Brain Fog and No Creativity
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Join Date: Mar 2015
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Brain Fog and No Creativity
I guess I am on day 7 or something like that, don't know. I tapered really quickly the week before that; detoxing was hard, even with the taper.
I have overdue writing submissions and I just cannot get it together since I stopped drinking. Finding topics and thoughtful connections was never an issue for me before with long-form articles. I am forgetting basic vocabulary and structuring is impossible.
Please tell me this gets better. I feel like I have lost my ability to write well -- or to even think.
I have overdue writing submissions and I just cannot get it together since I stopped drinking. Finding topics and thoughtful connections was never an issue for me before with long-form articles. I am forgetting basic vocabulary and structuring is impossible.
Please tell me this gets better. I feel like I have lost my ability to write well -- or to even think.
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Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Ireland
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I was out of action doing anything else other than going to work coming home and crashing for a long time, no energy or motivation, but that changed with time!!
Years of drinking can't be healed in a week, it's going to take time, the body can only go at it's own pace!!
Hang in there!! It gets better!!
Years of drinking can't be healed in a week, it's going to take time, the body can only go at it's own pace!!
Hang in there!! It gets better!!
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Tuxedo Park, NY
Posts: 1,101
I agree it takes time but it is not quick. I had many many weeks of just going to work coming home and struggling with anxiety, brain fog, dizziness, disorientation and forgetfulness... 10 weeks out though I am starting to feel better than in years.
The drinking just keeps us from reality and makes us sick.
The drinking just keeps us from reality and makes us sick.
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Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: East Coast USA
Posts: 120,854
It will get better, Pouncer, I promise.
Focusing required extra practice and purposeful thought and concentration in early times.
Have you thought about incorporating meditation into your day? A Google search could lead you in the right direction.
Focusing required extra practice and purposeful thought and concentration in early times.
Have you thought about incorporating meditation into your day? A Google search could lead you in the right direction.
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Maryland
Posts: 93
Pouncer. It does get better. I'm on day 23 and slowly the fog is lifting. Today was the first time since I stopped drinking that I had the energy to get out and exercise. I ran for 30 minutes and then I made myself a nice salad. Eat well and visit SR as much as you can. Your body and mind will slowly heal. If it becomes unbearable see a doctor. hang in there.
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,364
It will get better
I was an all day everyday drinker for several years so it took a while for me to get my faculties back but I did, and all intact.
Try not to worry - you'll be ok Pouncer
D
I was an all day everyday drinker for several years so it took a while for me to get my faculties back but I did, and all intact.
Try not to worry - you'll be ok Pouncer
D
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Join Date: Mar 2015
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I am starting to worry because I have deadlines and I feel especially pressured. Reading about writers who sobered up didn't help at all and was actually a trigger. I feel stuck.
From the Onion: "How Come No One Celebrates My Alcoholism Like John Cheever's?"
Are there any artists, writers, or creative types who have gone through this? I have been in a three-day lull.
From the Onion: "How Come No One Celebrates My Alcoholism Like John Cheever's?"
Are there any artists, writers, or creative types who have gone through this? I have been in a three-day lull.
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Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 1,322
Hi, Pouncer:
I'm a writer and can relate with what you're saying. We are people of habits, and if drinking is part of your routine, it can be hard to let go. I have a big deadline looming too, so I also know about the desire to drink to ameliorate that pressure.
I found that brain fog was a big issue for the first two months in particular, but things did lift. And the writing that I produce sober is just as good (or so my agent says), if not better. Really, what is better is that I can work in a serene and steady way, vs. writing in a binge/purge sort of way and/or with hangovers and headaches.
Perhaps the drinking took the edge off and let your creative mind open? I have found strangely enough that meditation and yoga first thing in the morning do something similar for me.
Good luck, Pouncer! Sending you positive thoughts.
I'm a writer and can relate with what you're saying. We are people of habits, and if drinking is part of your routine, it can be hard to let go. I have a big deadline looming too, so I also know about the desire to drink to ameliorate that pressure.
