Binge Drinking and depression

[Commongoal123]

Is anyone else out there predisposed to depression and anxiety?  And when you binge drink for a night it could put you into a "mini depressive episode" for like 2-3 days?  Up to a week depending on how hard the binge was?

I feel like I have been noticing this pattern in my life and was wondering if anyone else has experienced this.

[trident_2020]

There's absolutely no doubt that binge drinking can put you into a depressive episode.

If you can't control your drinking you need to seriously consider AA.

From what I understand it could do wonders. It's not only about drinking it's about the state of mind that drives you to drink.

In other words it addresses the underlying problem and provides a support system via a network of others with similar issues and experiences.

I am NOT speaking from personal experience, only from a close association with an alcoholic.

 

[Wiseman2]

Hope this helps. Alcohol is a neurotoxin. That's why it's called "intoxicated".

Edited April 14, 2021 by Wiseman2

[d0nnivain]

Alcohol is a depressant.  So yes, it follows that you feel this way.  

 

You may be struggling with alcoholism if you’re:

Unable to cut down on alcohol use despite a desire to do so.

Experiencing cravings, or a strong desire to use alcohol.

Giving up previously enjoyed social, occupational, or recreational activities because of alcohol use.

Continuing to abuse alcohol despite the presence of a psychological or physical problem that is probably due to alcohol use.

Using alcohol in higher amounts or for a longer time than originally intended.

Spending a lot of time obtaining, using, and recovering from the effects of alcohol.

Unable to fulfill major obligations at home, work, or school because of alcohol use.

Continuing to abuse alcohol despite negative interpersonal or social problems that are likely due to alcohol use.

Using alcohol in physically dangerous situations (such as driving or operating machinery).

Having a tolerance (i.e., needing to drink increasingly large or more frequent amounts of alcohol to achieve desired effect).

Developing symptoms of withdrawal when efforts are made to stop using alcohol.

Is a loved one struggling with alcohol?

Here's how to help them now.

Which Alcoholism Quiz Should I Take?

There are several online alcoholism quizzes that can help you begin to explore your relationship with alcohol. It can be hard to determine whether a quiz is accurate. Often, these quizzes will ask 10 to 20 questions and cover the way alcohol use impacts your relationships, your self-esteem, how much you drink, and when you tend to drink.

Some of these assessments include:

MAST: Developed in 1971, the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (MAST) is a self-scoring questionnaire designed to help identify alcohol dependent drinkers. Different forms of the test have been utilized over the years and is based on a number of yes/no questions to assess the presence and severity of a person’s drinking. It is still considered one of the most accurate screening tests. 

CAGE: CAGE uses a simple 4-question test to help identify alcohol problems:

C – Have you ever felt you should cut down on your drinking?
A – Have people annoyed you by criticizing your drinking?
G – Have you ever felt bad or guilty about your drinking?
E – Eye opener: Have you ever had a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves or to get rid of a hangover? 

Two positive responses indicate further assessment is necessary.  

AUDIT: Created by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) is a tool to detect alcohol problems experienced within the past year. If a person scores an 8 or more, it typically indicates harmful or hazardous drinking.

While helpful in determining whether your current drinking habits may put you at risk of an AUD, self-assessment with these tests should not be considered as a final diagnosis.

How to Stop Drinking

Having a drinking problem can be detrimental to your life, in more ways than one. It can wreak havoc on your health, cause you to perform poorly at work and isolate you from your friends and family.

After you take an alcoholism assessment, the quiz will give you a score and tell you whether  you should seek additional help. If the quiz informs you that you may have an alcohol problem, your next step is up to you. Some people print out quiz results to show to a doctor or counselor so that they can decide what to do next.

Asking for help with alcoholism can be difficult because it requires you to admit that you’re powerless over your drinking. However, it’s possible to stop drinking alcohol and work toward recovery, no matter how severe the problem may seem.

Treatment Options for Alcoholism

The type of treatment that will be most suitable for you will be determined by your alcohol history, previous attempts at quitting and/or treatment, any co-occurring medical and/or mental health conditions, and your current situation.

Medical Detox: For those living with alcoholism and/or a physical dependence on alcohol, the first step will be a medical detox program that can provide necessary medical care.

Residential/Inpatient Treatment: For those needing 24-hour medical care and supervision and/or those who don’t have a safe and sober home or have been unsuccessful in other programs.

Partial Hospitalization Programs (PHP): Some individuals begin their treatment experience in the care of a hospital while undergoing medical detox and then move into a residential or outpatient program.

Intensive Outpatient Programs (IOP): A comprehensive outpatient treatment program will include most of the treatments offered in a residential program 5 days/week, usually between 5-8 hours a day.

