peachstones

Hi everyone. This is my first post on here, and generally I am looking for advice on coping with some physical and mental difficulties I am having after reaching 2 weeks sober.

For context, I wasn’t drinking to the level some people do, but the reason I chose to quit was because whenever I drank too much I would become hysterical and often threaten suicide.

When I quit, I expected that by the two week mark I would have noticed some positive change. I expected that by now I would have more energy, be sleeping better, feel happier and more emotionally stable and maybe even have lost a few pounds.

Except I don’t feel like any of those things are true for me at this point. My FitBit tells me I’ve had 7+ hours sleep a night, my bedtime and wake up is more routine, but I feel more exhausted than I would after a night out. I am irritable as all hell, and my emotional state is an absolute mess. The hours I could have made pass easily with some drinks are now empty time I have to fill, and sometimes the boredom or the intense pressure to be “doing something” reduces me to tears.

Yesterday, I felt incredibly sad thinking that I would never feel relaxed or free again. I genuinely feel like if this is what life is like without drinking, is it even worth it? Everything feels pointless to me, where at least once I had the promise of making that feeling go away for a while.

I suppose I just wanted some reassurance, perhaps, that if I stick this out it will get better and be worth it.

Ina123

Hi Peach!

Welcome to SR!!

I felt the same way at 2 weeks - but trust me, it will pass and it gets so much better!!!

Early into sobriety I was very impatient and wanted to see results immediately!!!
I constantly wondered why everything wasn't better now that I wasn’t drinking?!?!…but then someone on here reminded me that I had been drinking for YEARS and that I should be patient and give sobriety a little more time. And they were absolutely right.

My emotions also leveled out... probably after the one month mark or so. I was VERY irritable my first few weeks!!!! One minute I was happy, the next sad, the next I didn’t know what I was feeling….but eventually it all kinda settled down.

Your sleep should improve as well Also, I did lose weight but it took a little time. (i craved sweets like crazy at first and I ate them. ALL OF THEM!! hehe

And you will absolutely feel relaxed and free again!!! I do get the sadness though. I mourned the loss of alcohol for quite a while…but what I really was doing was romanticizing a relationship with it that I never had. I remember staying home and watching the clock tick while my friends were out partying…I threw myself pity parties and thought that I’d never have fun again…BUT I did! And you will too!!

These days I’m much more relaxed and enjoy life more than ever. I’m more comfortable in my own skin and like the person I am.

Try not to be too hard on yourself. Take it one day at a time. Read around the site…there are lots of incredible people on here to offer advice and encouragement.

2 weeks sober is amazing! Keep going and I’m sure you’ll see the benefits!

Also, the forum’s pretty quiet at this time, so don’t be discouraged if there are not too many replies right now, more people will be on in a few hours.

So glad you posted

plop

Hi Peach,

sounds familiar. When I stopped drinking I suffered from insomnia for about ten days, after that I was dead tired for a month and a half, no matter how much I slept. Luckily I knew that the first couple of months were going to be difficult, so I stayed sober. I think I noticed obvious positive changes after three or four months of sobriety.

Things will get better, just give them time. Two weeks sober is great, but your body needs more time to get used to being sober.

doggonecarl

Welcome to Sober Recovery.

You are dismissive about your drinking, yet how you are suffering its absence speaks volumes. Drinking played a huge part in your life if you miss it so much, and the withdrawals show you had reached dependence on alcohol.

You are wise to quit.

Do you have a plan to support that decision? Something to get you through early recovery?

At least, stick close to SR.

Berrybean

For me and many others, sobriety is just the first necessary step. Alcohol was my crutch, and once it was removed life felt very empty. It's almost like I didn't even know who I was or what I enjoyed doing without alcohol. So, once I had stopped drinking I needed to work on my Recovery. Recovery is all about finding new and better ways to feel comfortable in life, so we don't grab back at our old crutch alcohol (like you're being tempted to do now).

Forms and many others that Recovery plan utilises things like AA or Smart recovery. I've never done Smart, but AA has really helped me develop new tools for living, and develop a more healthy perspective on my life so that now (4 years into sobriety) I can honestly say that life is better than I could ever imagined it could be. But the first month or so was pretty horrendous when all I'd done was remove alcohol but not yet had the chance to learn what to put in it's place, or how to utilise those tools. That took time. I went to my first AA meeting one month sober feeling desperate, and I left that meeting with enough hope to get me using the simple introductory tools that they'd introduced me to (even though I didn't quite 'get' how those things could make a difference to meat that point). Later I felt the need to introduce more tools to my box, and I got a sponsor at AA and started working the 12-step program of recovery, which was the real game changer for me. And you know, only the first step even mentions alcohol. The first one. The other 11 are all things we can do after alcohol has been removed so that we can find a place of joy and peace with ourselves in sobriety, so that we enjoy sobriety. It's realky worth adjusting your expectations. The only people who feel better 2 weeks after quitting alcohol are those who are not alcoholic. For alcoholics (or problem drinkers) it takes much longer than that, and requires adding stuff in as well as removing alcohol.

