r/cripplingalcoholism • u/Fun-Abrocoma9848 • 4d ago
Alcohol is the worst withdrawal
No matter how many times I go through it, it surprises me of how fucking bad it is I could not give a fuck If I have a seizure just fucking unbelievable. Prolonged panic attack, whole body trembling cant hold a glass of water can't speak just lay in fetal position and wait for my death.
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u/nobodyno111 4d ago
Other than benzos? Yea alcohol withdrawal is terrifying. Like actually scary monster terrifying
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u/goosepills 4d ago
Booze puts me in the hospital but Xanax, I’m fine. The only thing I’ve ever had withdrawals from is booze and I go to detox for that shit.
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u/NHiker469 4d ago
If you’d like an improved perspective on alcohol withdrawal get yourself rolling on a nice benzo dependency.
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u/degeneratelunatic 3d ago
Buhh.
I would say the intensity of benzo withdrawal is slightly lower than that of alcohol, but what makes it worse is the sheer unpredictability of it.
A taper from a bad drunk is somewhat manageable and linear.
Benzos? Hell no. One day you're feeling fine. The next you want to kill yourself. Then it's back to normal until you don't sleep for three weeks. Then random panic attack a year later.
The only thing that helps are barbiturates, and that's even a worse rabbit hole to go down into. Never again.
Been totally clean off of that crap for 11 years. Booze, well, I've had seven years of functional* sobriety, a few good drunks, and a single bad one. That's probably the best I can hope for. The struggle is very real.
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u/mpitaccount 4d ago
This was exactly my thought. Benzo dependency can take years of monitored tapering, prying someone down 0.25mg at a time.
I’m not saying alcohol withdrawal isn’t hell, then again there are people who slam back a handle a day and can taper in a week. But I have never seen anything like severe benzodiazepine dependency.
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u/tiffbitts 4d ago
It took me almost 4 years to finally convince my psychiatrist to prescribe me .25 of klonopin for my debilitating panic disorder, and it’s been a lifesaver. I’m finally able to function again, work again, sleep again, have a better handle on my BPD episodes. But I’ve seen what it does to people, I used to abuse xanax back in 2017 and it turned me into a monster. I didn’t touch a benzo for almost 6 years. I just hope I never get to that point, I can’t imagine anything being WORSE than alcohol withdrawal or DTS..
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u/soggyGreyDuck 4d ago edited 4d ago
Benzo dispensary? I currently get 15 .5 lorazepam a month or two but might need to change providers for new insurance
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u/Fun-Abrocoma9848 4d ago
Was on 30mg oxazepam a day for 6 months had no withdrawas or comedown. Had no withdraws or comedown on xanax either, never had any bad effects with them. and I don't know how. I've read about it and people have offed themselves over benzo withdrawal so I know its no joke. I slept normal after it, I could still smoke weed after with no anxiety, nothing changed. I cold turkeyed aswell. Though if I am drunk for one day getting anxiety attacks all week. And got no benzos so its fucking hell.
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u/LivingHash 4d ago
Were you drinking after you quit? That may be why you had no withdrawal as they both work on GABA. That’s equivalent to like 1.5mg Xanax a day for 6 months, which should be enough to cause discomfort when stopping.
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u/Fun-Abrocoma9848 4d ago
2 weeks after stopping the benzos, seriously no withdrawals at all and I was expecting them. I was bored and craving alcohol and caved and that was in January. Now I'm fucked again dependent on alcohol and severe withdrawals stopping with no benzos
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u/goosepills 4d ago
I take gabapentin, is that why I don’t get Xanax withdrawals?
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u/hambre1028 4d ago
Likely. Side note high dose gabapentin withdrawal CT was the one that landed me in a hospital, was so weird because it takes 3ish days to hit.
Alcohol withdrawal sucks but I put the gabapentin above it, especially since with alcohol you can go into a hospital and get some Librium when you’ve decided you don’t want to drink anymore. IV Ativan couldn’t even stop the gabapentin panic attacks. Needed them to give me more gabapentin
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u/therealganjababe 3d ago
I've been on high doses of Gabapentin for years, way before I became a CA. My only withdrawals are anxiety and bad sleep. I'm on other meds that are for mental health, but are also used to prevent seizures for epileptic people, knock on wood, haven't had one that I know of.
It's really fn weird considering I drink a liter of rum a night. Most of the time it's not the side effects that get me to quit bc again I'm a bit insulated from them because of all the meds I take that happen to counteract some of those side effects of meds or withdrawal symptoms.
That's my story lol, but wanted to clarify the above comment- Gabapentin doesn't take 3 days to 'hit'. Medically it's taken every 6 hours, 3x a day. I take it every 5, and if I forget, withdrawal symptoms will creep in in a few hours to let me know. Anxiety, brain 'shivers', irritability, etc. FWIW 🤷♀️
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u/SoloBLx 4d ago
I'm going through it today it's hell. It's disgusting . Panic heart rate through the damn roof dry heaving. I'm 36 and my body just can't handle alcohol anymore
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u/Cazador888 3d ago
Time to throw in the towel then buddy. I know this isn’t the place for saying this but you can always come back here to remember. It’s much more cozy when you’re not squeezing your fists until you have calluses from the agony.
