Anyone else given up the booze and gone through withdrawals? The booze thread

originally posted by: underwerks
a reply to: DaisyRainbow

You shouldn't have gone cold turkey. You're lucky you didn't die. Alcohol withdrawal is one of the only withdrawals you can die from, it's worse and more dangerous than heroin withdrawal. People regularly die from it.

To anyone else thinking of doing the same thing, don't. Go to a doctor and get a low dose benzodiazepine to wean yourself off. I can't state enough how dangerous it is to withdraw from alcohol. It's more dangerous than any other drug.

Have you been through this personally? Are you an alcoholic? Or are you giving edicts you haven't experienced yourself?

originally posted by: DaisyRainbow
a reply to: CthruU

Massively agree, I would easily fall into alcohol addiction again if my brain had a sniff of it in my system 😂
I'm actually going to my regular bar now, my very good friend owns it and she won't serve me alcohol, also told all the girls unless she says different it's only non alcoholic for me haha!
I've realised how friendships and being honest with friends about your challenges is a massive part of getting through life's challenges ❤️❤️❤️

Friend...be careful! Our minds are so deceptive. You may be convincing yourself that you can drink moderately. "See, look at this! I can even come to the bar every day and not even have one drink. That surely means that I can control it now. Now I can have one or two and be fine. If I couldn't, I wouldn't be able to be around all this booze every day and refuse drinks."

Again- this is where AA is helpful in the beginning. The meetings give you something to do with your time. What do you think is more likely to help you stay sober: going to the bar with all your old drinking friends and your same environment, or going to a meeting where everyone around you has been a slave to alcohol and now is free from it?

I'm not saying you can't ever be around booze for the rest of your life. I can be around booze, go to parties, even date men who drink, no problem. But right now, when this not-drinking thing is new to you, going to the bar just isn't the best idea. Get established in sobriety first. We go through withdrawl symptoms for MONTHS. The acute physical affects are mainly gone, but other things are going on as the brain and body adjusts. Friend, be careful.

a reply to: KansasGirl

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough, I went to the bar because some friends will always be there so the social element is my motivation.
I appreciate your advice friend but I had a pint of lemonade, ice and a slice of lime. Wasn't interested in the alcohol sold there or which was being drunk by the friends, I was having lots of laughs and good conversation. The bar is a social hub for most of my friends, no way am I stopping going because I no longer drink alcohol 😂

Anyway I'm back home now and haven't wanted alcohol at all.
As to AA, sorry but absolutely hilarious, have you seen the 12 steps of AA???
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk...
Its all about god lmao, that ain't gonna help me, I don't believe in any gods. No god fixed me last week, that was NHS staff, Librium and other human made drugs lol.

I've been to the bar 2 days in a row now, drank only fizzy pop and have had excellent fun both times...there is no 'only one drink' thing for me now because my brain will be stimulated by any small amount of alcohol again. Nothing stopping me having a laugh with my friends who are getting drunk though 😁😁😁

a reply to: KansasGirl

Silly story, my friend who owns the bar, stood on a chair tapping a glass with a spoon for attention, then announced that anyone seeing me buying booze anywhere is to report to her and she will deal with me! 😂😂😂
Whole bar laughed and made a promise with everyone saying all inspirational things to me, was lovely ❤️❤️❤️

originally posted by: KansasGirl
a reply to: DaisyRainbow

Twice. Well, I used to go through withdrawl every single morning- that's why I had to do two or three shots every morning. If I could get several shots down, then the shaking would calm down enough for me to at least stand up. The problem was that I would be prone to puking them right back up. It was hell.

I went cold turkey finally after too many stories to share here. My parents had come to stay for a few weeks and that's when I did it. It was hell. Shaking, puking, no appetite. But the worst is the racing heart, racing mind, and anxiety. You have a constant and uncontrollable anxiety and racing mind. It's horrendous.

Got through it and stayed sober for 7 years. Then for a year I was back to the same place, having to drink all day long.

When I went to quit that time, it was harder. So I spent a good three months trying to wean myself. Found some formulas online that help you figure out how much to cut down each day, for how long, to safely get you off booze. Problem is, I'm a raging alcoholic, so I wasn't able to always keep it to the reduced drinks. Finally, a friend knew what was going on and said one day, "Do you want to go to treatment?" and for whatever reason I Said yes, and he called the county detox right then and got me in that day. If I hadn't gone that day, I would have changed my mind by nightfall.