The folks on here have been a massive support to me at every single stage of my journey, in the high and the lowest moments. So welcome. I'm sure they can be just as helpful to you on your journey. Please don't pick up a drink today. It will be no more of a solution now than It was 3 weeks ago. You stopped for a reason, just like the rest of us. Those reasons are still there, and as alcoholism is progressive, more reasons are queued up waiting to joint them if you carry on drinking. Others may have done lots of things in their alcoholism that we haven't done. But we need no stick a 'yet' on the end of that statement of grace. We havent done them yet. If any of us decide to resume our drinking, those 'yets' are there waiting for us.

I look forward to hearing about your recovery as it unfolds, so please keep reading and posting.

BB

Dee74

Welcoem peachstomnes
as others have said I spent years as a drinker so it was always goigmn to take a little time to feel ok again - but thankfully it won't take years

Hope you're feeling better soon

DF

Nonsensical

If you haven't become hysterical and threatened suicide, then it seems like your primary goal was met.

I had unmet expectations when I first became sober, too. It meant more about me and my expectations than it did about the process of learning to live a happy sober life. That learning process took me a lot longer than 2 weeks.

Best of Luck on Your Journey!

apollo986

Hi Peach! It's day 51 sober for me. Expect good days and not so good days. It takes time for your brain chemicals to rebalance. It does get better but it's not a straight line. 2 weeks is great!

peachstones

Thank you all so much for the kind and helpful responses. I am using my phone so can’t respond in full to everyone individually, but it means a lot to know that this is a normal experience, and with time things will improve.

I feel much calmer and happier today, and more optimistic about the future benefits of sobriety.

I am seeing a psychiatrist and am going to get information about local help groups from my GP on Tuesday to see if there is a 12 step programme near me or even just a social group I could join.

Whoever mentioned sugar cravings - this is so true! I just let myself eat all the chocolate because I figure it keeps me happy while I get through the initial weeks... I can reign in the sugar later...

FeelingGreat

Hi peachstones, you're into the slog stage of quitting. It's easy to relapse so be careful and look to really long term goals.

Culture

Hi and welcome peachstones, just hang on in there, it does get easier but it will take time. I remember thinking the same for about 2 months on and off, my emotions were all over the place, I certainly didn't have that pink cloud thinking that a few people on here reported but there were good days too. When I was drunk I didn't have 1 good day and the low days that followed the drinking well, I don't even want to remember them.
For me, taking it only one day at a time really helped, I read up on all the positives of not drinking and when my brain even went in the direction of THAT thinking, I shut it down by remembering that I had long passed the point of just that one drink to make me feel better because it is an illusion, it only ever makes it worse.
You can be happy sober, read peoples journeys on here and do whatever it takes to remain so and then one day soon your gonna feel so much better.

DreamCatcher17

Welcome, I was in this state of mind /exhaustion /brain fog/ etc.. for 3 months. you'll get there! Congrats On 2 weeks!!

Berrybean

The easiest way to get the list of 12-step groups is with a Google search. This is the AA UK link... https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org...Find-a-Meeting Just pop your postcode and away you go. There's also a hotline number that you can call for a chat about meetings. The UK one is 0800 9177 650 and that's manned 24 hours a day.
I had some email contact prior to my own first meeting, although it isn't necessary - you can just rock up to any meeting you like, I found it helpful for some reason... [email protected]
You would probably find that there is a meeting near you that you could go to today if you wanted. When I started going I was amazed that all thesemeeting had been happening for years, right under my nose almost and I'd never known.

GPs don't tend to know much about AA. Some GPs are pretty clueless about recovery and will just suggest cutting down (like we didn't already think of that!!! If we could do that we wouldn't need to quit!! Lol). However, its often a good idea to get checked out physically for any damage we've been doing ourselves. The therapy is a good idea as well.

BB

least

Welcome! Two weeks sober is great but it will take more time for things to balance out and get better. Hang in there!

tekink

withdrawal is something awful you need to get through. I felt like garbage for a year after I quit.

That's a sign of damage from consumption.