Serotonin

I've been feeling pretty good since the physical withdrawls have subsided, but today I feel different.

I feel foggy, almost mentally the same as a bad hangover. SPACED OUT.

I don't have much motivation.

Bouts of crying for no reason.

Short term memory is shot. For example, I'll start to reply on a post and have to re-read the topic to remember what I was going to type.

My vision feels "dreamy"

Overreacting to things.

Short periods of impending doom.

Sleeping for over 12 hours.

Lack of interest in pretty much everything.

The good news is I'm not craving alcohol and know the only way to get better is to never drink again. I'm looking to make an appointment at a clinic for people with low income, but it feels extremely difficult to figure out how to do anything like that.

EDIT: I have to edit pretty much everything I type due to mispelled words and setences that make little sense when reading.

Lifewillgetbet

For me it started 3-4 weeks in. The worst is 4-8 months for me. Not physical, just emotional. I am currently in that range now. Zero sleep, emotional over reaction to everything, stressed. You name the symptom, I have it. Luckily just a few more months of this.

doggonecarl

You are five days in. You are experiencing initial withdrawals, still. PAWS comes later.

The good news is...you never have to feel like this again.

FreeOwl

uhm... what is PAWS?

MemphisBlues

I think PAWS rears its ugly head months into recovery, not weeks. If your sobriety is double-digit days, I think you are dealing what most of us deal with: that huge, deep, dark area following acute detoxification.

Sleep for 12 hours. That's not big deal. That's just your body recovering after getting booze out of your system. Our body just doesn't know how to react without that steady, constant coating of alcohol all over the central nervous system. Our guts have to recover, too.

The crying and angst is just the brain trying to deal with reality without being soaked with booze.

It's just going to suck for a while.

If you are like me, I could read a myriad of horror stories about withdrawal and PAWS and then manifest those symptoms.

Just try to get your self in a place where you accept that you are just going to feel like crap for a while and do know that it does get better.

ScottFromWI

I would agree with Carl, you are still experiencing acute withdrawal. PAWS ( Post Acute ) withdrawal doesn't generally set in until several weeks or months after initial detox/withdrawal. A lot of the symptoms you list are common, but please see a doctor if you have specific concerns about any of them.

Imabuleva

Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome.

Post-acute-withdrawal syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Acute means it comes on suddenly, but doesn't last indefinitely.

FreeOwl

oh boy... something else to look forward to...

Off to read. Thanks for the link.

Imabuleva

Well if you're an alcoholic and you keep drinking, you only have hell to look forward to.

Inca

Started for me about two weeks in and was the worst for the first three months. Now at four months I feel much more stable and clear although I've heard it can take up to two years for your brain to fully recover.

Inca

Yeah, just think....if you drink again it starts all over from square one. I don't ever want to go through that again!

FreeOwl

I agree.

I made that comment with a tongue-in-cheek levity.

I've been hit pretty hard with insomnia in my early sobriety here - but today at the Gratitude Tuesday meeting I shared my gratitude for insomnia. Because I'd rather be awake and clear-headed at 3 am and up to see the sunrise and participating on this forum in the wee hours than suffering with a hangover or numbing my mind and my emotions with a fountain of booze.

Serotonin

Thanks for the replies. I was under the impression that once I started to feel better physically PAWS might start. Still don't quite understand, but that's OK, lol.

One day at a time right

Serotonin

The longest I've gone sober in 17 years was a bit over 100 days, and that was almost 4 years ago. Since then I had 18 days last July. I don't remember it ever being this bad. I do have a lot of other stress I'm dealing with right now. My son's mother has cancer, my son is sick, I'm looking for a new job as my business isn't productive.

Thanks

ScottFromWI

Acute withdrawal is generally the first week to 10 days when your body physically reacts to the removal of alcohol. This is the most dangerous time for those with physical dependence.

Post Acute Withrawal ( PAWS ) happens later - weeks or months after the acute withdrawal is done. Some people don't have it at all too, so it's not guarnteed that you will get it.

With either though, make sure to see a doctor if you have specific concerns.

Dee74

for more detail:

PAWS | Digital Dharma

D

Kris47

Hang in there!

Kris47

ant385

i think acute blends into PAWS to be honest. If your GABA and glutamate system is shot to bits you will not feel superb for a few weeks whilst waiting for PAWS to set in. It will piggyback off of acute withdrawal. Sometimes the two feel the same as not everyone shows physical symptoms of withdrawal.

what I am basically saying is two days after your last drink... hello hell!

DriGuy

Yeah, I think you need to deal with your current symptoms. I never even heard of PAWS until I was on this forum. I don't remember experiencing it, or maybe I did, but didn't know what it was at the time. Everyone's recovery will be a little different, and I don't think PAWS is a foregone conclusion. You may never experience it, or it may show up to lesser degree. Recovery is a mixture of things. Joys and challenges will be part of it. PAWS? Maybe.

sugarbear1

PAWS is the term used to describe our recovery to those who don't get to experience it first hand. Just keep staying stopped and it will all even out!