Mood Swings anyone?
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Mood Swings anyone?
I was generally feeling better today than the past few days, and BAM! I saw something that bothered me, (ofcourse something I can't control) and it totally put me in a horrible mood, how bad is that? I know people have mood swings without drinking...I'm not blaming my mood swings on drinking alone, but I know whatever just bothered me now, wouldn't have affected me half as much if I had Vodka in front of me...If I didn't have some here already, normally I'd run to the store to get some...but not doing that anymore 
I think the mood swings are definitely worse now that I'm not drinking...Has anyone else experienced severe mood swings in early sobriety? I guess it has alot to do with experiencing emotions that I can't stand and not being able to medicate.
I think the mood swings are definitely worse now that I'm not drinking...Has anyone else experienced severe mood swings in early sobriety? I guess it has alot to do with experiencing emotions that I can't stand and not being able to medicate.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 1,243
Oh yeah,
I certainly had my share of those particularly in early sobriety. I sucked up the vodka too before I got sober so I wonder if part of it is just experiencing "normal emotion" that I didn't experience before.
Part of the other thing I never experienced drinking was a feeling of peace and a relaxed state of being that never was possible when I was drinking. If you are new to sobriety just hang in there, the good stuff is yet to come. I love not craving or ever needing a drink today and being free of that nasty poison. Life is just so much better sober!
Glad to see you here Sweets!
I certainly had my share of those particularly in early sobriety. I sucked up the vodka too before I got sober so I wonder if part of it is just experiencing "normal emotion" that I didn't experience before.
Part of the other thing I never experienced drinking was a feeling of peace and a relaxed state of being that never was possible when I was drinking. If you are new to sobriety just hang in there, the good stuff is yet to come. I love not craving or ever needing a drink today and being free of that nasty poison. Life is just so much better sober!
Glad to see you here Sweets!
Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 42
I've been on a mood roller-coaster . . . up, down . . . up, down. Although, I am certain the downs have out numbered the ups at this point. I even get angry trying to figure out why I am so angry! Then, I go from angry to wanting to cry and from wanting to cry to being content. It's all very exhausting, and I too have wondered why I should stay on the roller-coaster when I could get off at any time by taking a couple drinks, and thereby, numbing this perceived emotional breakdown.
Also, I have caught myself thinking . . . "you're a drunk. That's the way it is, and you can't change it. So, why struggle and paddle upstream. Come on! Have some fun with it!" Even worse, I have thought . . . "even if I die before my time because of my drinking, oh well, that must be the way I was intended to go". It's sick.
Also, I have caught myself thinking . . . "you're a drunk. That's the way it is, and you can't change it. So, why struggle and paddle upstream. Come on! Have some fun with it!" Even worse, I have thought . . . "even if I die before my time because of my drinking, oh well, that must be the way I was intended to go". It's sick.
Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 88
Normal I think.
How long have you been sober. I found with myself over the first week or so I was totally euphoric and in a daze (so happy) because I had no alcohol the night before, but as time went on the excitement wore off and the normal hum drum of life kicked in. Yeah I did have to watch moods, but just a gentle reminder that I was sober was usually enough to boot that mood right out the back door. There is probably some inner work you may need to do to confront whatever it is that you can't stand. I know you know that burying them with alcohol only shoves the issue under the carpet. Maybe the time has come to go head on and get these issues sorted out once and for all. You will gain heaps of personal integrity for yourself if you do. All the best.
:praying
:praying
bona fido dog-lover
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: SF Bay area, CA
Posts: 99,755
Early recovery is a time of emotional ups and downs: breathe, relax, occupy yourself - it will pass. For me, I use my dogs' love of me a lot. I give them biscuits, pet them a lot, take them for walks, interact with them any way I can. They keep me grounded in reality and grateful to be sober to take better care of them.
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
[QUOTE=Dime;2219811]Oh yeah,
I certainly had my share of those particularly in early sobriety. I sucked up the vodka too before I got sober so I wonder if part of it is just experiencing "normal emotion" that I didn't experience before.
Part of the other thing I never experienced drinking was a feeling of peace and a relaxed state of being that never was possible when I was drinking. If you are new to sobriety just hang in there, the good stuff is yet to come. I love not craving or ever needing a drink today and being free of that nasty poison. Life is just so much better sober!
Glad to see you here Sweets!
