Happycamper1979

My alcoholism stemmed from my anxiety/panic disorder. I felt it calmed me down..hahaha, only brought on more problems. I was prescribed Xanax and Zoloft. I obviously take the Zoloft on a daily basis, but keep my xanax in my purse for "emergency" situations. It feels nice to have it there in case I need it...even if I don't use it. Better than having a water bottle filled with vodka in my purse

Anyone else going through this??

I rarely use the xanax...as I don't want to become addicted to another thing, but I feel it is better than booze. My Doc says that if I use it occasionally (and as prescribed) I will be o.k. He prescribed me 20 pills and I have only taken 2 in the past week...

livefierce

Ironically for me, I feel much, much, much more panicky in the morning after drinking. It's a vicious circle. I drink to feel that relaxed calm, but then it's torture the next day.

Happycamper1979

exactly...and that is why we continue to drink. To calm those anxious feelings. It sucks huh?

LaFemme

The morning after drinking I used to feel anxious/depressed so I had to have a morning drink! Jeez! I knew the booze was causing it but it was so awful I couldn't stop the cycle.

Happycamper1979

Lafemme,

Couldn't agree more!!! Thanks for the post...makes me feel like I am not the only one!!!

Hugs, HC

loveon2legs

I can relate to that!! I would dread waking up in the morning after a night of drinking... the anxiety I felt was overwhelming.. alcohol sure is a tricky thing...drink to relax..then pay the price!! I am so glad I dont have that problem any more!!

FindingDawn

Boy do I hear you all! Good to be among those who get it

Zencat

Hi Happy.

I too tried to self medicate my anxiety/panic symptoms with AOD (alcohol and other drugs). Only to find that my mental illness symptoms would return with increased intensity the next day. Breaking out of that cycle has been a challenge, yet the benefits of being able to face my fears sober/clean are encouraging me to grow in recovery.

I too take psych med's as prescribed. The med's help me get to a place where I can do the recovery work.

livefierce

So, what are some things we can do to cope with anxiety without booze?

I pray a lot, but that is starting to seem too passive.

SereniTee

I always drank and used to try and curb my crippling anxiety, and as every agrees it just makes it worse and adds shame/illness/remorse/amnesia into the mix.

I have been perscribed antidepressants (Citalopram) for my Generalised Anxiety Disorder and Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder and have been sober for 7 months, clean for 3. I finally have found that I have the meds I need rather than taking anything I could from the street to make me feel better.

I have an amazing amount of sympathy for everyone suffering anxiety, thanks for sharing Happy Camper. I can't take benzos anymore as I abused them and obtained them illegally true to addict nature- it's great that you can have them and not run wild shows alot of resolve!! So no benzos for me it's just me and the anti-depressants, we're OK at the moment- life is soooo much better than when I was drinking and using to medicate myself

Big hugs Happy Camper

FindingDawn

Well I have started to meditate again, listen to music that is soothing, bubble baths, read allot, but nothing related to alcohol for me becuase it makes me more anxious. Take walks in sunlight or even a drive. I have been drinking allot of herbal tea too. Trying to take breaks where I just breath in and out, deep breath in through nose and out through mouth. Talk on this board!

Jomey

I too drank to self-medicate anxiety/panic. I was caught in the vicious cycle of drinking to calm down and having alcohol and the insanity of trying to hide my drinking adding onto the anxiety.

One thing that has really helped me out is a book called "Hope and Help for your Nerves" by Dr. Claire Weekes. It's an older book, but I find it to be immensely helpful in overcoming anxiety/panic.

I also pray alot.

I also find, as I approach my three year anniversary of sobriety, that situations that would have upset and confused me in my drinking days, I can now handle, if not easily, at least without the the crazy amount of anxiety I would have faced when I was drinking. My experience is that life has become a lot simpler to manage the longer I am sober. I had no idea how much anxiety and drama my drinking was producing until I was done.