I found that brain fog was a big issue for the first two months in particular, but things did lift. And the writing that I produce sober is just as good (or so my agent says), if not better. Really, what is better is that I can work in a serene and steady way, vs. writing in a binge/purge sort of way and/or with hangovers and headaches.
Perhaps the drinking took the edge off and let your creative mind open? I have found strangely enough that meditation and yoga first thing in the morning do something similar for me.
Good luck, Pouncer! Sending you positive thoughts.
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Tuxedo Park, NY
Posts: 1,101
Originally Posted by Pouncer 
I am starting to worry because I have deadlines and I feel especially pressured. Reading about writers who sobered up didn't help at all and was actually a trigger. I feel stuck.
From the Onion: "How Come No One Celebrates My Alcoholism Like John Cheever's?"
Are there any artists, writers, or creative types who have gone through this? I have been in a three-day lull.
From the Onion: "How Come No One Celebrates My Alcoholism Like John Cheever's?"
Are there any artists, writers, or creative types who have gone through this? I have been in a three-day lull.
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Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Ireland
Posts: 25,826
Yeah I work in a job with deadlines, and thinking on my feet, when I got Sober I felt completely lost, almost to the point of nearly having a panic attack every morning as I just couldn't get anything to click anymore.
Though the worst thing to do is to go back to drinking, that's what I used to do until I realised when is there ever going to be a good time at work to quit, there's always going to be something I need to be on top of game for, so best to run with it and do the best I could.
In the short term my productivity decreased, but in the long term, I surpassed the heights that alcohol limited me to, this long term view on things kept me going, because really what is the alternative?
Plenty of fresh air, good diet, sleep, fluids, all the healthy stuff built into my days got me through it, my mind learnt how to cope with making things just work, at slower pace than I was used to and then eventually there was light at the end of the tunnel and I haven't looked back since!!
Though the worst thing to do is to go back to drinking, that's what I used to do until I realised when is there ever going to be a good time at work to quit, there's always going to be something I need to be on top of game for, so best to run with it and do the best I could.
In the short term my productivity decreased, but in the long term, I surpassed the heights that alcohol limited me to, this long term view on things kept me going, because really what is the alternative?
Plenty of fresh air, good diet, sleep, fluids, all the healthy stuff built into my days got me through it, my mind learnt how to cope with making things just work, at slower pace than I was used to and then eventually there was light at the end of the tunnel and I haven't looked back since!!
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Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 10,912
I really feel for you, Pouncer.
I had to write an article from scratch during my detox week, right after quitting cold turkey. I was procrastinating it for a good while before that and I also had a strict deadline. I made an outline for it to see the structure in a whole first and kept it relatively simple. Then I broke it down to as small parts as it was possible. Took breaks in between, sometimes to take a nap, other times to check in here or talk to someone on the phone to distract me because my anxiety was through the roof and it was damn hard to concentrate on anything. I remember it was especially hard to start and to get through the phase to generate a first rough draft, but then it became much easier. Can anyone help you read through your drafts and revise them? I was doing it with a colleague, although I had to handle most of it.
Try to eat well, be in a quiet place, sleep whenever you can, and shut the rest of the world out if possible. That's what I did anyway.
As for the future, I can definitely tell you that it get much better and fast! Btw, drinking never helped my work-related creativity, it made it very hard to be productive. So worth to stay sober just for this!
Hang in there
I had to write an article from scratch during my detox week, right after quitting cold turkey. I was procrastinating it for a good while before that and I also had a strict deadline. I made an outline for it to see the structure in a whole first and kept it relatively simple. Then I broke it down to as small parts as it was possible. Took breaks in between, sometimes to take a nap, other times to check in here or talk to someone on the phone to distract me because my anxiety was through the roof and it was damn hard to concentrate on anything. I remember it was especially hard to start and to get through the phase to generate a first rough draft, but then it became much easier. Can anyone help you read through your drafts and revise them? I was doing it with a colleague, although I had to handle most of it.
