KatieA

Okay, so caved after 6 days sober the first time when my "friend" told me "can't stand to see you like this" and made me a drink. I got back up and have now been sober for 8 days. I feel better, but I'm also kind og grieving, I feel like I will never get to have fun again.
I'm taking fluoxetine and seroquel for the night, which helps. But I need like 11-12 hours to feel rested! Anyone else had this problem? I have lots of nightmares. I'm very behind with work, because of the fatigue.

Katie

seahorse661

It took me about a month for the lethargy to reduce and to feel rested after sleeping, so hang in.

As for your friend, I guess you know what to do

RevivingOphelia

For about 6 to 8 weeks, I was utterly exhausted. It DOES pass. The thing is, I'd rather be tired b/c of the recovery process than wake up with a soul-crushing hangover.

Hang in there--your body is restoring itself with sleep.

anchorbird

Yes, I was worn out pretty much 24/7 for about 6 weeks. Like others have said, it does pass.

cardoon

Yup. Slept long and hard in the beginning. Just relax and go with it. For me, it felt so good to be over it all.

KateL

Your body probably needs proper sleep x

adee

Yes - I'm still in it at three weeks, but each week it improves. For me, the first 10 days were the worst.

tam2014

I also was very tired, and it did get better. For me I am grateful to work at home so when it got so bad I was nonproductive I would just take a (Short) 20 min nap. I kept it very short just to get more energy because I feared falling into a bad habit being I am at home.

But on the weekends I really took it easy and watched movies, read books, made my juice, tea and really slept all I wanted on the first couple weekends. My husband is a huge help and took over for me so I could rest when I wanted to.

The first few weeks I woke up energized but crashed mid morning, early afternoon and early evening. The tiredness faded also after about 2 weeks for me. Im on day 25 now and that is no longer an issue. I feel good all day & all night. I personally think your diet is very important and eat to fuel my body not fulfill my cravings. It does get continue to get better all the way across the board.

Good for you Katie, Hang in there!!!!

nomis

The first couple of weeks are fairly brutal. My body was in a kind of shock, rebelling and throwing a hissy fit over the withdrawal of the substance I had overwhelmingly used to reward it.

As others have said, it does get better, just hang in there.

As for a life of boredom ahead of you, that unfortunately is a very strong sign of addiction. Lots of good research out there that shows how addiction hijacks the brain reward system so that nothing else in life seems enjoyable without that substance. Rest assured though, the brain is able to recalibrate itself over time and find pleasure in new activities and pursuits.

You're doing awesome, 8 days is an AMAZING achievement!

Tiptree

I believe I am just getting out of the tiredness and lethargy stage at 4 months. My body really needs rest after the exhausting years I've put it through. When drinking I never wanted to go to bed, I just sat up and drank till I fell asleep/passed out on the couch. Since being sober, I've learned to love my bed and have accepted that I need, and my poor ole body deserves, lots of down time to heal. Healing, staying sober is the number one priority now. So no worries, it will pass. Everyone is different and will need more or less time. You'll find your energy again.

tam2014

I feared sobriety = boring.
But I was 100% Wrong.
Sobriety is beautiful, exciting, peaceful, sexy, smart; Now I am alert and in the game enjoying life.

Anna

I think you are finding that some friends are not friends. That became very clear to me in early recovery, too.

I hope you feel better. Give yourself a little more time and if things don't improve, you can always check with your dr.

Ornithology

I was exhausted for the first four months after I stopped drinking. I also had nightmares and vivid dreams, but the nightmares were gone after a month or so. Congrats on eight days and keep going, it sounds like you are doing great.

alphaomega

50 or so days in, I slept for 17 hours. Straight. My doctor was watching me for depression. I told her, it's not depression - I'm healing.

She's not very schooled in alcoholism, but SR has taught me that healing from this takes time. A lot of time. Good days and bad days. It's all a part of it.

KatieA

Thank you all so much for all your kind words. It really helps. My husband is supportive, but he doesn't get it, to him not drinking is just a thing that I'm not going to do anymore. He is pleased that I made the commitment, but doesn't seem to think I need praise for not killing myself anymore. And I really do, lol. So thank you for that. I live in the middle of nowhere, so going to meetings isn't so easy, and I have a horse and a kid to take care of.

I tend to be a hypochondriac, so hearing that I'm not the only one to experience exhaustion in early recovery is a great relief.

The problem with my friend (and trigger) is that he is one of my oldest friend, he is an alcoholic himself, comes from a country and a culture where it's normal to be a boozer. If you don't drink, you're week. They even have a local costum: "door snaps" - you have to have a shot of alcohol along with the host, when you enter someone's home. AND: He happens to be married to my sister now, so avoiding him is difficult, especially since I'm close with my sister and her child. He is psysically dependent and refuses to realise it. I used to say to myself: well, at least I am not as bad as he is. Now I'm really worried about his health, having seen him with the shakes was scary and incredibly alarming. He once lay in bed in my house for two days after an 8 day binge, unable to do anything but suffer.

I am managing sobriety, though, even managed to hang out with my MIL without killing her, which I used to refer to as "surgery with no anesthetic".

I am starting to feel jolts of joy, the kind of *real* joy that have I have been missing. I am so grateful to have come to this point now, instead of 10 or 20 years down the line. I can still get out with no permanent damage done.

I do want to get off the meds, but I have schizophrenia, and my doc's advising against it at this point. I have done it before, and I will do it again. All in good time.

Thanks again! <3

FreeOwl

yep.... I can relate. Some days better than others now that I'm at 23 days. I have been taking vitamin b-12 supplements and vitamin D drops and that seems to have been very helpful.

My trouble is I can't get 7 hours sleep, much less 10-11. My sleep is still plagued with strange dreams, lots of wake-ups, or waking up super early and mind racing, unable to get back to sleep.

Regular and hard exercise - even when I don't feel able - has also helped.

hang in there!