View Full Version : I cant stop drinking and I am starting to look really drained and unhealthy.
What shall I do?
My Liver and Renal Function tests are normal. My GGT test is also normal. My FBC is normal so on paper I seem to be in very good health.
I haven't had an alcohol free night since September 2014. I drink 5 beers a night for the past 11 or so months to stop my retching, anxiety, social anxiety disorder, ocd and depression.
Help???
Hi callumcco
That your tests are normal doesn't mean that it is not a problem, all it means is that it has not YET affected your organs, but it is affecting you. Alcohol is sooo bad for anxiety and depression, it is a depressor.
I gave up alcohol 15 years ago with help from a drugs therapist.
Do you think you could get help from your GP? Or do you have any local groups you could go to to get support?
Xx
I'm quite a heavy drinker. Well I was until 4 weeks ago when I took my first panic attack and now I can't touch the stuff. I used to drink most nights and it started when my OH started nightshift; I used to have a bottle of wine to chill me out cos I was scared of the night time. Don't get me wrong I could go for days without a drink if I chose to (ie no withdrawal symptoms) but I chose not to. You need to find something to occupy yourself in an evening. If you associate having a beer with say, watching the tv, then don't watch the tv. Do something different. Every morning you wake up without having had a beer you will feel much better. Keep a diary about how you feel and look back on it when you try to convince yourself that you don't feel any better (cos you will). I hope you manage to give up or at least cut down cos you aren't doing yourself any favours, regardless how you seem to be in good health x
It obviously can be done, but when there is anxiety and other things involved I think it really is important to have help and support x
MyNameIsTerry
16-08-15, 05:01
Hi Callum,
This isn't a typical drinking issue for me, this is more about you using alcohol to control your retching. So, simply stopping drinking isn't going to resolve that and if anything, it will make you want to keep the cycle going.
Do you use alcohol to help with the rest?
I really think you need to get beyond your GP and to a more specialist service like a Local Mental Health Team (I doubt IAPT will be enough for this complexity with the alcohol) and your GP diagnosed quite a complex OCD case which is not well known so I would be wary of a diagnosis without a specialist referral. You have been extremely concerned about the origins of your retching as opposed to knowing it's OCD and this makes me wonder whether it's more likely a Somatoform Disorder because there is one that covers that. Somatoform & OCD can appear similiar and I'm wary of a GP working out the difference but eitherway, I think you need more specialised support because 10 mins with a GP isn't going to help and they want you to take meds yet you are too afraid to start them which just means a GP probably won't do much other than keep talking to you.
I agree with Terry, the drinking is a symptom of underlying issues.
I would strongly suggest trying to find some sort of counseling service, preferable one that deals with drug or alcohol addiction, to help you through the process.
It is not as simple as drying out as in my opinion alternative coping mechanisms need to be found.
Try searching through google to see if anything is available in your area. I know that my GP did not know of the excellent service that was available in our area but a friend who is a police officer was able to recommend them.
Good luck and feel free to pm if you think that I can be off any help.
Elen
ps I know many people swear by AA, I personally found the group meetings and the regimented process did not suit me, but then I am at heart anti social lol. A friend found them very useful.
Not too long ago, you stated that you had stopped drinking for a long period of time. During that time, you felt much better and the retching stopped. It eventually came back so you said F'it and started drinking again.
As others have said, there are underlying issues that need to be addressed by a mental health professional as well as what appears to be an addiction issue to alcohol.
It's easy to be an armchair psychologist and suggest things but ultimately, it comes down to you taking the initiative to seek help.
Good luck and positive thoughts
Putting down the drink now will make your anxiety substantially worse, your dependent on it clearly, best way to stop is to seek professional help, find support from family members if you can, sit them down and tell them you want to fight this. Because once you stop that drink, it's a long rocky road to recovery but if you don't stop that drink now or ever it's gonna be a short rocky road with a steep drop at the end
I say all this in the kindest way possible
Not too long ago, you stated that you had stopped drinking for a long period of time. During that time, you felt much better and the retching stopped. It eventually came back so you said F'it and started drinking again.
As others have said, there are underlying issues that need to be addressed by a mental health professional as well as what appears to be an addiction issue to alcohol.
It's easy to be an armchair psychologist and suggest things but ultimately, it comes down to you taking the initiative to seek help.
Good luck and positive thoughts
What can a mental health professional do though? All they can do is talk to me or offer me medication with unpleasant side effects.
They can talk to me and tell me not to worry and that everything is OK but at the end of the day that isn't going to cure/resolve anything really.
It is you who will have to DO and the health professionals will be there to help you along the way.
I have done it, it is hard but most things that are worth something in life are! And it certainly seems better than the alternative.
For me it is one of the best things I have ever done, drinking is just like adding petrol to a fire with anxiety xx
What can a mental health professional do though? All they can do is talk to me or offer me medication with unpleasant side effects.
