I only really enjoy life with alcohol

I'm like this also. I overthink and have often thought after a few drinks that I'm actually a better person because rather than becoming slightly obnoxious when drunk, it brings me to "normal" levels of inhibition like you've said. But I'm the same, I drink once or twice a week.

I wonder how old you are... Because for me I used to feel more bothered by this when I was younger. I have learned to accept and live with my overthinking. I try not to avoid the important things in life either and just do things anyway even if I feel anxious. I don't think you would know I was anxious or overthinking if you interacted with me because I've had so much practice at meeting new people now because of uni, work, and now playgroups as a SAHM that I'm just so used to conversation.

I would say to keep doing the things that make you a bit nervous and you will desensitise a little bit.

I was like that before I took Mounjaro - it was a massively beneficial side effect, that I never even thought about having a glass of wine, when I was drinking up to half a bottle a night.

Also, no you won’t be able to try actual ADHD medication without a referral. Most of them are stimulants ( there are some that aren’t) but the most popular are lisdexamfetamine ( elvanse) or methylphenidate ( concerta) to be prescribed this you have to have regular blood pressure and pulse checks as it can raise both, and also weight checks as it can cause a decrease in appetite. You could try supplements such as magnesium or b12 as a lot of people who have ADHD tend to be low in magnesium and b12 , but the most effective would be the actual ADHD meds which you need a diagnoses for.

@Mushroo- the standard way is to go to your gp, fill in a snap IV assessment (like 20 questions) and the gp will read that and then decide if you qualify for a referral. Typical wait times to local nhs services though are huge, I was on my local ADHD assessment waitlist for 3 years and was then told it would be a further 7+. So I went through the ‘right to choose’. I picked the provider I wanted which was careADHD and referred via the GP end of Jan. By may I was diagnosed and by June I had medication. Didn’t cost me anything aside from the monthly prescription cost. The wait times are slightly longer now on RTC just because local NHS waitlists are over 6-7 years everywhere now, so a lot of people are opting for RTC route, it’s just not something the gp will inform you about usually or encourage as it costs the local intergrated care board money for each RTC referral, but they can’t refuse. DM me if you would like any more information I’m happy to help no how complicated the system is and I’ve been in it now for over a year researching and am now going through the process of having two children assessed for ADHD so I’ve read an gone over everything to do with it until my eyes water! Alternatively you can have a look online at adhduk they have a section on righttochoose and that has all the providers, a timeline of waitlists for each and who can prescribe medication under the nhs framework, so it’s cheaper and not the private costs. They also have templates of referral letters you can send to your gp! X

Quite a few people have reported Ozempic and similar WLI meds helping with ADHD symptoms. So maybe this is what happened for you.

Sertraline solved the constant noise/thoughts in my head, as well as the procrastinating (avoidance) and then feeling guilty.

I can remember where I was when I suddenly realised my head was quiet about 2 weeks after starting it

I abruptly stopped, not through choice as a side effect of Ozempic. My brain is peaceful, 2 years on I cannot describe the joy of alcohol free living, the noise from anxiety was the alcohol. I wake up early, go to bed early, sleep like a log and find joy in waking up. I know it sounds like im a zealous convert but im not, it happened by accident and I thank my lucky stars every day. Everything is better x

My brain won't shut up. Bloody thing whirrs away constantly telling me I should be doing this and I should be doing that, why haven't I don't this and why haven't I managed that. Since quitting I've researched and I have realised I have ADHD and am on the path to get medicated. I am really hoping it helps as I too wouldn't want a whole more life of this.

