Does quitting alcohol (being sober) relieve anxiety?

Does quitting alcohol (being sober) relieve anxiety?

i don't think so. during the last year i've had a serious battle with alcoholism. pretty sure i was drunk on average 6 days a week during the times i was drinking. i don't think i wasa legit alcoholic though. as i've quit cold turkey with really no help. sure i drank to take my mind of the anxiety a bit, but it was more for fun + it made me less anxious.. however if anything it only made me pack on some pounds and become more self concious lol.

basically i don't think it will relieve anxiety, but i don't think drinking really relieved it either. it was just a temporary crutch that did more harm than good for me.

i'm obviously no expert, but that's just going off my personal experiences with it.

i binge on weekends. and have been drinking on work nights. its extremely bad for the body. i use to get black outs, and drink on benzos. NOT GOOD !

ive been trying so hard to quit and plan to step it up. i feel like im almost there. to be completely dry and clean is tough.

I'm really glad I don't have drinkin problems. I encountered one valuable neighbour who taught me a lot about drinkin too much. 10 years older, housed nearby due to drinkin and cocaine troubles, after he became a London City high-flyer as an estate agent and recruiter. Lost his wife & child. I might have become a bit like that, and it was hard coping with him for a while. It was exactly that time, when I was out of work for the first time. He is the most social phenomenon I've ever known. Never stops talking and impressing everyone - kids in the street. Rehab fixed him. Now it's just Red Bull

In my 20-30s I was binging regularly, and loving my social life, which had then evaporated. I attended one AA meeting, with no chance of trouble at the time. I had to check on myself. Friendly people, who showed me everything I needed to know. I never smoked any tobacco.

Can't believe that hangovers always tell me: "never again" but always want some booze soon. I reckon I could have succeeded all my 1,000s of lost interviews if I'd had some liquor before, with some breath spray...

I've been straigh-edge about 90% of my life (only drink about once a month now), but i hung out with the crazy crowd throughout my twenties. i've driven drunk chicks home, been barfed on, walked home cause drunk friends tried to drive and i had to jump out of the car before we died... every one of these alcoholic friends of mine had the same problem: they'd swear they were gonna quit drinking cold turkey and they'd try, then a week later they're smokin weed like a chimney and chain-smoking cigs when they don't got weed. then they quit the weed and go to ecstacy, or tweak.

i know it sounds like i'm makin this up, but seriously, if you think you got a serious drinking problem and you don't take rehab-ish steps to properly combat it you'll just end up hoppin around from drug to drug. like, it wont' even matter what it is... my bud used to slam 180 count bottles of ibuprofen and chug listerine bottles in one sitting. miraculously, he's still alive.

as far as the act of quitting drinking relieving anxiety... i'd say the short term effect is no relief. if anything your body will be wanting that fix, and you'll prob be more anxious. (kind of a ramble, sorry :

I would think you will become more anxious at first but it should become better over time.

Anxiety and Alcohol - SoberRecovery : Alcoholism Drug Addiction Help and Information

This may help...

But imo, yes drinking heavily does add to anxiety. The best thing would be to give it up, but thats much easier said than done!!!

My psychairtrist wants me to stop drinking so i can take appropiate meds but i seriously doubt i will be ever able to.....long story that im not going into now...

Not counting the physical effects, the mere fact that you had the willpower to abstain for some period of time will greatly add to your self esteem.

Firstly drinking alcohol will cause us further anxiety the next day etc. When we drink over a prolonged time it can add to the already horrid anxiety.

If you become alcohol dependant then the anxiety will be sky high before you go to a certain event/situation where you would have usually medicated with it. (therefore most people avoid)

If you become an alcoholic then if you dont have a drink, you will have high anxiety and possible panic attacks.

So as you can see from my explaination of things....alcohol and anxiety are very much inter-related if you drink heavily and often.

The best advice i can give you is to stop drinking, if you have not already started abusing it. If you already abuse it to medicae with anxiety then you should get some help for this...

eek said:

Not counting the physical effects, the mere fact that you had the willpower to abstain for some period of time will greatly add to your self esteem.

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Very much agreed

Quitting? I always thought it relieves anxiety no? Anyway thanks God I am not into alcohol, I have enough of other problems.

Lea said:

Quitting? I always thought it relieves anxiety no? Anyway thanks God I am not into alcohol, I have enough of other problems.

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It's a depressant. In the moment it takes away inhibitions; and so yeah less anxiety but it's a catch-22 - overall and prolong use will make anxiety worse. Read Hottie's article very good.

Deus_Ex_Lemur said:

It's a depressant. In the moment it takes away inhibitions; and so yeah less anxiety but it's a catch-22 - overall and prolong use will make anxiety worse. Read Hottie's article very good.

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I believe you´re right .

I'm wondering because I've read about the effects of it on the brain. Prolonged use can cause the brain to have less tolerance fo anxiety. I just ask because i am wondering if i am a subject of this, after abusing for so many years.

Hottie said:

Firstly drinking alcohol will cause us further anxiety the next day etc. When we drink over a prolonged time it can add to the already horrid anxiety.

If you become alcohol dependant then the anxiety will be sky high before you go to a certain event/situation where you would have usually medicated with it. (therefore most people avoid)

If you become an alcoholic then if you dont have a drink, you will have high anxiety and possible panic attacks.

So as you can see from my explaination of things....alcohol and anxiety are very much inter-related if you drink heavily and often.

The best advice i can give you is to stop drinking, if you have not already started abusing it. If you already abuse it to medicae with anxiety then you should get some help for this...

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i use to never drink on weekdays due to work, but this year i've cheated and have gone to drinking every 2-3 days binging till i pass out and have a hang over.

one time i finished a bottle of patron on a sunday, only to taste teh alcohol in my system the next day.

i've cut down a lot, but feel i should be clean for some time.. i wonder if its too late. im sad if it is..

I had a problem with alcohol for a while. Well a love hate relationship really. Initially alcohol really helped me break out of a cycle of loneliness but after a few years it became obvious that the way I was using it was unhealthy.

Unfortunately after giving it up cold turkey a couple of years ago things have gone downhill severely. I'm now as lonely as before, maybe even more after having a brief taste of another life. My depression is a lot worse and things continue to go downhill, long after I gave up drinking.

I think I made the right decision to give up the bottle. It is good to be without some of those problems but my continual downhill slide since giving up has been very difficult and seems to be out of control.

I don't think so. For me, I used alcohol for my social anxiety whenever I went to a party or bar, and it really helped me feel calm. That being said, as my mental health got worse I started drinking too much and just making bad, self-deprecating decisions. Alcohol can be so dangerous.

Piglet Boy said:

.....but feel i should be clean for some time.. i wonder if its too late. im sad if it is..

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Its never to late, but im in the same boat as you and understand the worry you have.