Effects on apperance....
 

Today is day 9 for me. I have had lots of day 9's before. I'm really hoping this is my last one. Can anyone give me some hope that my physical appearance will go back to what it once was. I am so bloated from years of heavy drinking that I feel like a puffer fish. My face even looks swollen. I see myself from a distance in the mirror and I look awful. I have a double chin. My skin is very dry. I have dark circles under my eyes. I am so embarrased to go around anyone that I know that hasn't seen me in a while. I have put on 40 lbs in the past 2 years.

Has anyone had similar symptoms and recovered from them after quitting the poison? I guess that's just what it is, I am poisoning my body and it is starting to show on the outside. Funny how I could get away with it in my 20's. After turning 35 it seems it has all gone downhill. I am about to be 38 and I would like to enjoy the last year's in my 30's and hoping that being sober in my 40's will make that decade much better than this one.

I believe it will get better with time. People have told me how much better I look (at only 3 weeks) even though I've managed to gain 5 lbs already. I've been drinking TONS of water and trying to get some exercise. Hoping to up the workouts soon. Be patient with yourself. It took us a while to do the damage so it's likely to take a while to un-do. Of course, as alcholholics, we want what we want and we want it NOW!!! Lol.

Hang in there...

so 8/21/16 is your sobriety date?

my sobriety date is the most important thing in my life.

meetings
sponsor
steps
service
higher power

has been the solution for me


i do an hour of hard cardio everyday so i can eat what i want and still stay skinny

try some support groups to stay sober and dont worry about your other concerns

they will take care of themselves if you stay sober

your job is to stay sober!

God bless

:tyou

I think a lot of it will go away, especially the puffy face. I've been watching episodes of "Intervention" lately, usually the alcohol episodes, and you can always see a huge difference in their faces after treatment.

I've been alcohol and cigarette free for a month now and I can definitely tell a difference in my skin. I never really got the puffy face thing. But I have been drinking half my body weight in ounces of water a day, taking a daily multi-vitamin, and eating a balanced diet. I do keep track of my daily calories now, and have lost 10 lbs in a month.

So I'm sure it will get better for you! There's no way it could get worse if you stay sober, remember that. And of course, not to mention all the other health benefits of not drinking.

Wishing you much luck and success!

I'm 36 and was in a mirror image situation to what you are 7 weeks ago,

All of the clothes that I refused to throw away are starting to fit again and I'm feeling proper good about myself for the first time since in many years.

Stick at it my friend,

Bruno.

It'll take time and work but you can get back to where you were. Eat healthy and get some exercises. I'm 58 and it's impossible to be like you're 20 but in the almost one year sober I've lost 50 lbs, went from only being able to do a 15 walk to trekking to Mt Everest base camp this May and doing bike rides of up to 4 hours, 65 miles this summer. It was concentrated effort but I'm in as good a shape as I was in my 20's and look a Heck of a lot better than I did a year ago.

Oh yeah! I look like a different person!!!

It takes time but you'll get there. If you want some real evidence check out my rehab thread, page 9, about half-way down. http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...-report-9.html

Yep. Here's more visual evidence. This is from the day before I went to rehab. June 2015.

August 2015....14.5 months sober

Wowza bunny! What a difference! ((bunny))
P.S. You look gorgeous!

Amazing bunny and mera! You're both gorgeous!

My face looks different after 18 days. I don't think it's really noticeable but someone commented on it. I don't think I've lost weight but there are some clothes that had been a little tight that fit better. I also have at least 40 pounds to lose. There was a picture taken of me a month ago that was awful. I was horrified. I was at a high profile event and a reporter from a major national newspaper snapped my photo and took my name because he wanted to publish it. He emailed it to me in the first few days of August and I felt like I was thrown off a cliff. That person... is not me. I'm ok with natural aging and all but that person.... looks like an alcoholic.

This morning, I look like less of an alcoholic. My eyes are brighter and my face noticeably less swollen. I think it will take awhile but Bunny's photos give me huge hope.

Thank you!!!

I had several of those symptoms affecting my appearance and they are gone.

The dark circles (that made people tell me how "tired" I looked)? Gone.
The dry skin (and dry hair)? Gone. I'm now tanned from outdoor exercise and my skin looks a heap better. My hair is shiny.
Weight gain? Gone. I lost my booze belly.

I'm five years older than you and sure can relate to wanting my 40s to be great. It was my 43rd birthday last week and my wish is coming true. That makes the tears want to spring to my eyes actually ...

Getting and staying sober is giving yourself the gift of life back, on so many levels. A healthier, better appearance is just one of many, many benefits. Well done on day 9 and keep going, blink!

Bunny, Mera ... you are both gorgeous women, inside and out. :)

Way to go Mera & Bunny - great examples of sobriety

Oh yes my friend. I can tell you I’m at 75 days today. The face bloat and skin discoloration went away first, within the first two weeks or so. The weight has also been coming off, but slower. I have gotten a “shape” back – even though I haven’t lost a ton of weight I can see definition in my body that I didn’t have for a very long time.

