FlynAB

I am 33 years old female who has been drinking daily for almost 5 years now. I don't drink much, usually it is between half and two thirds of a bottle of red wine. But I believe this affects my psychological and physical health. Other than that, my life is great. The reason I started is because of sleep anxiety. I have always struggled falling asleep, even when I was a kid, so alcohol was like a miracle to me. I started drinking mainly because after a few glasses of wine I was able to fall asleep immediately. And I know this is not an excuse or reason for drinking, but honestly I only drink because of that. I decided to quit because I feel it has always been one thing "not right" about my life (I live a very healthy life style besides drinking...). So I really want to quit. But my biggest fear is if I am able to sleep without it. I don't even know that it means to fall asleep naturally not under influence of wine. I feel like I am gonna fail at this. I decided to start limiting myself to 1 glass of wine for a few weeks slowly cutting it off for good. What do you all think? thanks for any support on this.

least

Welcome to the family. Alcohol-induced sleep isn't real sleep, more like passing out. It took me a couple weeks sober before I got good sleep.

I sleep very well now and always wake up feeling good.

Give it time for your body and brain to get used to functioning without alcohol. It takes some time to adjust, but it's worth the wait.

FlynAB

Thank you, I will be patient

D122y

Flyn,

It was tough getting clean, but it was worth it.

In my experience...I never really slept well until I stopped drinking.

Imo...The health benefits from not drinking and getting natural, undrugged sleep are truly one of the top things not drinking offered.

Correcting a sleep issue is well out of my league, but drinking didn't help me get the rest I needed. It was a drugged sleep.

I cycle sleep. 6 hours, then 8, then 4, 6, 8. It is all over the place and it is based on stress and health.

There are a ton of techniques plus meds as well. I have taken sleeping pills and they worked for an initial crack at sleeping without booze.

Thanks.

FlynAB

thanks for responding. I will try going natural at first as I am very scared to develop another addiction. But if I fail, I will consider the pills as well. The thing that I am trying to put in my head now is that being sober and not sleeping enough now and then is actually not as bad as sleeping after a bottle of wine disrupted sleep.

Maudcat

Hi, FlynAB.
Welcome.
Sleep disorders are very, very common these days.
My spouse has a lot of trouble getting enough sleep.
Have you considered a sleep clinic?
Good thoughts.

FlynAB

Thanks. I am thinking about trying to solve this naturally. If I fail, then I will seek for help. Wine has been helping me a lot though But I am well aware that it is no longer an option. Enough is enough.

Silver11

Hi FlynAB

I had bad problems with sleep as well. I can totally relate to sleep dread. Insomnia caused by the fear that I wouldn't be able to sleep. Sounds crazy but I've suffered with that for some time. And drinking beer always guaranteed I would fall asleep.

But as others here have mentioned. It's not the right kind of sleep. Waking up tired and dazed was not fun.

Google search - sleep restriction for insomnia. It really helped me.

Wishing you the best

FlynAB

thank you! So good to know I am not alone. I will check sleep restrictions.

fini

hi Flyn,
there is a whole forum, farther down on the forums menu, that relates to sleep issues.
who knows how it will turn out for you....but don 't judge anything about sleep by the first little while of being abstinent, as your body and brain will need time to adjust.

FlynAB

thanks, I will search for the thread.

least

It's not just one thread, it's a whole forum related to sleep/dreams/nightmares etc.

https://www.soberrecovery.com/forums...ia-nightmares/

GreenSwimmer

Hi Flyn,

Welcome to SR!

I’m a 32 year old female and I too can relate to dreading sleep time and insomnia once I get there. However, today I can proudly say I am 78 days sober and I am getting the best nights sleeps of my life now. It is truly incredible.

Hang in there and stay sober, I bet you’ll be surprised at how much better you’ll sleep/feel in a short period of time.

FlynAB

Hello, good to hear from someone I can relate to. How was it at first when you just quit? Did you just lie down there for hours before being able to sleep and suffered through that? Or was it better than you expected?

JustTony

Flyn,

I've always been a light sleeper if I don't drink. A few things though:

a) The first week or so you will (most likely) suffer sleep deprivation. This will be made worse by worrying that you're not going to sleep (vicious circle). Every time I have got sober this has happened to me - and so many others on here testify to the same thing.

b) The good news is that is DOES ease after a while. It is hard - you will be tired - but the body needs time to readjust.

c) PERSONAL OPINION - I'm with you in the respect that I would do just about anything in order to avoid swapping one addiction/crutch (alcohol for sleeping pills) for another. I would try every other remedy and solution that the doctor could suggest before going down that route.

d) GOOD NEWS - 4 to 6 hours real non alcohol sleep feels 5 times better than 8 to 10 hours 'wine sleep'. I don't know anyone that has ever posted differently to this on here. Don't aim for just a long time asleep - the prize is GOOD (sober) sleep!

Sleep disorders are difficult and debilitating. I wish you the strength and resolve to overcome.

tursiops999

FlynAB, welcome and congratulations on making a healthy choice for yourself. Like others have mentioned, my sleep was disturbed the first week or so after quitting wine ... but after that adjustment period, my sleep got much better. I find a long daily walk and other exercise to be my key to good sleep, along with minimizing caffeine. Keep us posted on how it goes, eh?

FlynAB

I needed to hear this so much!!

FlynAB

Update: 1st night. I had almost no wine at all, I had a bit (maybe 80 ml dissolved with water so deceive myself as I did not want to start drastically), , but I went to bed absolutely sober and it was not easy.. took me almost 1 hour to fall asleep (that;s a lot comparing to seconds when you have wine, lol). And tossed and turned all night, woke up very early, then fell asleep again. It was a long hard night but I feel great this morning. I was wondering if this is because of full moon, not absence of alcohol. Anyway, I started the only bottle I had yesterday and I will slowly finish it, plan is to drink in very very small portions and see what happens in a few weeks. THanks again everyone for support, I will keep posted on a weekly basis now.

GreenSwimmer

Well, I actually admitted myself to an inpatient program and was given meds to help with any withdrawal, which I think in turn helped me sleep. But I was only on those meds for about a week. After I was off, sleep just came naturally to me. I’d quit on my own before (without meds) and it only took about a couple nights before I was back into a decent nights sleep. Not perfect, but decent. I was surprised at how quickly that came back.

Everybody is different but overall I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Your body will be thanking you :-) best of luck, I’m rooting for you!

Dee74

post as often as you need to FlynAB you may find once a week might not be enough?

I think everyone goes through issues if they've used alcohol to get to sleep for any period of time.

Having a regular bedtime and an uncluttered sleeping environment helps me

D