Wine

[lkb]

I was drinking probably half a bottle of wine per night for about six years.....maybe less some times but I had to quit cold turkey when I started all these medications.  I still miss the drinking, but I know now that if I drank, it would be for the wrong reasons, i.e., for the anxiety - I was drinking cuz I like it and probably helped me calm down at night but I didn't see it as a problem.  I wonder if my initiail terrible anxiety was attributed to quitting like that.  I even today want to get better on Effexor and go back to my little habit of having some some time.  Can't we drink some?

[ocdengineer]

Sounds to me like you were using wine as a medication.  Alcohol does have an antianxiolytic effect to it, but also has a ton of side effects compared to medications.  The problem with alcohol is that if drank in large amounts, I consider half a bottle of wine a relatively large amount of wine, is that it is addictive.  After you are done drinking the next day then you have to deal with a carbohydrate imbalance which can cause temporary hypoglycemia which coincidentally feels very similar to anxiety.  The stomach pains, headaches, nervousness, shaky feeling etc.  Alcohol is not going to cause major problems if you have a glass of wine with diner or after diner, but if you drink a half a bottle of wine a day, that is pretty excessive.  I would avoid the wine entirely if I were you until you get your medication straightened out and even afterwards.  You may be experiencing some withdrawl which is a possible reason for your anxiety now.  I very rarely drink and when I do, I pay heavily the next day and sometimes two days later, so I avoid it pretty well.  Many alcoholics have an underlying anxiety disorder and it usually is the reason they drink.  The alcohol actually helps them to relax.  Unfortunately, it is short lived and can really mess up a life if used on a long term basis.

Take care,
OE

[lkb]

Maybe I was medicating myself, maybe not - I liked it though.  2-3 small bottles of wine and then bed.  Do you think I'm still having withdrawals after not drinking for three months now - but I do still think about it.  I would sometimes have anxiety the next day but it didn't bother me.  Weird that it would now.  I've quit drinking now because of all of the wrong reasons.....it's no longer fun but I do want to go back to it eventually so yes, I probably have a problem.

[lkb]

Some how I have to learn to live life without much alcohol then - my neighbor and I really enjoyed it together and I can barely see her now because of that because she still drinks her wine and I'm jealous - everywhere I go people talk about drinking.

[ocdengineer]

Like I said, a glass every once and awhile isn't going to hurt you, but don't use it as medication.  Drink casually.  I can still do it on occasion and have a good time doing it, but be careful.  If it has been three months the you are well past the withdrawl window, so no worries there. 

Take care,
OE

[gloomy]

I feel anxiety is bad enough to deal with, without denying ourselves the simplest of pleasures, it seems with anxiety we cant have anything, no nicotine, no caffeine including chocolate, no alcohol!!  The list seems endless and all for our 'own good' it seems.  Yet people without anxiety have no problems with these things and consider them their right.

Of course excessive drinking with or without anxiety is not a good thing, BUT we are all individuals and one size doesnt fit all, I myself enjoy at least 2-3 large glasses of wine per week, which is the equivalent of about a bottle, although I dont drink them all at the same time, and it does relax me and is also not a big enough amount to make me feel drunk and anxious the next day.  We cant live like saints and shouldnt have to, anxiety takes enough of our freedom away, there is no real reason after speaking to your Doctor that is, that you shouldnt be allowed to enjoy a glass of wine of an evening, in fact in small doses alcohol is actually good for the body and soul I think!!

I will leave you with this piece of advice a good friend once told me .........'sometimes alcohol is a very good psychiatrist'!

Just dont over do it!!

[Lorraine]

Perhaps you are experiencing what is known as PAWS? It occurs AFTER any physical withdrawal from alcohol or other substances one may have experienced after quitting. Here's some reading for you, if you're interested. 

http://www.tlctx.com/ar_pages/paw_part1.htm

[lkb]

I certainly did not need to read that - I hope I'm not experiencing those symptoms - I've always quit drinking when I go through an episode and then take it up again - not much but casually.  I'll probably always have some.  I like to drink and I like to have fun with it when I'm out to a party, etc.  I just need to be more careful this time and not overdo it. 

