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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by oldschool305 on November 10, 2007, at 20:22:52
the withdrawals have finally subsided. i am very confident that i will give up the drinking for a good while! (i hope forever but i know myself). if i could only control my drinking, ugh!!! anyways..... i've had sleeping problems like crazy for many years, but taking Lexapro at night somewhat helped. it doesn't help anymore. my mom gave me one of her Restoril's to see if it will help me sleep. i took it 30 minutes ago and i am feeling High!! i know it's a benzo like valium, but i thought that it was more of a hypnotic and would knock me out stone cold. nope, i am sitting here feeling nice and buzzed and afraid i am going to get addicted to this stuff now. well if it doesn't make me sick the next day like alcohol =) i won't lie, i loveeee the feeling of being "buzzed". i love love love it, but i hate how i feel after a night of drinking. i want to die. the panic attacks it causes, the depression, the withdrawals, the shakes!! i can't smoke weed, it causes panic attacks. i get bored very easily, i need something!! is it so bad to take pills? not daily, but occassionally to get the high effect?
Posted by ClearSkies on November 11, 2007, at 17:30:04
In reply to oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pills, posted by oldschool305 on November 10, 2007, at 20:22:52
> is it so bad to take pills? not daily, but occassionally to get the high effect?
OK, so this is the heart of getting sober - it's living every day without taking something to make you feel high. I've been told that it's fairly common to swap in one addiction for another. The idea is that we learn to live without those altering substances. Sounds so boring, but the highs and lows of life are still there, once you get past the drama that the addiction itself had.
You have any luck googling Women For Sobriety (or any interest)?
CS
Posted by oldschool305 on November 11, 2007, at 19:03:34
In reply to Re: oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pi » oldschool305, posted by ClearSkies on November 11, 2007, at 17:30:04
You're right CS... I need to learn how to live a substance free life, that scares me. Although pills don't make me feel sick like alcohol does. I wake up feeling just fine and go about my day. Alcohol disables me for days and ends me up in the hospital a lot of the time.I did look up the Women for Sobriety website. I read that their nearest group to me is over 300 miles away =( but I did read some of the boards and I will continue to visit. I think i can quit the alcohol on my own.... the hard part is fighting the cravings and doing something else with my time. One day at a time... One day at a time =)
Posted by ClearSkies on November 11, 2007, at 20:29:57
In reply to Re: oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pi, posted by oldschool305 on November 11, 2007, at 19:03:34
>
> You're right CS... I need to learn how to live a substance free life, that scares me. Although pills don't make me feel sick like alcohol does. I wake up feeling just fine and go about my day. Alcohol disables me for days and ends me up in the hospital a lot of the time.It *is* scary, I know it is. I think that being able to take the Campral for so long - a year and a half - really helped me out on that score, because the physical cravings weren't an issue any longer. And having that taken care of, I was able to work on the day to day stuff, the real nuts and bolts of sobriety, in the group therapy sessions and in individual therapy. I did EVERYTHING. Yoga, meditation, walking, talking, not talking, writing, burning the writing... you name it, I did it. All in the name of learning how to live in sobriety. I am living proof that you can be a depressed and anxious person and be in recovery from alcoholism. I am still depressed and anxious, but life is much less complicated without the drinking thing going on.
>
> I did look up the Women for Sobriety website. I read that their nearest group to me is over 300 miles away =( but I did read some of the boards and I will continue to visit. I think i can quit the alcohol on my own.... the hard part is fighting the cravings and doing something else with my time. One day at a time... One day at a time =)Yeah, it's a pretty small organization. That why, in lieu of having a viable group near me, I use the boards here so much. At Babble we've got the substance boards, PLUS we're all also dealing with mental health issues as well (which aren't always addressed on other sites). So again, I encourage you to use this place as a resource for helping yourself to stay sober.
I'd be happy to be an email buddy for you for support. Just let me know, OK?
ClearSkies
Posted by oldschool305 on November 11, 2007, at 22:06:06
In reply to Re: oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pi » oldschool305, posted by ClearSkies on November 11, 2007, at 20:29:57
you rock! i am making an appt at the local clinic once i get some $$ in. i will most definately ask for the campral. and i am loving this babble group... whenever i feel like i am about to "fall off the wagon" and overwhelmed with cravings, i will come to this board or e-mail you. i really appreciate your support =)
thanks!! xoxoxo
Posted by antigua3 on November 12, 2007, at 8:33:57
In reply to Re: oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pi, posted by oldschool305 on November 11, 2007, at 22:06:06
I ditto everything Clear Skies has said. I went through a program that helped me stop immediately, and then it was up to me to find ways to deal with the day to day. I do, and it took me a long time to accept that there still can be fun w/o alcohol.
