I am new here ( since today). I decided today that I want to try to stop drinking. I have been drinking for the last 10 years or so…every night 1 bottle of wine or cava/ champagne. (750 ml). 37 year old female
As far as I know ( have not checked yet) I don’t have any severe medical issues…but I have pretty much damaged my looks a lot and I hope it can be recovered.
went from 116 to 145 pounds. ( which is mostly belly fat)
my gums are extremely infected ( will take months to recover
my face is extremely bloated/ swollen/ puffy
my overall skin/ scalp are dry ( likely dehydrated)
I went to the dentist yesterday and while I looked in the mirror, I saw my swollen puffy face and horrible skin and was so embarrassed, that with the question asked if I was pregnant made me realize I have to stop drinking.
My questions are ;
Is it safe to stop drinking all at once? I read that it could cause seizure.
and my most important question: how long does it take approximately for the bloating in my face to improve or go away. This is my main reason I want to stop as it looks horrible. I am going to be drinking lots of water, eat healthy foods with lots of vegetables.
Also I currently have vitamin d, c, b1, irion, zinc and omega 3. Anyone have advice for a extra important vitamin when you stop drinking ?
I usually only drink in the evenings before bed, so my nights will be the hardest ( European time zone) and I don’t think I will get much sleep, as I started drinking to be able to sleep.
Welcome aboard, @lillylola ! I echo @SKhan . I hope you stick around. There is a lots of advice and support here. I’m grateful for the help I have received from joining this community!
My advice is to be patient with the process, You’re on the right track taking care of yourself and healing. Take it one day at a time!
Welcome to the boards!! So good to see you hear. I too drank to fall asleep and made it a bad habit and led to drinking more and more. I have had this habit for YEARS as well, 10 plus years!! I quit cold turkey and wondered about medical help but didnt need it. I have been pretty fortunate and lucky. I have been able to focus on just myself. My kids are grown and half flown. Husband works 23/7 and from home. I get to concentrate on myself as I am not working at the moment.
Sleep will be the hardest for you as I am struggling. If you can, just take it day to day and sleep as you can. Nap if you have the ability. Give yourself the grace to do what you can for the first few weeks. That’s what I have been trying to do and its been going well. (day 16!!)
Best wishes to you and read lots of stuff here when you are struggling. Post when you feel like it, and join in!!
Every reply here will be caveated with “I’m not a doctor” but that level of consumption shouldn’t give you dangerous withdrawals, no. You will be physically dependent on alcohol though so you will have withdrawal symptoms, but not DT or seizures.
Puffiness fades over time, it begins to fade immediately and within a month you should notice a significant improvement.
Good luck and keep checking in here to help stay on track!
Good luck with your health journey. Every day is a step closer to feeling and looking better. If I were you, Id start trying to eat better as well. And drink tons of water. Maybe get some suppliments eventually. All those things will help speed up the recovery and healing. Its not easy, but I can tell youre a strong women. You got this.
Thank you for your comment, and congratulations on 16 days sober already…impressive after all these years. You should be proud
I am not counting on sleeping tonight:) thanks for the advice, I will…not working for at least a week so just focusing on myself and my health right now.
Thank you Michelle, so kind of you. I am indeed drinking lots of water ( 2 liter a day) and taking some vitamins and eating healthy. Want to start exercising eventually but not yet- as I feel I have enough going on now.
I’m not a doctor either, of course, but I agree with what was said above. I’m only on day two, but I was a morning and night binge drinker. I only took a few hours off a day to work… horrible I know. Anyway! I stopped cold turkey and though the withdrawal has been extremely tough, the shakes are gone as of today. DT is extremely rare, but if you’re worried about it you can always ask your doctor for some medicine to help. Most doctors are very understanding anymore.
I went and saw a good doctor for a long session about a week or two after I quit drinking. He gave me some vitamins and we did some basic health tests… bloods, cholesterol, BMI etc.
It gave me a good baseline that I can look back on in a year. Really recommend seeing a doctor and explaining what you are doing.
I’m day 66 and I was drinking every night and getting black out each weekend in the last few weeks there which is what made me reevaluate my drinking habits.
I had a very red blotchy face, started getting pimples on my nose and was looking absolutely shite. No self confidence and actually embarassed about myself.
Day 66, I still have some pimples, but my redness and blotchyness has gone away. My nose looks normal. My skin is so bloody nice compared to what it was. I started noticing the change at about 3 weeks.
What else is awesome, I have more energy than I ever could have imagined. I am waking up 10x better every day. I have more consistent moods and thoughts. There wouldn’t be one aspect of life that hasn’t improved. Memory, creativity, passion, love, confidence. Only in 66 days. Please keep at it. Don’t just do it for one aspect. Do it for you and the new person you will feel like in only a couple of short months!
66 days already wauw! You are so brave and strong, and I hope I will make it that far.
great advice about seeing a doctor and getting some tests done, I will definitely do this in a few weeks.
I am so happy for you that you have come this far already, and you look and feel better. This gives me hope…and you are right I shouldn’t just stop for my looks…like you said so many things will improve
Hi Lola welcome,
You already has got a lot of replies.
I drank the same amounts of wine every day years ago. My sleeping was bad for a few weeks and I had weird dreams and attacks of sweat.
During the day I was feeling restless and irritated. Push trough it because it’s getting better day by day!
What has helped me to get and stay sober I described here:2 years sober and what helped me to get there: Maybe you read something in it that can be of help for you too
Connection is key in recovery, so stick around! We are a bunch of nice people all with an addiction like you so we all understand and feel where you are going trough.
So let us be part of your sobriaty and you be part of ours! We can help eachother with support.
I’m sober for many years now with the help of this app, we can’t do it all by ourselves.
So I’m glad you are here!
Good for you. Yea, I iust started working out in the mornings again. Its rough, but better waking up at 5am for the gym, then staggering home at 5am from who knows where
I am currently just struggling with the sleep. I don’t fall asleep till like 4 or 5 am and I can’t keep living like that. This was the main reason I started drinking so I could sleep, and now that I stopped drinking I am back at the same problem. I am just tossing, turning and worrying all night till 5 am and I finally fall asleep it’s horrible. I tried drinking hot milk before bed but it doesn’t help.
Does anyone have any tips ? If I could just sleep at a normal hour I would have very little temptation to drink.
I used to work ar a bar, and party every night into the next morning, then covid hit and I was trying to get sober. My sleep schedule was a mess, so I feel your pain. Its actualy torture being awake, sober, while everyone else slumbers away at night. Things will rven out eventually but it did take time and patience.
Somethings that helped me are;
-Magnesium suppliment
-When you wake up go outside and look in the direction of the sun (not at the sun) - getting sunlight your eyes as early as you can will help your body clock adjust. Maybe even set an alarm and do it early, and then go back to sleep if you have to.
-Melatonine can be helpful for the first bit as well, to help you get drowsy, but I think its best tobuse it sparingly.
-Workout during the day to force exhaustion on yourself.
-Fresh air and sunlight tend to exhaust the body as well.
-Water and nutrition balance, so your body can relax and get out if survival mode.
-My sisters all drink bedtime teas and swear by it.
I quit cold turkey and wondered about medical help but didnt need it. I have been pretty fortunate and lucky. I have been able to focus on just myself. My kids are grown and half flown. Husband works 23/7 and from home. I get to concentrate on myself as I am not working at the moment.