They can talk to me and tell me not to worry and that everything is OK but at the end of the day that isn't going to cure/resolve anything really.
Wow... Ok then. Well that's a slap in the face to everyone who's been offering advice. Go for it then. Keep on drinking and do nothing outside of boo hooing on this forum. You obviously have things under control. Sorry to be so blunt and sarcastic but you had that one coming Calum.
This is a response I gave to you over a year ago. What's truly sad is that nothing has changed.
The advent of drugs since the beginning has shown to have side effects. Even aspirin, which was considered a miracle drug, can have side effects.
Psychotropics (SSRIs) are still a fickle thing and as many have said and experienced (including myself), they can have both beneficial and negative side effects. Some can treat themselves or be treated without them and some need the addition of meds. Unfortunately, it's not like prescribing an antibiotic to rid the body of an infection. I was given Zoloft (Sertraline) after my first heart attack as I suffered from some depression. That along with therapy helped get me through that valley. While the drug was effective, I did have side effects (stomach and bowel issues).
There are non psychotropics that can be effective as well. My GP prescribed one called buspirone for me when scan time comes around. I can start taking it a couple of weeks prior to my check ups and it helps take the edge off the stress and worry. I can stop immediately with no ill effects after getting the all clear. Another benefit is that it doesn't have the same physical effect as something like diazapam or other tranquilizing type drug.
IMO, the first step in any battle with an illness, be it physical or mental, is acceptance. Acceptance of the malady itself as well as acceptance that you need help to deal with it. If you had heart problems, would you seek other methods to treat it or diagnosis' that try to explain the symptoms? I would hope not! You would see a cardiologist and get treatment.
In a situation where the illness is of the mind, one should seek an expert in that area. Treatment may include psychotherapy, therapies like CBT and/or medication. Recognizing and accepting you're suffering from a mental illness is really no different than accepting you have a physical illness and seeking treatment. Both can be debilitating and both can have treatments that aren't exactly a walk in the park but both can be treated and you can heal. Again, with physical illness and mental illness, it takes work and discipline. You need to follow doctors orders. With my physical issues, I have many such orders. It's not easy but I do them. If I don't I'll suffer the consequences. The same goes for illnesses of the mind. If your doctor tells you to stop drinking and Googling and you'll start feeling better, you have to do that to start feeling better. It's sound medical advice as well as common sense.
I have damage to my throat from cancer treatment it's difficult for me to swallow. My doctors told me that I have to do swallowing exercises for the rest of my life. They're difficult to do (even for one who doesn't have issues) and it sucks but if I don't do them, I'll eventually lose the ability to swallow and eat. That would mean having a PEG tube put in and getting my nourishment through a tube the rest of my life. Guess which path I'm taking ;)
I think I've made my point. Accept that you have a problem and seek the proper help with it. Find a doctor that you like and have confidence in and work on healing. You can get to a place where the "new normal" is a good place to be. Many here have done it successfully.
Positive thoughts
Another post from nearly two years ago....
Callum, I'm going to be honest with you here, for your own sake a little tough love.
It's clear you have anxiety problems, that's incredibly difficult to deal with and fight your way out of. We're all fighting that same battle here.
One of the most basic and essential parts of recovery is looking at our own lifestyles and seeing what can we do to help ourselves, or what are we already doing that may be playing a part in how bad we feel.
I get the feeling that you're looking everywhere but at your own lifestyle, you want to blame something that's got nothing to do with how you look after yourself. You don't seem to want to consider responsibility for yourself and your actions, or if you do then you have trouble focusing on this aspect of your anxiety. Or maybe it's that you're anxious about change.
Alcohol will make you feel good but only in the short term while it's in your system. It's the longer term effects of drinking that will only add to any anxiety disorders or cause health problems. Alcohol will also have the effect of raising the acid levels in your stomach, which may have a lot to do with the retching if it's upsetting your digestive system.
You know all this though, and it's been said to you here before. I'm not trying to chastise you, but only be honest in a way that I hope will help you.
For the moment consider this your plan of action:
- get help with your drinking problem straight away
- start eating regularly throughout the day
- start eating a proper diet that will support your body & brain
- find a therapist in your area to support you through your problems
- consider CBT for the anxiety
- recognise that you need to ask for some outside help in this, you need proper support with everything you're struggling through
None of this means changing your whole lifestyle all in one go, that's too overwhelming. Take it step by step, make a plan for yourself. But be proative, you've got to start doing something to change your situation - it will never change if you don't do something about it.
If you can't afford all of the supports do a bit of research for groups that do low cost counselling in your area, or talk to your GP about what support you can get through the public health system.
You've gotten so much good advice on these threads, I also suggest that you reread them and consider what everyone has been telling you.
Before you consider any other reason for why you're retching and anxious all the time then please look at your lifestyle, see what you can do to help yourself, and if that's still not working then talk to your GP again.
I find myself repeating the same advice to you, so I won't say any of this again - but if you want any support with looking at how you live, how you can improve it and getting through anxiety then I'm here for you and I sincerely hope that you get better.
