Burningstariv4

I can't help but be curious as I approach 5 months clean still in the midst of terrible PAWs symptoms,
what were you using, how long, and how long before your symptoms subsided?

MindfulMan

Round the clock drinking and Lunesta. PAWS tapering off for 90 days.

Benzo PAWS was bad too.

kayleezen

Hello Burningstar,

In my personal and professional experience as a substance abuse counselor , PAWS can last up to two years with acute symptoms.
However if you have drank chronically for over 2 decades, it can persist even longer.
A medical doctor should be sought for
treatment (Physical) to address these symptoms.
In my experience very few recovering alcoholics understand this physical part and only treat the mental malady, causes and conditions with makes them more vulnerable to relapse.

If you can work with substance abuse clinician that understands PAWS it would really help you on your journey to healing.

anxiousrock

Thankfully I decided to seek help before my problem got worse so I didn’t have any withdrawal symptoms.
I have heard horror stories about PAWS at AA.

August252015

Wow, Kayleezen, all of this is a terrific response and I especially "concur" with the parts I bolded.Burningstar, here's my share to your OP:

First, I started a very dedicated AA program. Rather than elaborate there - here's the stuff related to your questions.

I'm an alcoholic who will have 2 years sober on Wed 2/21. A brief recap of my very serious and lengthy experience with PAWS (btw there is a great article on www.digitaldharma.net under the tab "PAWS" that elaborates on the above comments, and definitely helped me (and my loved ones) understand ALL of the recovery pieces I went and still go through).

I drank alcoholically for about 9-10 years, in increasing severity until (extremely long story short) I was finally DONE the day that my brand new liver dr - hand picked by my GP and Psych who sent me directly to him one Feb day- told me I had a year, 18 mo to live if I kept going as I was. I was 39 1/2.

I quit cold turkey from alcohol, and had all my liver etc tests done. My psych and I agreed to start Antabuse which I took religiously and correctly - I even signed a paper and got it witnessed every single day- and she also gave me Ativan AS NEEDED, as well as sleeping pills, which I do still take; we also started me on a low dose of Paxil a year ago Dec and I still take that along with a maintenance dose of Lamictal though I show no BPD symptoms now. My GP and I also addressed things like my thyroid and adjusting the synthroid dose. ALL of that is to illustrate the comprehensive medical, emotional and mental care, healing and maintenance that is my life.

I experienced: (in no particular order, and I am sure I'm leaving stuff out)
-shakes in all limbs and seizures in my legs at times
-horrible nightmares that turned into vivid dreams - drenching sweats
-vomiting, dry heaving, gagging with even small bites (all that had developed during my late stage active alcoholism)
-incontinence for some weeks around 2-3 mo
-the IMMEDIATE need to sleep that second - I remember numerous times pulling the car over to nap, or having to lie down on the sofa RIGHT then
-spatial difficulties (driving made me really nervous - I probably didn't start til 2-3 mo in, and didn't get my own car til 6 mo)
- aphasia (in short, the inability to grasp the right word, or to do so quickly)- this particular one terrified me as words have always been my currency for understanding the world
- headaches, of course
- extreme thirst
- ravenous hunger once my appetite returned maybe 30 ish days in.

Like I said, I'm sure I'm missing something.

But today? Not only would I go through all that again, but I am grateful for the symptoms I still have, and beyond grateful and awed at my physical state in particular. I still have difficulty sleeping and night sweats often; I have learned to deal with my anxiety in ways beyond just a med but I still take the Ativan. I still eat too much sugar (that's a year three goal to beat!), I still take a nap most days....

However, I do an hour to 90 min of hot yoga 5-6 days a week and run a couple miles on my day "off," last yr my husband and I did a 5K each month and I recently did a 15K, and I am stronger and healthier than I've been since my 20s. I now run a recovery group for restaurant industry people struggling with alcoholism and addiction, work a few shifts a week hosting in a restaurant, am married to a precious man (actually my HS bf but that's a whole other great story) and have a 15 yr old step daughter, both of whom I spend a lot of time doing for, so to speak, happily and gratefully. I expend a lot of energy and I rest a lot. I am so much better at recognizing real v emotional "problems" in my body.

My whole life is my recovery- it comes first before everything because it allows me to have everything else.

Lastly, I'd just say that - for ME- suffering the stuff I did was (kind of still is) a tiny price to pay for how long and terribly I abused my body, and for the life I have now.

Take care and best to you.

LostInNewYork

I never abused or was addicted to alcohol so i dont know if thats what the O.P.'s drug of choice was but. . .

4 months clean cold turkey off 5 years of daily Heroin use.

I can eat/sleep normally finally but** anxiety, mental triggers, urges to use, etc. CONSTANTLY plague me. I really feal like giving up most times because even though im not physically withdrawing im still suffering and extremely depressed. The only time i was happy (even if it was a percieved illusion) was on drugs.

RickRecovery

I'm 5 months in sobriety. I have theese following symptoms on/off from week to week, some times 2 weeks straight and then one day off and then a week on with symptoms, sometimes 2 weeks without any.

Inability to solve problems
Diminished self-esteem
Emotional overreaction
Sleep disturbances
Difficulty managing stress
Inability to think clearly
Racing thoughts
Moodswings
Cold sweating and shakes
Excessive worrying
Strong mental cravings
Restless

iamsolost

I have gone through PAWS a couple times. Each time it gets longer. Last time I was drinking beer and vodka, I'm not sure how long. I think it was between 4-6 months, though. PAWS lasted for about a year before relenting. I remember somewhere around a year, thinking one day I actually felt pretty normal. I hope to never go through it again, because it would be even worse.

NYCDoglvr

When I got sober 26 years ago the concept of PAWS didn't exist. I felt terrible the first year, just accepted it was part of the process.

Cobber3

Drank 12-16 beers a night for 10 years on and off and I am 6 months sober. I still go through the typical PAWS bouts here and there but they seem to be drastically better when I eat healthy. I have done a lot of reading lately and the relation between hyperglycemia and PAWS is pretty spot on. Makes sense if you think about it, the amount of sugar we used to ingest on a daily basis is now gone and our system doesnt know what to do. Hope this helps. Feel good amigo.