Outpatient Treatment: Appropriate for those with no physical dependence and a strong support system, an outpatient program offers a flexible schedule that allows individuals to live at home while undergoing treatment.

Get Help For Alcoholism

If an online assessment suggests you might have an alcohol problem, consider calling  explore your options. 

 

[MsJayne]

Yes, absolutely. I'm not biologically predisposed to mood disorders, but I am an ex-binge drinker, and the relationship between anxiety/depression and alcohol consumption is inarguable in my experience.  I would go a few weeks not drinking, (or one or two if out for dinner, like normal people), and was a fit person, healthy eating habits, etc, but then I would suddenly get a craving to get smashed, and might make a mess of myself every night for a week. The massive sugar intake, plus your liver struggling to process all the poison, the bad sleep, all the bodily functions that are impacted by heavy drinking, creates hormonal chaos.  There's plenty of info on the net about the relationship between substance abuse and mood disorders. 

[Commongoal123]

On 4/16/2021 at 3:18 AM, MsJayne said:

Yes, absolutely. I'm not biologically predisposed to mood disorders, but I am an ex-binge drinker, and the relationship between anxiety/depression and alcohol consumption is inarguable in my experience.  I would go a few weeks not drinking, (or one or two if out for dinner, like normal people), and was a fit person, healthy eating habits, etc, but then I would suddenly get a craving to get smashed, and might make a mess of myself every night for a week. The massive sugar intake, plus your liver struggling to process all the poison, the bad sleep, all the bodily functions that are impacted by heavy drinking, creates hormonal chaos.  There's plenty of info on the net about the relationship between substance abuse and mood disorders. 

THIS is super helpful.  Thank you Ms.Jayne.  How long did it take for you to recover from a binge usually?  In terms of the emotional stuff?

[MsJayne]

9 hours ago, Commongoal123 said:

How long did it take for you to recover from a binge usually?  In terms of the emotional stuff?

Usually a couple of days feeling extremely anxious, which I would describe as a combination of fear and guilt. I'd get butterflies in the stomach, sometimes so bad that I wouldn't be able to eat anything.  After about a week I'd start to feel fine again, probably coincided with my liver flushing the last of the poison out. I also think that life circumstances have an impact, if things were fine in my life I might feel off for a day or so, but if things weren't all rosy it would take longer for my mood to lift. I think this is a thing with binge drinking, people tend to do more of it if they're wanting to escape stress, but the paradox is that alcohol actually lessens our coping mechanisms because of the after-effects, so drinking to escape stress is a self-perpetuating cycle. Add to that the fact that alcohol often makes people make stupid decisions and create drama in their lives, (more stress to escape from), the stuff should be illegal. I would like to see a study of the relationship between alcohol consumption and spread of mood disorders through a population. Given that depression is now so widespread it would be interesting to see if depressive illness is far more prevalent in populations where alcohol is heavily consumed. With any friends and acquaintances who are heavier drinkers, I often notice that they're the same people who suffer from depression and anxiety. 

[Commongoal123]

21 hours ago, MsJayne said:

Usually a couple of days feeling extremely anxious, which I would describe as a combination of fear and guilt. I'd get butterflies in the stomach, sometimes so bad that I wouldn't be able to eat anything.  After about a week I'd start to feel fine again, probably coincided with my liver flushing the last of the poison out. I also think that life circumstances have an impact, if things were fine in my life I might feel off for a day or so, but if things weren't all rosy it would take longer for my mood to lift. I think this is a thing with binge drinking, people tend to do more of it if they're wanting to escape stress, but the paradox is that alcohol actually lessens our coping mechanisms because of the after-effects, so drinking to escape stress is a self-perpetuating cycle. Add to that the fact that alcohol often makes people make stupid decisions and create drama in their lives, (more stress to escape from), the stuff should be illegal. I would like to see a study of the relationship between alcohol consumption and spread of mood disorders through a population. Given that depression is now so widespread it would be interesting to see if depressive illness is far more prevalent in populations where alcohol is heavily consumed. With any friends and acquaintances who are heavier drinkers, I often notice that they're the same people who suffer from depression and anxiety. 

I agree 100% that more studies are needed regarding alcohol and depression.  I imagine they aren't more widespread because of the amount of money involved with alcohol sales, and because alcohol makes it easier to "control the populace".

It's interesting you mention that most people you know who are heavy drinkers have depression and anxiety challenges.  I always thought that would be the case, but some of my friends don't show those signs... Unless of course the norm for me is to be associating with anxious and depressed people.  So it's normalized maybe.  Almost everyone I associate with regularly are heavy drinkers, but some of them act like the world is great.  Specifically, one who doesn't work and sells drugs for a living.  Call it denial I suppose, but he is the most emotionally turbulent and emotionally immature of the bunch.  And serious anger problems.  Perhaps the depression and anxiety just manifests as "acting out".

