alcohol NO MORE

[lourah1989]

Here we goooooooo ... every night or every other night i drink it maybe 1 glass of wine or 2 bottles of wine im not an alcoholic but i depend on it to take away my anxiety of a night and get some shut eye ... latley i have started to hate this i started drinking because of my anxiety as normal when i drink my anxiety disappears and im normal for them few hours but as you know i wake up with a hangover from hell and anxiety ten times worse im determined to break this circle im stuck in so here goes to my first day well night tonight with out alcohol i need to do this ... for as long as i drink i will have anxiety im guessin .... wish me luck guys iv not smoked for a whole week so im sure i can do this ... hope you all have a wonderful day im going to do this :yesyes: xxx

[Ingenious]

Good luck. It's easy to get into a rut with alcohol especially with daily use that becomes part of your routine. It can be hard to break that cycle, but take it from someone who made the same decision several years ago - it IS possible to live without it, and it's a far, far better life! :)

[andy2]

Good luck with your mission. Would err on the side of caution though. Stoping smoking and then drinking all in the same week is a lot to ask from your self. Take it easy on your self if you can't cope.

Best wishes

Paul x

[JoniEdwards]

I do the same thing I drink to deal with my anx. I have a few beers every night and before I go out to calm my nerves. I haven't tonight because we don't have any and it has been in the back of my mind all day. I am really scared right now as I have heard people who stop drinking when they drink alot can suddenly die or have seizures etc. I am feeling very scared and really wish I had a beer to make sure I am ok. I also feel like I can't breathe.

[amandaj]

good luck ive not drunk for nearly 10 weeks now , think many of us turn to the old faithful when we have anxiety but it does make things a thousand times worse unfort ,joni u to drink an awful lot a day to even be considered a risk to seizures etc
amandaxx

[WolfieKate]

Good luck. I have been trying to give up alcohol for a long time. And with some help from my counsellor finally managed to kick it in to touch for now. Not had a drink since January 6th... What helped me was a cost benefits analysis. The short term relief was just not enough when I measured it up against the hangovers, the paranoia, bad sleep, and general run downess that drinking caused me. We forget what a powerful depressant it is and that it has an incremental effect which causes us to drink more eventually to get the same relief.

Kate :flowers:

[theharvestmouse]

I used to drink to cover up my anxiety, its the worst thing I ever did and has contributed to making my life difficult in the last few years.

I would never have touched it if I knew all the problems it would bring.

[Erin27]

Lourah, well done for setting yourself this goal of not having any alcohol alondside giving up smoking. That's a lot to take on but I'm sure you'll be able to do it. I don't know anything about trying to quit the cigarettes as I've never smoked but with alcohol, I completely relate (as do many of the people who have also commented and can empathise). Its so easy for these things to become a habit and for it to happen before you've even realised its happening, untill you realise a dependancy is there and you're at a loss as to how to break the cycle.

It is do-able though and it sounds as if you've got a lot of will power. I gave up alcohol over 4 years ago and have made the decision to go t-total, however, that is my decision and way of dealing with things and it took a couple of tries before I actually stuck it out. I was also drinking in the mornings and things had gotten completely out of hand.

I just wanted to get in touch though, to let you know that it might seem impossible to change your ways and break a strong habit but it is manageable with a lot of will power and you can get there!! Good luck and all the best!

[haz]

Here we goooooooo ... every night or every other night i drink it maybe 1 glass of wine or 2 bottles of wine im not an alcoholic but i depend on it to take away my anxiety of a night and get some shut eye ... latley i have started to hate this i started drinking because of my anxiety as normal when i drink my anxiety disappears and im normal for them few hours but as you know i wake up with a hangover from hell and anxiety ten times worse im determined to break this circle im stuck in so here goes to my first day well night tonight with out alcohol i need to do this ... for as long as i drink i will have anxiety im guessin .... wish me luck guys iv not smoked for a whole week so im sure i can do this ... hope you all have a wonderful day im going to do this :yesyes: xxx

A lot of people use alcohol to help their anxiety but as you've found out, it doesn't work in the long term. I chose to give up alcohol when I started on sertraline in January, I was never a big drinker anyway as I didn't like the feeling of "losing control" so it was no big deal to me. Just don't ask me to give up my fags though!

I don't want to worry you and I'm not a health professional but is it safe to stop drinking suddenly or should you gradually cut down???

Anyway, well done and good luck. :) x

[Meewah]

Wow interesting thread.

I keep trying Alcahol after been unable to drink it over 5 years ago. I began noticing that after a pint or two I could hear my heart beat thumping in my chest. I thought I was just unfit and so began at the gym. I lost a lot of weight and became really healthy. Still the problem of a heavy heartbeat did not go away if I drank 1/2 beers. I realised that if I drank 4/5 beers I did not notice anything. Anyhow I decided that I did not like the sensation of having 1/2 beers as I could feel and hear my heart beating quite fast and this made me quite panicky. I now find it difficult to drink alcahol to the point that If I have one beer I can get in a terrible state.

So the relationship with alcahol as a reliever of Anxiety for me is just the opposite. In actual fact the reason I am writing this is because I woke in a panic after having a pint of real ale. It gave me acid reflux and now I feel dizzy.

I sometimes wish I could drink socially as it was a big part of my life, meeting friends down the pub for a few beers. Now I cannot face the place it seems pointless. My wife has now become me and goes out with the girls for a few beers so I feel this is Karma?

I agree with the statement about having a lot to drink can make your anxiety for the next few days 10 times worse.

Mee