Hair also improved pretty quickly, it is soft and shiny which it hadn’t been in decades. I really thought it looked ugly due to age, I didn’t realize it was due to alcohol. But now I know…

I can relate to you, I lived in mortal fear of running into anyone I used to know for years and years and years…I’m past that now. I am certainly no super model but I look like ME again, and that is just fine as far as I’m concerned.

This is not even getting started on the internal benefits, of which there are many.

Best of luck to you!

Wow Bunny and Mera. Definately gives me hope. Thank you to all of you for your responses. When I think about it it is all so stupid actually. I can see how non alcoholics do not understand. Why in the world would I let something as ridiculous as alcohol be a priority over my looks? My health? My relationships? Well, I know why, because I am an alcoholic, but the logical part of me thinks it is so stupid. I was so thin and in great shape before alcohol. And for the past 15 years I have drank myself into a mess. I can't stand to look in the mirror. I don't even recognize myself. I need to stop worrying about the physical appearance so much and just focus on one day at a time and each day will be a day toward getting back the healthy version on ME.

Just keep working on it blink. You'll be amazed when you look back. You'll often hear that it gets better. It really does. Much better than you can imagine.

EVERTHING improves with sobriety :) I was looking over some old pictures and was shocked to see my red and puffy face, takes years ago.....how we fool ourselves.

Keep things simple, be kind to yourself....staying sober is your top priority, the rest will fall into place. I'll be 59 this week and do Jazzercise 3 times a week, yoga 2 times a week and water aerobics 2-3 times per week and feel good :)

Oh wow!!! That's awesome!

I feel completely de-bloated now at 15 days but I felt I looked better after 10 days. I can't recommend you to take anything but what worked for me was a quality multi-vitamin, extra vitamin b complex vitamin and healthy eating. I also improved by watching my sodium intake. Your body will catch up with it's hydration eventually.
Maybe ask your doctor for some blood work, see if you are deficient in anything?

I agree, after 2 short weeks you'll find stomach bloat gone, sheeps wool hair, re-hydrated and you'll look in the mirror and even fancy your own image ;) Keep at it! :)

Hello,

I will echo the nessages above, I am 8 months sober and I have lost 39.5 pounds (I want to say 40, but I am keeping myself honest!). My face has lost the blotchy red complexion and my eyes look clear each day.

I started Weighr Watchers in conjunction with my sobriety and have just focused on a healthy overhaul of my life. I try to walk daily, and also do other exercises throughout the week to tone.

My physical and mental health are night and day different than they were in January.

Sobriety is definitely worth it!!!

Thanks for the encouragement! I am disappointed that my eyes arent whiter and sparklier by now (day 17). How long does this take? Or is this as good as theyll get? I would like to lose a few pounds but so far ive been eating more probably to make up for some of the calories i am missing from not drinking. My face overall looks better tho. Noone has told me i look tired in the last couple weeks!

Everything will continue to improve.

I ate a TON earlier on, my body missed those carbs. For the first few weeks I let myself indulge, whatever my mind and/or body needed. It will level out. How weird it was for me, to get hungry at normal times! (Lunch? What's that?)

I haven't lost much pound-wise, 5-6 maybe, but I LOOK less squishy and my middle is flatter. Around my waist/love handles were the worst part when I was still drinking. To me, it looks like more than a few pounds, but it's just redistributed.

When I was drinking, my skin was red, blotchy, and oily. I tried to blame it on other things, as well as my hair being dried out and not growing. Enter sobriety and bang - my skin looks MUCH better (although I have to kick my water intake back up, and STOP GOING TO BED WITH MAKE UP ON, I'm old enough to know better!) and my hair grew a ton in the first month even. I couldn't believe it.

Focus on how you feel and on not drinking. The rest will come. You may be scrutinizing yourself extra hard, but others will be able to see it - I couldn't believe how many comments I got about how different/better/healthier I look now. Hang in there!

Bunny and Mera....dang, girls! Now that's inspiration!

I understand your concerns. I really started to notice the physical signs of my alcohol abuse around 36 or 37. I quit in January and was 39 at the time. I hated pictures of myself. All I saw was the bloated red face and stringy hair. My eyes ways bleary. At over 7 months sober, the bloat is gone, my skin is peachy/rosy and my hair is shiny and full. My eyes are clear. I run into people I haven't seen in a while and always receive compliments. I look better at (now) 40, then I did at 35. It is not the main reason I quit and have stayed quit, but it sure helps. 😀

I really appreciate all of your replies, stories, & experiences. While I know the number one reason for me to quit is for my health, it really helps to see the outward improvement as well. Being 40 lbs overweight puts me in a depression and because of the depression, I drink. A cycle that seemed to never end. At least not until 10 days ago.

Remember a pint of water weighs a pound, so even though you don't feel like you're losing weight, you're re-hydrating, so the 'weight' isn't fat :)

Hi!
I have been sober 85 days...my eyes were a lot clearer after a month and even more clear after 2 months. I have lost 25 pounds.

You will feel and look a lot better soon.

Thank you, Cherrybreeze and Midwest!