[nevergoback]

Alcohol is a many faced companion for us with anxiety. At some level, it is an easily accessible, socially acceptable, very effective anxiolytic. Personally, 1-2 drinks (when I haven't been drinking regularly) puts me in a place that's hard to describe. Calm, background anxiety controlled. A little bit of elation. It's hard to describe. I just feel good.

But there are so many problems. Tolerance basically destroys the really nice effect I described for me. And this isn't massive tolerance either. When I try to drink 1 or 2 a night, the anxiolytic effect gets less and less pronounced. And it's very difficult to always keep it at 1 or 2, especially if you're at an event where everyone is drinking more heavily. (At least for me) So many people head down the path to addiction.

I've read alot about alcoholism, worried that I was going there. And strangely, much of what those folks described really didn't hit what I was feeling or doing (some of it did). I think that for some people, alcohol and addiction are really the root problem. For others, alcohol use becomes a problem but the real root cause is anxiety. I haven't even figured it out for myself yet.

But for the little time I've spent here, I think alcohol occupies a distinct niche for those with anxiety disorders. I'd love to hear what others think.
 

[lkb]

Personally, I'm getting pissed that everyone thinks you are an alcoholic if you have 2-3 glasses every night.  I was doing this, raising a family, was very happy, helping with homework, etc.  On the weekends I'd enjoy maybe a bit more or the same with my friends and watch movies or eat dinner, etc.  Life was great.  Now I'm in this episode, and yeah, it's been hard for me not to drink but you know what, I don't want to drink until I can enjoy it again.  If I were to drink now, yeah, I'd consider myself an alcoholic because I want to rid the anxiety and forget how I feel.  When I was drinking, I enjoyed it - was happy anyway so it made me even more happy when I had it.  EVERYONE does it.  I am around so many people who have drinks every night or every weekend or parties and get drunk.  It probably made me less productive on the weekends or whatever but I was doing fine.  I don't think I should go back to that again unless I can stay with 2 glasses during the week and more on the weekend when I get better and like if I go out to a bar, party or casino, I drink more.  Does that mean EVERYONE has anxiety and EVERYONE is an alcoholic if they drink? 

And yes, when I do get better - and get off some of these meds, I probably will drink again.  When we go to  Vegas, casinos, etc., we drink beer and sometimes lots of it - but I do not have the anxiety it causes most the next day and when I'm well, even if I do feel somewhat anxious the next day, it doesn't bother me.

I'm sorry - I'm just sick of thinking about drinking all the time - I think I am associating it with being well and that is why I'm stuck in this situation.  I always quit drinking when I have an episode because it's not fun anymore when I'm down and have anxiety and I'd be drinking for all the wrong reasons. I drink cuz I like to and have fun.....plus, I guess, at night it is calming and helps me get to sleep - now to stay asleep, I don't know.

My two cents.

[ocdengineer]

I drank to the point where I had no anxiety, but my liver is probably a funny shade of green.  I doubt you are an alcoholic because you aren't or haven't been drinking while on meds.  Plus a drink every now and then with meds isn't gonna kill ya.  If you want a glass of wine then have a glass of wine, but three glasses of wine a night is probably excessive.  The important thing is that you DON'T use alcohol as a method of decreasing anxiety.  I have been down that road and in the end you will just have more anxiety and have to quit a nasty habit. 

Also, I don't drink hardly at all anymore.  I will have a couple beers at a social event a few times a year, but that is about it for me, so not everyone drinks.  It is definitely not a requirement to enjoy life.  If you feel like it is then maybe alcohol is not a good idea for you.  I don't know.

You will know whether it is a problem or not, so just take care of your anxiety and then if you want a drink or two every so often.  Have a drink or two.  Your meds may make alcohol effects stronger, so just beware of that fact and you may have more anxiety the next day due to dehydration and low blood sugar.  You may also want to discuss this with your doctor.

Later,
OE

[James71]

I really enjoy a couple glasses of red wine almost nightly so you are not alone.

Anxiety caused me to start drinking and now it is nightly.

I took Lexapro for a couple months (till the side effects started getting too bad) and it took away my urge to drink almost instantly.

There is no question that it helps a great deal for a shot term. But I really feel that many of my morning panic attacks are due to drinking the night before...

This anxiety has caused me so much trouble in my life.