I know how you feel... I am falling apart. Its only 10:30 in the morning and I'm scared about tonight. Coming here is a great start... hugs to you

I know how you feel too.

Scared to stop and scared to keep drinking.

Really glad you felt able to post about it. Are you ready to stop?
Sometimes I wanted to stop but I wasn't ready to stop.

I feel so much better mentally and mostly physically since I have stopped....only about 31 days ago. The first few days are super tough...and I relapsed many times in the first few days...

I didn't want to stop either..but I HAD to...it was killing me.

This the first step and the most courageous one. Once you've made this first one, you can make the other no matter how hard it seems now.
Right now you really should consider not looking too far ahead. Just deal with today: today you are making the goal to not drink. To rest. To map out ways to help you make one day at a time.
The first question people asked me when I said "this is the time that is going to stick" was : "What have you planned out to stay dry?"
There is a big difference between quitting drinking and getting sober. Quitting drinking means an attempt to stop cold turkey and not work though why drinking is a problem for you, what purpose you used it for, and self-improvement. The second is a journey that seeks to do all these things and more. I hope most sincerely you choose the second route; coming from someone who has tried the first many times, I know from experience it never lasts. And I hope you allow others to help you along the way.
Peace and hugs xo

you must decide to change everything if you want to get sober and stay sober....

Hello anchorbird,

Around this time seven years ago I was scared like you are now. I was drinking from early evening and earlier some days until well past midnight every day. My health was suffering, I was broke, it seemed only a matter of time until I would get caught for drunken driving and there were a dozen other reasons to get sober. Yet I did not want to stop as my life revolved around drinking. Then it got so bad that I could not avoid reality for any longer so I decided to quit. I then found that I could not stay sober for more than a few days. At that point I lost all hope for the future. Yet, I have hope today and my life could not be any more different. When all else failed I did what I swore I would never do and went to an AA meeting. What had been impossible before became almost easy and I have not taken a drink since that day.

If you are an alcoholic like I am, posting on an internet forum may be helpful but it may not be enough. I had to talk face to face with other people who had recovered from the same problem that I had and copy what they did.

Welcome. Coming here was my great start. I hope its yours too.
You deserve to be sober. Its terrifying to contemplate from the drinking side, much easier to come on over here and contemplate from the sober side. which you just did:)

Thank you everyone. I am scared, but even more scared to think about not being alive. I need to get sober to stay alive.

I am having anxiety tonight, but staying busy.

It's hard in the beginning. It's almost like the last of the anxiety makes a really big one last "hurrah".

But one of the things that cured itself (among many others, actually) upon getting sober, was the anxiety. Suddenly one day on the way to work, I realized I hadn't had an anxiety attack in weeks!

I made a first post here and then found a group of others with similarities and started to heal. I learned I was not BAD , just sick

I will pray for some ease tonite for you. It is sooo worth it

C'mon

1is2many

We like to avoid our emotions by escaping through alcohol. In the beginning of sobriety the fear can seem overwhelming because it is something that we never faced before. After some sobriety time the fear is no longer a monster but a smidgen, as it should be, if we had not spent years avoiding it. Most important is to realize that you have the power. You have the power to stop drinking and you have the power to face fear. Don't worry be happy. As time goes on it is very easy to stay sober.

Hi anchorbird,

Giving up what you know can be frightening, even if you what you are giving up is an awful way to live. It can feel like you are losing a part of yourself, or you don't know if you can make the change, or what that change really means. When I quit drinking, I was terrified that I couldn't do it and scared that I could.

BTW -- increased anxiety is part of detoxing and should decrease as you break the physical dependency, then decrease more as you adjust mentally.

The best advice I got when I first quit was to drink lots of water. It helps flush out your system and reduces cravings. Take care of yourself in other ways, too. Eat good foods, and increase your sugar intake (which also helps reduce cravings.) I did a lot of walking in early sobriety -- especially in the evening when my cravings were bad. It helped me through them and made me feel better.

Keep checking in and let us know how you are doing!

I hope you can find the answers you are looking for within these posts. If not, don't be afraid to ask cos there are lots of people willing to help. Chances are some of us have gone through similar circumstances and the path they chose on their road to sobriety, may be helpful to you as well.

God Bless!

Every addict is scared to get sober. I am a recovering addict and remember that same feeling of fear when I decided to quit drinking. I was afraid of the unknown. I was afraid of how my life would be without alcohol. How would I cope with the bad times? What would I do in my spare time? How would I be able to handle social situations or events without alcohol? Would my friends disown me? How could I even begin to see myself for who I truly am and for all the things I had done? I was so scared to tackle any of these questions because in all honesty I didn't know how and I denied I had a problem.

In addiction we hide from our true selves, from our reality. We hide our secrets and our past in addiction. To be sober is to finally be ready to deal with all the hurts, habits and hang ups. We no longer have foggy heads to distract us from our realities. Sobriety means having a clear mind to admit you have a problem and there are things you need to handle. Go to meetings and listen to other addict stories. You'll find that you are not only one dealing with fear in sobriety. Once you defeat fear, the path to sobriety opens up and you will be ready to discover yourself.

Don't let fear prevent you from seeing your true purpose. Fear wants to keep you stuck and unhappy. There is a wonderful, amazing spirit just waiting to be found inside you. Unlock that cage and set it free. Find a good support group to help you along. Talk about your experiences. Pray to find the strength and courage that you cannot do for yourself. There is something greater above us all that is waiting to help find YOU. I pray you good blessings on your journey of self discovery.

Alcohol seems like an escape, but in reality it does more harm than it does good.

It was uncomfortable at first but that went away .The trick for me was not going back once I felt better. I also use a 12 step program.If I can stop you can too.