dizzy.....after 40 days of sobriety
 

hi,i was wondering if anyone else have experienced this fog that i'm going through? it almost feels like i'm still drinking:headbange i wake up drink my coffee and then go get a mountain dew and my head is just almost spinning,and my eyes are kinda blury. is this normal?

I'm on day 42 of not drinking and I am having some pretty bad issues with hyperventilating. When you hyperventilate you get light headed and stay that way for quite a while. I would also lay off the coffee and Mountain Dews. Caffeine can exacerbate the light headedness and anxiety. Alcohol withdrawal leaves the brain in a very excitable state with the result being anxiety and light headedness. Your brain was used to the depressant effects of alcohol. Alcohol was attaching itself to your GABA receptors which caused you to relax with alcohol. Now, there is no alcohol and your brain is trying to adjust. It will take time.

I am having these issues as well. I've been calling them flashbacks. Some of the time, it feels like I'm drunk or high. I will agree, though, that they have been much worse since I re-introduced caffeinated coffee a couple weeks ago. I'm trying to reduce it right now. I can't say I've had this before, thought it was a dry drunk or something; can't say I've ever gotten "high" from caffeine before either!

Could be sugar related ... (?) ... Maybe a check with your doctor would be a good idea.

That's another thing. When you go through alcohol withdrawal you also go through periods of unstable blood glucose. Hypoglycemia is VERY common in alcoholics. When your blood sugar is unstable then you can get very lightheaded. By the way, caffeine causes even more unstable blood glucose.

well now i have to detox from caffeine...great! i agree with you loftyideals it feels like a dry drunk.

I've been sober quite a while but I was dizzy during the first few months of recovery. I was told it's withdrawal and that it will pass (it did). I was emotionally volatile as well, like a 24/7 PMS in a full moon :)

Less caffeine, more water. Watch the sugar. Try hot tea with lemon & honey.

Best wishes! You can stay stopped!!

I've been having a similar issue too--

I've had my toes in the water of sobriety before, but this is my first time honestly getting over thirty days

I'm on day 31, and have been eating candy and sweets at night like I'm praying for a diabetic coma.
I know that I am replacing one kind of sugar with another, and could use any help/support/input on how to taper off the junk food.
I've always been a very healthy eater (with the exception of mass amounts of alcohol), and so ice cream bars, skittles and boxes of oreos don't really agree with me at 10:45 at night (especially all at once).

I hope all of y'all above are sober again today =-)

Thanks,

D

AnodyneShift, there is NO way I can eat anything high in sugar right now. I'm on day 42 and anything with sugar makes my anxiety MUCH worse. When I stay away from sugar then I feel better. You are most likely experiencing hypoglycemia during this period of alcohol withdrawal and the insulin surges you are getting from the junk food is doing you even more harm. Try cutting out as much sugar as you can right now and eat low glycemic foods.

I had that happen as well. Not as far as 40 days into sobriety but I do remember telling my rehab counselor that I felt hung over in the mornings.

It might be something to ask a doctor about. I'm sure after 40+ days sober you're expecting to feel 110%, not 80%

Stick with it and best of luck!

Keep it up it gets better! The fog will thin out considerably the next few weeks for you, well it did for me.

Also for me sugar and caffeine spell anxiety... although I'd be lying if I said I didn't love some mountain dew!

The very best thing to do is go and get yourself checked out by a Dr...

there could a myriad of reasons behind your dizziness...it's best to get a professional opinion if you're concerned.

D

Do talk to your dr about your concerns and congratulations on your sober time.

thank you everyone.i have an appointment monday to see the doctor,and today i'm going to cut down the sugar which is funny because i don't like too eat ice cream or cakes or pies or anything sweet. so i really didn't think i had a sugar problem i realize my sugar was in the 20 plus beers i used to drink all day and night damn i'm glad to beable to say use too lol.so yes bring on some h2o yummy!!

I'm going through the same thing and it's day 25. Today Dizzy spells and Anxiety attack/Confusion in everyday situations. It's wicked.. fed up and asked to be taken to the emergency... brother told me to relax and pass out if I want to ( nice advice eh? ).

It feels like your head has been hit with a baseball bat, ringing in ears, tingling in bottom of feet... you fear you will have a heart attack/stroke... tightness in chest like Angina.

It's miserable because you can't logic/rationalize your way out.... (talking to yourself helps, tell yourself how you are doing everything in your control to heal and grow day by day ). Concentrate on getting healthy.

See a doctor by all means to get checked out but avoid being sent home with tranquilizers/drugs to get rid of you. It'll only make it worse in the long run.

Hard to see an available Doc, I'll keep trying...

Good luck and God Bless !

Glad I'm not the only one. Momentary dizzy spells. Even when sitting still. Will cut back on the coffee tomorrow. Drinking a ten cup pot is probably not good for me.

Thank you SO much for this thread! I'm on day 9 and have been so dizzy and forgetful, that I even started to panic that i was developing Altzheimers :( You have really put my mind to rest - thank you!!

PS I have taken on board the advice re: caffeine and sugar too - am guilty of both.

Sounds familiar, but I'd check in with a Dr just to be safe!! :)