I look forward to feeling that way...It gives me hope when people say that life is so much better sober, because for me at the point I started drinking, sober was too painful for m....I guess what I am trying to say is...one day I wish to be like those of you who are happy sober, because you found a way to actually BE HAPPY sober...if that makes any sense? If being sober just meant barely tolerating life day to day, it doesn't seem so great..but I do BELIEVE there IS a way to be HAPPY sober, and many people on here have found it...I just have to find out what that is for myself...because being "happy" drinking is just an illusion...Many times I wasn't even "happy' drinking...I just drank to numb the pain whether it be physical or emotional (90% emotional) and get a little motivation to function throughout the day...and most days I didn't even function...Thanks for your input
I certainly had my share of those particularly in early sobriety. I sucked up the vodka too before I got sober so I wonder if part of it is just experiencing "normal emotion" that I didn't experience before.
Part of the other thing I never experienced drinking was a feeling of peace and a relaxed state of being that never was possible when I was drinking. If you are new to sobriety just hang in there, the good stuff is yet to come. I love not craving or ever needing a drink today and being free of that nasty poison. Life is just so much better sober!
Glad to see you here Sweets!
I look forward to feeling that way...It gives me hope when people say that life is so much better sober, because for me at the point I started drinking, sober was too painful for m....I guess what I am trying to say is...one day I wish to be like those of you who are happy sober, because you found a way to actually BE HAPPY sober...if that makes any sense? If being sober just meant barely tolerating life day to day, it doesn't seem so great..but I do BELIEVE there IS a way to be HAPPY sober, and many people on here have found it...I just have to find out what that is for myself...because being "happy" drinking is just an illusion...Many times I wasn't even "happy' drinking...I just drank to numb the pain whether it be physical or emotional (90% emotional) and get a little motivation to function throughout the day...and most days I didn't even function...Thanks for your input
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by Relief 
I've been on a mood roller-coaster . . . up, down . . . up, down. Although, I am certain the downs have out numbered the ups at this point. I even get angry trying to figure out why I am so angry! Then, I go from angry to wanting to cry and from wanting to cry to being content. It's all very exhausting, and I too have wondered why I should stay on the roller-coaster when I could get off at any time by taking a couple drinks, and thereby, numbing this perceived emotional breakdown.
Also, I have caught myself thinking . . . "you're a drunk. That's the way it is, and you can't change it. So, why struggle and paddle upstream. Come on! Have some fun with it!" Even worse, I have thought . . . "even if I die before my time because of my drinking, oh well, that must be the way I was intended to go". It's sick.
Also, I have caught myself thinking . . . "you're a drunk. That's the way it is, and you can't change it. So, why struggle and paddle upstream. Come on! Have some fun with it!" Even worse, I have thought . . . "even if I die before my time because of my drinking, oh well, that must be the way I was intended to go". It's sick.
I did read your other post before, and mentioned we have the same sobriety time...Yesterday was really hard for me...today on and off, but for the most part my decent mood has been pretty stable...I just can't think too long about certain things that are bothering me, or I really wind up upsetting myself...I thought many times why even bother trying to quit if this is the only thing that's helping me get through life...but then I realized it's not helping me get through life, it's numbing the pain and problems I have temporarily, but when my seratonin levels drop again, and reality kicks in I'm going to feel even worse than I did before I started...and I realized I am going to be in alot of trouble if I continue down this road......if I keep drinking like this I will end up homeless eventually...I don't have much family, so I always think when they are gone, and I am drinking, jobless and homeless, what then? That really scared me...Plus I gained weight from drinking and just felt like I was starting to let myself go...You have to look at the big picture...It is so hard...and unless you have been through it, people find it hard to understand..My mom is trying to be supportive, but I know she doesn't "truly" understand the addiction, I don't expect her too. I just told her, try not to smoke a cigarette for the day (she's been smoking her whole life) and see how it feels...I don't even know how I am doing this, but I know these wonderful people on here and all the support and information I have been getting are the reason I haven't picked up a drink...I'm still not getting my hopes way up yet, I know there's a chance I can relapse anytime, especially being in early recovery, but I am hanging in there...now I'm moving forward with therapy and looking possibly into AA...Keep posting and reading on here...Knowledge is power.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: in France
Posts: 393
I agree wholeheartedly with wanting to be like those on this site who have been sober for ages and are enjoying it and that's why i keep coming back here-and also to compare notes with the others struggling with me-one week today!
Anvilhead said:
"make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth"
That reminds me of my therapist who said to me as i was leaving - "try to enjoy simple things for example when you eat just savour every mouthful and think of the taste of what you're eating".
