Stuck in a loop of alcohol and anxiety

LegacyUser

This is a big issue for me right now and i'm wondering how I control it. I suffer from anxiety pretty badly - health anxiety and social anxiety. The only way I find myself getting totally comfortable in social situations is when I have a few drinks. The problem is that whenever I have more than a few drinks, the next day is a write off for me. I get horrible anxiety and feel like i'm constantly verging on a panic attack. It's got to the stage that I need to take a benzodiazepine to control it. But being in my early 20's I find that nearly every social situation I find myself in involves alcohol. That makes it very hard to stop drinking. So i'm in a vicious circle of drinking to alleviate social anxiety and just making my anxiety worse the next day. I guess i'm just wondering is it normal that alcohol causes these effects? And do I need to refrain from places like pubs and clubs in order to stop drinking?

Tiddlypeeps

Have you tried going out to the pub anyway but having a soft drink or water instead? Some people might ask why your not drinking, but usually just saying I don't feel like it or have to be up early is enough of a reason that most people don't push it any further. I find just having a glass in my hand to take a drink when there is a lul in the conversation or whatever is enough to make me feel less anxious in social situations.

You could even just leave it at one or two alcoholic drinks and then switch to soft drinks, or break them up with soft drinks. If you can manage oner or two without a horrible hangover then that could be a fine middle ground. Just learn when to stop.

Whatever you do thread carefully using alcohol as a crutch for anxiety, you can very easily wind up with alcohol dependency. And as you say yourself it doesn't even cure it, it just puts it off till the next day.

If you really can't be in a pub without getting drunk then it probably would be best to avoid them, but hopefully you can learn to socialise in that sort of atmosphere without getting smashed.

ivytwine

Op drink is a huge depressant and as you know well hangovers make anxiety worse. I remember doing rag week in college (I get anxiety too) and at the end of week I was in bed in bits just wanting to go home.

It doesn't suit everyone and I think it's time to admit it doesn't suit you. There are lots of things you can do without alcohol.

Kilgore__Trout

I've had similar experiences of pretty bad anxiety after heavy drinking, especially spirits, starting around the mid 20's. Guessing it's fairly common. Eventually got fed up with writing days off due to feeling down and apathetic after booze. It just wasn't worth it.

As the other posters suggested, you don't need to give up drinking completely, but it sounds like you'd be doing yourself a favour if you found out what your personal limits are. For me, it's no spirits, and around 2-3 pints on the rare occasions I go out, and maybe 1 - 2 more if it's something extended or where food is being served, like a wedding. Life is simpler now.

And you're right that most social situations at that age default to drinking, and often drinking heavily. Maybe you could research some other activities and pitch them to your friends? Hope everything works out.