Kaily

Some of you will of read my posts about the frustration with the medical help I have been offered after opening up fully about my drinking.
Anyway I am still going round and round in circles, I saw an addiction Dr last week, he has told me not to stop but to stabilize ie drink the same drink and the same amount everyday, no more or less. I managed this for four days and I am now drinking totally erratically again, going from vodka, wine, port, beer or whatever.
I have realised I don't like the taste of any of them and that I am purely medicating myself mostly from the awful hangovers nothing cures that quicker than another drink but also extreme loneliness.
Everyday I have big plans for tomorrow, country walks, Dog Agility, Volunteering and becoming the person I once was.
I just can't achieve this alone and I am still no further on with the medical powers that be...

PennyLane76

What country are you in? Can't see that from mobile app. Can you ask for a medical detox?

Kaily

In England I have asked numerous times to no avail!

biminiblue

Well, I quit without medical help.

Lots of people do.

In the UK, they recommend tapering to a quit. If you cannot do that, you need to go to emergency where they will do a medical detox. I've read your past posts.

Stop blaming the system and take control of your life. I did it, so have a lot of others. Maybe start sending messages to some other UK residents here on this site to get ideas. You have to take this on yourself.

Kaily

I am not blaming the system but saying I am unable to do it alone. We are all different in what we can and can't do!

JD

I agree with biminiblue. You can do this on your own. Never tried a taber, but I can't see how that would have worked for me. Halfway thru I'm sure I would have said f it. A medical detox is the safest way. I don't know your drinking history but if it was very heavy and for a long period the med detox is the way to go. But many of us have gone it alone. If you go that route check your blood pressure frequently and if it's pretty high or you're feeling really bad go to emergency.

biminiblue

You are blaming the system. If you cannot do it alone, go to emergency for a medical detox. For the record, you can do it alone, you just aren't ready.

You want a doctor to hold your hand. It isn't going to work that way. Get to an AA meeting. That's what they do - help you to get sober. Why can't you go to AA?

AnonWife

I remember the pain of wanting it so bad but.not having the strength. Many people do need help to do this. I found there is a hump and.once you get over it then you will feel stronger. Id try to take the docs advice and think of what you can do today. One thing today to make yourself stretch towards the life you want. Do you have family support? A close friend to lean on?

Soberwolf

Kailey if you want to stop drinking your going to have to go through cravings & get through cravings no magic pill is available for that

You have to want to be sober more than you want to drink

Can I ask what addiction Dr told you this I'm in London myself

Kaily

Biminiblue I do go to AA, my blood pressure is very high on 2 different medications for it. I went to A & E who sent me back to my GP.

Thanks anonwife, no close friends or family unfortunately

AnonWife

Have you considered taking a class on mindfullness or yoga for relaxation, bloodpressure and maybe making some new friends?

Andante

There’s all kinds of help (including SR) for learning how to live a happy, fulfilling life sober.

Others before me have said it: Ya Gotta Want it. Believe me, I know how hard it is. I failed many, many times. Finally it somehow got through my thick head that quitting drinking started with me. Only I could decide I wanted to be sober more than I wanted to be drunk, and no amount of professional advice or treatment would help me to achieve that mindset. In order to stop drinking, first I had to stop drinking.

It seems hard to believe that a professional addiction doctor would give the advice to "stabilize" at a particular consumption. That’s like telling someone who is falling off a cliff to just "stabilize" their position in mid-air. Evidently there's still an appalling amount of ignorance out there, even among so-called "professionals."

Medical detox is the safest way to go, but if it's simply unavailable for some reason, that shouldn't stop you from quitting drinking if you want sobriety badly enough.

dwtbd

You do have to do it on your own. You have to decide to stop drinking. The not alone part comes from finding others that support that decision and medical professionals to help with (if any) medical situations that may occur based on the choice to stop consumin alcohol. Making plans for tomorrow is a great idea and will definitely help going forward. But you do have to act now, right now. Decide right now to stop and then find support to help bolster that choice, there is a ton right here on SR , actually why everyone is here , right now . You can do it, rooting for ya

biminiblue

Your blood pressure will come down with continued abstinence.

Go to emergency. Don't leave until they detox you. You have to advocate for yourself.

biminiblue

For the record, I quit with a taper. I did it myself at home with no medical intervention because that is the way I wanted to do it. I refused to take any more drugs. So I was just as stubborn as you are. My blood pressure was high, 150-170/90 before I quit.

I. wanted. to. be. sober.

I think that is the difference. When you really want it, you will do whatever it takes and stop blaming anyone else. I know you think you are terminally unique, but as SoberWolf says, nope - you just have to go through the discomfort and the cravings and the anxiety and fear like we all did.

LiveInPeace

Kaily,

I just wanted to say I'm thinking about you, and wish you all the strength, love, and power to get through this. You WILL become that person you want to be. You just have to get through this rough patch first. You can do it!!

PennyLane76

Everyone is different with regard to tapering. I know I could not do it, once alcohol is in me I have no stop filter. Also everyone is different as far as safely doing cold turkey. It can be dangerous.

Please listen to Soberwolf and others from London regarding medical services. I don't know if you have the option of changing your GP?

Best to you

Kaily

My Bp is 172/114 now and often it is higher so I do get scared

Anna

In my opinion, the best thing to do is to go to a Hospital Emergency Room and explain what you are detoxing from alcohol and you have blood pressure problems. I can't imagine that they will send you away. If they do, they are being negligent.

Once you get past the initial detox, you will likely gain more confidence.

We are here to help you through this.

Brauggi

I can see how BP numbers like that can be scary; that is very high! I used to run very high myself and you wouldn't believe the difference that quitting has made for me. I am over a year sober now and my BP is now usually around 110/68, which I 100% attribute to quitting drinking and changing my lifestyle. I quit drinking without any medical help or supervision, so it can be done, but if you are concerned about your health while quitting you can always seek help by going to the ER. As Anna said, I can't imagine any hospital would turn you away with numbers that look like those, especially while detoxing. Things get so much better when you stop and you really will be able to see the difference in your overall health, but you need to string those sober days together until it sticks.