Anvilhead said:
"make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth"
That reminds me of my therapist who said to me as i was leaving - "try to enjoy simple things for example when you eat just savour every mouthful and think of the taste of what you're eating".
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by Julesy
How long have you been sober. I found with myself over the first week or so I was totally euphoric and in a daze (so happy) because I had no alcohol the night before, but as time went on the excitement wore off and the normal hum drum of life kicked in. Yeah I did have to watch moods, but just a gentle reminder that I was sober was usually enough to boot that mood right out the back door. There is probably some inner work you may need to do to confront whatever it is that you can't stand. I know you know that burying them with alcohol only shoves the issue under the carpet. Maybe the time has come to go head on and get these issues sorted out once and for all. You will gain heaps of personal integrity for yourself if you do. All the best.:praying
I've been sober now 12 days...The longest I've done in the past 4-5 years is a month...Oh yes there is alot of inner work I need to do...and yes you hit the nail right on the head, I believe the time has come for me to find out who I really am and realize what my problems are and find a healthy way to deal with them...and I definitely need to become stronger emotionally..It's very early on, I hope I stick to it, and I think the best way to do that is to concentrate 100% on my sobriety and not let any outside forces make me make me lose sight of what I NEED to do..That's why I think dating/relationships should be put on hold right now..I'm not used to doing that...I'm used to meeting the wrong guy and putting them first, ahead of my own well-being...then winding up disappointed and drowning my emotions in alcohol...that has to change now, it's a vicious cycle...I have to work on letting go of any toxic people I have in my life...easier said then done.
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by anvilhead
right now you are still very raw, like somebody peeled ALL your skin off and you're nothing but nerve endings. that will change in time. couple things you CAN do.....
make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth, but that the foods you eat are wholesome healthy and high quality - reduce processed foods/junk as much as possible - the high sugar/high carb stuff is converted TO sugar in your system, much resembling the way the body breaks down BOOZE and can set off cravings unintentionally.
make sure you are getting lots of rest.
make sure you are taking a multivitamin, maybe even add a Bcomplex....Niacin (vitamin B3) was one of the early "remedies" for alcoholism, by the way.
get to meetings or get involved in SOME type of face to face interactive support group if possible. understand that nobody ever died from a feeling....and that ALL of our emotions are ok, neither good nor bad, they simply are. WE have, over time, assigned certain properties and reactions TO them. we can be mad and not have to rip the heads off bunnies. we can be sad and still function. we can be confused, upset, elated.
we can have a million thoughts and not act upon any of them. we can feel what we feel and survive the experience. no one feeling lasts forever, all things pass in time. it's all ok, part of who we are.......
make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth, but that the foods you eat are wholesome healthy and high quality - reduce processed foods/junk as much as possible - the high sugar/high carb stuff is converted TO sugar in your system, much resembling the way the body breaks down BOOZE and can set off cravings unintentionally.
make sure you are getting lots of rest.
make sure you are taking a multivitamin, maybe even add a Bcomplex....Niacin (vitamin B3) was one of the early "remedies" for alcoholism, by the way.
get to meetings or get involved in SOME type of face to face interactive support group if possible. understand that nobody ever died from a feeling....and that ALL of our emotions are ok, neither good nor bad, they simply are. WE have, over time, assigned certain properties and reactions TO them. we can be mad and not have to rip the heads off bunnies. we can be sad and still function. we can be confused, upset, elated.
we can have a million thoughts and not act upon any of them. we can feel what we feel and survive the experience. no one feeling lasts forever, all things pass in time. it's all ok, part of who we are.......
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by least
Early recovery is a time of emotional ups and downs: breathe, relax, occupy yourself - it will pass. For me, I use my dogs' love of me a lot. I give them biscuits, pet them a lot, take them for walks, interact with them any way I can. They keep me grounded in reality and grateful to be sober to take better care of them.
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by least
Early recovery is a time of emotional ups and downs: breathe, relax, occupy yourself - it will pass. For me, I use my dogs' love of me a lot. I give them biscuits, pet them a lot, take them for walks, interact with them any way I can. They keep me grounded in reality and grateful to be sober to take better care of them.
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
Hang in there, it WILL get better!
I like that!
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by JJB
I agree wholeheartedly with wanting to be like those on this site who have been sober for ages and are enjoying it and that's why i keep coming back here-and also to compare notes with the others struggling with me-one week today!
Anvilhead said:
"make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth"
That reminds me of my therapist who said to me as i was leaving - "try to enjoy simple things for example when you eat just savour every mouthful and think of the taste of what you're eating".
