Strange turn of events
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 167
Strange turn of events
I've had a terrible week. I've had bad news, a lot of trips to the doctors, dentist, physio and a lot of wine has been consumed. I've had a problem with my back and my arm for years but it's sudddenly got a lot worse and has affected my leg too. After seeing a physio and a doctor it turns out that it's being caused by stress. Being so tense, especially in my sleep and clenching my jaw has caused all this. It also caused months worth of ear infections that no amount of antibiotics could shift. I can't believe i have done this to myself through stress. I'm so angry at myself. I've had to pay to have a mouth guard made (super expensive) to stop me clenching my jaw in my sleep and the doctor also prescribed me with diazepan to help me relax and sleep. The best thing about that is that i can't drink with them so at least that will make day 1 easier for me.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: NJ
Posts: 20,458
Drinking never made my anxiety any better, it actually made it much worse. stopping drinking can't change your day to day circumstances, but sobriety will definitely change how you APPROACH problems and deal with them....because you are thinking clearly.
no don't drink with the Ativan/valium, you will compromise your respiratory function and it actually works against the pills. so you will feel extra craptastic.
try a cup of relaxing tea in the evening.
no don't drink with the Ativan/valium, you will compromise your respiratory function and it actually works against the pills. so you will feel extra craptastic.
try a cup of relaxing tea in the evening.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 14
It is hard to believe how much stress can do to us. As you and I both know now drinking only makes it worse. I think it robs us of that deep sleep we really need too so that probably just leaves us more stresses out. I had to the mouth guard thing too. Put it off until I bit my lip so bad in my sleep I needed stitches! 
Good luck to you, try to just focus on one day at a time.
Good luck to you, try to just focus on one day at a time.
Member
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Western New York
Posts: 2,446
Yeah, stress is a tough one. I'll echo others that my anxiety has gone down, though I'm only a couple months sober. Hot baths always help me relax.
I've used a drug store mouth guard for some time. The $10 kind you dunk in boilng water then bite down on to form, works great. Cpap treatment for sleep apnea triggered clenching/grinding for me.
Mirecovery, that's awesome your teeth clenching went away. I've weaned myself off of prilosec without any recurrence of reflux and I had bad erosion, so there is hope I guess.
I've used a drug store mouth guard for some time. The $10 kind you dunk in boilng water then bite down on to form, works great. Cpap treatment for sleep apnea triggered clenching/grinding for me.
Mirecovery, that's awesome your teeth clenching went away. I've weaned myself off of prilosec without any recurrence of reflux and I had bad erosion, so there is hope I guess.
EndGame
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: New York, NY
Posts: 4,677
Stress is...what?
It's one of those words we commonly use to describe a whole range of things that we don't like, that we don't know how to manage or simply decide that we cannot manage, or that we'd rather not have. We know that it's bad, but when we think about it, we only imagine that it makes us feel worse and that it's something to avoid, even when we don't know what it is.
Stress is not simply an unwanted emotional state or an unpleasant state of mind. In my experience, stress is anything that promotes anxiety or fear. And then the anxiety or fear itself becomes a stressor. One-stop shopping. The gift that keeps on giving.
Stress triggers the production of at least three hormones: adrenaline, cortisol (which comes with the added bonus of giving us a terminally fat belly) and norepinephrine. (Google them to find out what each hormone is responsible for). Active alcoholics typically experience ongoing and extended periods of stress which accumulates over time and, in the process, places an unmanageable burden on our adrenal glands, adversely affecting our ability to manage cravings of all kinds, deal with things like insomnia and depression, and manage conditions like high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes. Not exactly heart-healthy. (There's another thread here on the potential behavioral consequences that come with overworked adrenal glands.)
We're built in a way that prepares us for managing acute experiences of stress, but not for protracted episodes. One of the problems is that, active alcoholics, in response to the immediate secretion of adrenaline and other stress-related hormones, typically drink or drink more rather than take action to mange the immediate stressor: an exceptionally bad day at work that includes threats from your boss about being being fired, a particularly violent fight (verbally or otherwise) at home, an accident, an arrest, missing a major life event of any kind...again.
