Binge Drinking & Anxiety

[kl1234]

I know there are many questions on here regarding anxiety but I just wanted to put my personal experience out there to get some advice.
i went to London yesterday for a day event and had a hotel booked for the evening with my boyfriend we started drinking at around about 12 in the afternoon and had food etc we then went to our hotel around 5ish (so that was 5 hours of drinking alcohol before the evening had started) and then carried on drinking and went out for dinner and .. more drinks, so I was very drunk by the time we were in a cab to go home. I wake up this morning and quite possibly was still drunk and felt okay ish. Fast forward an hour and that is when the anxiety started my heart was pounding I felt like I couldn't breathe I was shaking my legs felt like jelly and I had pins and needles in my arms. I am assuming this was a panic attack, my first ever one I wanted to know if the main reason for this attack was purely down to the alcohol?
I have vowed to cut down on my binge drinking as it has become almost a way of life not just for me but for all of my friends, it has become the norm to go out every weekend and drink until we are all drunk. I feel as though alcohol is running my weekends if it isn't involved in any way then the night will be "boring" and i am not going to enjoy the night as much as I would if I had a drink I honestly know this shouldn't be the case I just wondered if anyone has had the same experiences and has any tips or advice. I feel as though drinking has become such a big part of my generations culture it is quite worrying that it is becoming the "norm"

[specialmom]

Well, I can tell you that I really appreciate that you are being introspective.  Many people make the grave error of using alcohol to self soothe---  self medicate.  It's unfortunate.  And many have an unhealthy relationship with it.  When it is viewed as the WAY to have fun . . .  not just something done while having fun, it's becoming a problem.  Your age is such that many people do party like this.  But you are not enjoying it.  You are so smart to be concerned, looking at this deeper and perhaps contemplating some changes.  Try a few boring old nights of no drinking.  :>)  Relying on alcohol to make things fun has to get old.  The root of many substance abuse problems and including alcoholism is depression/anxiety that is untreated.  So, if you feel that you have a lot of anxiety, please talk to a therapist or doctor.  That can get you started to a way of treating you.  And remember, alcohol is a depressant and you often feel worse after a drinking binge.  Try exercise to life your mood instead of drinking.  good luck

[Paxiled]

Anyone who has been drunk has had a hangover at some point.  Being drunk or hung over or being stoned on any drug affects neurotransmitters in the brain, so you're affecting the source of all function.  Many pharmaceutical products do the same.  The brain can have a hard time getting back to working normally if it is frequently exposed to substances that make it work abnormally.  A hangover is just another term for withdrawal, though a minor withdrawal, as the body tries to evict the toxin (too much alcohol is liver toxic) and recover its bearings.  Feeling disoriented can produce the feelings of an anxiety attack, whether it's an inner ear imbalance or the effects (or after-effects) of substances that affect brain neurotransmitters.  By the way, just for fun, look up how much Americans drank in the early years of the country -- it will astound you.  Usually, people who drink too much or use pot too much etc. have moved from having fun to self-medicating, so you might take a look at your life and see why it's not working for you if you're sober or just high -- why is it you feel the desire to be basically unconscious instead of just a little high where you can have a lot more fun because you're more aware of what you're doing.  So it's not really an alcohol problem, as it can happen with all kinds of different drugs, it's a question of using what you've learned from being high without needing to be high all the time to enjoy that feeling -- you should be able to tap into it from experience, no?  

[AnxiousNoMore]

No one can diagnose you from here, but alcohol doesn't solve any problems and causes lots of emotional upset, so it is possible your panic attack was related to alcohol,
You should go to AA if you can't stop binge drinking, but again no one can diagnose whether or not you are an alcoholic from here.