alcohol and anxiety?

Hi,
Im in my early 20's and i used to drink very heavy for a few years. About a year ago i went overboard on at a party and drank way too much. the next day while driving home i had a massive panic attack, thought i was dying and called 911. over the next 6 months i was in and out of the ER and my regular doc's countless times. I had ecgs chest x-rays and a bunch of blood test, the only thing they found was my liver functions were slightly high. I didnt touch a drop of alcohol for 3 months while dealing with the attacks. Now i drink 1-2 times a week and the quantity that i drink is far less. The trouble that im having is after i drink8-10 beers i find that i cant wake up early because im so tired, and i feel like im going too die. i still have some anxiety but i dont know if this is the main cause or not. I also am in this weird mental state...its hard to explain i just feel not myself.
Any advise would be great...and i know i should just stop drinking all together...Thanks

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

You have a lot going on in your mind and a lot of tragedies in your life.  There is no question that you are still suffering from anxiety.  There is also no question that eight to 10 beers is much too much and that you are probably using alcohol is a form of self medication and it doesn't work.  You have to start getting a perspective on your life and find a way to deal more directly with the problems you are encountering.  Although some anti-anxiety medication may be hopeful that is much more important that you dig deep and think through what is going on and what you can do about it.  Taking charge will illuminate the anxiety.  You may need professional help and you should try to find a way to get that help.

[Jaquta]

So you don't want a lecture on drinking excess alcohol.
Perhaps instead of stopping altogether your could try to limit your intake when you do drink.  Cutting down gradually may be a more realistic option.  You have made a great start by drinking less and drinking less often.  Your liver will thank you for it.

Have you discussed how you feel with your doctor?

I don't have a huge amount of experience or knowledge about alcohol.  I couldn't differentiate between the effects of alcohol and anxiety.
The alcohol is most likely what is causing you to feel tired (it can act as a depressant) but the feeling like dying sounds a lot like panic.  The weird feeling could be due to either of them or both of them.

The drinking could have been due to an underlying issue.  Where you drink to avoid your emotions (fear, anxiety, etc).  Maybe you are even depressed??  I don't know.

The doctor is better able to advise and no doubt can see what is going on.

If you're still stuck I'd suggest seeing a psychiatrist (for both the alcohol and anxiety).  Perhaps that's not a bad idea anyway.

J

[vtguy139]

thanks for the reply,
i'm living without insurance at the moment due to losing my job over how im feeling....i guess i will try your advise and see how i feel

[Jaquta]

You might like to wait til after the doctor responds before you do anything.  You may be able to save yourself time and money if you address the problem directly.  I would hate to have misdirected you.  I would trust the doctors input (when he gives it).  He is usually pretty good with responding to posts.

J

Feel free to cut back on the alcohol though.  You sound a little defeated.  It sounds like this has been a very trying time for you.  Please take care.

[vtguy139]

Thanks again,
I forgot to mention that my father died 2 years ago and my grandmother in june, and my mother has MS. I'm not sure if it's kinda feeding the anxiety or not. Although i believe the alcohol is not helping, i still feel weird and on edge most of the time even when staying away from the booze for a while.

[Jaquta]

I'm really sorry for your losses.  It must also be really difficult having a parent with a disability.  My mother has severe head injuries and I can find that extremely stressful at times.  Sometimes it can feel like a huge burden.

Was the death of your father the trigger for your drinking?  The times seem to coincide.
Sometimes when we can't cope with the reality we block our emotions with things such as alcohol, food, work, etc.
When we're vulnerable significant events can cause stress and anxiety.  Especially if we're already predisposed to anxiety.
Two months possibly isn't that long to process grief especially if we're close to the person who passed away.  It's also possible that your grandmother's death has triggered memories from when your father died.
I was wondering if some of your feelings of dying were due to your losses.  Perhaps making you feel vulnerable or insecure or frightened.
I had four family members all die within one month.  This affected me quite badly and absolutely terrified me at times.  It took me a while to work through some of this stuff with my therapist.  It still pops up occasionally but it isn't as debilitating as it once was.  Sometimes death and mortality bother me and sometimes they don't.