That was hell too, but at least I was safe and monitored for DTs (the seizures are the dangerous part), and they gave me medication to sleep at night, which was huge.

That was almost 7 years ago.

It's hell, but it doesn't last forever, and it is SO WORTH IT! To never wake up going into withdrawl, to no longer be a space and have to organize your life around the booze. No more constant anxiety and no more "Will I be found out?". YOU CAN DO IT!

AA meetings are especially helpful when you're withdrawing, because every person there has been through what you're going through, and they uniquely understand you. I'll be praying for you and Im happy for you that you're getting free!!!!

ETA: OP, I'm an idiot. I read as far as your paragraph starting "Three days in and in curled up in a ball" and immediately hitting the reply button, wanting to give you encouragement by sharing my story right away and didn't even finish your OP. 😂😂😂

So actually, our stories confirm one another! For some people, the only way to quit is to be in a controlled environment like a detox or hospital, where they cN be given meds to help if needed. I believe that many, MANY more drinks like myself would be sober if they had the opportunity to be medically detoxed. The withdrawls, for the daily heavy alcoholic, can't even really be described adequately, and it's the anxiety that is the worst part of it.

Please be careful! Now that you're free from that hellish master booze, STAY FREE! Please, please, don't convince yourself that you can drink moderately now. You can't, and if you have a few drinks, maybe you will keep it down for a few days or a few weeks, but you WILL end up right back where you were on the floor a few weeks ago. Only the withdrawls will be worse. They get worse with each attempt.

Get hard candy and keep it with you (your body wants the sugar it's used to, like your health team said), and eat well (good, well balanced meals, esoecially with iron and protein), keep well hydrated, and DO NOT ISOLATE! Look into a few AA meetings. They may seem off-putting for a variety of reasons when you're sitting there, but I can't tell you how valuable they are in the early days, to have a group of people who understand everything you say.

Your friend who took you to the hospital is an angel! He/she gave you such a huge gift. If you'd gotten some booze, you'd be back to the old cycle again right now.

Congrats and keep going!

Such a lovely post, thanks for sharing ❤️
It didn't need to be lost at the bottom of the last page, thank you 😁 x

a reply to: Tarzan the apeman.

Oh gosh I had spiders black things crawling all around me and on the walls, it was awful, never experienced anything so frightening before!!! 😱😱😱

You were an angel to your friend, as mine was finding me in a mess and getting me to the hospital ❤️

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

I didn't no the guy, never met him before. Just was at the right place at the right time.

a reply to: Tarzan the apeman.

That makes me smile even more 😀😀😀
You must have a good soul ❤️
You could have saved a life there ❤️

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

"have you seen the 12 steps of AA???"
Yes, I live by them everyday and have for quite a few years. I have been sober for a while because of them. My life, the ones around me and the world is better because I am sober.

"Its all about god lmao"
Actually it is about a power greater than ones self. I do not like the connotations the word god conjurers up. Many in AA as I do look at the word GOD as meaning Good Orderly Direction

AA works but one has to be beaten down by alcohol enough to be willing to go to any length to get sober.

Just remember it works and is there if you need it. Otherwise carry on and good luck.

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

I have to say, I share kansasgirls concern.

I quit drinking for an entire year before. Fooled myself into thinking I had kicked that habit. Fooled myself into thinking that I could drink like a “normal” person. Fooled myself into thinking that I wasn’t an alcoholic.

Human beings have an amazing ability to fool themselves.

If you’re hanging out around the same people, in the same places, doing the same things and following the same routine that you did while drinking all the time, then it will only be a matter of time before you’re trying to justify a drink, and fool yourself as well.

I’ve seen it too many times, not just with my own behavior, but with many alcoholic family members as well. Some of them quit drinking for years, only to pick it up again because they decided just a few drinks won’t hurt and before they know it they’re right back in the same old alcoholic routine.

You have to develop some new hobbies, do some different things. Make some new friends. Humans are creatures of routine and the alcohol monkey is a sneaky bastard who uses that to his advantage.

Even if you’re a total atheist, I would give AA a try. You’re only two months sober, you’ve got the rest of your life if you truly want to stay that way. Maybe you’re an atheist and don’t believe in god, and that’s fine. But surely you believe there’s something greater than you in this universe. Thing is, instead of hanging out with the same friends at the bar who are drinking, all of the people at AA meetings are in the same boat as you, trying to get the alcohol monkey off their backs. They’re only an hour and if you go and don’t like it you haven’t lost anything.

