Alcohol DETOX??

[deos68]

year and a half daily drinker and daily anxiety which leads to me to why i wanna get sober
i truly believe my anxiety is coming from the hangover/withdrawl that i exp everyday
over the past yr ive been at 4 to 6 beers a night
this past sunday i drank 4 beers not much change
monday i drank 3 beers not much change
tuesday i drank 3 beers anxiety easing up
weds i drank 2 beers during the day very little anxiety to my surprise
thursday i drank 2 beers again and i actually drove that day which i previously couldnt because of anxiety
today friday i feel like dog shit full of anxiety

through out the week i had insomnia and vivid dreams but that was expected but
thurs night i had heart palpitations along with insomnia and anxiety

how in the hell do people taper off i was honestly excited until on how great i felt then all of a sudden feeling like shit today
think i need to taper longer?

anyone else taper down ?
i was gonna CT but i am having a shit ton of anxiety from just of the thought of it
i got ativan if i truly need it

 

[nuttynutskin]

I would just ride it out if you're trying to stop entirely. I came off drinking heavily (at least 12 drinks everyday) for a month or more when I had to go to the ER and was able to recover fairly quickly. I was able to go cold turkey off the booze with the Ativan they prescribed. Only thing is be careful with the Ativan because I made the mistake of staying on it too long and it started to give me rebound anxiety because of the short half-life. In my case I needed it tho because I would've had the risk of seizures or at the very least bad withdrawals. You might not even need it tho if you're only drinking a few beers. Shakes, anxiety and palpitations is pretty much to be expected coming off the booze. I've been there many times.

 

[Moreaux]

I was a heavy drinker for 17 years, would have a fifth of liquor every other night for five of those years before I transitioned to two bottles of wine every other night, and the last few years of my drinking I would drink 15 - 24 beers every night. I also took Xanax daily as I had a open script, and was on it the last ten years of my drinking life. In retrospect, it made everything worse. I finally checked into rehab in 2010 as I couldn't quit on my own, even though I went to meeting and participated in several out patient programs. I had to go cold turkey on both benzos and booze, rehab just gave me an anti siezure med. Now I think facilities give out phenobarbital.

OP - the first few days you will feel lousy trust me, cold turkey is hell) but it gets better quick. Learn some nonpharmaceutical methods for dealing with anxiety such as breathing techniques, yoga, meditation as they really do help. Also, eating healthy and on a schedule makes a huge difference as does getting on a sleep schedule and getting enough sleep. The biggest thing you can do to aid your recovery is figure out what is driving you to drink, and address those issues. You may also want to consider getting the Vivitrol shot. I took it for 8 months and it removed all the cravings I had. You get one shot a month. It also seemed to help with anxiety. The shot can be tricky to get, so if it's not possible for you to get that try getting a script for naltrexone, which is the pill version of the shot. I feel like getting the shot longer term kind of reset my brain back to my nonalcoholic life - as I have no desire to drink and don't get cravings, even if I'm around it. Case in point I played poker with the guys at the club house Thursday and the guy to my right had an open beer a few inches from me the entire time. I could smell it, but it wasn't distracting or the focus of my evening, and didn't have the urge to get one. Before trying the shot, I could only muster a year sober at a time as the cravings were insidious.

As for feeling bad when quitting - it does get better and it gets better relatively quickly. Alcohol is a depressant, and if you use it long enough your body gets used to having that depressant and works hard to counter the depressant properties. When you decrease the amount or quit, it takes time for your body to catch up so you will be more aware of physical discomfort, anxiety, etc. I found that I felt fine after about two weeks.

In the grand scheme of things, your catching what could be a nasty alcohol addiction early. I promise you it can get so much worse and it can happen quickly. Please do everything within your power now to mitigate it and save yourself the pain of traveling down that long dark deep rabbit hole. Feel free to pm me with questions. I wish you the best!

 

[deos68]

Thank you for all info and advice
Today Saturday I feel better I actually got some sleep last night I didn't go ct yet I only drank a beer and a half before I fell asleep

I knew going into this I was gonna feel like crap
In all honesty I hate taking benzos if I don't have to
They are my naughty candy and I know myself if I take regularly I will start abusing them which I don't want that's why I turned to booze
Not much better right ha

I'll fight through it I can't imagine anyone going ct I felt like shit from a couple of beers I can't imagine trying to ct from a larger alcohol intake

I tip my hat to y'all

And I'll stay in my taper and eventually ct once I become stable on 1 to 2 beers a night

And I must admit my anxiety but have been from the WD this whole time I feel emotionally stable and no depression and very little anxiety right now

 

[nuttynutskin]

Good luck. I've tapered off benders before. It definitely works if you have the will power or someone to keep you in check and saves you a whole lot of misery.

 

[PriestTheyCalledHim]

See a doctor or medical professional and tell them how you are an alcoholic, or extremely heavy drinker and want to quit alcohol, be honest about how much you drink daily, and take their advice.

Stay safe.