dragon15

hey guys.... i have heard a few different answers on this topic.. should we quit cold turkey or should we gradually quit.... limit number of drinks until we are down to none??? like i said i have heard both answers so please tell my your thoughts...

dragon

Tazman53

My experience, not thoughts.

1. Tapering off is like torture for me, it was something I never could do, as an alcoholic one of my primary problems with alcohol is once I have had the first drink, I want another, and then another, then another, and then another, my mind and my body both scream for MORE.

Yes maybe I could stop after a certain number for one day, maybe even 2 or 3 days, but eventually I am going to cave in.

2. I was medically detoxed, I was given meds for anxiety, blood pressure, cravings, and to prevent siezures, along with other things I honestly am not sure of, but at the end of 5 days without a drink I was totally physically withdrawn from alcohol safely, the mental obsession was still very alive and well, but the shakes, the sweats, my blood pressure, and the possibilty of siezures were in the past.

Cold turkey!!!! Depending upon how physically addicted one is to alcohol can and does lead to death for some folks, once one has a stroke or a heart attack due to high blood or seizures it is to late, a couple of shots to cut the edge off.

Any one who drinks heavily for any period of time should see a doctor before stopping drinking cold turkey, detox can be deadly.

Dime

Hi Dragon,

Ditto what Taz has said. Reducing, controlling or cutting back on my drinking was always torture and ended up with me drinking more in the end. Total abstinence for me is much, much easier.

Medically supported detox is very important as alcohol withdrawal can most definitely be fatal for a variety of reasons. How dangerous alcohol withdrawal is tends to be underestimated because it is so common. For example it is more dangerous than heroin detox. Blood pressure can escalate to unbelievable levels (mine did), seizures can occur and the DT's can be lethal.

For good information read Carols sticky "Quitting, What to Expect"

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...at-we-did.html

One of the really nice things about medically supervised detox is that you typically are much more comfortable and anti-anxiety drugs are commonly given that also dramatically reduce the likelihood of a seizure.

Please keep in touch.

shaun00

thanks for your post..

i have no experience of "tapering off"...i could not limit the amount of drinks i took no matter what the reason.
sounds like an form torture even if i could.

i tried to stop drinking without medical intervention a couple of times and ended up in serious trouble..........

PLEASE.....take medical advice.

Most of my detoxs were done under hospital care and took about a week/10 days.

thats my experience............i hope it helps

flip0812

I tried several times to slow down drinking then stop..... never worked. I would drink one less for a few days then make up for lost time.
Now with Pills I was able to tapper then jump off.
I think the biggest part was knowing I was done with them for ME. Not trying to stop for anyone else & It worked No pills for 12 DAYS!

Good luck!

dragon15

i have been sober for 13 days now.... with no meds.... i have an appt to get meds but it is not for another month!!! i dont understand it.... i had intended to taper off with few drinks and meds.... but have been forced into cold turkey because like you all say... if i have one i will want more....

firestorm090

Man, there must be something wrong with me, when I first saw the title, I thought you were asking about cold turkey, you know, like in a sandwich, lol. I'm sorry, just kidding.

I've always withdrawn from booze cold turkey, was too embarrassed to go to detox, and it played hell with me. Cold sweats, couldn't eat, then couldn't sleep, irritable, nauseous, dry heaves, none of it was fun.

I strongly recommend if you are/were drinking high levels, that you consider seeing a detox unit and allow them to monitor your withdrawal process. It's very dangerous to detox alone if you are accustomed to high levels of alcohol. I once saw a guy go into convulsions, fall off a chair and crack his head open on the sidewalk, all during withdrawal from alcohol. It was ugly to watch. We tried to hold the guy still till paramedics arrived and make sure he didn't bite through his tongue. This was after he hadn't had a drink for a day or so.

jeffsback

No amount of planning or conviction to limit MY drinking could hold up against the powerful forces that are unleashed once I take the first drink.

Total abstinence (ONLY through incarceration in my case) is the only answer for many/most of us...

flutter

I don't know why you would need meds in a month, to be honest. A lot of times in a medical detox, meds are used very short term at the moment of 'cold turkey'. No no no to tapering off, but it seems like a non issue since you are sober now. You are also passed the most dangerous times for acute withdrawal, but it's good you are seeing a doctor. For me personally, I didn't seek medical intervention, but I will say even after those first few days of physical withdrawal.. there have been weeks if not a month or 2 of post acute withdrawal to deal with.. but I didn't want/need meds for that, it was just a process my body had to go through to get healthy, plus I didn't want to just become dependent on another substance. 5 months in, I feel better than I ever have. I hope you're feeling ok! Congrats on the sober time!!

Tommyh

I went cold turkey...it didn`t kill me but it hurt like h**l
which made it easier to not want to go back there..the suffering was my friend in the end

Skyhook

Cold turkey always worked for me both for alcohol and now Norco. I tried "weening" as my doctor told me this was only safe method, after 5 months I was at the same amount as when I started. Cold turkey day #19 from Norco is today and I'm starting to feel human again.

dragon15

thanks guys..... as for the meds 2 months after i quit does seem crazy.... i dont understand or know what to do for quicker meds...

Skyhook

They tried to put me on Soboxen but I refused, heard too many bad stories of people having a hard time getting off of that and other meds..

Sweets79

Tomorrow will be 2 weeks no alcohol for me too...I did cold turkey (not recommending it), just saying that's what I did...now I start group therapy next week. I do have a script from my primary care D.r. for Xanax...but this new D.r. might take me off, not sure...I take them as needed, but I'm not crazy about them, they get me drowsy, but they do take the edge off slightly if I feel like I'm gonna punch something....When I meet with the shrink he might give me something for the cravings, because I still have those big time and anxiety...but my appt. with the shrink isn't for 2 weeks.

dragon15

i feel the same way

joedris

If you've gone 13 days without drinking, you've detoxed. As far as meds go, there are a couple that can be prescribed to help diminish your cravings. I got in trouble the last time I talked about them, but if you're curious look up Campral and Revia on an internet search engine (Hint. It begins with G). The best thing you can do for yourself now is get into AA. Quitting drinking is the easy part, staying sober is the hard part. That's where support groups like come into play. So do yourself a favor and look up AA in the phone book and find a meeting. It's be the second best thing you've done. The first, of course, is deciding to stop drinking.

PXYZ

Yes , quitting is simple , we want it quickly but it needs time . I am drinking nonstop from 7 years , so recovery will be long and hard . As says one friend with two years sober time "My body still smells like a cask" .

maz09

I quit cold turkey, haven't taken anything. It's been almost 4 weeks and I still feel like crap, trying to eat healthy and taking vitamins, milk thistle for the liver and fish oil. Some times I feel like I am walking around in a daze and just when I feel like I am getting better the day it starts up again. I have an appointment with the doctors on Monday. Also I feel cold all the time. It's winter here but still with the heater on I still feel cold and my hands ache and my ribs hurt.

mspamy

Tazman's response has answered some of my questions that i have just posted on a new thread. i just wonder if my doc would be so accommodating on the drugs aspect. i think his answer to date is the drug that makes you so ill and vomit if you take a drink! For me drinking is self medicating to feel in an amiable mood, relaxed, no worries, and sleep, eventually. Sleep has always been a problem for me, relaxing too, it's just such a shame that alcohol can meet this need admirably.

Anna

I tried dozens and dozens of times to cut back and by the end of the week, I'll be fine. Of course, it never worked. So, I went cold turkey, in my ignorance, and I wouldn't recommend it for someone because it's dangerous. Talk to your dr or go to an ER. The thing with alcohol, even if I was just consuming a little bit, I always wanted more.