Instead of fighting or fleeing, we drink, which does nothing to relieve our experience of stress, no matter how much we convince ourselves that this is so. In fact, drinking only adds to our stress and brings increasing intensity to the stress we already have. And all this repeats itself...every single day. My boss continues to keep a very watchful eye on me, and criticizes both my being late/absent and my poor performance on the dwindling number of days when I do show up for work. My wife is still bitterly angry with me and wants me out. My injuries and the injuries of those I've hurt are a lasting reminder of my being chronically irresponsible...and that I'm a danger to myself and others. The consequences of my DUI only get worse by drinking over it. And I may have caused irreparable damage by missing the birth of my first child, choosing instead to regale my drinking buddies in the bar about what a great father I'll be while my wife delivers our baby in my absence at ten o'clock in the morning.
The life of an active alcoholic is the very profile of ongoing trauma (which never gets easier or better), yet we wonder why we're anxious, depressed, can't sleep, experience fatigue and a lack of motivation, experience disruptions in appetite and digestion, present with a range of medical problems, and can't find our car keys after managing a whole seventy-two hours between us and our last drink. We kill ourselves over a number of years in order to "feel better," and then expect everything to right itself in less than a week.
Diet, exercise and meditation are always recommended as solutions for managing stress. All are or include actions that we can take in the service of regaining control of situations that seem well beyond our ability to control them. The problem is that there are many more people who talk about exercising, eating healthy and meditating than there are people who actually do these things. (And do I really want to spend the rest of my life in a gym, eating carrots as a "snack," and sitting in a darkened room listening to my breathing?) None of these solutions was enough for me, and I suspect that I am not alone in this. Instead, or in addition, I learned to engage stress or stressful circumstances as a challenge. The thing to do when I experience an adrenaline rush is to act, not to sit and hope for the best, just hide under the covers or drink shakes made from broccoli and kale. Or get drunk. Fewer things have contributed as much to my ongoing sobriety, to say nothing of the improved and improving quality of my life, than taking action when my life calls for it. I don't think that this is easy or natural for many people, so there must have been a huge evolutionary glitch somewhere along the line in our development as a race.
Managing stress is perhaps the crown jewel on an ever-expanding list of things "I can't do." I mean, isn't stress something that, by definition, I can only hope to endure? And, after all, stress never killed me. Not yet. I could say the same thing about drinking. You want to manage stress? You want to overcome low self-esteem? Then do something. Challenge yourself. And you can start by challenging yourself when you're called upon to deal with stress.
Challenges don't need to be grand gestures that demand attention from the rest of the world; setting manageable or realistic goals is not only good practice, but it's good for you. Instead of sitting in the back of the room, take a seat closer to the front. Or walk out the front door rather than sneaking out the back. Child abuse in the supermarket? Speak up when you sense that something's wrong, rather than obsess over what other people will think. Say "hello" or "good morning" to the bus driver, or to a stranger you pass on the street. Get a new toothbrush. Tell the cashier that she gave you the incorrect amount of change, rather than walk away feeling resentful for the next several years over being shorted fifteen cents. (A good barometer for measuring self-esteem is how often we feel we should say something in defense of ourselves but instead decide that it's safer to stay mute.) Don't automatically and immediately tell everyone who asks that you're "okay" and that you don't need any help the next time you slip and fall on the ice or drop your groceries all over the sidewalk. Or when you're run over by a bus. They won't hate you or think any less of you when you ask for help. Help a stranger who's struggling to pick up her groceries. Instead of cleaning the whole house, straighten up your utensils drawer, or pick up your socks. Throw out that mountain of junk mail you're never ever going to go through. Or get all that gunk off the walls of your microwave. Unless, of course, you like being the owner of an oversized, smoldering petri dish.
Consulting a physician, a therapist or a psychiatrist for dealing with stress if fine, but they can't help in any comprehensive or lasting way without your participation.
It's one of those words we commonly use to describe a whole range of things that we don't like, that we don't know how to manage or simply decide that we cannot manage, or that we'd rather not have. We know that it's bad, but when we think about it, we only imagine that it makes us feel worse and that it's something to avoid, even when we don't know what it is.