If you really want to commit to a lifetime of sobriety you’re going to need to use every tool at your disposal. Just my 2 cents.

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

Good that you gave up the juice and have found happiness but it is a daily battle that you are fighting and will be for the rest of your life .

As others have said stay away from the pub for a while at least and get a hobby or a job behind a bar to see what drink does to most folk , you will find that puts most barmen/women off drinking .

I drank 20 + pints a day and never considered myself a alcoholic as it was normal in my field of work , it was a badge of honor that we wore .

I never had the withdrawal symptoms that friends had luckily, but i have been to too many funerals of friends who never stopped drinking and died young way too young .

It took me years to finally stop but nowadays i take 5+ hours to finish a drink at home and i can go into a bar and have a coffee without having a drink or thinking about one and a bottle of wine in the cupboard has been there for months

In the old days i bought 3 bottles of wine a night , i would pour the G/F one then proceed to devour the rest of the 3 bottles then finish what she left in her glass , i dread to think what i blew over the years on booze and looking back on it I NEVER LIKED THE STUFF i only drank to fit in as i was a wall flower type of person and very shy but booze brought out someone who would have the bar in stitches and the girls loved it ,i was frigging nuts .

I am glad kids now are a bit more switched on to not drinking and it is not so socially acceptable anymore

a reply to: Diogeneser

Ah thank you ❤️
I've never got on with any counseling ever, I'm so deep I could drown myself lol, in fact I'm the counselor of my social tribe, nobody has ever been able to tell me something regarding emotional/mental well being, or suggest ways of looking at things which I didn't already know myself.

If it works for other people then that of course pleases me, but the best counseling for me is having fun with fellow dry friends like I did last night, poker evening, 'chips' for betting were hard candy 😂
Now other friends who are struggling with booze want to come round to the fizzy pop club for alcohol free laughs 👍

a reply to: Cancerwarrior

Oh I appreciate your concern but my entire social group of loved friends are recreational drink and drug users, we are a party tribe, electronic dance music in all it's forms, outdoor raves/dance parties, music and dancing is what connects us all and our daily meeting places are at various local bars.

I would cut my loved mates down to like 5 from over 50 if I only hung out with the dry ones lol, no way that is happening!
3 days in a row I've met friends in the bar an old friend of mine owns, only lemonade and no temptation to drink either. I'm going down in a short while for a coffee and catch up with some friends, alcohol isn't even whispering in my ear, I actually fear it now lol.

I see dealing with life as creating new paths in my brain, and going to the bar for a lemonade or whatever is my new neural path I'm beating through the grass...I can already see weeds starting to grow on the alcohol path to the bar...if you know what I mean!

Thank you for your concern though, much love ❤️

a reply to: stonerwilliam

Thank you so much for your story ❤️
Honestly though since being detoxed I haven't had one craving or wish to drink again so going to the bar has been easy, and still as much fun sober, even more fun in some ways because my mind is sharper and quicker than my drunk friends so when we are taking the piss out of each other (teasing) my witty one liners are funny as #, tie my friends up in knots lol.

It's been two weeks since a drink now and I'm loving the clarity of mind, I'm even starting as a part time PA for my friend who is starting a business but she is from Slovakia, but while good at what she does, she is sinking under UK legal bureaucracy requirements and that happens to be one of the strings in my bow.
I don't need to work, haven't for about 8 months so doing it for free just to give idle hands something to do - we have lots of fun together though so will be a good laugh, and a sober activity! 😂

Thank you for everyone's replies and personal stories so far, much appreciated ❤️
I find even talking in a digital environment like this is a million times more helpful than some room where everyone is feeling awkward before giving it "Hi, I'm Daisy and I'm an alcoholic" for goodness sake why even say that? Anyone attending such a group session is obviously an alco 😂

I've totally shouted it out in brutal detail on my personal social media, everyone is supportive, nobody will even offer me a drink anymore, and even better, friends have come out of the woodwork now admitting their own struggles since I went public.
Got a nice group chat going on, finding the way forward for us all to do more things together while sober. Totally surprised me how many of us have alcohol dependency challenges, but it is good, only takes one person to take the plunge and go public, now for the others there is no shame, just knowledge that we all care and need to face some things as a group. 😀❤️

Fantastic news, just got a text off a friend and she has taken the first brave step of telling her partner about secret drinking, hiding bottles in the rubbish bin and all that. He's being really supportive and then admitted he'd been drinking too much on the sly as well so they are working on an honest joint plan to face their challenge together 😁😁😁

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

Awesome!!