Try to eat well, be in a quiet place, sleep whenever you can, and shut the rest of the world out if possible. That's what I did anyway.
As for the future, I can definitely tell you that it get much better and fast! Btw, drinking never helped my work-related creativity, it made it very hard to be productive. So worth to stay sober just for this!
Hang in there
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Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,228
Originally Posted by sva777
Creativity and writing is no excuse to drink, the writers who were alcoholics did not write better due to booze but they were more tormented for sure. It takes time to get better and eventhough you have papers due why make excuses to deal with it later. There will always be reasons your AV tells you to deal with it later non of which will be worth listening too.
I really like these forums, but the unsolicited lectures are really starting to irritate me. I am not in a place where I want to drink nor am I looking for excuses to drink.
Sooo...on that note, has anyone powered through something like this before? I am worried that my 'voice' will be different and that I won't meet my deadlines.
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Originally Posted by haennie
I really feel for you, Pouncer.
I had to write an article from scratch during my detox week, right after quitting cold turkey. I was procrastinating it for a good while before that and I also had a strict deadline. I made an outline for it to see the structure in a whole first. Then I broke it down to as small parts as it was possible. Took breaks in between, sometimes to take a nap, other times to check in here or talk to someone on the phone to distract me because my anxiety was through the roof and it was damn hard to concentrate on anything. I remember it was especially hard to start and to get through the phase to generate a first rough draft, but then it became much easier. Can anyone help you read through your drafts and revise them? I was doing it with a colleague, although I had to handle most of it.
Try to eat well, be in a quiet place, sleep whenever you can, and shut the rest of the world out if possible. That's what I did anyway.
As for the future, I can definitely tell you that it get much better and fast!
Hang in there
I had to write an article from scratch during my detox week, right after quitting cold turkey. I was procrastinating it for a good while before that and I also had a strict deadline. I made an outline for it to see the structure in a whole first. Then I broke it down to as small parts as it was possible. Took breaks in between, sometimes to take a nap, other times to check in here or talk to someone on the phone to distract me because my anxiety was through the roof and it was damn hard to concentrate on anything. I remember it was especially hard to start and to get through the phase to generate a first rough draft, but then it became much easier. Can anyone help you read through your drafts and revise them? I was doing it with a colleague, although I had to handle most of it.
Try to eat well, be in a quiet place, sleep whenever you can, and shut the rest of the world out if possible. That's what I did anyway.
As for the future, I can definitely tell you that it get much better and fast!
Hang in there
Yes, I am procrastinating even though I outlined the most pressing article weeks ago. I just feel dead. Instead of plowing through, I have been going online to do further research at the Times Machine, for instance, and get distracted. I already had my husband read the first draft and he said it was confusing. I have written way more material than I need and it needs to lose weight. I just can't focus or organize right now.
The only way I am going to get it done is just to do it. I hope it gets better soon. I will take your word for it.
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Join Date: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,228
Originally Posted by matilda123
Hi, Pouncer:
I'm a writer and can relate with what you're saying. We are people of habits, and if drinking is part of your routine, it can be hard to let go. I have a big deadline looming too, so I also know about the desire to drink to ameliorate that pressure.
I found that brain fog was a big issue for the first two months in particular, but things did lift. And the writing that I produce sober is just as good (or so my agent says), if not better. Really, what is better is that I can work in a serene and steady way, vs. writing in a binge/purge sort of way and/or with hangovers and headaches.
Perhaps the drinking took the edge off and let your creative mind open? I have found strangely enough that meditation and yoga first thing in the morning do something similar for me.
Good luck, Pouncer! Sending you positive thoughts.
I'm a writer and can relate with what you're saying. We are people of habits, and if drinking is part of your routine, it can be hard to let go. I have a big deadline looming too, so I also know about the desire to drink to ameliorate that pressure.
I found that brain fog was a big issue for the first two months in particular, but things did lift. And the writing that I produce sober is just as good (or so my agent says), if not better. Really, what is better is that I can work in a serene and steady way, vs. writing in a binge/purge sort of way and/or with hangovers and headaches.
