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Problem/Dependent Drinkers and Alcoholics (recovering or active) Support IV

1000 replies

lackaDAISYcal · 07/04/2008 00:07

Smile
OP posts:
Bottlebin · 23/04/2008 07:53

glowwormish will be around most of the morning if you have time to pop back.

Gerbra at what you said about The Apprentice. I couldn't watch TV at all last night but we did it! Wednesday was when I gave in last week but it won't happen tonight.

Dinny. Definatly go in to school, they need to do something about it, sorry you had a bad day.

Brassic, I've had crappy counselling twice. Once when I was 16. She was seriously rubbish. I became bulimic and was dabbling in self harm when she signed me off. I was only 16 and didn't tell her though I wanted her to ask. (I got much thinner)

I had it again couple of years ago when I was pregnant. She gave up trying to make me do the cbt stuff and eventually decided she couldn't cope with me and I was referred on. I loathed it and it churned me up even more.

The Psychiatrist would see me every few weeks just to see how I was doing for 15 minutes or so. I was in an appalling state depression wise but not in any danger so that was that. I felt that because I refused to take any anti depressants while preganat, there wasn't much more to offfer me.

You dound like you are doing something much more structured and 'proper.' I hope it all works out for you.

Bottlebin · 23/04/2008 08:20

I'm going to try not to eat a whole cake today too.

Lizzie07 · 23/04/2008 10:26

Hello all :waves:

Just thought I would give you an update on G (will refer to him as that rather than "my friend"). He went and bought the 4 tins of lager and the bottle of red wine on Monday and he had two tins of the lager on Monday night - fantastic!

Hubby went round for a coffee yesterday and said friend looked a lot better and had said he felt a lot better. Hubby also said that the 4 tins of lager that G had bought were the little tubby cans that hubby normally drinks and not supersize, superstrength ones which I was really pleased about!

I texted him this morning asking how he got on last night and he said he is not sleeping well but I quote "I had 2 small tins of heineken with meal. That's it! No spirits in house. Wine bottle still sealed. Even I'm amazed!!"

He has promised me he will buy the allen carr book and read it which is great - onwards and upwards! I used Allen Carrs stopping smoking book and it was brilliant.

One thing I wanted to ask was he thought he only had a full blood count and a kidney function test done as he originally went to the doctor for a urinary/kidney infection. I asked him if he had a LFT done and he wasn't sure if the count of 320 was part of the full blood count or a result of the LFT - does anyone know? Also how will they tell if he is cirrhotic already - is that known from the LFT? From Kokeshi's posts I asked him if he knew whether his liver was just inflamed or whether it was already cirrhotic but he didn't know - all he got from the doctor was this count thingy that should be under 65 but his was 320.

Thanks again so much for all your help X

gerbrajess · 23/04/2008 10:47

Wow - things have been busy on here - apologies if I miss anyone out - it's not intentional!

Jellibabe - hope work calms down for you at some point...it must be so stressful coming back after time out, without even adding to the mix new-found sobriety and counselling sessions - you sound like you're coping amazingly well.

Glowwormish - things sound very stressed and hectic. I'm a fellow self-employed person and know how hard it can be carrying yourself. Are things stressed because of too much work or is it too little? I sympathise with you re moving to a new area. We did several years ago and making new friends really gets harder as you get older! Luckily we have a close circle of friends elsewhere who we see as much as possible, but it is hard...Feel free to rant to me about the trials of being self-employed if you need to

Brassic, glad you're feeling better today! It is a nightmare at the beginning - just like you said, I remember not being sure what to say and what was expected of me - just let rip!!

That ties in with something you said Bottlebin - when I was referred to the ED person by my GP - he said 'well I will refer you, but it's not as if you're a 4 stone weakling is it?' . Thank god there are people out there who understand about all these things...

BB - well done for not drinking!!!

Teasle - hello!

Dinny - hope it goes okay at school today...

Well it's now Wednesday and haven't had a drink since Sunday night (and even that was 4 glasses of 7.5% wine (if you can call it wine)).

Feel so much more together but will suddenly veer into a brief rage for silly reasons - is this par for the course?

Phew - what an epic - sorry!

Hope everyone's having a good / better day...
Gerbra x

gerbrajess · 23/04/2008 10:47

p.s. Lizzie - so pleased to hear things are a little better for your friend.
Afraid I don't know much about the liver tests, but sure someone will come along who does!

kokeshi · 23/04/2008 13:55

Glowwormish, please sign back in and let us know what's up. Try not to tackle your whole life's problems at once, that just leads to despair and inaction.

What's in front of you? Take care of that first. Don't think about how much you have to do, just break it down into manageable chunks. Of course, most of us want to have better things in our lives but we can only achieve them in small steps. The only people who get instant wealth are the lottery winners, and I don't believe that's always a happy event either.

