How to troubleshoot your alcohol withdrawals
I never found the first day after stopping drinking to be all that difficult.
Sure there was that pull to go to the liquor store and grab something for the after-work de-stress, but it wasn’t overwhelming by any means.
If I were to guess as to why, it would be that my body still hadn’t hit real withdrawals yet.
There’s a lot of data showing that withdrawal can peak between 24–48 hours after your last drink, but I think, when you’re going through a quitting process, it’s important to remain cognizant that everyone’s body is different.
Your physicality is different, your chemistry is different, literally EVERYTHING is different from person to person.
Yes, for me, the first night after quitting drinking was always kind of whatever.
Day 2? Eep.
That’s another story. Over my many attempts to quit drinking alcohol in the past, I became very aware of what I call my Danger Days.
Danger days
Day 2 was definitely one of those days for me. After my initial burst of sobriety, and then several weeks of going back to drinking just on weekends, I would start going one day on, one day off again, over and over and over.
That’s because when I would hit Day 2, I’d get hit with OVERWHELMING anxiety.
This is totally normal, and I started expecting it because I started logging it in my notes app. Expecting it allowed me to plan for it.
Oddly enough, I’d also hit that wall of mega-anxiety on Day 5 as well. In fact, sometimes Day 5 would be worse than Day 2.
I couldn’t explain it, but there it was every single time.
Plan ahead
One trick I found that helped a great deal in getting through days like Day 2 and Day 5 was to make sure I had something to do that night, rather than a free night of sitting at home and starting to drink right after work.
If I was out and keeping busy until fairly late, my motivation to have a drink before bed, which I knew would just mess up my sleep and leave me feeling groggy and lazy the next day, would be lower than normal.
Luckily, my sons play competitive sports, which keeps me occupied most nights, and I fill most of my other idle time with the gym or writing here.
It’s not hard to think of things to fill your evenings with.
Could you meet a friend for a movie on your equivalent of Day 2?
Could you ask your partner if he or she wants to go for a long walk?
Could you schedule your gym workouts at night so you don’t drink, or early in the morning so it’s extra painful TO drink?
What has worked before that might work again?
Write it down
Write down ideas of how to fill your evenings and mornings in a positive way if that helps you.
If you keep a log of how you feel during each and every day of your detox, you’ll be able to gird yourself mentally for the challenge.
Be sure to write your assessment of where you are physically and mentally down, and refer back to it often.
It doesn’t matter how you do it — some people might prefer a notebook and a pen, others might like the many apps you can write in — just do it.
The more prepared you are, the less likely alcohol is to trip you up unexpectedly.
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