Tapering off with beer?
Posted , 12 users are following.
Okay. I know that everyone on this forum has been in this situation.
It gets to the point where you know you need to stop, but the thought of stopping is a major step.
Two weeks ago, I decided that enough was enough. My three bottles a day habit was starting to get out of control. I would wake up in the morning and my husband would ask me if I was okay. "Yes of course I'm okay. Why?" "Because you fell over last night." The blackouts were starting to scare me.
Sunday I decided that I would start tapering off the following day. Luckily I have a supportive husband and admitted my problem. He bought me very small lagers and printed out the tapering off method from the internet.
Monday: I had the shakes in the morning after three bottles of wine the day before. Luckily I work from home. I had six beers and stopped myself from buying a bottle of wine in the evening. Really bad sleep, nightmares, palpatations and a constant craving for what I knew would help me.
Tuesday: Didn't really wake up okay as I hadn't slept much. Started work. Had four small beers and didn't crave for wine in the evening. I felt shaky and strange. Went to bed and slept for three hours which was unusual for me.
Wednesday: I woke up feeling different. Almost human. I got loads of work done and didn't want a drink. I had one small beer with my dinner and went to bed. I slept for about four hours, had some water and went back to sleep. Amazing.
Thursday: Well I've been a good girl this week. I'll treat myself to a glass of wine. Big mistake. Two bottles down.
Friday: We're going away this weekend. I could just not drink during the week surely? Another two bottles of wine. A few shots at the local........
A week later I'm back where I started.
My problem is that I am scared of stopping. I now know that I can get through the tapering off method without life threatening withdrawals but I contradict myself constantly. My mum has Alzheimer's. I'm helping her, so I need a drink. Oh, I've had a bad day so I deserve a glass of wine, or six. My child is disabled. I deserve a drink because I've had a bad day. The cycle is endless.
I went to the GP yesterday and cried. I told him (it was a locum) that I had a problem. I explained that I couldnt sleep without a drink. I have nightmares (because of my PTSD) and my stomach is playing havoc with my life. He said, "Obviously you have IBS." I said, "Obviously?" He said, "Well yes. you don't drink enough for it to affect your stomach." I walked out of the surgery saying, "Well thanks anyway."
Sorry for the long post but I am really trying and wanted some advice/encouragement to try this tapering off again next week. Does it work? Has anyome done it successfully?
I have already applied to be a patient for a different surgery and will be honest with them too. Hopefully they will point me in the right direction.
1 like, 51 replies
Paper_fairy Guest
Posted
colin30375 Guest
Posted
Many years ago when I started my recovery, I had relapses of course and then after one relapse, I did wean myself off whisky using beer. It wasn't easy but i managed it. It happened again and again etc. but got more difficult and I ended up drinking loads of beer. The only difference being that I was able to function better than being drunk on whisky - not much better. I became somewhat of an expert at it but I was still drunk until I saw a gap to sobriety I could crawl through. I didn't want to go back to de-tox.
I did it but I wouldn't advise it; I started to use diazepam and valium too when I was drinking beer although these came from a friend, not my doctor. I eventually went to the doctor who believed me enough to prescribe emineverin (spelling?).
I couldn't have made it to the doc' if I'd been drinking whisky and I did have a good, honest relationship with my doctor who trusted me not to drink whilst taking the medication.
So; I would say from experience that it's possible but something not to be relied on, can become habit forming and lead us back to square one. If you do do it, you must treat it as a form of medication; I wouldn't recommend it.
RHGB is right when he says you can get the buzz unless you really are using beer as a de-tox medication. It takes more will power than a visit to the doctors.
Good luck. Colin.
colin30375 Guest
Posted
Many years ago on my route to sobriety, I had many relapses; I didn't want to go back to de-tox centre or hospital so I weaned myself off whisky using beer. I was also taking unprescribed diazepam and valium.
I did it many times and each time it took longer and became more difficult. In those days, there wasn't internet with a plan to follow so it was my own decision and frankly, I didn't know what I was doing. It did work for me but it was a dangerous path to go down - depends how much you normally drink! I was on beer and a litre of whisky a day plus anything else I could get my hands on; if I could walk?
I had a great doctor so I eventually went to see her; she knew I was serious about quiting drinking so prescribed the right medication for me (emineverin - spelling?). She trusted me not to drink whilst taking the medication and it sorted me out.
I've been sober for a long time; I would never use beer again if I relapsed..... unless there wasn't an alternative. I now live in a developing country so I have to be extra careful; hospital care here costs a fortune.
RHGB has it right, in his first paragraph.......... I didn't do it for the buzz though but easy to see how it can happen. As he says, there are so many factors to consider. First one being......."Do you want to quit?
Good luck, Colin.
ADEfree colin30375
Posted
I'm glad you posted your story, thanks for being so open!
The drug you mentioned, perhaps it was Heminevrin (Clomethiazole)? Glad to hear it worked for you, but it sounds like a bit of a dicey one. The wiki page for it says that's what Keith Moon died from.
You mentioned Seroxat (Paroxetine), that's also called Paxil and a few other names. It's an SSRI antidepressant. You might want to google:
SSRI alcohol craving
to see what you can find. I saw reports of people drinking more after they started a particular SSRI, some drank less, for some there was no difference at all and this for the same SSRI. It's difficult, you can't say it's going to go one way or the other, it just depends on the person and their circumstances. Paxil does list alcohol abuse as one of the uncommon side effects, under the Neurological category if I remember correctly. Well, I'm not a doctor or a healthcare professional, I'm just a healthcare consumer. But I like to educate myself on some of the choices out there so I get the best outcome.
You mentioned Naltrexone. Now I know a few things about that because I'm using it myself. In the UK and EU, there's another choice called Selincro that gives much the same effect, but it's metabolized differently. There's an article right here on Patient that talks about it and one way that it's used. You mentioned that when you tried to stop drinking, you relapsed and it sounded like you were saying each relapse was worse than the one before, so you might find this a worthwhile read:
https://patient.info/health/sinclair-method-for-alcohol-use-disorder
I'm using The Sinclair Method (TSM) myself, because I'd tried using willpower to quit more than a few times, but just ended up drinking more and more. I read about TSM and realized that my willpower and logic and reasoning could not touch the drive to continue drinking. The logic and the reasoning doesn't happen in the same part of the brain as the craving and the urge. For many, the two don't communicate. For some, they can use AA and be fine. That's what they should do. For others, that course will lead to ruin as they abstain and relapse again and again, each relapse worse and more damaging than the one before. There are other options than white-knuckle abstinence, the medical community is a little slow to realize this, but the word is spreading that there are some very good options. Well, read the article in the link, if you have any questions, feel free to ask me, or PM me if you prefer, either way is fine.
Thanks again for your post and best luck to you, whatever you choose.
colin30375 ADEfree
Posted
I live in a country where any prescription drug can be bought over the counter....... anything from aspirin to methadone. No prescriptions needed for anything. i expect that will change one day. I don't know about Seroxat or Naltrexone; I've never needed to but if they're made in France, you can be sure they'll be here.
Any hard drug is available here too, the booze is cheap as chips so I'm glad I never got into the drugs scene and came sober.
Well, thanks again, I don't want to drink again; I never have any cravings and I don't miss it one bit - a mix of being an A.A. member and a long period of sobriety I guess. Participating in these forums is great for me as a lot of the posts are reminders to me and stop complacency from creeping in.
I hope some of my experiences are useful too of course.
Take care.