Have you looked into ADHD and thought whether other symptoms might apply? A lot of people with ADHD , myself included, use alcohol or food to self medicate because we are seeking that dopamine that our brains don’t naturally have. The way you say you always overthink, the procrastination and then guilt over procrastination and not being able to switch your brain off at all or relax, except when you have a drink was me 100% 8 months ago. I’d have a glass of wine in the evening to get me through making tea etc. Im now diagnosed and on medication and the noise is quiet, I’ve not drank in 6 months and I’ve lost 3 stone due to not needing to binge eat every night. It’s changed my life. Please have a read and see if you think it might be a possibility xx

I really relate. To the overthinking, the difficulty concentrating on or holding a conversation - alcohol dials in down. I was a problematic drinker when younger - not helped by meeting my DH who is pretty dependent on alcohol. Responsibilities mean I control it now. The last 3 years I’ve gone off it for a few months at the start of the year, and I physically feel better, sleep better - but stay depressed until I start drinking and going out. Then I cheer up, until the drinking creeps up, I become more anxious and ruminating….and the cycle continues.

@Mushroo would it help you to consider that there is no template for "what a normal person feels like"? Not in any given situation and certainly not consistently, all the time? We are all of us different. You looking at other people and finding that you are not the same as them - that is in fact as close to "what a normal person feels like" as any of us are ever going to get. Shutting down your receptors whether with booze or pills might be a pleasant sensation, but it doesn't mean there's anything wrong with you just because you feel different to everyday, when you do this.

I wish you nothing but the best and hope you have many happy times ahead @Mushroo. Others have good advice on medication, hope it helps you.

I honestly do not see this as a problem

If you feel better after a glass of wine, drink one

And if it's not that... Alcohol itself makes you anxious. If you stopped drinking for a while you might find the alcohol was causing this.

I completely relate OP. Actually your thread has been a bit of a lightbulb moment.

Like you I don’t drink much, at all, one or two glasses on a weekend evening. Maybe a bit more if I’m out with friends, but not that often. But it makes me so much more relaxed and frankly more fun.

I think a couple of posters have misunderstood. This is not about problematic drinking or creeping alcoholism. This is about realising how much anxiety and overthinking is going on in my brain most of the time - which is demonstrated by how different I feel when I (occasionally) dial it down with alcohol. It’s not the drinking that’s the issue, I don’t drink much and could stop easily, it’s the anxiety and overthinking.

I am about to start HRT and hoping that will help. I may also try CBD oil capsules as I have some sitting in my cupboard anyway.

Yep. That's what it was for me. I quit drinking a long time ago but was like this with other stuff too - junk food, shopping - it's the dopamine hit. ADHD medication has totally changed my life.

Maybe read about ADHD and see if that's a fit.

You are self medicating with alcohol. Many people do. You may get away with it, or you may develop a physical or, more likely, psychological dependence. Make an appointment to see a doctor you can talk to…

I've had a lifelong problem with alcohol and binge drinking, but during covid we stopped having alcohol in the house. My DW also made the hangovers so horrible I clearly remember thinking I have to choose between drinking or my family. And I stopped drinking. Now, at a work event I may have a glass of wine to look social but I don't think about it anymore. It took me years really. But when you come out of the other side you see how where before you thought no alcohol was boring, now people that need the booze are boring. Yes, it also means you realise many social groups or situations you'd have enjoyed before are no longer enjoyable. Congrats, find things you really like! Just my two cents. Not drinking is the best life hack.

@Mushroo I used to feel the same way as you do about alcohol. But then the true horror of it was displayed to me by a family member unable to free themselves from its insidious grip.
Alcohol took my confidence from me when I was a child, whilst pretending to be my ‘Dutch courage’. It destroyed my mental and physical health whilst ‘relaxing’ me. If you can’t enjoy life without it, the drug is controlling you. Is that really what you want for yourself? Alcohol hijacks dopamine pathways in your brain, that’s why you don’t think you can’t enjoy life without it. Stop using it and the true joy of life can be experienced.
There are other ways to overcome shyness (practice being with people without being drugged) and find peace in your head(meditation, cold exposure, yoga) that don't involve poisoning yourself with a legal, socially promoted, taxed, addictive drug. You can learn them. It takes time and work, but you can do it.

A other one fir SSRI.

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