Yurt

I lost over 25 pounds within three months, anxiety, and insomnia. My job is stressful as well, but having an AH at his worst this year, pushed me over the edge.

LifeRecovery

My disease of not putting the focus on me and my healing has led to a lot of stress with physical and emotional implications.

For me living and loving an addict was the only way I was going to learn these challenging behaviors in myself.....

The good news is, though we don't have a say over their addiction, we do have a say over what we do with it. This is part of what I have gotten to learn from this crazy rollarcoaster ride.

healthyagain

Alcoholism and the alcoholic in your life consumes you. That is how I see it now. Just like he/she is revolving around the bottle, that is how a codependent person revolves around the alcoholic. You forget your needs, you forget who you are or what you want in life. And they can make you physically ill. They make you heartbroken, depressed, worried all the time . . . You do have the power to stop all that, but only once you become aware. And it can takes years and years to become aware.

Blossom717

Wow. Thank you for all the responses.

I never thought about my child hood issues but it makes since. My dad is an addict, and I always had anxiety coming home or going to his house when my parents split up, even in kindergarten. Then my mom remarried to an abusive alcoholic and I started having panic attacks around the same time, and got underweight.

Now I'm on Prozac but I still have some anxiety issues and I can't concentrate on too much at once because I'm always so tired. I get plenty of sleep, from about 9 at night to a little after 5 in the morning but I always wake up exhausted. I wonder if it has anything to do with the stress at home.

Its even more stressful right now because he's been in a good mood, and I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop (can anyone relate?). Its hard to caring and receptive to him when I know its just going to crash all down again at some point.

iSPAZ

In my experience I say YES. Anxiety, depression, insomnia, nightmares, vomiting blood, and a nervous breakdown. All my symptoms with the exception of depression are gone with detachment. Depression went from a 10 to about a 3 or 4 on a scale of one to ten. I truly believe living with this disease can kill you.

OnlyOneProblem

Oh yes!

I was on the BIG roller coaster since about 2002. I had health issues. Migraine headaches that would put me to bed not to recover on the same day. I always pushed forward taking on more than I should have. I retired from work. This should have been the easiest time of my life. Not working helped me to slow down and take notice and Al-Anon helped me to learn about myself and how important it is to take care of me. It's a long way back. I'm grateful for the opportunity. It's a struggle some days. The choice is mine. I work at my health and well being in the same way that I now work at life.....I keep putting one foot in front of the other. Learning on a daily basis how to LET GO! Taking it easy on myself. Allowing my higher power to work in ways that are greater than I can even imagine.

I knew I would die a slow death if I did not change. Pretty sure I hit my bottom.

LivingLife4Me

I went to a rheumatologist yesterday and he thinks that I have rheumatoid arthritis. I am completely overwhelmed at this prospect. I will find out lab results in 7-10 days.

Sue

Blossom717

:::Hugs::: I will pray for you! So sorry to hear!

BlueSkies1

Living with addiction is like a black rainy cloud over your head everyday. It doesn't matter how sunny the sky is, because you have your own personal rain-cloud. You can detach, ignore, and every other trick under the sun however that cloud is going to follow you around wherever you go.
There are ways to get a few minutes or hours of separation, but come back home and there's the cloud.

caligirl71

I was just going to post this question. In the last year my health has declined tremendously. I now have anxiety, depression, and tons of stomach issues. I recently had my gallbladder removed, which I relate to stress. I do believe living with this is killing me. Why am I still here? It seems all I do is worry and stress....

TryingToLearn

For me it's sleeplessness. I can no longer fall asleep and I have constant nightmares. Also I know I'm doing it but I'm packing on the pounds which has led to high blood pressure. I think it definitely takes a toll.

TryingToLearn

BlueSkies, this is EXACTLY how I feel. I'm always thinking I have a black rain cloud over my head that follows me everywhere with a few moments of sunshine in between. Sigh. Thanks for expressing this.