No, the alcohol won't be helping.  For me, I was an avid tea drinker.  I was drinking absolutely truckloads of the stuff.  I expect it did make my anxiety way worse.  I've cut back significantly which is good although I still get extremely anxious.

Feeling on edge, in my experience, is due to anxiety.  It may have other origins, just none that I can think of now or that can't be traced back to anxiety.
The feeling weird stuff may also be due to the anxiety.  Do you notice it being worse when you're stressed?  If so, it may be anxiety-related.
I sometimes get all sorts of strange feelings.  Sometimes when I feel depressed things can feel a bit that way although that kind of feels more like a slowing down.  Lots of things can feel different from how we normally experience them.  It can be challenging to try and describe them.

I think it would probably be worthwhile being evaluated by a doctor.  Have you discussed anxiety, etc with your regular doctor?  Did they discuss medication with you?  Possibly not considering the alcohol.  Medication and alcohol don't really mix.  Probably talking to your regular doctor would be much cheaper than a psychiatrist.  Perhaps they could refer you.  Treatment is often available for those on low, or no, income too.

It sounds like you could do with the support.
Also, while I remember, age 21 can also pose significant stress as it can be a period of transition for us.  Having your father die at that particular time must have created even more stress and confusion for you.

Sorry for prattling on so much (I have a tendency of doing that sometimes).  I hope you find some of this useful.  If not, just biff it.

Take care.

J

[vtguy139]

Thanks again,
Actually my last visit to the Doc's was around Jan. and they had put me on paxil about 2 months before that. I didnt like the way it made me feel so i stopped taking it slowly. I think you are right anxiety is probably the cause but i cant shake it. I recently heard about a girl a few miles away, i guess her heart stop cardiac arrest i would think. Having heard about it i am worrying like crazy and feeling strange.

[Jaquta]

Anxiety and alcohol and other stuff.
Do you think that because your father died young (I'm assuming here.  It doesn't sound like your parents had you when they were say 70) that that has left you more vulnerable?  I was wondering if it were because of a medical condition.  Alright, I feel like I'm putting the proverbial foot in mouth.  If you are worried about potential risk of you developing something and dying you should discuss this with your doctor.  Perhaps with the ecg and chest x-ray you already have.  Sometimes we can feel conflicted, wanting to trust them but not believing them.  Or should that be, wanting to believe them but not trusting them?

I'm not a big fan of meds and how they make one feel either.  Stopping it slowly was a wise thing to do.  Many people here have spoken about paxil withdrawal and to be honest it doesn't seem like a very pleasant process.  Your doctor may be able to recommend another medication if they still think you need it.  Getting something that works needs to be a team effort between you and your doctor.

Do you see the pattern?  That the feeling strange comes when you're worrying?
Maybe a different medication to help bring your anxiety down would be more appropriate.  ??  I don't know.  This is something you'll need to figure out with your doctor.

Regarding life and death.  I don't know if it helps to consider all the folks (especially the older ones) who haven't died.  That can sometimes give you a little sense of comfort or confidence that you're not going to be snuffed out any time soon.  Life is this amazing thing though and we can rarely predict how we may or may not die.  It could be today or tomorrow or next year or an eternity away.  We just never know.  All we can really do is live our life for each moment.  In time we won't need to concentrate on each moment, life will feel spontaneous and they'll just happen.  It sounds a bit like learning the alphabet and then constructing words and then sentences and then later being able to read and write without given it excessive thought.

Have you had any thoughts about seeing your doctor again?  I suggested waiting until the doctor responded, didn't I?  Just do what you feel is right.  Waiting for a response here feels like it might be an eternity too.  Sometimes when we don't have a lot of commitments time can seem to go very slowly.  Keeping yourself busy may help you distract from things.

J