Carly2332

So I just went to see a counselor last week, and he told me he wants me to go to a treatment center( well, he actually said detox for 6 days) and then resume my sessions with him. I don't believe that detox is necessary. I told him, I am not physically dependent on alcohol, psychologically, yea, but that was the reason I was seeing a counselor in the first place. Maybe it's just protocol, they suggest that to anyone who admits to having a drinking problem....idk. He seemed adamant about it though....He wanted me to see my doctor, so I made an appointment. I'm going to ask about a prescription for naltrexone. I've researched it, and if I'm one of the people that it works for, that would, obviously, be great. I would continue going to counseling also, I know that I need to do more than just take a pill....

soulgypsy

I would be hard pressed to say anything to contradict what your counselor says. I would try to get some clarification and check with your doctor perhaps to get his or her opinion. I would suggest that if you are paying for professional advice, that is advice you should probably consider taking.

We are here to support you in your recovery. Welcome.

suki44883

How long has it been since you've had a drink? All they do at a detox facility is make sure you detox safely by checking your vitals every few hours. If you have passed the point of withdrawal, then I don't see why you would need detox. I would talk to my doctor about it.

Carly2332

See, I haven't quit drinking yet. I still do it, but I want to stop. It has had negative effects, but I can't stay quit for more than a few days. Like I said before, I am not physically dependent on alcohol. I don't wake up in the morning, needing a drink to feel normal...the times I have drank in the morning, were a choice, not a need. Well, not a PHYSICAL need...I suffer physically from the drinking like any other person would. The result of drinking too much, and not eating right, makes you feel like crap. I know it's a problem, simply because I've had many serious reasons to stop, and I always go right back. I don't think I am an alcoholic in the truest sense of the word, but I definately have a problem with alcohol. It's not denial, the way I'm thinking...I just always thought that alcoholics suffered ill consequences if they DID'NT drink. Ya know, withdrawal, the DT's. I suffer ill consequences when I DO drink. But yet, I can't stop repeating the cycle. So, I know that there's a problem. Maybe I'm not making sense...

sugarbear1

We don't know if we are physically dependent until we stop drinking. Alcohol is a depressant and our body gets used to being depressed. When we stop, we can put the body into shock. Blood pressure rises and all sorts of things can go berserk.

Go to detox and follow your doctor's suggestion. He or she went to medical school for 8 years and probably has experience with other alcoholics.

Please be safe! I know a guy who died from detox from beer. It's not what we want when we stop.

Staying stopped will be hard enough, that is when you will want the naltrexone, which doesn't really work until we stay stopped long enough for it to work.

Best wishes,

suki44883

Well, in that case, I think medical detox is a good idea. If you can't go for more than a few days, and if you have progressed to drinking in the morning, then you are dependent on alcohol, whether you think you are physically dependent or not. Saying it was a choice to drink in the morning is, in my opinion, a cop out. Drinking is always a choice, until it isn't. It sounds like you have a bigger problem with alcohol than you are willing to believe.

So, yeah, I think you are a good candidate for medical detox. It isn't bad...I did it and enjoyed every minute. I didn't want to leave. I stayed for six day and then did out-patient rehab for six weeks afterward. It really gave me the head-start I needed to learn how to live sober.

sugarbear1

Please be totally honest with your doctor.

Carly2332

Maybe you are right. But, I really don't think I am in any danger physically from stopping drinking. I feel that it's all mental with me. Possibly I have depression, anxiety, or maybe it has something to do with MS. That's why I was going to a counselor. To try to get to the root of the problem. I really do appreciate feedback from you guys, thats why I come to SR. It's good to see other points of view.

suki44883

You say you don't suffer ill effects if you don't drink, but how long have you gone without drinking? You don't know what ill effects you might have, DTs, the shakes, etc. because you always pick up after a few days.

In any case, alcohol detox can cause a lot of problems. Not just the possibility of death, but hypertension, heart attack, mini strokes or a full blown stroke. You can't just cold turkey take away an addictive substance like alcohol without your body putting up a fight. It's much, much better to detox in a medical environment where they can help you if something goes wrong. I hope you will seriously consider it and please, do talk to your doctor and be 100% honest with him/her about your drinking habits AND the fact that your counselor recommended medical detox. Good luck.

Carly2332

Thank you Suki. I had my mind made up before I posted this, I guess I just wanted validation. But you've given me some things to think about. And I will. Seriously.

Pondlady

You mention MS. My sister has MS and stopped drinking per her doctor's recommendation, as it interfered with medications used for her MS. MS patients also suffer from depression, another side effect of drinking. Keep posting.

Carly2332

Drinking makes me not think of my MS. I dont think its the reason for the drinking, but I dont think of my MS when I drink. I drink sometimes instead of taking my medication. I know it's bad, but I do it. My neurologist told me I could drink in MODERATION. She gave me an inch, and I took a mile....

Dee74

I understand that - I have cerebral palsy and I drank to forget that too.
Trouble was my alcoholism became more of a problem for me than my CP ever was.

I'm glad you're thinking about this now Carly

D

Carly2332

Dee, I too believe that the drinking is a bigger problem than than my disease. See, if I don't drink, I have a chance of an almost normal life...but drinking doesn't help at all. Probly makes things worse. Thats why I dont understand why I still do it. Is it just like a smoker ( I smoke too) who just hopes that they don't get lung cancer, emphysema....cos not everybody does...just the unlucky ones *sarcasm*

katrinka

I'm sorry you have MS, Carly, I can understand why you would want to forget that. But it is more important to stay healthy than to forget. I would try the detox, you have absolutely nothing to lose.

Carly2332

Thank you Katryna.....sometimes I wonder if MS makes me drink. Or if I was going to, regardless...MS is tricky, you sometimes don't know if it's the disease, or if it's just you messing up. I don't want to end up disabled in anyway because of it, but I feel like I am already kinda disabled. I went blind in one eye, a few days after a drinking binge....I don't know if it had anything to do with it....I just don't think about it, but maybe that hurts me more than helps me.

flutter

Hi Carly. As you probably already know, depression is one of the most common symptoms of MS. Unfortunately, smoking and drinking can both exacerbate symptoms and progression of the disease. I hope that you consider detox, it sounds like it would be your safest option when you want to stop drinking.

Here's an article about how smoking and drinking alcohol affect MS:

Smoking and Alcohol : National MS Society

Maylie

Hi Carly, I really hope that you listen to your doctors and take the safest root to recovery that you are able to. For a long time I told myself and others that I wasn't physically dependent, just mentally.. until one day I tried to stop and realized I couldn't. Our minds don't function normally when we are not sober, we aren't rational, and we can convince ourselves that we are fine...but that is where you ask yourself, if we truely believed we were fine then we wouldn't ask for help.

I don't mean this to seem like a nasty comment, these are just things that I have been thinking myself the last couple of days. I hope you do what is best and safest for you and that when you're ready, you take all the help you can get because damn we need alot of help to beat this!

hypochondriac

I can't see how detox could be considered drastic Carly? If you are having problems stopping that will just give you a safe environment to quit drinking in a place where you can't drink. It's just giving you a good headstart and a fighting chance x