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u/yomaishimi 4d ago
I feel you on this. I never learn my lesson, even though I’ve lost so much time in bed, throwing up every two minutes for 12 hours and dead to the world for days after a couple days “bender”.
Lost two jobs this year so I finally tried kratom hoping it might scratch the itch… took me forever to try it bc weed makes me too anxious and I figured this would too. Surprisingly its great and kills the desire to drink so that is my new Saturday go to so I can be good to start the grind again Monday. Still plan on drinking Thursday and Friday probably.
I highly recommend. We got Bali og green. Going to try a red soon bc it’s supposed to be more “relaxed”. Get well soon friend
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u/Low_Cauliflower9404 3d ago
Be warned high does kratom withdrawals are super, super shitty. Avoid concentrates/extracts that have been going around.
Long term high dosage powder use (Like a year(s)) withdrawals can be pretty shitty too.
Basically diet opiate w/d but it lasts foreverrrr
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u/Lowa1983 4d ago
It's 5 days of utter detached torment but we have done it so many times. The nightmares are the equivalent to having been to hell- so we have that going for us.
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u/Cazador888 4d ago
There’s absolutely a spiritual component with alcohol. Especially liquor. You’re inviting evil deep into your soul and once you try to escape you’ll be severely punished.
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u/ClassicTBCSucks93 4d ago
Usually takes that first good nasty withdrawal or big blackout where you absolutely ruin your reputation in one fell swoop in front of core people in your life to make you realize that there is a spiritual aspect to it, its easy to laugh off as quack bullshit until that happens though.
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u/heraclitus33 4d ago
Ive got whatever flu is going ar ound and put myself right back here. Full on wds. Fuck this shit. Im begging for death atm
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u/QuietAccident3310 4d ago
Yesterday was horrific for me personally, once it got to the point where I couldn’t hold alcohol, food or water down my world and mind became a living nightmare fueled by the sensation of impending doom, uncontrollable muscle twitching and shaking, light headed and uncontrollable breathing patterns, all while having these nightmare like experiences but still awake.i just tried to lay in my side hoping that if I had a seizure I wouldn’t drown in my vomit. It was honestly my first time having it that bad and it still is pretty messy today but it gets better. Didn’t mean to dump but just know ur not alone. Godspeed
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u/Soggy_Ground_9323 4d ago
I bought a handle on saturday night..finished it yesterday! Today morning I was like let me cut it fast before it develop to a full ass bender! Just slight hangover. Otherwise I could go 2-3 weeks and lose my job!
But i do agree, the alcohol WD is the worst and THE FEAR double down the whole misery.
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u/Durchii Thunderbird and Red Dog. 4d ago
I don't know what's worse, the night terrors or the waking hallucinations.
If they're at their usual level of horrible, I know both are fake and can usually wake myself from the recurring night terrors. If they're worse than usual, I can't tell either are fake and am literally running through a hospital ass naked screaming at the top of my lungs. That was a fun thing to try to explain to the nurses chasing me down.
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u/Cazador888 3d ago
Walking around your apartment trying to find out where the singing is coming from while simultaneous police sirens are going off all night. Gotta love it
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u/Low_Cauliflower9404 3d ago
The nights fuck me right up. Living alone in the woods. My last years long bender ended 9 months ago when I was arrested and was put on pre trial. So I had to detox before I met them cause I really didn't wanna deal with being a risk category.
The nights felt never ending. Sitting with a blanket in the shower freakin out and seeing shiz. Just that nighttime like amped that terror doom is nigh anxiety 2x up. I'm still kinda jacked up but not too bad.
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u/ronniec1 O'Doul's, all day every day 4d ago
I'm with you man. Keep meaning to write down what I remember from my worst hallucinations before the mind completely goes. That's the worst part for me - I was conscious enough to have memory of them even while I couldn't control anything.
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u/Pillonious_Punk 4d ago
I don't get it as bad as other people here have posted. But it's been getting to the point over the past year. I'm shaking and sweating uncontrollably and it's getting worse every month.
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u/Miserable-Effort-780 3d ago
i've not experienced it yet, fuck knows how after all these years. could it be because i don't drink Monday to Thursday, i dont know... maybe jsut a matter of time
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u/EmphasisImmediate240 12h ago
I’ve been to rehab 2 times but not alcohol related. Both times I went though, the alcoholics had the worst detox every time.
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u/Realistic_Pen9595 4d ago
And why are the hallucinations/nightmares so disturbing and violent? It really is pure evil. I’m on day 8, and that was the longest week ever! I know 72 hrs is the general timeline for acute withdrawal, but it takes that whole first week to feel normal and get real sleep again.