I no longer drink hard alcohol because it cascades to bad decision making. The DTs (what you went through going cold turkey) is the worst (people have died from that!). But, drinking till blackout is a sign that you need to pay attention to; quantity is also a good place to start (the drinkers log you were told to start).

That approach is called “behavior modification” and is what people should try before AA. One thing you learn is “paired associations” like “I can only smoke while I am drinking” (classic). Those are interesting and if you combine it with some individual psychotherapy you can do wonders!! I think of AA as last resort as the first thing you say is that you have no control and hand that control over to a “higher power” which irks me as a “satanist” (as in “non servium” not some weirdo bowing to Baphomet in the basement).

Sounds like you already knew and wasting time and money would keep you from your desired result of sobriety.

Sorry that your losses hit you so strongly that you ended up in your broken state.

I was broken for 20 years and needed all the support of therapy and counseling for deep seated guilt and other emotional stuff that I finally dealt with. I now have coping skills for dealing with life that I didn’t before. That is what therapy is good for!

Sounds like you realized it all and walked away. That is good news!!

Thanks for the share!

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Oh thank you for sharing ❤️
20 years is a long time, respect to you getting there though.

I went to the bar my friend owns today as usual, had my lemonade on the rocks with lime slices, and a good laugh with people I knew who were drinking alcohol but it wasn't an issue at all, same fun conversations.
Funniest thing my friend has put a new sign up behind the bar "Daisy's menu" lmao, it has lemonade, orangeade, coke/pepsi, red bull, orange juice, apple juice, pineapple juice, cranberry juice, optional mix with soda, hot drinks, 5 different types of tea including iced, coffee, and even hot chocolate!

She is an old friend and says she ain't gonna be the one to give me my next drink, and I smiled inside at that. The whole pub knows now anyway with that funny sign, and the staff, so I get to enjoy all the social benefits of the bar but sober 😁
Honestly, medical detox has been like magic to me, when my head came back round from some missing days in the hospital I no longer wanted a drink and still don't.

I've been to the pub 4 or 5 times now drinking fizzy pop and had fun, not once looking at someone's glass of wine with envious eyes lol.

I can never have another drink though, one wouldn't be enough, if my brain gets a sniff of alcohol in it's system then the snake will awake, the thought of that alone makes me absolutely fear booze now.
It's a drug I can't control, I happily accept that, I've had many years of fun with it but now is the time to extend my years by not poisoning my body anymore ❤️

a reply to: DaisyRainbow

Glad that you are in a happy place!!



I am still drinking but it is not about getting trashed anymore. And once you can monitor yourself and make adjustments then good old days are just that... in the past!

Get hot buttered rum, minus the rum, added to your menu!! Makes the upcoming winter bearable. I am partial to eggnog myself...

(and hot apple cider)

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

That's brilliant you can have a pleasant drink and not get spannered 😁
Well done and pleased for you, as I am for my friends, who can have just a pint or two enjoying the gentle buzz 👍
I however am a raging alcoholic I've realised now lol, no way do I want, or should ever have another drop of alcohol again, I know me well enough 😂 I almost feel at peace because I so deeply understand that now, I embrace my new reality ❤️

Took a walk to the shore to listen to the waves with my flask of hot milk chocolate and a smoke, was lovely, escaped into the sounds, smells, and the wind in my hair 😊 ...walked back to town and it started to rain so I took refuge into a pub I've only been in maybe 3 times in 20 years. Sat at the bar on a stool, ordered a lemonade on the rocks with a dash of pure orange juice lol, and took my first sip like it was ice cold sparkling wine, even went "Ahh" noise after swallowing it lmao, but psychologically that was my luxury dopamine treat at the pub if you know what I mean.

Had some good laughs with strangers who were sitting next to me, they were tipsy and funny, shared some lovely stories.
Rain stopped, said my goodbyes and went back on my way.

I love the society and community of local pubs, new people, old faces, pool, darts, other people's music on the jukebox, offering your newspaper to a stranger when you've read it, all of the pub environment in my life is lovely moments of strangers interacting, it is tribal.
I don't miss alcohol in the slightest as the social element still remains....and I absolutely fear ever waking that snake again!!!! 😱😱😱