Stress is not simply an unwanted emotional state or an unpleasant state of mind. In my experience, stress is anything that promotes anxiety or fear. And then the anxiety or fear itself becomes a stressor. One-stop shopping. The gift that keeps on giving.
Stress triggers the production of at least three hormones: adrenaline, cortisol (which comes with the added bonus of giving us a terminally fat belly) and norepinephrine. (Google them to find out what each hormone is responsible for). Active alcoholics typically experience ongoing and extended periods of stress which accumulates over time and, in the process, places an unmanageable burden on our adrenal glands, adversely affecting our ability to manage cravings of all kinds, deal with things like insomnia and depression, and manage conditions like high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes. Not exactly heart-healthy. (There's another thread here on the potential behavioral consequences that come with overworked adrenal glands.)
We're built in a way that prepares us for managing acute experiences of stress, but not for protracted episodes. One of the problems is that, active alcoholics, in response to the immediate secretion of adrenaline and other stress-related hormones, typically drink or drink more rather than take action to mange the immediate stressor: an exceptionally bad day at work that includes threats from your boss about being being fired, a particularly violent fight (verbally or otherwise) at home, an accident, an arrest, missing a major life event of any kind...again.
Instead of fighting or fleeing, we drink, which does nothing to relieve our experience of stress, no matter how much we convince ourselves that this is so. In fact, drinking only adds to our stress and brings increasing intensity to the stress we already have. And all this repeats itself...every single day. My boss continues to keep a very watchful eye on me, and criticizes both my being late/absent and my poor performance on the dwindling number of days when I do show up for work. My wife is still bitterly angry with me and wants me out. My injuries and the injuries of those I've hurt are a lasting reminder of my being chronically irresponsible...and that I'm a danger to myself and others. The consequences of my DUI only get worse by drinking over it. And I may have caused irreparable damage by missing the birth of my first child, choosing instead to regale my drinking buddies in the bar about what a great father I'll be while my wife delivers our baby in my absence at ten o'clock in the morning.
The life of an active alcoholic is the very profile of ongoing trauma (which never gets easier or better), yet we wonder why we're anxious, depressed, can't sleep, experience fatigue and a lack of motivation, experience disruptions in appetite and digestion, present with a range of medical problems, and can't find our car keys after managing a whole seventy-two hours between us and our last drink. We kill ourselves over a number of years in order to "feel better," and then expect everything to right itself in less than a week.
Diet, exercise and meditation are always recommended as solutions for managing stress. All are or include actions that we can take in the service of regaining control of situations that seem well beyond our ability to control them. The problem is that there are many more people who talk about exercising, eating healthy and meditating than there are people who actually do these things. (And do I really want to spend the rest of my life in a gym, eating carrots as a "snack," and sitting in a darkened room listening to my breathing?) None of these solutions was enough for me, and I suspect that I am not alone in this. Instead, or in addition, I learned to engage stress or stressful circumstances as a challenge. The thing to do when I experience an adrenaline rush is to act, not to sit and hope for the best, just hide under the covers or drink shakes made from broccoli and kale. Or get drunk. Fewer things have contributed as much to my ongoing sobriety, to say nothing of the improved and improving quality of my life, than taking action when my life calls for it. I don't think that this is easy or natural for many people, so there must have been a huge evolutionary glitch somewhere along the line in our development as a race.
Managing stress is perhaps the crown jewel on an ever-expanding list of things "I can't do." I mean, isn't stress something that, by definition, I can only hope to endure? And, after all, stress never killed me. Not yet. I could say the same thing about drinking. You want to manage stress? You want to overcome low self-esteem? Then do something. Challenge yourself. And you can start by challenging yourself when you're called upon to deal with stress.
