Alcohol use---when is it OK?

[[lo...]]

I know this topic has been brought up here many times before,

but here it goes again. I am almost 7 months out from my taper.

I am doing alot better ... still having a few fits and starts here and

there, but nothing unmanageable. My question is, to those of you

who have been off the drugs for awhile now, and wanted to enjoy

an occasional cocktail, glass of wine, etc-----how did you go about

it? And when?

 

I have been off any alcohol for over 2 1/2 years now ... used to

like a cocktail or two a couple times a week in my "old life". I find

myself afraid to even try a wee bit of wine, etc, for fear it will

cause a cascade of nasty symptoms.

 

I would love to hear from any of you who have successfully

re-introduced yourself to alcohol..... I know there are alot of

horror stories about this topic.....I was planning to wait a full

year (July) for any experimentation. Anyone out there who did

OK with this? I have been able to have a nice strong latte several

times weekly, and that was impossible during my taper....so

that encourages me....however, the old GABA thing being

affected by the alcohol worries me.  I hate to undue all the

healing, yet some say with enough time gone by, alcohol use

in moderation is OK. Anybody got feedback?

[[ve...]]

Hi Lovepema.  I made the mistake of drinking at about a month out.  It was maybe 3 glasses of wine twice over Christmas holidays.  Not to scare anyone, because my immune system was under a lot of stress from other things besides ending my taper (my father had been hospitalized and almost died just as I finished my taper back in 2009), but I got Shingles a few days after the wine, at about 5 weeks off.  I think the Shingles was not necessarily alcohol related but the alcohol might have led me to be a little more run down.

 

The next time I tried alcohol was at 5 months off and it seemed ok (2 glasses of wine twice that month around Easter, 2010).  By summer 2010, I was feeling about 80% and decided I could go back to a couple drinks once or  twice a week for about a month.  My first major setback occurred when I got back from that summer trip (at 9 months off valium) with cog fog, elevated bp, insomnia, GI issues... it was too much.  I had also gained 10lbs that summer from too much junk food which alcohol and being on vacation seems to stimulate me to eat!

 

By a year off, (November 2010), things were stable again and I tried to keep it to no more than 2 drinks (usually wine).  Beer never agreed with me (must be the carbonation and/or hops, often would end up with acid reflux or sinus problems within a few days of drinking beer, even pre benzo).  Hard liquor (whiskey) sometimes did the same, when mixed with carbonated beverage like coke.  I tried not to have hard liquor that first year to year and a half until last summer, 2011. 

 

I did try a few martinis at around 18 months and seemed to be fine and had a couple martinis a few weeks ago (am now a little over 2 years off).  I was also able to have a few during the superbowl this year without problems and as a matter of fact, went out last night and had two cocktails.  If I had to do it all over, I would have waited a full year before having that first drink though. I'm not encouraging anyone to drink.  Some might find that abstinence is the way to go.  If you do decide to try something like wine, I would have it with a meal and maybe after you've eaten something, to minimize any problems.  Having not had alcohol in 2.5 years (according to your post), I would go gradually and ease into it to see if it's still something that you enjoy and can tolerate.  I do and I guess you could say that I did "successfully reintroduce it" although it took a while as you can see.

 

Vertigo

 

[[sw...]]

Many people don't have any negative reactions to light alcohol use while others do.  My experiences with alcohol thought withdrawal have been few, light, and pleasant.  Others like vertigo have had a worse time.  My suggestion would be if it's something you're interested is to just start small and see how it makes you feel and then bare it in mind in the future. 

 

Best wishes.

 

[[lo...]]

Thanks Vertigo and Sweet G..... guess re-introducing alcohol is a crapshoot like

everything else benzo-related. I am tempted to just stay off altogether, but then

I remember life is short...so why not moderately indulge!

I will start out slow after I reach the year off mark....thanks again for your input.

[[Te...]]

I know this topic has been brought up here many times before,

but here it goes again. I am almost 7 months out from my taper.

I am doing alot better ... still having a few fits and starts here and

there, but nothing unmanageable. My question is, to those of you

who have been off the drugs for awhile now, and wanted to enjoy

an occasional cocktail, glass of wine, etc-----how did you go about

it? And when?

 

I have been off any alcohol for over 2 1/2 years now ... used to

like a cocktail or two a couple times a week in my "old life". I find

myself afraid to even try a wee bit of wine, etc, for fear it will

cause a cascade of nasty symptoms.

 

I would love to hear from any of you who have successfully

re-introduced yourself to alcohol..... I know there are alot of

horror stories about this topic.....I was planning to wait a full

year (July) for any experimentation. Anyone out there who did

OK with this? I have been able to have a nice strong latte several

times weekly, and that was impossible during my taper....so

that encourages me....however, the old GABA thing being

affected by the alcohol worries me.  I hate to undue all the

healing, yet some say with enough time gone by, alcohol use

in moderation is OK. Anybody got feedback?

 

Hi lovepema,

 

It might be beneficial for you to read this thread, pgs 1 & 2.  http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=46044.0

 

Taz

[[be...]]

Dear Love,

 

AS you know Alcohol is cross tolerant to benzos which means that it also down regulates GABA receptors.  In otherwords, it destroys or causes so much harm to these receptors that it renders them nonfunctional.  Alcohol has  proven to be toxic to cells and cause permanent damage. period.

 

As we grow back enough functioning receptors we start "feeling" better.  Who is to say how many receptors we can afford to lose and throw our brain out of equilibrium again and make us symptomatic.  We have these sx's because we can not assimilate GABA therefore our brains our flooded with Glutamate (a neuroexcitor)

 

For me it's just not worth taking the risk of unbalancing my system until I have ALOT of years of healing under my belt and certain that I have plenty of receptors to spare.  A few moments of self gratification is simple not worth the horror I have experienced that has taken me years to rebuild precious receptors back.

 

Please remember what I have said here everytime you want to take a drink.  Say to yourself, "Is it worth the risk?"  Spend a few moments reflecting on how horrible you felt in wd.  This helps me everytime to resist the urge of getting caught up in the moment and throwing caution to the wind.

 

Wishing you the best.

 

[[ve...]]

I think Believe has given you some good advice, Pema.  I think I would have done better with waiting a year or maybe even a little longer.  On the other hand, I think if one steps back in gradually, half a glass of wine or something like that on a full stomach, one should be able to assess whether it can be tolerated at some point down the road. I waited about a year and a half before trying anything stronger than wine.  There are also some heart healthy benefits to a glass of red wine.

 

V