Hello, I started my recovery.
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Join Date: Jun 2015
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Hello, I started my recovery.
Hello,
I am a 28 year old male that has decided enough is enough. My body is telling me that I am drinking too much and i'm finally listening. Here's a little history on my drinking. I started heavily around 21 when I was in my last year of college. I took night classes so it was very common for a few classmates to go grab a pitcher or two. After school my job has been stressful but rewarding. I was making good money but I also had a lot of expenses. My wife and I married young and have two awesome boys, 7 and and 4. I love her more than anything and she is extremely supportive of my decision to quit the booze. She does not drink.
From age 23-26 I was really into IPAs and high potency beer. I think this was the starting point of my addiction. It's only 3 beers, right? At 6.8% each IPA is equal to almost two light beers. So it didn't look like I was drinking too much even though I most definitely was. What really bothers me the most about quitting alcohol is that I really like the taste of a nicely crafted brew. Oh well, living a healthy life is way more important.
The past couple years have been the hardest. I was drunk nearly every night and I always craved alcohol. I just got in a routine of coming home from the work, exhausted from the long day and opening a beer. One beer would turn into two, then three, then a shot of liquor and another beer. I would drink plenty of water and convinced myself this counter-acted the alcohol dehydration. I liked the feeling and it helped me sleep but I always regretted it in the morning. I wouldn't really get hung over but I would really regret what I did to myself. The past couple months I was buying bottles of liquor and killing them in a week (sometimes faster), on top of my beer. The past month I was even taking a shot of liquor before work because I somehow thought it helped me... wow. Where am I heading?
The past couple weeks I decided that I should slow down. I tried having only one beer and my body did not like this. I was feeling confused and anxious. So I get on Dr. Google and started reading. I first read about red palms and sure enough, mine are. I never really noticed this before so it's hard to get a baseline. They seem pretty red to me. I've also had a strange lesion or bump on my sternum that I've been meaning to get checked out, but haven't found the time. My right lower back has also had a dull pain the past couple months. I am overweight (185 lbs, 5' 6") and my stomach fat is hard indicating fluid retention or visceral fat. Either way, very bad for your health. I start aligning my symptoms and I start to really worry about liver damage and my overall health.
Friday night (5/29) was my last drink. I went to the store and purchased a b-vitamin complex, multi-vitamins and milk thistle. I've been pounding water and mixing in lemon juice. I decided I needed something to do, something to keep my self occupied. I fixed up my mountain bike with the help of youngest son and went for a ride. I went over 7 miles this weekend and dropped 2 pounds. It's nice being sober in the evening and being able to spend quality time with my family and tackle some tasks around the house.
This morning i'm feeling okay, i'm still a little hazy and absent minded but coping well. I woke up early, made myself an egg-white omelette and took my vitamins. It feels like baby steps right now but i'm proud of each one. Besides the absent mind my worst symptom of width drawl are my hands. They are pretty sweaty and I feel a dull, tingly feeling. If I understand correctly, my nerves may have been damaged from drinking and they are either permanently damaged or repairing them self.
My wife really wants me to get a liver enzyme test but I want to wait a few weeks. She's not too happy about that decision but I am pretty scared. I don't think I could handle anymore bad news right now. For now I'm going to stick to my exercise, vitamins and a healthy diet. I see a bright future ahead and I feel very fortunate to have turned my life around. Thanks for reading.
I am a 28 year old male that has decided enough is enough. My body is telling me that I am drinking too much and i'm finally listening. Here's a little history on my drinking. I started heavily around 21 when I was in my last year of college. I took night classes so it was very common for a few classmates to go grab a pitcher or two. After school my job has been stressful but rewarding. I was making good money but I also had a lot of expenses. My wife and I married young and have two awesome boys, 7 and and 4. I love her more than anything and she is extremely supportive of my decision to quit the booze. She does not drink.
From age 23-26 I was really into IPAs and high potency beer. I think this was the starting point of my addiction. It's only 3 beers, right? At 6.8% each IPA is equal to almost two light beers. So it didn't look like I was drinking too much even though I most definitely was. What really bothers me the most about quitting alcohol is that I really like the taste of a nicely crafted brew. Oh well, living a healthy life is way more important.
The past couple years have been the hardest. I was drunk nearly every night and I always craved alcohol. I just got in a routine of coming home from the work, exhausted from the long day and opening a beer. One beer would turn into two, then three, then a shot of liquor and another beer. I would drink plenty of water and convinced myself this counter-acted the alcohol dehydration. I liked the feeling and it helped me sleep but I always regretted it in the morning. I wouldn't really get hung over but I would really regret what I did to myself. The past couple months I was buying bottles of liquor and killing them in a week (sometimes faster), on top of my beer. The past month I was even taking a shot of liquor before work because I somehow thought it helped me... wow. Where am I heading?
The past couple weeks I decided that I should slow down. I tried having only one beer and my body did not like this. I was feeling confused and anxious. So I get on Dr. Google and started reading. I first read about red palms and sure enough, mine are. I never really noticed this before so it's hard to get a baseline. They seem pretty red to me. I've also had a strange lesion or bump on my sternum that I've been meaning to get checked out, but haven't found the time. My right lower back has also had a dull pain the past couple months. I am overweight (185 lbs, 5' 6") and my stomach fat is hard indicating fluid retention or visceral fat. Either way, very bad for your health. I start aligning my symptoms and I start to really worry about liver damage and my overall health.
Friday night (5/29) was my last drink. I went to the store and purchased a b-vitamin complex, multi-vitamins and milk thistle. I've been pounding water and mixing in lemon juice. I decided I needed something to do, something to keep my self occupied. I fixed up my mountain bike with the help of youngest son and went for a ride. I went over 7 miles this weekend and dropped 2 pounds. It's nice being sober in the evening and being able to spend quality time with my family and tackle some tasks around the house.
This morning i'm feeling okay, i'm still a little hazy and absent minded but coping well. I woke up early, made myself an egg-white omelette and took my vitamins. It feels like baby steps right now but i'm proud of each one. Besides the absent mind my worst symptom of width drawl are my hands. They are pretty sweaty and I feel a dull, tingly feeling. If I understand correctly, my nerves may have been damaged from drinking and they are either permanently damaged or repairing them self.
My wife really wants me to get a liver enzyme test but I want to wait a few weeks. She's not too happy about that decision but I am pretty scared. I don't think I could handle anymore bad news right now. For now I'm going to stick to my exercise, vitamins and a healthy diet. I see a bright future ahead and I feel very fortunate to have turned my life around. Thanks for reading.
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