NyQuil made me feel like I relapsed?
Canine Welfare Advocate
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Norfolk, VA
Posts: 10,962
Originally Posted by Mrrryah1 
I was feeling extremely shameful about it.
Be careful about the mental gymnastics that are taking you down a road you don't want to go down.
Guest
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: U.S.A
Posts: 236
Since Nyquil has alcohol in it, it could set you up for a relapse. It's good you didn't actually drink or do any drugs though .. just be careful .. I'm new to recovery but I have heard it's best to stay away from anything with alcohol in it .. even if it seems innocent like nyquil.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Posts: 1,552
Aw man that just sucks. I drank NyQuil last night trying to drown the guilt I had from getting drunk last night. I feel horrible about it. But very good venting it out. It's amazing how many different paths out AV will take to get us.
Behold the power of NO
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: WA
Posts: 7,764
The key is to be brutally honest with yourself:
Did you have a nasty cold and picked up a bottle of Nyquil to help you not knowing it had alcohol in it? (then it would be a OOPS, no relapse but lesson learned to be more careful) Or did you go get the Nyquil to self medicate because you had been acting up and was feeling crappy about yourself?
It's your call: To thy own self be true. I just hope you will tell your sponsor about the Nyquil so she can decide whether or not she wants to continue working with you.
Did you have a nasty cold and picked up a bottle of Nyquil to help you not knowing it had alcohol in it? (then it would be a OOPS, no relapse but lesson learned to be more careful) Or did you go get the Nyquil to self medicate because you had been acting up and was feeling crappy about yourself?
I'm not resetting my sobriety date for half a bottle of NyQuil which I didn't even know had alcohol in it.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: W Washington
Posts: 11,589
you started by saying you engaged in some shameful behaviors...knowingly. and THEN feeling shameful you went TO the pharmacy, picked up some Nyquil and then downed HALF THE BOTTLE. your head was already in "non recovery" mode by the choices you'd already made and felt bad about. the Nyquil was just the outward act of already faulty thinking.
complete sobriety, without reaching for the nearest something to make us "feel better" takes rigorous honesty. you knew exactly what you were doing, alcohol or not. i think you should roll the tape back to the shameful behaviors part....and look at what was going on THEN, and what you could have done different before acting.
complete sobriety, without reaching for the nearest something to make us "feel better" takes rigorous honesty. you knew exactly what you were doing, alcohol or not. i think you should roll the tape back to the shameful behaviors part....and look at what was going on THEN, and what you could have done different before acting.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 476
Originally Posted by Mrrryah1
Well then! Good bye 36 days of sobriety, back to day 1 again (tomorrow).
Just lovely.
Just lovely.
Regarding this being a "relapse"......... nah, i wouldn't count this as a relapse, even though it is 20 proof the fact the dosage is so small, even at half the bottle as you claim (6 oz)......... it only comes out to slightly weaker than a single regular beer. My guess is whatever alcohol was in it got metabolized and processed in under 2 hours if not sooner.
Besides that, you didn't know it had alcohol. In my opinion relapse involves a knowing/conscious decision to drink or get high.
If there was a "relapse", it's that you went looking for something to get "high" off of.......... even something as unconventional and strange as NyQuil sleep formula. Probably more of a "mental relapse" than anything else as others have mentioned.
For future reference: most mouth wash, certain "alcohol glazed" foods, some screen/window/glass cleaners, lots of "sanitizing" wipes, certain hand-soap solutions, and of course NyQuil, all have alcohol in them.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Canada
Posts: 809
Originally Posted by Carlotta
I just hope you will tell your sponsor about the Nyquil so she can decide whether or not she wants to continue working with you.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Minneapolis
Posts: 444
Originally Posted by longbeachone
I hate to tell you this, but Nyquil is practically ALL alcohol. It was my first choice hangover remedy in my drinking days.
Nyquil, and ZzzQuil, do though contain alcohol. Also, half a bottle is not 'a double dose', as you put it. It is much closer to 3-4 doses.
I think you both both being too hard hard on yourself, but at the same time, this might be a good learning opportunity to practice further self-control/self-policing, recognize what made you decide to take that to fall asleep, and to try to avoid that as a regular, on-going thing.
(Also, the generic versions of both NyQuil and ZzzQuil are alcohol-free- just FYI.)
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Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Long Beach, CA
Posts: 705
Your sobriety date is YOUR call. There is alcohol in so many things that we consume, in truth we would all probably never be sober if we counted everything that went into our body containing alcohol. It's often used as a preservative. If you eat out, particularly in a fine dining establishment, I can virtually guarantee that many dishes are cooked with wine (I put myself through college as a waitress in a French restaurant).
You didn't know and didn't drink it for the alcohol. I sometimes take Benedryl if I can't sleep, and I use Sleepytime Tea and Melatonin on occasion too and I remember being scolded at an AA meeting about it. I felt bad for about ten seconds, then shook it off. I have rotten sleep issues...I wake up all night long, sometimes as often as every hour, so I would rather take what I feel are safe sleep aids then feel exhausted and grumpy all day long.