Anvilhead said:
"make sure you are eating well, not just moving food from hand to mouth"
That reminds me of my therapist who said to me as i was leaving - "try to enjoy simple things for example when you eat just savour every mouthful and think of the taste of what you're eating".
Member
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Virginia
Posts: 818
Sweets my good friend, You're looking POSSIBLY into AA? POSSIBLY? There's no possibly about it. Get to a meeting! Now! Stop messing around. The benefits that you'll get from being in AA are immeasureable. Trust me on this. Hasn't all the other advice I've given you been of some small help?
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by joedris
Sweets my good friend, You're looking POSSIBLY into AA? POSSIBLY? There's no possibly about it. Get to a meeting! Now! Stop messing around. The benefits that you'll get from being in AA are immeasureable. Trust me on this. Hasn't all the other advice I've given you been of some small help?
Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 6,947
Originally Posted by Sweets79
Has anyone else experienced severe mood swings in early sobriety? I guess it has alot to do with experiencing emotions
Mine were so bad, I'd get hangovers and I wasn't even drinking. It gets better... promise!
Mark
To thine own self be true
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: New York
Posts: 756
Originally Posted by Cubile75
uh... mood swings....
Mine were so bad, I'd get hangovers and I wasn't even drinking. It gets better... promise!
Mark
Mine were so bad, I'd get hangovers and I wasn't even drinking. It gets better... promise!
Mark
Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 6,947
Originally Posted by Sweets79
I feel like I'm going nuts.
I didn't work for a couple weeks after rehab... going to meetings really, really helped, there were meetings in the morning, at lunch, evening and night. Besides the message, it broke up the monotony...
Well... hang in there... Keep posting
Mark
Member
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: uk
Posts: 2,548
sweets......yer doing just great..
Mood swings.......oh sure.. first month or two.
loving everyone one minute........plotting their slow death the next....lol...lol.
i mean it.........i was nuts.
It gets alot easier......calmer.......and things level out.
dont forget kid..........you aint drinking........hows that for an achievement.
trucker.
Mood swings.......oh sure.. first month or two.
loving everyone one minute........plotting their slow death the next....lol...lol.
i mean it.........i was nuts.
It gets alot easier......calmer.......and things level out.
dont forget kid..........you aint drinking........hows that for an achievement.
trucker.
Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Oregon
Posts: 4
Hi, I just discovered your site last night.Good stuff! I have been sober since 12-20-06.I was drinking a fifth and a half a day for 4 or 5 years.I never tried to get sober before.And 11-15-06, I crashed my car and got my third D.U.I.I. So the Judge gave a very hard nudge to either work a intensive treatment plan,or jail.Well I made the right choice. And got sober for the first time.
The first two months were hell, I would go from very happy, to very sad.I would be up one day,and the next morning I was down,way down.As time went on, the up's were a little less and the downs werent as bad.The up's got to be a few days followed by a day or two of down days.Over the next few months, things evened out to what I assume is "normal" and I am now at an even keel.I feel good most days,and have the normal day to day B.S. I have a treatment counselor I see every 3 weeks, and go to 4 AA meetings a week,and that helps me deal with the day to day B.S.Dealing with the day to day stuff is key for me.
But as said before in this thread, IT GETS BETTER!!! I promise.It just takes some longer than others to work through it.AA saved my life.And talking to a professional is a great "tool" and I recommend looking in to it. I have learned to that what works for me,might not work for others. BE PATIENT and you can't be in a hurry,give it time.One needs to distance between booze and ones self.That distance (time) really helps.One day at a time is so true.One minute at a time sometimes.
The first two months were hell, I would go from very happy, to very sad.I would be up one day,and the next morning I was down,way down.As time went on, the up's were a little less and the downs werent as bad.The up's got to be a few days followed by a day or two of down days.Over the next few months, things evened out to what I assume is "normal" and I am now at an even keel.I feel good most days,and have the normal day to day B.S. I have a treatment counselor I see every 3 weeks, and go to 4 AA meetings a week,and that helps me deal with the day to day B.S.Dealing with the day to day stuff is key for me.
But as said before in this thread, IT GETS BETTER!!! I promise.It just takes some longer than others to work through it.AA saved my life.And talking to a professional is a great "tool" and I recommend looking in to it. I have learned to that what works for me,might not work for others. BE PATIENT and you can't be in a hurry,give it time.One needs to distance between booze and ones self.That distance (time) really helps.One day at a time is so true.One minute at a time sometimes.
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