Anxiety / Panic Attacks

[Captain Obvious]

Hello all,

This is my first post on this forum. I haven't had a drink in 9 days and am currently evaluating whether it would be best for me to give it up for good, which is why I'm here!

I have noticed a major correlation between anxiety and alcohol and I wondered if anyone else has a similar experience. I have tried to explain this to two psychiatrists and a psychologist but they didn't really get it. I have anxiety and depression (mainly anxiety) and have been taking anti-depressants for the past 4 months after 7 years med-free.

When I was not on anti-depressants, I noticed that, beyond the normal "oh no what did I do last night" panic most people experience after a night of heavy drinking, alcohol just makes me way more anxious in general. It took a while for me to figure out it was alcohol causing it because I drink most days and am anxious most days. When I went on a low-carb diet a few years back and switched from beer and wine to hard liquor, it got suddenly way worse. I would wake up at 4AM in a cold sweat, heart pounding in my chest, convinced that I'd done or said something unbearably stupid or hurtful the night before, or replaying some bad thing I did years ago. While NOT hungover, the same thought might give me a twinge of worry or anxiety, but at the time it was unbearable. To a lesser extent, beer and wine heightens my anxiety as well, to the point where I don't want to socialize because I'm afraid of having the anxiety later. I am socially shy and afraid to go alone to parties or unfamiliar environments, so I usually drink for courage in those situations. But even though I end up having a few drinks, enjoying the event, and not getting too drunk, the next day or two I will be plagued by anxiety about the event. The times I've been extremely drunk in an inappropriate situation (shitfaced at holiday party, hitting on my boss, that sort of thing) I have suffered severe anxiety for days and even weeks - shortness of breath, pain and tightness in my chest, sudden panic, feeling like I'm worthless.

So, I'm not sure if a lot of people have this experience, or if it is just worse for me because of my underlying anxiety disorder.

There is a simple solution to this - I can quit drinking for good. Well, I've tried. It's not that easy. I can quit for a week, a month, but eventually I always start up again. I don't typically drink to get drunk and I don't drink during the day, etc, so in those respects I don't have a drinking problem. I do drink a lot - typically 5-6 nights a week, 2-4 drinks a night - but compared to my friends and family that's not too bad. But the fact is that alcohol is causing ME pain and anxiety and making ME miserable and yet I still drink! That to me indicates that I have a problem.

Thanks for listening and for any advice you might have.

Jess

[newman]

Hi Captain, hope this helps
http://www.uspharmd.com/blog/2008/100-natural-ways-to-overcome-anxiety/

[losangeles]

Hey Jess, I had the same thing happen to me. After many years of drinking, all of the sudden I started having terrible anxiety. The funny thing was it took me a long time to make the connection...I thought of so many other things and not the obvious "pink elephant" in the room.

This is my completely unscientific take on it...you hit a point where your body has been fighting the bad effects of alcohol with a sympathetic nervous system reaction for so long that your nerves just get shot.

The problem for me was I suddenly started having all these symptoms...dizziness, blurred vision, a sudden weakness in the legs...and I had NO IDEA why...

This then creates a psychological condition...fear, withdrawal, etc...and now you are into a vicious loop where fear excites the mind and body which makes the symptoms seem worse.

Now, a lot of this does go away after a few days of not drinking. A big step for me was understanding all these seemingly unrelated symptoms are actually caused by the same thing, that I had probably experienced the worst of it, and that I could push myself through them.

In terms of doctors, I find them very under-educated about drinking and its effects. This is made worse by the fact that drinkers avoid doctors up until that crisis that forces them to seek help in a panic...I think that really warps an average doctor's view of drinkers.

[spongebetty]

Hi Captain,

If the alcohol is disrupting your life, I would say there is a problem It sounds like it is causing major problems.

When we all first ask ourselves if we have a problem, every one of us wants to keep drinking. 'Maybe I just need to cut down,' etc. It usually ends in the same conclusion. We have to quit completely. Life is just so much better without it. Your anxiety will go away, your confidence will skyrocket!

[markl]

hi i had the same thing but i was sure it was from drinking and i just couldnt stop it would go away when i drank so for that time i was safe only that time got smaler and anxiety got bigger

[jm8]

yes, alcohol also made me anxious, especially after big binges. i once took myself to an ER after a major multi-day binge mainly for that very reason, because i got so anxious. even the ativan in my IV didn't help. it took some oral librium to sedate me and start returning to "normal." i've never had any history of any anxiety or panic attacks otherwise or outside of drinking.

so, i would say if you are prone to some anxiety, alcohol can certainly make things worse. and even if you are not otherwise prone to anxiety, alcohol can make you anxious anyway.

i agree very much with the other poster(s) in that alot of people, healthcare workers included, are very ignorant to this. i got asked alot of questions about other drugs until my blood test results were in and then they backed off. so i am assuming that they assumed i must have been doing some kind of stimulant(s) i.e., coke or meth. they just couldn't fathom how i could get so anxious and have such a rapid pulse and high blood pressure just from alcohol.

alcohol is a poison. even though in smaller amounts people feel calmed by it, in actuality, especially once you cross that line into heavier drinking, it raises BP, pulse, etc. the body and mind get stressed because the body is having to work much much harder than normal to start breaking down and getting rid of the poison. and then of course you also have the mental anxiety to deal with because of having to face the consequences of drinking.

i hope you decide to quit and if so, good luck in your quit. i hope you stick around. lots of good help here. read other posts and journal entries. asks lots of questions and reach out for support as needed.