Challenges don't need to be grand gestures that demand attention from the rest of the world; setting manageable or realistic goals is not only good practice, but it's good for you. Instead of sitting in the back of the room, take a seat closer to the front. Or walk out the front door rather than sneaking out the back. Child abuse in the supermarket? Speak up when you sense that something's wrong, rather than obsess over what other people will think. Say "hello" or "good morning" to the bus driver, or to a stranger you pass on the street. Get a new toothbrush. Tell the cashier that she gave you the incorrect amount of change, rather than walk away feeling resentful for the next several years over being shorted fifteen cents. (A good barometer for measuring self-esteem is how often we feel we should say something in defense of ourselves but instead decide that it's safer to stay mute.) Don't automatically and immediately tell everyone who asks that you're "okay" and that you don't need any help the next time you slip and fall on the ice or drop your groceries all over the sidewalk. Or when you're run over by a bus. They won't hate you or think any less of you when you ask for help. Help a stranger who's struggling to pick up her groceries. Instead of cleaning the whole house, straighten up your utensils drawer, or pick up your socks. Throw out that mountain of junk mail you're never ever going to go through. Or get all that gunk off the walls of your microwave. Unless, of course, you like being the owner of an oversized, smoldering petri dish.
Consulting a physician, a therapist or a psychiatrist for dealing with stress if fine, but they can't help in any comprehensive or lasting way without your participation.
Guest
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: The Deep South
Posts: 14,636
I have TMJ and clench my jaws every night, it's not so much stress related as a malformation of the jaw/bite. Maybe you have something like this going on? I am wearing braces right now (for the 2nd time in my life), and am set to have jaw surgery next year in order to correct my lower jaw. I know this may sound extreme, but I chose to have this done, it's elective. My jaw never fit after having braces as a kid because the ortho just camouflaged the problem. I blamed my mom for this for years, as she let me decide at a very early age to either do ortho treatment or have them cut my jaw - and of course, being a traumatized child born to an alcoholic mother, I was absolutely terrified at the idea of a broken jaw. What mom other than a dysfunctional one would let a child decide?? I guess maybe one who was trying to weasel her way out of paying $10-15K. Honestly, she just couldn't afford it, so now it's all on me 
Thanks Mom. May she rest in peace.
Sorry you are having these issues. I do hope it gets better for you. Try one of those cheap plastic mouthguards from the store first. I tried one and it was way too big for my mouth, but in all honesty I didn't look around for them after that. I just want to correct the underlying problem once and for all.
Thanks Mom. May she rest in peace. Sorry you are having these issues. I do hope it gets better for you. Try one of those cheap plastic mouthguards from the store first. I tried one and it was way too big for my mouth, but in all honesty I didn't look around for them after that. I just want to correct the underlying problem once and for all.
Canine Welfare Advocate
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Norfolk, VA
Posts: 10,962
Originally Posted by messyliver 
I've had a terrible week....and a lot of wine has been consumed.
But you are closing this week sober. May today be your last day one.
Member
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Georgia
Posts: 576
Hate to drag up an old Post...But Managed to come across this doing a search..Something about a Potamus and TMJ and adrenal fatigue, etc..
I guess this is about the point I am at and I know Potamus just had surgery...
All of my Nerve issues , Dr's think so far are due to TMJ or sleep apnea...Will find out about TMJ issues this week , sleep study coming in mid March...
Because apparently one of these 2 things , which were brought upon myself from stress and those durn beers , is what may be causing my morning migraines , dizziness and occasional tremors..
It's amazing how what we perceive to be a daily destressor can actually multiply the stress factors 10 fold...
I am hoping for the best...
I guess this is about the point I am at and I know Potamus just had surgery...
All of my Nerve issues , Dr's think so far are due to TMJ or sleep apnea...Will find out about TMJ issues this week , sleep study coming in mid March...
Because apparently one of these 2 things , which were brought upon myself from stress and those durn beers , is what may be causing my morning migraines , dizziness and occasional tremors..
It's amazing how what we perceive to be a daily destressor can actually multiply the stress factors 10 fold...
I am hoping for the best...
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Dallas Texas
Posts: 579
nmd- nice advice. They sell them at sporting goods stores/departments. Think football orboxing. They will have several types of mouth guards and will be a lot less expensive than a "medical" one.
Member
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Georgia
Posts: 576
I appreciate the input...Yep , been a jaw clencher for at least the last 6 years. Something about waiting for another shoe to drop...At the rate of shoes that have been dropped, I have often been told to wear a helmet.. Opted to just drink beer instead(didn't stop the shoes from dropping and now I seem to have other issues because of it)..
Have fun ya'll...
Have fun ya'll...
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