Thanks for a great thread.

julez

Ugh, the cycle of drinking to feel relaxed, waking to feeling sick, full of anxiety and suffering from self hate about all of it is something I am NOT missing at all! I am experiencing a ton of stress with a troubled teen daughter, and believe me, I used to drink my way through it, but I've realized that I wasn't helping her or myself, and actually was setting a horrible example for her. Sooooo glad I'm done with it. I've come here to the chats in a panic a couple times, and was able to talk it out, until the urge to drink passed. Its my secret weapon. Now when my hubby comes home to me typing furiously, he knows to just let me get through it, and I will be able to handle things much better.

FindingDawn

Jomey thank you for the book suggestion! I will check it out!

louis

Hi

For me the anxieties always went into panic attacks.. ive had them for 12/13yrs now... but thankfully since i stopped using drugs and alcohol they have eased up.

I went to have CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) and it really helped. the therapist explained what was happening to me when the anxiety and panics struck.

Knowledge of what was happening was a big thing that really helped me... it made me feel more in control. He also taught me a breathing exercise for when i was having an attack or as it was coming on.

Take a breath in through my nose (not overly deep)... then when i blow out through my mouth... i blow upwards so the breath crosses over the tip of my nose... this apparently sends signals to my brain to tell it it is getting enough oxygen... and in that it settles down.

It does work and i havent had a panic i couldnt deal with for about a year now... before i would run... today i dont need to.

I also used to get real anxieties travelling on trains (not being in control)... then i decided i would give myself permission to pull the emergancy cord if i needed to to stop the train... and pay the fine... just the fact i gave myself the permission has really helped and i travel alot better now... and i have never needed to pull the cord :o)

I hope you get some relief... seriously though for me it was about understanding what i was suffering from and what was happening to me... and when the therapist explained that it was just a relief.

The therapist explained that when i am scared... my body goes into the fight or flight stance... so my brain releases adrenaline so i can run or fight. Usually when in a panic i dont know what to do and my brain gets confused and releases more adrenaline... this in turn makes my heart beat faster.
Eventually my brain works out that i am not going to move and dont need the adrenaline so shuts the adrenaline off... end of panic.

Hope this helps... :o)

Tomm

For me, exercise is by far the best thing I've ever done to kill the anxiety attacks and that low-level feeling of dread. I've always loved lifting weights anyway but the feeling of focus, progress and well-being it gives me is priceless now. Can't wait to start training again later this week.

Has anyone ever got to the stage where more alcohol (while actually under the influence) actually made their anxiety worse? I've been building to that most of the year, and I think that's why I'd actually socialise less when drinking than when sober recently. I've had alot of Friday nights where I'd buy a case of beer, go home to start drinking and wait for the happy buzz and social feeling to kick in and it never has.

stanleyhouse

A doctor told me I wasn't an alcoholic, even after I told her I was, and told me to take valium and xanax when I got anxious. I took them as needed, every time I couldn't put the required amount of liquor in my body to function. I ended up in rehab detoxing off the pills and the booze.
Today i don't need any anti-anxiety drugs because my body doesn't go through withdawal symptoms.
SH

Dee74

Like Jomey, now I can handle a lot of the situations that used to make me anxious.

I think a lot of my anxiety (before I added booze to the mix) was unadulerated fear and lack of confidence in myself...so between the fear and the drink I opted out of a lot of things over 20 years - I've had a fast learning curve on how to be a functioning adult since getting sober LOL

I still do get anxious at times, of course, but I find a few minutes deep breathing helps me a lot

D

Jomey

I wanted to add that noticing the difference in anxiety in my sober life has been a gradual thing, and probably something I wasn't even aware of for the first few months at least, so please don't be discouraged if you are still experiencing anxiety for a while in sobriety....some serenity is another gift of time passing in sobriety

livefierce

Fear and lack of confidence is exactly why I started down this path. Then, I convinced myself that the alcohol calmed me down. And, thus, the alcohol anxiety dance continued, as we've all discussed.

But one of the fears that I allow to get back in the bottle is that I get anxious about being anxious in the future and not having that wine to calm my nerves.

It's still 150,000 degrees outside, but I think I'll have a walk and a good think.