Is it normal i quit drinking and don't notice much difference?

73% Normal
8 Comments

I stopped drinking entirely just over a week ago and I expected to feel different but I don't.

I was a heavy binge drinker for years. A typical evening for me was to start drinking straight hard liquor at about 11PM, take about 20 shots within 2 hours and then pass out around 2AM. I'd do this around 4-5 nights a week, sometimes more but never less than that.

I noticed I lost about 5 pounds but I don't feel any healthier or sharper mentally. I also noticed that a couple times when I got angry or stressed my mind tried to get me to drink! I didn't give in but that was scary! I never drank to reduce stress, I always drank simply because I liked it and because I have bad insomnia. Stress never made me drink! I had NEVER had that urge before!

IIN?

Voting Results
73% Normal
Based on 55 votes (40 yes)
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Comments ( 8 )
  • kelili
    11 years ago

    One week is a little early to come to conclusions.

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  • ProseAthlete
    11 years ago

    If you were drinking that heavily and stopped cold turkey, please see a doctor. Detox from high alcohol consumption can trigger physical symptoms that are uncomfortable or even dangerous. Other substances may have really unpleasant withdrawals, but alcohol is one of the few substances that can be truly dangerous without medical supervision.

    I admire you for deciding to quit, but please do it safely. I didn't know that alcohol withdrawal could be physically dangerous until a few years ago when someone close to me stopped drinking and needed medication for a few days.

    He took only a few days for the physical detox, but his mental state didn't really feel changed for a few weeks, he said.

    Please be safe, and good luck.

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  • Ozzy
    11 years ago

    try to run or do some kind of exercise whenever u get angry, to release some tension

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  • Faceless
    11 years ago

    Get a job.

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  • TheProph
    11 years ago

    Yes, it's normal, you only quit a week ago. Give it time.

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  • dappled
    11 years ago

    I've drank like you (although I started a couple of hours earlier) and it was often seven nights a week. When I give up completely, I feel a bit different after 48 hours and *very* different after two weeks. To the point where I feel like I've had two lives, a non-drinking life and a drinking life. When I don't drink, I feel like I did when I was a child. A completely different person and life itself looks very different. This may not be true of everyone, though. But do stick with it and see if you feel different soon.

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  • whatismyname
    11 years ago

    You know what they say, man: Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic.

    I'm not saying you're as bad as you were, because you apparently stopped drinking...but take into consideration that alcohol can get very addictive after a short time. People who drink for a long time and quit/take breaks tend to act the same afterwards, just like people who smoke weed often. (like me, for example.)

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  • VioletTrees
    11 years ago

    I'm not sure. I know people who've gone through extremely unpleasant withdrawal, and I've known people who didn't go through much at all. I suppose it varies from person to person.

    This might sound like a strange question, but are you sure stress relief wasn't a component? I've had certain behaviours that I believed to have a very specific motive for a very long time, until they escalated to the point that I could no longer deny their other purposes. Even if it wasn't, though, I'm not surprised that you feel the urge to drink when you're stressed. These things try to take us down at our weakest moments.

    I'm glad you've stopped, and I hope you're doing well. Feel free to shoot me a message if you need to talk.

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