justinJustQuit

alcohol effects everything. My motivation to change was liver pain, general stomach pain, Feeling like sh!t every day, and not having any emotions.

Oh and my bloodwork revealing elevated liver enzymes after drinking daily for only 3 years. Imagine if I Hadn't worked on it sooner...

Dee74

Hi Max

definitely do as I say not as I did...

I was not good at going to the Dr as a drunk so I only went if it was really bad...for me that was usually 'OMG it hurts to breathe' bad...

I took some enzyme tablets for a while, as well as general OTC pain relief.

I had attacks a few times a year.
I've not had any problems since I quit

D

DarkDays

Depression insomnia anxiety red itchy skin terrible mood swings and just a general lethargy to life .

Aellyce

Mental problem (so far) for me:
anxiety
depression
OCD-like intrusive thoughts
the whole addiction palette, I guess
cognitive effects, attention etc

More physical:
totally f...ed up sleep
weight gain in parts of my body that did not react this way before alcohol (although aging cannot be ruled out as an effect)
constant gastrointestinal symptoms (if you want details, PM me)
dermatological effects: horrible dry skin and hair

breath

The biggest one single health problem caused all the others, all I had to do to get rid of all the symptoms, problems and concerns surrounding my health mentioned so far in this thread was to take care of just one single health problem and all of the other problems began to disappear, some on their own, others required some special attention; but once this one health problem was addressed things got better very quickly. Here it is: Denial Elimination. Once I admitted I was powerless over alcohol and my life had become unmanageable I was able to quit denying I was unique and not sick - I was an alcoholic. That helped me stop and soon I found a lot of other people with the same problems as me, we all had so much in common! I was no longer alone, and we could talk, share, and understand one another, we actually helped one another and we all got better. Before I knew it all those 'health problems' started getting better. And I am SO Grateful, One Day At A Time!

Kris47

High BP, Tachycardia, TIA's, Panic attacks, Digestive troubles, Peripheal neuropathy and complicated by neck and back pain and radiculopathy due to an accident. Insomnia and Liver pain.



Still hoping to turn things around.

Aellyce

I feel a strong urge to drink now. And I absolutely don't want to... don't think it's the Friday/weekend thing as my lifestyle / schedule does not usually care much about weekends, I work ~as I want within minimal external requirement. So not sure why... not even sure it's helpful to try and figure out why, just resist somehow

alphaomega

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...-alcohell.html

Dee74

I think it's always helpful to try and work out why - but if you feel there's no why, definitely the even more important thing is to resist Haennie.

D

Aellyce

I think it's a craving either just randomly w/o cause, or perhaps the trigger is deep in my (yet) unconscious mind

Most often I think I can figure out the psychological (or psychiological) triggers of the cravings. For some, I cannot. But I don't want to get too crazy and obsessive trying to find these things right now. I will rather try and relax a bit now.

Everyone else, if you have cravings maybe try and do the same, not sure it helps but maybe

Thepatman

Gout for me. Been a month sober and had 2 acute attacks.
My AV keeps trying to convince me to drink the pain away.

You can knock but you can't come in I keep telling it.

Freshperspective14

For me, chronic fatigue, hot flashes, liver and kidney pain, a diagnosed inflamed/enlarged liver, abdominal bloating, weight gain, dry skin, chronic diarrhea, acid reflux, and most recently a tear in the lining of my esophagus which causes me to gag blood when I brush my teeth, likely resulting from treating my reflux with more straight vodka...fun stuff, let me tell ya.

Marcher13

At 58 I thought it was age. I had pains in my joints, pain in the back of my knees, discomfort around the liver, constant headaches, fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, indigestion, reflux, afternoon fatigue crash, itchy skin, constant throat issues.

Ten months later my worst health problem today is an infected mozzie bite and it's only infected because I scratched too much.

Inca

Luckily I haven't had any long term physical effects. I had my liver tested recently and it came out normal. I will say though that I have gained an unhealthy amount of weight and body fat that can lead to diabetes and stroke.

Mentally my brain was shot. Depression, anxiety, unable to put together sentences, and focus. These symptoms have improved over the past several months that I've been sober but I know it can take up to two years for my brain to heal so I'm still dealing with those effects. Alcohol will take you down, slowly, and painfully.

Pipping

Anxiety that would come in huge waves while driving to work the morning after a binge. My heart would race and I would have the most horrible feeling of dread like I was about to die.
Depression and lethargy. Acid reflux, diarrhoea with severe cramping, bloated abdomen, dry blotchy skin, teeth looked gross and yellow/ grey colour even after vigorous brushing. Blood sugar highs and lows. Generally looked like total and utter shite while deluding myself I was fine. Couldn't understand why I was gaining weight when I was on a liquid only diet supplemented occasionally with large pizza and fries. Fun times.

needtostopthis

Depression, anxiety, acid reflux so bad I thought I could blow fire outta my mouth, Diarrhea, moody, thin hair, aches and pains and elevated liver enzymes.

James18

I know the feeling well. I get it every time I overdrink (which is nearly always). It's horrible. I think I've also got IBS, which I'm sure is not a permanent state and would clear up once I kick the booze. My body is starting to revolt!

IreLander

Tingling in my extremities, and became a recluse. wouldnt go hang out with the ones I was closest to due to the fact that there was no alcohol where the were going. Or if I did go I would drink in the car all the way there so I was nice and "ripped" by the time I got there. Kind of sick...

GypsyHeart

Thanks op for starting this thread. I feel better that the health problems I have that I think are alcohol-related.... they probably are! I have a lot of the things going on that every other person has posted:

Acid Reflux (most prevalent)
Right lower back pain
Miserable stomach (bloating, hard digesting foods)
I cannot eat bananas anymore, which I think is due to inflammation of my stomach
Vision (my computer use doesn't help this either)
Top right foot is numb
Weight gain which is hard to lose
Fatigue
Mental fog
Memory
Bowel issues
Dizziness at times
Tinnitis -mainly in my left ear (goes from bad to worse for no reason)
Depression
Anxiety
Low Self Esteem
High cholesterol (how could it not be with the junk I ate)

Some of these things aren't completely due to alcohol, but alcohol hasn't helped I'm sure of that.

James18

There are at least a handful or more of those things you mention that are extremely common with drinkers. It's always good to know you're not on your own.