I can't stop

[tryingtolivelife]

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[rebirth]

I can't stop

Hi tryingtolivelife.
I understand your frustration completely because this is exactly how I felt four months ago. Wanted to stop but couldnt stop. It was the most frustrating cycle ever.
I still desire to drink every now and again but my cravings have totally gone. I dont know how heavily you drink but I was okay to go cold turkey ( just suffered from insomia, tiredness, extrem hi's and lows.). I do a mixture of AA meeting and MYO. These two support groups have been an immense help. I started by taking it one day at a time and eating lots of chocolate. By focusing on the first 24 hours it was less scary. Then I tried another day, then another etc. Best of luck. x

[rebirth]

I can't stop

Many people on here are on baclofen as well but I have never tried it

[tryingtolivelife]

I can't stop

Thanks rebirth. I need to plan things after work, so I don't sit and watch TV and drink. I drink a good bottle of wine a day. He has dealt with people with AL problems in his family and is very leary of just stopping.

[tryingtolivelife]

I can't stop

P.S. I didn't mean a good bottle as in expensive bottle wine a day, just that I drink a bottle a day, sometimes that and a glass over. Maybe I will have to result to medication, just live in an area where everyone knows everyone and everything about everyone-medical stuff leaks out-maybe just need to get over it and take the plunge.

[Pride before Fall]

I can't stop

TTL, welcome! Your drinking pattern is oh-so-familiar to me. You can order medication online if you decide to go that route. Could you first, try setting a goal of sober days so you're better able to formulate a plan of action? Most people shoot for 30.

I've been plagued with anxiety much of my adult life, but the funny thing is, it lessened when I stopped drinking. Other deadened feelings have emerged, but not the anxiety that used to overwhelm me--what I was most afraid of. Life without alcohol isn't easy, but it's nowhere near as awful as it was when I was drinking.

Here are some links that helped me. Good luck! xoxoxo Pride

https://www.mywayout.org/community/f1...box-27556.html
https://www.mywayout.org/community/f1...ing-22609.html
AUDIT Alcohol Screening Test - Alcohol & Substance Abuse, Addiction, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) Cult & Depression (aka, reality check)

[Guest]

I can't stop

If you are drinking first thing in the morning, it's likely people around you might have noticed you have a problem anyway, and to see you get well would probably make a massive difference. That is they'll be pleased and give you plenty of respect/support etc.

[tired of this addiction]

I can't stop

Trying, I hear you...loud and clear!! I posted on here 30 days ago "cant someone just tell me how to stop?" One of the answers I got was "just stop". At first, I was slightly put off by that reply but then I realized how brillant that simple answer really was! There is no other way to do it. Sure supps and meds help, but in the end it is up to you to just stop.

I have to agree with Pride as well, the anxiety will lessen without the AL, along with the shame and possibly even a little of the work stress....or at least make it easier to deal with.

Good luck, hang in there and keep posting...we have all been there too!

[tryingtolivelife]

I can't stop

UKblonde-I don't drink first thing in the morning. If something crazy happens at work (which is often)-be it at 10am or 1pm, I know that I will go home later on and drink almost as soon as I get in the door.

Thank you Ukblonde, TOTA, and Pride. I guess I just need to stop, if I feel bad or serious withdrawals-I will seek medical advice and help. The hangovers are not worth any of it. I need my life back and I will regret not stopping. Thank you guys for being caring enough to give advice to someone you don't know.

[icandothis]

I can't stop

Hi Trying -- I just told myself that I was taking "today" off when I first stopped. And then I took the next day, and the next day, ODAT. I also was drinking about a bottle of wine a day and I did not experience any physical withdrawals, just some insomnia. But overall I started to feel so much better right away....my anxiety over how much I drank was a HUGE energy drain. I agree with rebirth that going to AA meetings is also a big help. I would go right after work -- when I normally started drinking and it kind of derailed me from drinking that day.
Good Luck and Hang in there!

[BradyKelly]

I can't stop

Ukblonde;974479 wrote: If you are drinking first thing in the morning, it's likely people around you might have noticed you have a problem anyway, and to see you get well would probably make a massive difference. That is they'll be pleased and give you plenty of respect/support etc.

When I was drinking first thing in the morning I made sure it was very discrete. Only one drink of Vodka made me steady and not in any way drunk. I know that I really looked a nervous wreck without that, and that was noticeable. The only people that ever noticed were my friends when I'd pitch up at their house at 7:30am looking for a beer.

[Peacefull]

I can't stop

Welcome,

You will find the longer you go without AL, the more your anxiety will diminish. I suffer from anxiety and no longer have the daily paralyzing anxiety that comes with drinking. Sure, there's the day to day stuff that we all deal with, I am learning to deal with that without running to the wine to subside it. Each hurdle crossed makes us that much stronger.

Keep coming back, the wonderful ppl on this site have helped me tremendously in making it to 41 days.

[mama bear]

I can't stop

I drank too, in response to stress. Topamax and Baclofen didn't do it for me, so finally, 9 months later, I started antabuse. It has worked!! I CAN't drink...it's that simple.......so now I am trying to get 30 or 60 days under my belt and then re=assess the situation
Good Luck

[Topsy-Turvy-Tracy]

I can't stop

I really relate to what you said about anxiety. Looking back, I can see how it dominated my life long before I took my first drink. Unfortunately, for me, being sober for a matter of months did reduce not it, it just got worse.

It doesn't sound like, if your account of how much you drink is accurate, that would be risking a full-blown detox by quitting cold. A hang-over is a detox. The more severe episodes tend to happen when a person has had a large amount of alcohol in their system for an extended period of time. If you manage to go most days through an eight-hour workday with no alcohol and then drink a bottle of wine in the evenings, you won't be look at seizures if you quit.

I love that there are so many choices and different options being discussed in the various forums. I'm a bac girl myself, and there are active threads about all the meds in that forum if you are interested. Don't worry about the small-town mentality. Even if people do talk, someone else will do something way more interesting, and people will talk about that instead. Once a friend of mine was the focus of intense gossip and she said to me, "It's okay. If this happening to me, then everyone else is getting a break!" :H

I hope you find a way to be AF and at peace.

[dcl051257]

I can't stop

On beer #6.... treatment center #7. Actually I've been in treatment 6 times... no .. 7. Stayed sober 3+ years... til a few months ago. I'm 53. My dad died of ETOH @ 53, mom at 63. Seems like I'm trying to make this my destiny.... ? I can't seem to bring myself to want to go to meetings. oh jeez. Found this site... I would so love to have someone/someplace to be honest.