Alcohol and Depression

Very sound advice here, especially what Dick said. If there is even a question of a problem, there is a problem. Normal drinkers don't think about it.
9 1/2 years since I had a drink and I like life better without it. Taking a depressant to medicate depression don't make any sense at all.
Good luck to you and I hope your depression gets better after stopping the beer.
Regards
turnerriver
 
If you continue to use alcohol despite known negative consequences...such as medical problems, work problems, relationship problems, PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS and economic problems, legal problems, etc... there is a your drinking is a major problem that will get worse. If you think its a problem, it is and the only sure way to stop it from getting worse is to stop using alcohol and do whatever is needed to do that. Alcohol is certainly a CNS depressant and will intensify depression and render antidepressant medications ineffective. When I was a LEO, it was very common for people to be under some degree of intoxication when they acted on sucidal thoughts. The alcohol made it more likely the person would feel depressed and less fearful of the pain and death caused by their actions. I would advise you to seek some professional help to evaluate your situation and develop a plan to address it...Good Luck
 
A lot of people will drink to hide a problem they are currently dealing with or somehting that happened long ago. Either way not a good idea to drink. I can drink to a point but i have to watch it, if i get too drunk ill get low and sad thinking about my little brother that passed away a few years back. Most people have had a negative thing or two happen in their life and the drink will most likely bring that out and make you really sad. Drinking alone is about the worst you can do. So i drink very little and stay pretty happy.
 
If you don't enjoy it anymore....

I hit a point with some health probs where drinking just made me sick and the little bit of smoking I was doing wasn't doing me any good either. I just decided that those days were gone and quit everything. (I suffer from depression also). I hardly miss those days, except when people here start talking about smoking a good cigar. Well, my memory is still ok and I can REMEMBER smoking good cigars and that's enough for me. I've got better things to do now.
 
Everybody gets better lookin, dances better, tells funnier jokes, gets irresistibly sexy.....it ain't no big trick to get all blammed up and be the life of the party. :rolleyes: :p :o

It's the guy that can make a fool out of hisself cold sober that I pattern myself after. Some say I do a fair to middlin job. :D

I put the plug in the jug over 15 years ago. 3 local bars closed and 2 of em never reopened. ;)
 
Congrats to all of you have stayed sober, even it is just for the day. I respect each and everyone of you.

My wife has struggled with addiction to Rx meds, primarily as a result of a fight against depression. She has been clean and sober for nearly 4 yrs and we are thankful every day.
 
I had the same depression not suicidal, just blue. Quitting helped. My life used to be more of an emotional roller coaster ride, highs and lows. Now it is more level all the time. The highs aren't as high, but the lows are gone.

I still don't sleep very well, but am happier. 4 years for me, Ed
 
ralph7 said:
There was a thread on this forum a few days ago that had a response from one of the members that said something to the effect that drinking made him suicidal. (would like a link to that, forgot the thread)

While I'm not that far along, I notice that the next day after an evening of spirited beer drinking, I am really depressed to the extent that I will sleep in way longer than necessary just to avoid life in general and nothing seems to interest me anymore. This has just started happening to me (I'm 61) and am wondering if anyone else has experienced this.
I have been a beer drinker all my life and enjoy it, but I am getting to where the next day depression is making me think about quitting.

Is this an old age thing or am I going nuts?
Click to expand...

You are far from nuts.
I will explain a little how this works. Alcohol is a depressant/ suppressant. While at first, you feel uplifted, happy, carefree, etc. when you have a couple drinks, this is the body's reaction to the release of Dopamines. And, with some dehydration from the alcohol, the strength of that feeling can be increased. But if you drink all day, in the sun, etc. you are likely to get headaches from the quick dehydration. Certain alcohols do this faster; some react worse in cans than in bottles due to a reaction with the aluminum (Though the can is treated, there is no disputing that it happens.)
Now, on the flip-side. Your body stores and makes only so much dopamine on a regular basis. When you drank and it released more dopamine than usual, your system is drained, and you can not create enough dopamine the next morning to recuperate. THAT is why you feel depressed. Over time, 2 things happen: Your body becomes resistant to the release of dopamine. Meaning, you need more alcohol than you used to, to get the same feeling. And, eventually, your body just makes less dopamine. And as the ability to create dopamine diminishes, your depressions will become more consistent, and those feelings will gradually get stronger.

