Wrong! I drank a ton of wine last night, and all the physical and emotion symptoms came right back. The whole drinking experience wasn't even enjoyable. I'm now more dedicated than ever...good luck to you! We can do this 
Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 5,937
Welcome! Nice to have you here, Joopy! I agree with you, it gets better. I'm creeping up on 11 months and things are better than I could have imagined. I'm even starting to find another me that was hidden under the raging-drunk-me.
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