FarAwayTimes

Coming up on a month now and still experiencing withdrawal symptoms, but I understand that's likely to be expected.

Getting about 6 hours of sleep a night, which is okay, but waking up feeling like achy garbage, stiffness and pain all over. Tired. It gets better during the day but I've been coming right home and passing out for about an hour after work, can't keep my eyes open. Then I end up falling asleep too late and...

Still jittery and anxious, nerves feel really "overactive." I started to have a panic attack while driving the other day, fortunately I was able to pull over and let it pass and got home safe.

I'm only 37, but just two or three nights a week for a year of "controlling myself" and having three beers and a couple shots of whiskey seriously knocked the hell out of me. So done...

BrendaChenowyth

It doesn't sound totally withdrawal related to me. It sounds like stress and anxiety. You're not relaxing when you go to bed at night.

mecanix

Hi FarAway ,
what are you doing to look after yourself ? what is your self care routine ?

i was exhausted as i was a chronic overachiever who mercilessly ignored his body and just blasted or numbed any feelings away with booze ,

i had to deliberately stop when i was driving and take a break on the 2hr commute to go 12 miles in london . shake my head and limbs for a few mins , stretch , get some fresh air and cool off if i was beginning to get enraged at how selfish everyone was being ..

Are you drinking too much tea or coffee ? i was guilty of stopping the booze and then drinking lots of coffee instead , i switched to fizzy water after about lunch time ..

Having a shower when i got home and a change of clothes helped wake me up and drop the stress and anxiety of the day .

I also tried to walk a bit more outside at my lunch break . A lot of people seem to start swimming or exercise to aid recovery .

How's your bed ? is it old ? is there a dip in the middle ?

Have a google for sleep hygiene , maybe keep a diary of when you are sleeping as sometimes an hour when you get home is actually 2 and 6 hours later on works out to what most people have .

Alcohol can mask a lot of stuff , I had to deliberately go about self care and looking after myself because my answer before was always drink until i passed out . .

If it carries on then a Dr's help will be required , this is the fault of alcohol , not sobriety , sobriety is only revealing what we were missing .

Look after yourself , m

FarAwayTimes

Yeah, you're on the mark, I've definitely been hitting the caffeine. I've never really liked coffee that much, more into the caffeinated sodas. Dentist and I had a talk about that one the last time I was in, there's some enamel loss on my molars that looks to be related.

It would be great if I could find a brand of carbonated/flavored water I liked without the caffeine/acids of regular pop. I'll do some research.

Being a night owl has always seemed to be a habit for me, even when I was a kid long before any vices I had trouble going to sleep early. It's gotten better as I've aged but if I'm ever asleep before midnight it's a fluke or I'm completely exhausted. Fortunately my work doesn't start at 9 AM sharp so it works out for the moment.

The long naps likely aren't helping matters - an hour at 6PM is too long, too late.

When I'm sober I feel "good tired" when I do feel tired, most of the time, not "bad tired", like I'm just sleeping to "fix" myself, if that makes any sense.

Soberwolf

Congrats on your upcoming month

Dee74

Things got a lot better for me after that first month FarAwayTimes - I hope they will for you too.

I found a little light exercise and keeping myself hydrated helped me wake up feeling much better

BrendaChenowyth

What other things could you do throughout the day to let off some of the tension you seem to be going to bed with?

MissPerfumado

A month in and I was still having episodes of intense tiredness - I sometimes say that I had to just lay myself down and sleep the sleep of the dead. Felt like jet lag.

The sleep sorted itself out for me shortly after. For a time with all the "pink cloudness" and positive feelings of sobriety, I thought I was at long last transforming into a morning person - that Holy Grail of high achievers - with the newfound ability to jump out of bed at 5.30 am and greet the day. Turned out to be delusional. I simply love my evenings, my brain is super active at night and I will read and absorb all sorts of twaddle on the Internet late after dinner. I am learning to redesign my day now and orientate activities to the evening, without guilt knowing it is not the drink but just a personal preference.

I have added meditation in the evenings about 10 pm and it does sometimes soothe me enough to go to bed right after. Even if I stay up after, I feel deliciously calm. So I am becoming a meditation advocate.

Also, some anxiety began around the one-month mark. That anxiety waxed and waned and after 6 months I began to handle it more proactively - cutting down caffeine before "triggering" situations (work-related public speaking, mostly) and especially exercising regularly. Running is my medicine.

That's all personal experience. I hope it helps you. One month is great. Your world will continue to open up like a lotus flower [meditation reference !] if you keep working at recovery.