4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

[JRons13]

Hi Guys,

I'm new here but have been reading a lot before. I'm 32 small female and have been drinking heavily for 6 years now. The worst started over a year ago due to my mom's cancer. One huge bottle of vodka would only last me 3 days. I tried cold turkey about 4 times but couldn't make it. I then started to wean down, then got bad again, and wean again. Then on Friday I stopped cold turkey. It's been 4 days now and even though I'm not bad, I still have insomnia and skin sensitivity. I'm lethargic, upset stomach, but no shakes. From the outside I look fine. I've been reading up a lot about seizures and I'm very scared. After 4 days am I out of the woods? I stay at home scared that I will get a seizure when I go out. The only time I go out is with my boyfriend when he's with me.

I want to go to my gym, grocery shopping, so bad but I'm scared of the seizure risk.

I feel I'm handling this better day after day, but I don't want to be house restrained due to fear.

When do you know you're out of the woods and considered safe?

Thank you.

[available]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

Welcome Jrons. Everybody is different with withdrawals, i had shocking headaches that lasted for two plus weeks and my sleep was crap also. Your body takes time to heal, it took you six years to get to giving up AL so be gentle with your body. I work for a hospital in the neurology department and everyone is different as to whether they have seizures or not. I was extremely worried but I think this was due to anxiety which also abates with time. If you are worried go to your doctor. Take things slowly and like a lot of us we did not want to go into the outside world when we first stopped AL. Good luck and keep on here, lots of good advice and nice people.

[treetops]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

Available's advice is right on. I am not a medical doctor but I would assume that you are unlikely to have seizures now. Well done on being sober for 4 days. Thats really hard.

Now the tough long haul starts - and as the physical dependency lessens you still have the mental one to deal with. My advice is to treat yourself with a great deal of kindness - do go out but take it easy. Eat well, drink lots of water or AF drinks, keep warm (or cold) depending where you are - an if you feel like being in your PJs early in the evening - so do it. Don't set yourself any huge tasks or make too many 'to do' lists. This is not the time to start a diet or expect massive overnight changes.
Your focus has to be staying sober and this is an incremental process - full of challenges but it does get easier with time. I also made sure I was not too bored in the early days - as this was a sure trigger for me.

You can do this!!!!

[TJAF]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

Jrons, welcome! You will be sure to hear from a few folks smarter than me. Birdie, lav, nosugar, K9 lover to name a few. Lots of support here so I can tell you you have come to the right place. Withdrawals is serious and if you have any concerns you can always see your Doctor. He or she is the best person to evauluate your condition and decide what level of treatment you need. If you don't feel like you can do that check out the toolbox. There is 7 years of experience at your finger tips. From the sound of your symptoms you are doing ok. All of us have gone through what you described. Get out of the house, exercise up to your comfort level, drink lots of water and take a good multi-vitamin. This site also has some good advice on other suppliments as well that will help with the cravings and help your body heal. If you get the shakes or feel your heart racing go to the ER, but from the sound of it you're doing great. Welcome.

[Softy]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

You made it past the first tree but the woods are a big place. There are forest guides here to help you on your way. Listen to their advice and they will show you the way out of the woods!

[sanchez]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

:welcome: JRons,
All the advice given so far is spot on. There are lots of folks on this site with tremendous experience and the empathy to go with it to help you. As TJ says though, your doc will be your best source as to your course of treatment if you're worried about serious or are showing signs of serious withdrawal.
We have all had some form of withdrawal symptoms but so much depends on the amount you were drinking and what kind of al. My poison was wine and my withdrawal symptoms were less severe; night sweats, insomnia, restless leg, general crankiness. My mom on the other hand was a vodka drinker for 20+ years and went through the DT's but fortunately was in the hospital when this happened.
Anyway - you came to the right place for support. Add this website to your overall support system and I think you'll find everyone very friendly and genuinely concerned. Some of the senior members will undoubtedly respond with great words of wisdom to help you as well. Listen to them, listen to their stories and advice. Read the posts on the various threads and chime in when you're ready. One thing we were all told as a newbie was to devise a plan to stay alcohol free. Tips and tricks and examples of plans are in the tool box. Look for a post from Byrdie, the link is in her sig line. And, like TJ says - get out and exercise if you feel like it, stay busy to keep your mind off things.

Sounds like you're doing pretty good going cold turkey and now at 4 days. Keep it up! You CAN do this.

[MossRose]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

I can't add much to the advice you have already been given, so just wanted to say welcome and glad you are here. Hang in there. Stay strong and post often. I know it sounds almost like rote advice, but I assure you that posting often and honestly is one of the best ways to kick AL out of your life. When I take breaks from MWO, I weaken. When I post often, I stay strong. The support here is amazing. Hope to get to know you better.

[gmc38609]

4 Days Clean. Am I out of the woods?

Yep I d say so the first few days are the worse.
I d recommend some gentle exercise now walks in the park etc and gradually build up your strength, set goals you can easily achieve that way mentally you will feel I could of done a bit more than that and be keen to do it again.
I am prone to do it the other way push myself too hard then feel disappointed it was too hard then not want to do it again and go back to my old ways which is have a drink and generally watch youtube not much of a life that it is