Wishing you well x
There are countless posts like this throughout your threads the last two years. Perhaps you should go back and take a history lesson. There's much to be learned.
Good luck Cal. The path you're on will need a lot of it!
Positive thoughts... over and out!
Well you won't know til you try will you! I don't personally know what they can do, but there's tons of people who have quit the demon drink with their help so they must be doing something right. X
Back to the original post...
Calum, if this is something that has been going on for a long time now (I am basing this on other people's mentions of your previous threads on the site), it is clear that you are not going to move forwards with things on your own, or just by asking for help here. As hard as it is to hear, you need to reach out and embrace any medical/professional help that is offered, and yes, it may not always work 100% of the time, but without trying, how can you know? If we all took that attitude then nobody would ever do anything.
It seems that you do want to overcome this negative relationship you have formed with alcohol, which is half the battle, and I can only applaud you for that - it takes a lot of bravery to admit that you have a problem, but now you need to push on and be even braver by facing up to it head-on.
For me alcohol has been one of the worst catalysts and demons throughout my periods of depression and anxiety and to this day I still have times where just a few more drinks seems like a fantastic idea, but it is most definitely anything but that. I can only urge you to get help and stop drinking as quickly as you can. It will be hard and some days you will feel awful, but after some time, the positives will by far outweigh the negatives.
Take care of yourself and I hope you can start to make some progress soon.
venusbluejeans
24-08-15, 14:57
Please can we keep arguing off the forum!!
I am at work till half and just popping on while I eat lunch, so haven't got time to look through any of this now.
If you are going to argue please do it through PM (or preferably not at all) as you really don't want to be seen in a bad light on the forum do you?? You both have good reputations on here and it would be a shame for members to see you picking at each other like this!
Please can we keep arguing off the forum!!
I am at work till half 7 and just popping on while I eat lunch, so haven't got time to look through any of thiss now.
If you are going to argue please do it through PM (or preferably not at all) as you really don't want to be seen in a bad light on the forum do you?? You both have good reputations on here and it would be a shame for members to see you picking at each other like this!
+1 for this.
Guys seriously enough, this has nothing to do with the OP.
If you must fight take it elsewhere.
To the OP:
Mental health professionals can help you cope with withdrawal symptoms. Alcohol withdrawal can cause nasty side effects, tremors, etc. It has to be done really carefully. They also can provide help with relapse prevention, resources, and support or support groups. They can help take a look and what contributed to the alcohol use in the first place and help treat the underlying issues.
I wish you luck and hope you feel better soon.
Someone else's thread is not the place for this.
Please can everyone keep this post on topic.
Kalam,just want to wish you health,happiness,love and support:hugs:
Petra x:D
Hi All
Just a quick note to advise you that after discussion with the rest of the Admin team I have deleted posts which are off topic from the original post.
My apologies if I have missed any.
May I respectfully ask that members refrain from taking over posts to indulge in squabbling.
Many thanks
Elen
MyNameIsTerry
25-08-15, 09:59
What can a mental health professional do though? All they can do is talk to me or offer me medication with unpleasant side effects.
They can talk to me and tell me not to worry and that everything is OK but at the end of the day that isn't going to cure/resolve anything really.
Calum,
What you are saying here is something a lot of us have said at some point.
Yes, they will talk to you BUT they will also educate you about your negative thoughts and how to challenge them. They will teach you strategies and help you to set goals.
They may offer your medication but therapy is the recommended strategy and meds are for later. The only reason they throw meds straight at people is because the NHS hasn't got the resources to properly follow NICE guidelines and get us into theraoy quickly enough. BUT meds are still your choice. You can be referred for therapy and go without meds and hang on.
Meds come with a long list of side effects. BUT not everyone gets them and some people get on them with less issues than others. It's a bit of a lottery there and it requires a leap of faith on your part. I've been through it twice and it was hard.
Only you will ever recovery, the meds won't do it and neither will the talking. You engage with the talking therapy and work on yourself with their guidance.
But your questions are sensible, don't think otherwise and if people don't agree then that's up to them but what you are saying here has been seen on plenty of threads since I've been on here.
You do need to talk to them about your drinking though. You have a complex problem in there as it is tied to a symptom or compulsion. This may mean you need a more complex support package like from a community mental health team as opposed to a GP medicating & an IAPT therapist.
I also think you need a proper diagnosis because your GP's one for OCD is unclear. I'm not saying that it isn't OCD and that it is a physical issue because from talking yo you it seems more a somatoform issue to me. (at one stage you even posted saying you were trying to convince your doctors it was this, so you need to get that attitude back again). OCD is a possibility, I just question it because the type the GP would be diagnosing in a less common form that a GP is very likely not to know about and there is another disorder in the Somatoform Disorders catagory that also maps to what you have described. So, perhaps an assessment with a psychologist or psychiatrist will clear that up?
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