Withdrawal symptoms?
 

Is it strange that I have had for the most part no withdrawal symptoms? Aside from urinating a lot the first 2 days, I haven't felt any physical symptoms. Was wondering if anybody else quit without much withdrawal.

I am not questioning that I am an alchoholic (one doesn't have a drink at 6:30 am before work without coming to realization that that you have a drinking problem), just curious if anyone else had a similar experience.

I had very little physical withdrawal symptoms might be my age or that I am pretty physically fit. However I definetly had psychological and emotional withdrawal

Personally, I have MASSIVE anxiety and panic attacks the day after drinking. One time, I did have night sweats for one evening.

But I am normally fine on Day 2 after drinking, feeling pretty awesome actually. BUT, I also know that I am an alcoholic, and it is only a matter of time before I will have horrible withdrawal symptoms.

Congrats on quitting, and glad you are feeling better!!

I didn't have bad symptoms, but at 11 days sobriety I still wake up dehydrated and with occasional headaches. Clearly, I'm not drinking enough water, probably because I am no longer dealing with hangovers.

I can attest to this and what I have read supports it (though it may not be the same for everyone) -- each time you quit drinking and then start again and then quit again the withdrawal becomes more intense. I've failed many times prior to seeking help (presently) and I seek help this time because the widthdrawal symptoms I experience this time when quitting where fairly severe - I haven't slept for more than a couple of hours with night sweating, massively high blood pressure, suddenly waking with the sensation of hundreds of nails flying at me, screwed up thoughts and that's to name a few issues.

The last time I quit I was a hard day followed by a sleepless night but the next day wasn't so hard. So I can only assume if I keep drinking I'm in for what amounts to agony during the nights and since I have to function during the day, it's likely sleep deprivation will devastate my relationships and my life will come undone which I'm not prepare to allow to happen.

Dollyangel -- consider yourself lucky! Mine weren't the extreme delirium tremens/cold sweats freakouts that others describe, but I had persistent headaches, fatigue, brain fatigue, irritability/nerves and other weirdnesses for months after. As for the one symptom you did mention -- yes I had that -- plus I had a whole heck of a lot of the other kind of excretion for at least the first month. It kept me busy. Must have been my liver expelling fat.

InspiringBurden -- I had an interesting opposite result. I quit for about a month and the withdrawal symptoms were agony. Then I relapsed for a few months and tried again. Next attempt my withdrawal symptoms were much better -- nasty, but bearable. That's how come I've stayed straight this time. It could be because I didn't use sugar as my methadone the second time around? I don't know what eased the second withdrawal.

What I have read that scares the bejeepers out of me is that repeat, on-again, off-again relapses from alcohol do really BAD damage to the brain and other organs. But especially the brain. You really want to try to get sober and then STAY that way if you don't want to end up with alcoholic psychosis ...

Great post Miyako - interesting about your mention of some using sugar as a methadone. In my cause, I'm completely avoiding it, eating something more like the Atkins diet (which I've found in the past is a very 'stable' diet that doesn't include too many ups and downs (as sugar can produce). It takes a few days of lethargy before the body settles into it, but once there you have a sense of physical strength without food cravings so it may be a good choice for people looking for more diet stability while in the first month or so...

I will have to agree with Inspiring on this point ... for the longest time I would stop drinking ... weeks later completely be out of my mind wasted and do that for days ... stop drinking for weeks and the cycle would continue over and over. My withdraw symptoms the first day were non existent. Day 2-5 ...omg... I constantly thought about killing myself instead of dealing with the withdraw pains. After day 5, I had minimal withdraws. Now, there are days were I have triggers that place me back in the withdraw stages: irritated, sweating, nervous, can't think straight, etc. Than I refocus myself. Regain what I can control. I tell myself, "I am not responsible for my first thought, but I am responsible for my next action." I don't know If this helps. I feel that I just went on and on.

It took me a week to get over my withdrawal symptoms. But I'm not going on a night binge. Try 5 days in a round, just drinking and drinking. I get Feeling of jumpiness or nervousness, Feeling of shakiness, Anxiety, Irritability or easily excited ,Emotional volatility, rapid emotional changes, Depression and Fatigue. Plus the nightmares I get that seem so real. Difficulty with thinking clearly Its feel good at first but after the 4th day, I can hardly drink alcohol. When I try, I throw up. It's a mess when I'm at that point.

Let me tell you this, you don't want to be at that point of your drinking if you have a problem with alcohol. It's not fun at all.

:gaah

I think the psychological withdrawal is much harder to overcome than anything physical.
Best of luck with giving up we are all in the same boat.