NoRingWraith

last week I hadn't had any beer in about a week and I had also quit eating anything sugar related -

so during that week, I was really spacy at work, and it seemed I couldn't connect the dots, so to speak.

I don't know if it is a combination of both, not having beer and quitting refined carbs that made me so bad, or if it was simply one or the other.

How long does the brain fog last? I did have some beer this weekend, and today I'm feeling clear as a bell mentally. But I want to be able to quit drinking completely while at the same time I want to be competent at my job.

Are there other "symptoms" of stopping alcohol? When my mother was alive she was a horrible alcoholic-she'd drink for days on end- she would drink until she passed out, then drink some more when she awoke. This could last for a week or longer. It was terrible. and during her sober times, she was always angry. She could go a month or so, then bam, she would be right back at it.

Someone at a recovery center told me her anger was a result of her alcoholism...and last week, during my no-beer week, even though I didn't have any cravings, I also found myself getting snappish and impatient last week.

Any thoughts?

Now I don't even come close to where she was, but I haven't gone a whole month withoug a beer for a long time. So that she could go that long to me was great... I wish I could stop that long!

Dee74

Brain fog is pretty common - I was pretty foggy for a while - well over a week - but I was an all day every day drinker for some years...

To really clear the brain fog you need a decent run of sobriety IMO - going back for a few beers might ease the fog temporarily but it's just contributing to the general problem in the end, and may even be making it worse.

Cutting out sugar as well, you might not be doing yourself too many favours this early in your recovery....

I made myself pretty sick that way - and yeah spacy too...and I was not even in early recovery then - so that may be a factor too?

D

RobC420

I been completely clean and sober for 18 months and I still get snappish and impatient. This is something that my program of recovery helps me with.

There are a number of symptoms of alcohol abuse. While I was drinking I was in denial (or just unaware) of most of them. Over time I began to see just how much alcohol affected my life.

hypochondriac

You can stop for that long NoWringWraith!

I had all that anger/brain fog thing going on too. It gets better with time. For me though my second month was really foggy and I had lots of tension headaches. Just power through to the other side next time, beer is not the answer x

Ready2Bmeagain

I am in my third week without drinking and I still have occasions where I get pretty foggy. It is less than the second week and that was less than the first week, so I can see that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

You can quit for longer than a month... You just have to committ to quitting. Everyone here is a support structure for you. Lean on them and let them prop you up when you need it most.

Best wishes and God Bless.

Anna

I can tell you that I was angry long before I began to drink. I had repressed so much emotion from my childhood that I was often simmering with anger. Of course, drinking made it worse. And, when I stopped drinking, I still had to deal with the anger and all the other emotions. As others have said, the brain fog should clear up soon.

NoRingWraith

thanks. to all of you. I need support. It is hard. every day I fight with myself. even when I have no cravings nor desire. It's odd1

And I kept waking up last week with headaches, so maybe that also was a symptom of not having anything.

I just was so foggy that I feel as if my co-workers thought me downright stupid! Or dim as a burned out lightbulb.

Is there any written material on what ppl can go through when they quit? And when does quitting become recovery?

hypochondriac

There are loads of books out there you can read... I just finished reading Drinking: A love story by Caroline Knapp and I'm just about to start Dry by Augusten Burroughs. There are threads out there on reading lists. I actually found the autobiographies really useful because I just used to argue with the recovery books! The crash course on AVRT really helped me though. Have you joined the class of October thread here yet? It's good to have extra layers of support x

NoRingWraith

AVRT? the class of October thread? Not yet--I'm very new to this website so haven't found my way around it all yet. But thanks for the tip!! I'll definitely check it out.

I did buy "Recovery for Dummies" but I didn't find it very useful at all!

GirlFromCO

Just a thought - Something that comes up from time to time on this site is the link between alcohol and blood sugar imbalances. I'm not an expert by any means, but I do remember learning somewhere that your body uses alcohol just like pure sugar so you get a lot of energy from it. Cutting out alcohol and sugar at the same time might be playing havoc w/ your blood sugar levels. My advice, again, not an expert, would be to eat lots of small meals, lots of protein, and see if that helps your energy level. Quitting drinking is rough anyway - you're bound to have some brain fog, but I think a lot of that can be helped by giving your body a consistent supply of healthy fuel. There's also some evidence that being hungry can lead to a relapse (heard of HALT?) Anyway, good luck to you and keep up the good work