Hi Winter, I'd love to join you. I'm 2 weeks off it today and I feel so much better in lots of ways. But, my sleep is rubbish, mainly due to my 9 month old daughter and I just can't stop feeling angry and frustrated. I can't wait for this to life and feel better again!

Wishing you the best of luck with it. How have you been getting on?

I've got a thread currently going about the same topic. Really need to give up or massively cut down. Am sick of making a total fool of myself when drunk and waking up to the feelings of anxiety and fear the next day. Let's try to support each other.

@Winter29 I probably won't stop forever and when I do it in moderation at home I find drinking relaxing and enjoyable. My dp drinks too so we tend to enjoy a few drinks together in the evenings. But the volume has crept up and it's really not good for my health. Aside from that are the incidents where I go out and lose all track of what I've drank and just make a total arse of myself. Last night was one of those occasions and I feel dreadful today. So much anxiety and feel so ashamed. So definitely need to cut down and take back control.

I joined Mumsnet today for this very reason. Actually want to give up for good. It’s been an on going theme in my life for years. Does me no good at all.

I wonder why we do it when it causes so many issues? For me I think it's a social thing and I just have no control when it comes to the amount I'm actually drinking when I'm out.

My drinking at home is different and rarely leads to any bad behaviour or problems. But I know it's still not good for my health and while it doesn't cause the same crippling hangovers as when I go out drinking it still leaves me with a fuzzy head the next day.

Sorry to hear about your anxiety @Winter29 - alcohol might help at the time but I'm sure you know it only adds to feelings of anxiety the next day. Im also trying to think of the practical benefits of cutting down like the money and time I'll be able to spend better. Could you find something more rewarding to do with your time at home?

Really pleased we can all support each other.

I'm joining in as I'm sick of the crippling anxiety and hangovers. Waking up full of regret for things you may or may not have done. Having to do a social media purge when you wake up in a fright at 5am wondering what you might have posted.

Also fed up of wasting the weekends away.

I'm the same, can't just have one glass. I would like to have the odd night but want to cut down.

@buttertoasty oh god the social media purges. I hate that feeling of waking up in fear about what you've posted. My friend split up with her partner recently and we went out and got drunk together and I wrote a lengthy fb status about what a dick her ex was and how I never liked him. It sounds funny but it was so inappropriate and the way I worded it was awful. I woke up in the middle of the night in a panic and deleted it but the damage was done.

@Honeybee27 it's awful and always so funny/witty at the time. I've started locking my phone away whenever I drink now as I can't trust myself

Hi all, my name is Miss C and I've been sober since March of 1994.

There's a thread in AMA that has lots of good information and discussion as well as the view from the other side of the journey to sobriety, so I thought I would just pop in and post the link:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/AMA/3551853-Im-30-years-sober-today-Ask-me-anything

Here's another link with a lot of good information, particularly those who black out and can't stop once you start drinking.

www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/alcohol-use-disorder/symptoms-causes/syc-20369243

Good luck!

I am with you. Came back from (all inclusive) holiday weds & need to stop at least for a while. My dad is a functioning alcoholic & suffers like me with anxiety/depression alot of ours is self medicating. It's making me too emotionally unbalanced in my newish relationship & I don't want to lose my boyfriend because of it as it makes me nasty (& plenty of other reasons)

@Stresshead123 it makes me nasty too. I was vile to my dp last night and I feel so bad today. It's a vicious cycle - I feel like a bad person and am anxious so I drink which makes me act like a bad person and makes my anxiety worse. It's so unhealthy. I'm really surprised that my dp wants to stay with me when I act like that.

You're most welcome Winter.

I feel so crap and down.

And yet just about to start dinner prep and trying to talk myself into buying a bottle of wine!

You're experiencing mild to moderate symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. There is medication that can help if you feel like it's too much so don't be shy about seeing your GP. There does come a time when you just have to name the wine witch and tell her to sod off.

This is how she gets into your head.

Molecular basis of alcoholism

I’ll start tomorrow I’m telling myself. How crazy and utterly stupid is that

It's not crazy or stupid at all. She doesn't leave without a fight.

Honeybee27 I am going to try & get back into fitness again as that helped me a lot a few years ago. My boyfriend does drink but not loads so may try & only drink in social situations but it's going to be really hard

Hi, my partner has until recently really struggled with reducing intake & after attempts at sobriety over many years has finally achieved it
At worst he drank between 20-30 units a day - so a couple of bottles of wine + a cider or 2. His lifeline was his GP, she was very proactive in prescribing medication via a telephone appointment (no sitting & waiting anxiously in a busy waiting room). Just wanted to reassure anyone there is hope for anyone who wants to achieve reduction/sobriety.
Acknowledging you have a problem & dealing with it are obviously the initial hurdles.
I never thought he would look better/feel better/start to loose weight/sleep better in such a short time frame. After just 8 days of the correct dosage of meds he is finally alcohol free. The withdrawal he says was uncomfortable for first 3 days but not painful, nothing a week off work wouldn’t sort out, says it’s the best week off he’s had. Now on Accomprosate to prevent any cravings & he/we have our life/lives back.
Any questions please ask as although it’s not me personally I have been on this journey with him for the last 5 years.

Winter and others, I'm completely with you - it starts today. I've fallen into a nasty habit of opening (and finishing) a bottle of wine far too often, and finding a way to justify it - bad day at work, DH is out so I'm on my own, it's a weekend...

We go on holiday in three weeks and I'm overweight (not helped by the drinking) so I've promised myself three good weeks before I go. No drinking, no takeaways, and getting up early for a run every morning, because if I'm not drinking, I won't feel so sluggish in the morning

Somehow saying it's for three weeks makes it feel doable - but I'm hoping I'll feel so good as a result that I'll want to keep it up once I'm back from holiday.

Good luck everyone!

@Winter29 Don't feel bad, we are here to support each other not judge. Tomorrow is a new day and you can try again. Baby steps and all that.

I've felt dreadful all day and really starting to realise the long term implications of my behaviour. I said things to my dp that I can't take back and I feel really disgusted with myself.

@winter29 don't beat yourself up too much. It's a long process.

Peer support is what saved me in the early days. Just knowing that there were people who understood my struggle was helpful. Hearing the stories of others who succeeded after setbacks gave me hope.

Please consider getting some outside support.