You didn't know and didn't drink it for the alcohol. I sometimes take Benedryl if I can't sleep, and I use Sleepytime Tea and Melatonin on occasion too and I remember being scolded at an AA meeting about it. I felt bad for about ten seconds, then shook it off. I have rotten sleep issues...I wake up all night long, sometimes as often as every hour, so I would rather take what I feel are safe sleep aids then feel exhausted and grumpy all day long.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Canada
Posts: 809
Originally Posted by longbeachone
Your sobriety date is YOUR call. There is alcohol in so many things that we consume, in truth we would all probably never be sober if we counted everything that went into our body containing alcohol. It's often used as a preservative. If you eat out, particularly in a fine dining establishment, I can virtually guarantee that many dishes are cooked with wine (I put myself through college as a waitress in a French restaurant).
You didn't know and didn't drink it for the alcohol. I sometimes take Benedryl if I can't sleep, and I use Sleepytime Tea and Melatonin on occasion too and I remember being scolded at an AA meeting about it. I felt bad for about ten seconds, then shook it off. I have rotten sleep issues...I wake up all night long, sometimes as often as every hour, so I would rather take what I feel are safe sleep aids then feel exhausted and grumpy all day long.
You didn't know and didn't drink it for the alcohol. I sometimes take Benedryl if I can't sleep, and I use Sleepytime Tea and Melatonin on occasion too and I remember being scolded at an AA meeting about it. I felt bad for about ten seconds, then shook it off. I have rotten sleep issues...I wake up all night long, sometimes as often as every hour, so I would rather take what I feel are safe sleep aids then feel exhausted and grumpy all day long.
I'm not going to beat myself up, rather use this as a learning experience and move on to day 37 tomorrow.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Canada
Posts: 809
Originally Posted by Hobbers
False- Nyquil is 10% alcohol. That is not remotely 'practically ALL'. Also, since a bottle is about 10-12oz, @10%abv, you're looking at consuming ~1/2 a beer's worth of alcohol in your described dose. Not 'abstinence', but I'd hardly call that a relapse.
Nyquil, and ZzzQuil, do though contain alcohol. Also, half a bottle is not 'a double dose', as you put it. It is much closer to 3-4 doses.
I think you both both being too hard hard on yourself, but at the same time, this might be a good learning opportunity to practice further self-control/self-policing, recognize what made you decide to take that to fall asleep, and to try to avoid that as a regular, on-going thing.
(Also, the generic versions of both NyQuil and ZzzQuil are alcohol-free- just FYI.)
Nyquil, and ZzzQuil, do though contain alcohol. Also, half a bottle is not 'a double dose', as you put it. It is much closer to 3-4 doses.
I think you both both being too hard hard on yourself, but at the same time, this might be a good learning opportunity to practice further self-control/self-policing, recognize what made you decide to take that to fall asleep, and to try to avoid that as a regular, on-going thing.
(Also, the generic versions of both NyQuil and ZzzQuil are alcohol-free- just FYI.)
Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 476
Originally Posted by Mrrryah1
Thanks. I needed to hear this. I'm not going to reset my sobriety date - I honestly didn't know there was alcohol in it. If I use it again now, trying to escape, with this newfound knowledge, I will reset my sobriety date because I was intentionally consuming alcohol.
I'm not going to beat myself up, rather use this as a learning experience and move on to day 37 tomorrow.
I'm not going to beat myself up, rather use this as a learning experience and move on to day 37 tomorrow.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Minneapolis
Posts: 444
Sauerkraut has alcohol. So does old fruit. Low-acid juices start to ferment as soon as you pour them into a glass exposed to air.
Those aren't relapses. You know yourself/your reasons/your mind/body/AV, so only you can decide this, but I don't think you relapsed, brah.
now, if you've spent all day thinking about buying more NyQuil, woke up and finished that bottle off, or are reading this from a bar/driving home from the liquor store? Yeah... get to a meeting!
;-)
Those aren't relapses. You know yourself/your reasons/your mind/body/AV, so only you can decide this, but I don't think you relapsed, brah.
now, if you've spent all day thinking about buying more NyQuil, woke up and finished that bottle off, or are reading this from a bar/driving home from the liquor store? Yeah... get to a meeting!
;-)
Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: East Coast USA
Posts: 120,872
Originally Posted by Mrrryah1
Thanks. I needed to hear this. I'm not going to reset my sobriety date - I honestly didn't know there was alcohol in it. If I use it again now, trying to escape, with this newfound knowledge, I will reset my sobriety date because I was intentionally consuming alcohol.
I'm not going to beat myself up, rather use this as a learning experience and move on to day 37 tomorrow.
I'm not going to beat myself up, rather use this as a learning experience and move on to day 37 tomorrow.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 1,778
Originally Posted by Mrrryah1
I'm not resetting my sobriety date for half a bottle of NyQuil which I didn't even know had alcohol in it.
Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: Long Beach, CA
Posts: 705
Originally Posted by hopeful4
Just be careful w/Melatonin as once you take so much your body will not produce it on it's own, or that is how I understand it to be.
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