Jfa

Hey guys, This is my second post since my 8th day introduction post. Anyways, today is day 16 of sobriety after several years of heavy drinking.

I am not having any problems with alcohol cravings. My problem is that every night I get non-stop anxiety, I'm just wondering if anyone else has experienced this after quitting drinking and how long it lasts.

I used to never have problems with anxiety, but now it won't go away..lol.

Thanks for reading.

God bless

SSIL75

16 days is pretty early. When I quit (over 2 mos ago) there's almost a kind of PTSD that goes with it. It's very shocking to see how you've been living in a sober light.

Are you eating well? Sleeping enough? Actively doing 'nice' things really helped me. IME, It's important to begin to shift your focus from the horror of how you used to live to the peace of what a sober life can be.

If it doesn't ease up give the doc a call and see what they can do for you. Hang in there. No better way to live than sober!

Jfa

Yeah, I guess your right. While 16 days is great for me, it's nothing compared to the 3+ years of nightly heavy drinking that was building up the anxiety. Patience has never been one of my strong traits.

I can say that the anxiety I am experience is nothing compared to what it was 12 hours after a night of heavy drinking, so that is an improvement I can see as progress.

I haven't been eating like I should, I have not been that hungry lately. I have been taking multi-vitamins and drinking a lot of water though, so I guess that helps. As for the sleep, I have been having insomnia at night, but I do get at least 7 to 8 hours when I do sleep.

Your also right in the sober living observation. I have noticed that I am not as self destructive as I was when I was drinking and I am less risky than I was.

Thanks for the reply, in the meantime I will just let time heal my body and mind.

Anna

Hi Jfa,

You are doing the right things to take care of yourself, but I would try to eat well, even if you don't feel really hungry.

If you didn't experience anxiety before you started drinking, hopefully the anxiety you're experiencing now will lessen. If not, you can always talk to your dr about it.

LaFemme

I had a major loss of appetite after quitting as well. I have had to make myself eat healthy meals in addition to water and vitamins...the more we can do for our bodies the quicker they will heal.

I also expected overnight results...I got some and other things are taking longer.

I found adding an exercise program to be very helpful.

Congrats...16 days is awesome!

Draciack

Hi Jfa Congrats on your 16 days

That first month, I felt completely out of balance--anxious, discontent, disturbed.

I had lived drunk for three years at that point. So that was my normal state. Sobriety was a completely new experience, way outside of my comfort zone, so feeling anxious was normal.

There's no timetable - but for me it got better every week.

At some point sobriety became the norm, and that is an amazing thing

Mcribb

I felt like I was having a heart attack. Def Culture shock trying to manage your life without the ease. Pray, AA meetings, simplifying life to NOT DRINKING. Hang in there.

AWB

On day 4. Just finished three nights of sweats.