Using alcohol as a remedy!!

[lammylama]

Just wanted to know how many of you drink alcohol to try and reduce the severity of anxiety and panic symptoms....i know i do.
Thing is i know that alcohol is one of the worst possible things to drink with our disorders but i personally find it calms me down no end.The downside is that it makes your anxiety worse the next morning usually.
Bit of a catch 22 situation isnt it....need it to calm you down but the side effects make you worse.I had a load of beer on tuesday night coz i was feeling better but it was the next day i had my severe panic attack and i must admit i was badly hungover....question is ,does the attack stem from the previous nights binge or was it just a coincidence???
I have drunk 3/4 cans of lager every night for ages now but when i stop for a week or so i tend to feel better so maybe the moral of this story for me is to stop drinking!!!!!
What are all your thought on this????

[baileys]

question is ,does the attack stem from the previous nights binge or was it just a coincidence???
I have drunk 3/4 cans of lager every night for ages now but when i stop for a week or so i tend to feel better so maybe the moral of this story for me is to stop drinking!!!!!
What are all your thought on this????
you have just answered your own question.:winks:

I do use drink in an evening to help me relax. I really want to stop though.......she says with a glass of wine in her hand.:D

[lammylama]

I havent touched any since my attack on wed except 2 small glasses of baileys(ironically bailey) whilst cooking dinner last night but i too really want to stop.
Ive stopped before a few times now but when i start feeling better i slowly go back to my old ways again and before i know it im drinking every night again!

[ditzygirl]

A drink to help you relax is fine - as long as it doesn't get out of hand.
To be honest any one suffering anxiety and drinking regularly is just making life worse for themselves. And that's from someone speaking from experience.

I used to use wine as a prop for anxiety but gave up about 3 months ago. I will be honest and say I have had the odd glass of wine but I mean the odd one!!!!!

Firstly I feel so much better and I enjoy the occasional drink far better than drinking regularly.

I bet you worry about your liver ? I was. But that's another worry out of the window.

Admittedly I also got meds so mixed with wine just defeats the object really.

My advise is at least cut back, combine that with a little exercise and healthy eating and you will amazed at how much better you feel.

Good luckx

[baileys]

Hi Lammylama

Now let me think about this :unsure:. As per the previous post yes, yes and yes.

I dont believe its a coincidence and like you said it is a catch 22 situ.

Although I do have a glass in hand, hey its Friday night :whistles:

Take Care
Alison
Cheers Alison:D

[jennybeth]

i thought i was feeling better last week so I went to a charity do where the wine kept flowing. as it was the first time i'd been out in ages I thought i was ok until i woke up the next morning after with a pretty bad wine head and a boyfriend who wasn't talking to me as i'd got a little carried away. this just made the anxiety worse! im a bar manager as well so always around alcohol and recently have become increasingly aware of the effects of alcohol. i'm not an alcoholic as i barely drink anymore and it makes me feel better for it but it seems to keep popping up everywhere and sometimes feel the world revolves around it and causes me to be anxious. does that make sense? x

[joannap]

this is a really strange post for me because i do not drink at all and so i always find it wierd when people do drink! i have one or two at christmas and that's literally it. i think its because i am ultra sensible and think there is no point covering up anxiety symptoms with alcohol because it will just cause more problems to be solved in the long run! nothing wrong with anything in moderation however xx

[jennybeth]

i think i find it stressful because of my job and am constantly surrounded by alcohol. i feel like im left out of social situations because of the anxiety i find myself having but this just seems to exaggerate the anxiety. i've taken some time off work this weekend but its the one thing i seem to enjoy and i actually feel quite safe surrounded by all the people i know at work! trying to find relaxing things to do when i'm not at work at the mo xx

[PoppyC]

I find that I am drinking more and more of my favourite red wine at night. I never used to be like this and beginning to think that Citalopram is giving me a craving for alchohol.
During the day I am actually looking forward to the evening, so I can drink. It helps my anxiety so much, however, the next morning I feel like death and also I can wake in the night, with palpitations and heart racing. This happened last night. Not nice.
I vowed to now only drink at the weekend. I only drink 3 glasses but I shouldnt be drinking with medication, plus my mum died from alcoholism and it runs in my family. I know all the reasons why not to drink and what it can do, and yet here I am with a glass of wine next to me.
If I think of stopping drinking, I feel depressed at the thought. That scares me. I find a couple of drinks at night help me relax for bed.
Anyway as of Monday I am only drinking at the weekends :weep:
I had better enjoy the bottle of wine I have by my side, whilst it lasts! :lac:

[jillyb]

I'm with Joannap here as I don't drink either. I don't like the taste actually. The thing is, as I understand it, it can initially make you feel more relaxed but is actually a depressant which can't be a good thing. My ex was a very heavy drinker and on all sorts of meds - the combination was very destructive and didn't give him a chance to recover. All things in moderation - that's the key! Anyway, cheers! x

[mabel]

Its a vicious circle!

I feel anxious and depressed so I drink. I try not to but at times its the only thing that helps! I hold off and try and deal with it. Sometimes I'm not strong enough and I cave in and drink! I feel fine then! Normal almost!!!! Its great!

BUT, and this is a big BUT! I then have to face the next day. Going to work feeling awful! The anxiety is sky high! Awful! (when I was off work with depression and anxiety I spent about a week drinking all day to 'make myself feel better'. Worst week of my life!!! Never felt so bad!!! That took a lot of effort to get out of!

I'm still drinking! But never drink in the day. Its one of my rules. But I really feel it the next day at the moment when I do drink! Not just the 'hungover' feeling but the anxiety and depression is worse! Far worse!

[Tom.]

I am so relieved to see this post, i do drink each night and my god do i regret it in the morning at the time it gives me a cuddle so to speak and i feel relaxed and able to just be normal for awhile and at the time i do feel normal but then i wake up and sometimes really regret it, thoughts of mouth cancer liver problems to much dependancy etc etc i used to drinnk about 3/4 cans a night or maybe half a bottle of wine then a weekend its probably 3/4 cans AND a half bottle of wine friday and saturdya night with the missus,

I know i shouldnt drink as much as i do and have activally made a concious effort to only drink on the weekend, (hence the glass of red next to me as i write) my problem is i really enjoy alcohol, i love wine, beer and whiskey i enjoy "tasting" them and comparing them - sounds like an excuse i know but its true.

in my opinion enjoy your drink, know what you drink and appreciate what you drink, but if you depend on your drink then i would look to get some advice / help alcohol is there as a luxury for us to enjoy not a crutch for us to use to get by

[mabel]

Its an easy quick fix! I've used and still do at times!

BUT it just makes things worse! It really does!!!

Doesn't help at all in the long run. Its hard.

It might make things better in the short term but doesnt help you recovery!

I KNOW! I'm going through it!!!

[Jannie2948]

I used to absolutely love a glass of red wine or a coffee and brandy but since being on Citalopram I have given them up completely. The couple of times I have tried to have a drink, just a very small glass, I have been so terribly ill, sick and passing out!! It is just not worth it, and now I don't even miss it :-) I can have just as much fun and enjoy myself with my friends with a glass of sparkling water!! I still go out socially and my friends have got used to me not drinking and it makes no difference to me at all. I always used to suffer if I had one too many so I don't miss that one little bit.
Jannie x x