[sober2009]

Hi everyone! It is now day 17 for me with no alcohol. I am taking Antibuse so that drinking is not even an option I can consider. I feel great! I have been drinking for over 30 years and have been on antidepressants on and off for 25 years and continuously on for the last 13 years. I was also put on Xanax last fall for extreme anxiety.

But since quitting drinking (I also quit drinking caffeine about a month before I quit alcohol) I have noticed that I am so much calmer that really don't need the Xanax anymore. Nor do I have the overwhelming depression that I typically experienced despite the heavy dosage of antidepressants.

From this site and others I am realizing how alcohol causes so much anxiety in the drinker, even when they are sober. Then I would drink more to relieve the anxiety not realizing I was only fueling the fire.

These last 17 days have honestly been the best 17 days of my life. I only wish I had quit drinking many, many years ago.

[jm8]

hey sober, congrats on the not drinking. you may want to take a look at your xanax usage soon as well, maybe not be too hurried, you just quit booze, one thing at a time. but if you are feeling better (probably from simply not drinking,) you might want to consider eventually tapering off the xanax as well. i've been on it before and it can be a nasty, nasty habit. talk to your doctor(s) first though and under no circumstances try to quit cold turkey.

[Chris71]

I was going crazy with panic attacks, and a general nervous feeling every day. I thought something was wrong with me. Then I realized I am an alcoholic. I would struggle through work every day shaking till I could walk out to my car, and my booze.

I have done tons of research on this very thing.

There is a direct relationship between chronic alcohol use and anxiety. Just google panic attacks and alcohol and you will see.

Your body cuts down the production of "feel good/relaxation" chemicals when alcohol is around every day because it takes their place.

You know the shakes the next day...thats what I am talking about.

This is coming from someone who used to have daily panic attacks in the mid afternoon...total hell feeling like you are gonna die. Fuzzy thinking, heart pounding hell.

The only thing that would stop them cold...was to start drinking for the day.

Then I would get the warm fuzzy feeling...until the booze wore off at 3 am and I was sick as hell and with awful panic/shakes.

Honestly, I feel alcohol should be illegal. It is that dangerous.

[jm8]

Chris

yes, yes, yes

I went through alot of the same crap as you. Not daily, because I didn't always drink daily. But after big binges after awhile, oh yeah, the shakes, the insomnia, the anxiety, etc. couldnt even stand the thought of coffee/caffeine.

now i think I am hooked on coffee/caffeine instead! :):eek:

[Mortiman]

Great thread Captain!

I just wrote the following in my journal before coming across this thread..

"I've been feeling a fair bit of anxiety for quite some time now. By anxiety I mean obsessive worrying about things (mostly things that should not warrant any worrying) I have taken antidepressants in the past for about a year or so for anxiety but stopped taking it about 7 months ago as although it helped with the anxiety, it also seemed to increase my urge to drink and make me more resilient to alcohol with regards to tolerance and hangover. Anyhow, I figured that my anxiety was likely caused (at least in part) from drinking and that maybe it would go away if I stayed quit long enough. I guess where I'm going with this is, trying to figure out how long I should wait to see if I in fact need to be on anti-d's or not.. If It turns out I need to take them again, then I'll have to try to find one that won't work against my sobriety."

Hopefully I'll be able to work this anxiety out..

[Bridgit]

I believed I had anxiety attacks and used to say 'I'm hyperventilating!', ..but it was all from the alcohol the night before.
I would go get more alcohol to calm my anxiety then learned that the anxiety was caused by the alcohol. Since I quit drinking alcohol the anxiety went away.

[Gengengen]

I've had an anxiety disorder for years now, since way before starting to drink. Even though alcohol has a similar effect as benzodiazepines and seems to calm down anxiety in the very very short run, as someone mentioned in this thread it also causes anxiety, mainly because when consumed regurlarly it changes the functionning of your brain. As the person said, you can easily google and see how much comes up.

As far as panic attacks and personal experience goes...

Recurring panic attacks can easily be caused by learned "triggers". When you experience some attacks, you start getting scared of having more. So when you feel symptoms that remind you of panic, you start panicking. How many times have I been hungover and feeling dizzy, getting reflux, feeling like something was stuck in my throat, and shaking? When I feel that way the morning after, I tend to have a panic attack because these are the symptoms that I associate with panic to start with. I'll start feeling like I'm not breathing properly and get scared that I'm going to faint. I took my pulse at the pharmacy once when I was really hungover and it was at 110 bpm even BEFORE I started feeling anxious.

Add to that all the freaking out because all my mental ressources are being used to try to appear like a functioning person...Psychological stress, physical stress...Heck, drinking could have given me an anxiety disorder even if I didn't have one to start with...