If you REALLY want to train-wreck yourself, then substitute the word METH in place of Alcohol. The effects on dopamine receptors is about 5 times greater, and the effects are more acute, more permanent, and have less chance of recovery over time.

Got drunks and junkies in the family, and have been around the block. Let's just say I have seen this many, many times.
I quit drinking about 6 years ago now, primarily for this very reason. You just get to where you come home from work, have a beer or 14, and you are not happy; just drunk. You wake up, not real happy. You hit mid-day, and finally come around a bit. By the evening, you are ready for a beer. Groundhog Day again............

It's NEVER too late to start drinking 2 gallons of ice tea a day!!!!:rolleyes:
 
doublesharp said:
Everybody gets better lookin, dances better, tells funnier jokes, gets irresistibly sexy.....it ain't no big trick to get all blammed up and be the life of the party. :rolleyes: :p :o

It's the guy that can make a fool out of hisself cold sober that I pattern myself after. Some say I do a fair to middlin job. :D

I put the plug in the jug over 15 years ago. 3 local bars closed and 2 of em never reopened. ;)
Click to expand...

Ppfftt! I got death threats from Bud Light, and Anhauser Busch stock fell 15% in a month!:D
 
rojodiablo said:
You are far from nuts.
I will explain a little how this works. Alcohol is a depressant/ suppressant. While at first, you feel uplifted, happy, carefree, etc. when you have a couple drinks, this is the body's reaction to the release of Dopamines. And, with some dehydration from the alcohol, the strength of that feeling can be increased. But if you drink all day, in the sun, etc. you are likely to get headaches from the quick dehydration. Certain alcohols do this faster; some react worse in cans than in bottles due to a reaction with the aluminum (Though the can is treated, there is no disputing that it happens.)
Now, on the flip-side. Your body stores and makes only so much dopamine on a regular basis. When you drank and it released more dopamine than usual, your system is drained, and you can not create enough dopamine the next morning to recuperate. THAT is why you feel depressed. Over time, 2 things happen: Your body becomes resistant to the release of dopamine. Meaning, you need more alcohol than you used to, to get the same feeling. And, eventually, your body just makes less dopamine. And as the ability to create dopamine diminishes, your depressions will become more consistent, and those feelings will gradually get stronger.

If you REALLY want to train-wreck yourself, then substitute the word METH in place of Alcohol. The effects on dopamine receptors is about 5 times greater, and the effects are more acute, more permanent, and have less chance of recovery over time.

Got drunks and junkies in the family, and have been around the block. Let's just say I have seen this many, many times.
I quit drinking about 6 years ago now, primarily for this very reason. You just get to where you come home from work, have a beer or 14, and you are not happy; just drunk. You wake up, not real happy. You hit mid-day, and finally come around a bit. By the evening, you are ready for a beer. Groundhog Day again............

It's NEVER too late to start drinking 2 gallons of ice tea a day!!!!:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Think you hit the nail on the head!
Thanks.
 
I'm depressed over not having anyone to drink with. The local bar closed, but it wasn't my doing. I only rarely went in. Used to have friends to drink a cooler full of beer with, but they all died off. The old woman won't drink enough to be fun. She just swills a single glass of wine and goes to sleep.

This spring a bar down in town had a special. You got to keep the glass after drinking the contents. It was Bourbon Barrel lager. A friend out in Colorado got wind of the deal and asked me to go drink a few, he wanted the glases. So I got my sons together and had my wife drop us off. After great personal expense and suffering, we got him a dozen glasses. Both sons got in trouble with their wives over it, too. Sons are following in their fathers footsteps. Married wives that aren't fun.
 