One of the best gifts in life is to wake up without a hangover, or the guilt and shame that follows a drinking episode. To me, that's worth it.
Also, somewhere you said that you go out and say I'll just have two drinks, or whatever. well, with me, I learned to say no to the first drink because that's the one that got me into trouble--once started, I wanted MORE!
good luck, and we're here to support you,
antigua
Posted by star008 on December 4, 2007, at 8:22:41
In reply to oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pills, posted by oldschool305 on November 10, 2007, at 20:22:52
ohh.. okay see your first post.. old school.. now I can see you are playng with fire and I think you know it.. We all know it until we convince ourelves that it isn't so bad.;(
the bottom line is addiction is addiction and all of it will ruin your life. i wish there were things we could do to escape without taking a risk at addiciton but I ahven't found one yet;)..The problem with occassional use is that addicts always get carried away.. We convince ourselves it;s not so bad and we have it under control..but it never is if you are an addict. and since you have an alcohol problem i highly suspect that you are an addict too.. wasn't waht you wanted to hear, i know.. Ruins all the fun
Posted by oldschool305 on December 14, 2007, at 16:35:48
In reply to Re: oh no, i stopped the alcohol but now i have pills » oldschool305, posted by star008 on December 4, 2007, at 8:22:41
Oh yes, I am an addict.. If it's nothing something, it's another. I find myself constantly bored, nothing is fun anymore unless I am intoxicated on something. I need to change that way of thinking, I have improved though, a lot. I use to be a heavy drug user from cocaine to LSD, etc. I had a close scare with an overdose in 2001 and slowed down on everything. Before the overdose, I could drink 22 hours a day, sleep only 2 hours, get back up and do it again. Now, after a few drinks, I wake up feeling like death the next day. My friend who also suffers from PTSD, had xanax, gave me some, they made me feel great, started mixing them with alcohol. Although I am proud of myself for quitting the rest of the crap, I wish I could quit the drinking. That is what is really ruining my life. I can't just have a few drinks, I can't control how many I have. I always regret the next day. I always tell myself I will never do it again, I hate how I felt yesterday. I don't want to go back into the detox unit. I don't want to go back into the 7th drug rehab, but I keep doing it over and over again.... although I have cut down!!!! It's not enough, I need to quit 100%, not half-*ss quit... if that makes any sense.
I have so many friends that do what I do X 10.. they drink 10X's more that I do, take pills everyday X10, etc..... and they wake up feeling fine and do it all over again. Not me, I wake up feeling like death and usually end up in the hospital which is so darn embarrasing. I mean, if you see me, I don't look like a drunk/druggie type. Not that we have a "look" but I look fairly preppy yet inside, I am this dark miserable person drowning myself in alcohol and recently, pills!
People, Places, Things! My friends, 98% are users of some substance. The other 2% are my musician friends who are clean and sober. I need to surround myself with those 2% more often, I know. But it gets so boring. I crave the occasional buzz.
I believe I am bipolar, so I am going to see a doc soon and get the right treatment. Hopefully that will help with all these issues, and cravings. I pray to god, although I am not religious at all, that I find my path in life because I don't want to die. I am 27 years old, and got a great career coming up in a few weeks. I pray that I don't quit this job like the other 50+ jobs I've quit ususally because I was too damn hungover/withdrawing/etc.
Thanks for all the input guys, it's Friday night, I'm going to get drunk. Just kidding!! haha, seriously, I'm staying home tonight.... Got a gig tomorrow!!!
> ohh.. okay see your first post.. old school.. now I can see you are playng with fire and I think you know it.. We all know it until we convince ourelves that it isn't so bad.;(
> the bottom line is addiction is addiction and all of it will ruin your life. i wish there were things we could do to escape without taking a risk at addiciton but I ahven't found one yet;)..The problem with occassional use is that addicts always get carried away.. We convince ourselves it;s not so bad and we have it under control..but it never is if you are an addict. and since you have an alcohol problem i highly suspect that you are an addict too.. wasn't waht you wanted to hear, i know.. Ruins all the fun
>
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