Perhaps the drinking took the edge off and let your creative mind open? I have found strangely enough that meditation and yoga first thing in the morning do something similar for me.
Good luck, Pouncer! Sending you positive thoughts.
I am really sensitive right now and constantly at a loss for words. Part of my issue is that alcohol fueled my anger and disgust of the world, policies, hyper-local environmental issues, etc.
If I can be permitted to be childish and dramatic: I feel like I have lost my life. What the **** am I good for if I can't work?
I started working on one of my creative projects yesterday (I have a habit of rotating projects) and I just could not do it. This is going to be much harder than I thought. I have to send it to my editor tonight and I really have no idea why I am spending my time writing on this thread instead of what I need to be doing.
Thanks for the support and well wishes.
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Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
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I'm a writer and a musician. I was proofreading in my early recovery.
Like I said, all day everyday drinker for years...I had a very bad detox and suffered some mini strokes.
It was hard going but I did it - I had enough 'muscle memory' to do a competent job, no more no less.
For now maybe just rely a little more on that muscle memory until your mind and body are recuperated.
I'm sure you can get the job done
Like I said, all day everyday drinker for years...I had a very bad detox and suffered some mini strokes.
It was hard going but I did it - I had enough 'muscle memory' to do a competent job, no more no less.
For now maybe just rely a little more on that muscle memory until your mind and body are recuperated.
I'm sure you can get the job done
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Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Tuxedo Park, NY
Posts: 1,101
Sorry Pouncer I did not mean to come off like a Jerk, I wish you the best and hope you do not drink. I felt very sensitive and I still do at times since I am still early in getting sober as well. Hopefully in a few months we can both be looking back on the past as something we never want again.
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Originally Posted by sva777
Sorry Pouncer I did not mean to come off like a Jerk, I wish you the best and hope you do not drink. I felt very sensitive and I still do at times since I am still early in getting sober as well. Hopefully in a few months we can both be looking back on the past as something we never want again.
This has been the worst detox I have ever gone through. I didn't realize how much I progressed into alcoholism since I relapsed.
Thank you everyone for the suggestions and commiserations.
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Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 83
Good luck Pouncer and thank you for your honesty. I too was shocked at how 'foggy' I was at first but it was a tangible sign at how sick I was and how much I needed to stay sober. I stuck to basics to help--LOTS of water..--I have always drank a lot of water (with or without the wine ) but I felt I was dehydrated. Relaxing bathes and walks because of the insomnia. Good healthy food - no skipping meals --AND popsicles and chocolate were also definitely part of my program. My nerves were raw, EVERYONE pissed me off. BUT it does get better. Stephen King, Jamie Lee Curtis are just two creative people who definitely think they are doing their best work now.. Is there any way to postpone some projects?--You ARE facing a critical medical condition--If you were facing a major surgery-like -I don't know--a triple bypass -- would you be able to accept you might not be working at full steam for a time and may be in pain, foggy etc. while your body healed? Be kind and gentle on yourself and reach out whenever you need to..Whether that's seeking medical help--maybe rehab or asking for emotional support from SR peeps or a program. Congratulations on starting to heal. Hugs and prayers
) but I felt I was dehydrated. Relaxing bathes and walks because of the insomnia. Good healthy food - no skipping meals --AND popsicles and chocolate were also definitely part of my program. My nerves were raw, EVERYONE pissed me off. BUT it does get better. Stephen King, Jamie Lee Curtis are just two creative people who definitely think they are doing their best work now.. Is there any way to postpone some projects?--You ARE facing a critical medical condition--If you were facing a major surgery-like -I don't know--a triple bypass -- would you be able to accept you might not be working at full steam for a time and may be in pain, foggy etc. while your body healed? Be kind and gentle on yourself and reach out whenever you need to..Whether that's seeking medical help--maybe rehab or asking for emotional support from SR peeps or a program. Congratulations on starting to heal. Hugs and prayers
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