Again, I'm the one who said it made me suicidal. Let me clarify that a little.

I was a functioning drunk--never missed a day of work directly due to drinking, though my resistance to colds and flu was diminished. I never got a DUI, despite driving countless times when I definitely shouldn't have. I was never arrested at all until I was five months sober (civil contempt of court--long story). I didn't have hangovers, and that damn near killed me.

I was miserable. I drank for years because my marriage was unhappy. I had to be sober for a year and a half before it really registered that my marriage was unhappy because I drank.

I kept people thinking I was okay by keeping them laughing. I could be very funny, but it was an act.

And the kicker is that during the years my misery was the deepest and my drinking the worst I was treating alcoholics, addicts and their families. That got a lot easier when I sobered up, but I helped some people before that despite knowing how empty my life was, and eventually what the drinking was doing to me. I was a professional, and it fooled me for a long time.

I'm not suggesting that you are anywhere near this point--I have no way of knowing how grim it really is for you. I'm just saying that I moved through and beyond where you describe yourself as being, and getting into self-medication with alcohol took me eventually to the edge of the precipice.

The nice thing about quitting drinking was that I realized I wasn't missing a damn thing. I had a lot of fun and still do--really! My laughter and humor were honest. And though there are still tough times, I know that there is absolutely nothing that can happen to me that I won't be given what I need to get through it.

I don't see how you have anything to lose by putting it aside, and you might have a lot to gain.

Your call, amigo. PM if I can help.
 
ralph7 said:
I really appreciate your replies.
It's obvious that you guys care about others and have been there and done that.
I am going to stop drinking as an every day after work treat. (I sweated my butt off, so I deserve it, right?)
My best friend and I get together on Fridays and knock back a six pack or more apiece, been doing this for 30 plus years.
If after cutting back on the duration and quantity and I wake up to depression the next day after, I will have to face the facts and give it up like some of you have done.

Think I already see the writing on the wall, just gotta hope some moderation will have the positive effect I am searching for.

Thanks for caring, guys.
Click to expand...

Regrettably, I have an old friend in the UK who I suspect will be in your position in a few years. I never used to think he had an actual problem until he visited here some years ago. He found that I did not keep beer in the house as a matter of habit and he freely admitted that this bothered him.

He has suffered injuries from accidents and not being 25 anymore means that his weight has shot up due to the alcohol. He blew off a long term relationship a few years ago and I'm uncertain of the tolerance level of the current girl. As he gets older it stands a good chance he will find himself without any company except the beer. Don't be that guy.

For myself I sort of gave up alcohol as I lived in rural England and had to drive everywhere. A DUI there means no licence for a year so "social drinking" was out. I don't miss it, I can talk to people holding a Coke just as well as a beer.
 
If you get to feeling down and wanting to talk. Just write something on here. Most of us have had a problem are two. Some great people on this forum. Some of the advice is better than any doctor could give. We have been there done that and have lost the tee shirt. Please feel free to PM me and if need be I'll give you my cell number and you can call anytime day are night.
 
I haven't had a drink since I was 24yo, now I'm 62yo and still don't drink or smoke. I do have what I wouldn't call depression it's more of a bordom.
Being retired since 52yo I'm more bored. I just need to get back to my hobbies again.

I just got over prostate cancer, I have diabetes, I have low blood pressure and bad knees but I won't let it get me down. I'm not going to let it bother me. I made up my mind to do what ever makes me happy. And I don't worry or care about anything else.

My point is stay sober and forget about our health problems, go fishing, play games on the net, get out in nature and go for walks, get a telescope and look at the stars etc. There is way too much to do in life yet to sit and worry about our health. Worrying about things only makes us worse. I like to read too books. There are so many things we haven't done yet to sweat the small stuff. We all have a date with Destiny and I'm not waiting for the date it arrives I'm partying now long before it gets here. God bless bigbill
 
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