Write down a list of these things you're procrastinating about. Take one stressful task per day or per week, make sure you and DH work on this together. It makes such a difference when you know what it is that you have to do, instead of all these stresses swimming about your head and becoming much worse than they are.

Make time for yourself and DH. Even if you feel like you don;t have any time to relax, every area of your life will improve if you can start to feel happier in yourself. This next part is a bit of a no-brainer and maybe difficult for you.

Address your drinking properly. There's no problem that can't be made worse by drink, and it's no way to relax. As well as feeling physically unwell, your mental health and ability to cope will be suffering. I know how it is to feel alone with the drinking and that it's the only thing you've got. AA changed that for me, I suddenly found a network of solid friends who wanted nothing for me than me to recover. There are compassionate, caring people out there who will help you. You just need to look in the right places. Never write off anything, I know I had to be desperate to accept that AA would help me but there you go. I don;t think I would have coped with losing my hearing if I hadn't had that support from my good friends in AA.

If don't want to go to AA at this stage then please seek the help of your GP, this level of stress you're under isn't sustainable either, you sound pretty desperate. I wish you well.

LIzzie, the only way to tell if the liver has become cirrhotic is by a biopsy. They stcik a needle into your side and remove a wee bit of your liver under local anaesthetic. You just couldn't tell otherwise, apart from the really high LFTs or if you start turning yellow. Cirrhosis is not reversible, inflammation is. He should be aiming to stop drinking now. It's early days yet with the drinking so don't get your hopes up too much. Look after yourself too.

Hi to everyone else.

kokeshi · 23/04/2008 13:59

Well done to those who're abstaining of an evening

gracepaley · 23/04/2008 16:45

Ok, time to bite the bullet and hop on board. Hello everyone - not got time to trawl this immense thread but fully expecting to meet old friends and new ones....have been avoiding hopping on as was scared that instead of supporting, we would be enmiring each other. Tell me this isn't so!
Have been wildly self-medicating for past 6 months and it's time to get back in control.
What are the rules?

Stripteasle · 23/04/2008 16:56

Hi grace, just have a quick read through the thread then, to get a feel of it.
Thats me being lazy too, by the way!

Welcome to the thread.

Anyone about tonight?

gerbrajess · 23/04/2008 17:10

Hi Teasle - bye teasle...
Just on our way out to homebase in this endless quest to decorate the place - love diy but hate diy now!!

Hope everyone's well...

Hi grace - nice to meet you

Will try and pop in later after painting and the apprentice

Gerbra x

gracepaley · 23/04/2008 17:13

Ok, time to bite the bullet and hop on board. Hello everyone - not got time to trawl this immense thread but fully expecting to meet old friends and new ones....have been avoiding hopping on as was scared that instead of supporting, we would be enmiring each other. Tell me this isn't so!
Have been wildly self-medicating for past 6 months and it's time to get back in control.
What are the rules?

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:09

I'm struggling to go another night without wine, I have done 2 nights, laptop wasn't working last night so couldn't even mumsnet but I survived!
I am feeling quite anxious and telling myself the usual rubbish, "just have a drink tonight, it's halfway through the week, reward for 2 nights abstinece" blah blah.
I only have to make it to 8.00 because once dd is bathed and ready for bed we can't go to the shop. I feel very tense and wound up but I'm really trying not to succumb.

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:12

Can anyone back me up and tell me I don't need a drink this evening. It's pathetic but I'm struggling.

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:23

Thornrose are you still there?

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:24

god yes, nearly had shoes on to go to the shop but still here, very stressed though

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:24

Feeling the same. just try and hold on to to how you'll feel lying in bed ready to go to sleep tonight. How proud you will feel.
Imagine that smug feeling the next clear eyed morning.

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:25

Don't you feel angry that this is so hard?

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:26

Is it possible to have withdrawal after 2 nights alcohol free? I feel quite light headed and I'm gritting my teeth, suppose it could be tension!

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:26

Have you given up given up or allowing weekend drinking?

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:27

I get a bad headache after a couple of days.

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:29

Where are you? Don't do it!

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:30

I have a bloody voice saying just have a drink for god's sake. I'm going for social drinking only, so mainly weekends. I drink alone every night and have for ages.

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:31

It's really hard.... I could so easily give in. I know that I would hate myself more though if I did.

I like to imagine my liver enjoying the break!

BottlebinBerrie · 23/04/2008 19:33

What do you drink?

thornrose · 23/04/2008 19:35

That's what I'm doing too, think of my health, get tough with myself. Thanks SO much for responding, I was going to use no response as a "sign"/excuse that I should go out and buy wine.
I'm a grown woman and I've been carrying £2 in my purse for last 2 days so I wouldn't be tempted to get wine when I called in shop for milk! Sad!
How long have you abstained?

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