[MsJayne]

1 hour ago, Commongoal123 said:

Specifically, one who doesn't work and sells drugs for a living.  Call it denial I suppose, but he is the most emotionally turbulent and emotionally immature of the bunch.  And serious anger problems.  Perhaps the depression and anxiety just manifests as "acting out".

There's been studies done on this. With some people depression manifests as anger, though men are more likely to engage in overt angry behaviour than women, (you can search this stuff, I always find the American Psych Association journals and papers to be the most reliable source of up-to-date info). Not everyone who drinks heavily is going to react by experiencing mood swings, and not everyone is going to display depression symptoms even if they're feeling them. A lot of heavy drinkers merely use alcohol as a social lubricant, as in they may have a little social anxiety but aren't looking to escape more serious issues. Your friend the drug dealer I would guess has some pretty serious stuff in his background which he wishes to suppress, or else he's just a clown, but the former is more likely true. I have a theory that many of us use substance abuse as a way of pushing down unresolvable distress, the kind of distress which is often caused by abusive family backgrounds, or maybe a traumatic event, something that causes anger or fear but which we can't resolve because raising issues may open up a Pandora's box of ugly truths and affect other people. What we call an "addictive personality" may in actual fact be a personality who would rather keep their anger a secret, and drink or drug themselves to death, instead of confronting someone in their past or present who's violated their boundaries.  I really believe that when we suppress memories they don't eventually go away or get smaller, they keep backing up, building up a reservoir of negative energy, and then, for example, when we stop drinking or drugging, those backed up negative feelings come out in an overwhelming rush - a feeling of depression, the after effects of substance abuse. 

[Commongoal123]

2 hours ago, MsJayne said:

There's been studies done on this. With some people depression manifests as anger, though men are more likely to engage in overt angry behaviour than women, (you can search this stuff, I always find the American Psych Association journals and papers to be the most reliable source of up-to-date info). Not everyone who drinks heavily is going to react by experiencing mood swings, and not everyone is going to display depression symptoms even if they're feeling them. A lot of heavy drinkers merely use alcohol as a social lubricant, as in they may have a little social anxiety but aren't looking to escape more serious issues. Your friend the drug dealer I would guess has some pretty serious stuff in his background which he wishes to suppress, or else he's just a clown, but the former is more likely true. I have a theory that many of us use substance abuse as a way of pushing down unresolvable distress, the kind of distress which is often caused by abusive family backgrounds, or maybe a traumatic event, something that causes anger or fear but which we can't resolve because raising issues may open up a Pandora's box of ugly truths and affect other people. What we call an "addictive personality" may in actual fact be a personality who would rather keep their anger a secret, and drink or drug themselves to death, instead of confronting someone in their past or present who's violated their boundaries.  I really believe that when we suppress memories they don't eventually go away or get smaller, they keep backing up, building up a reservoir of negative energy, and then, for example, when we stop drinking or drugging, those backed up negative feelings come out in an overwhelming rush - a feeling of depression, the after effects of substance abuse. 

I agree and have the same personal beliefs, and have read similar things.  It is all so confusing through and I second guess myself on my own intuition and perspective, because I don't see the depression in other substance abusers, I only see the "acting out".  As for my friend, he has shared some really wild stories from his childhood and I suspect he may have experienced even worse than me, so I know those memories are there.  It's just confusing.

MsJayne thank you again.  This has been very helpful.

Were there any books you read that helped you with the drinking you could recommend?  Or resources?  AA doctrine isn't for me.

[MsJayne]

20 hours ago, Commongoal123 said:

Were there any books you read that helped you with the drinking you could recommend?  Or resources?  AA doctrine isn't for me.

It took three years of therapy for me, unloading a lot of repressed anger and having someone validate me as a person. From there it became self discovery, understanding what was driving self destructive urges, and eventually just the process of maturing as a person. Changing my social scene was also a vital part of it because until the age of 35 most of my friends were the same as me, and destroying ourselves with booze and drugs was called "partying" rather than what it actually is, social dysfunction and self loathing.  Like you I'm not someone who would attend AA, for personal reasons, so I had to make the trip on my own. I don't have any books to recommend, but I do recommend a movie called, 'Ruben Guthrie'. By the time I saw the movie I'd already changed my social habits, but if I hadn't I would have seen myself in the title character and it may have helped to speed up the process of making changes in the sense that I may have thought to myself, "Why do I have to be the life of the party, (ie: make a fool of myself), at social occasions even though it's detrimentally affecting my life and causing me grief?" It's a great movie, exposes the amount of pressure our friends put on us to be the fun-loving party animal while they ignore our lives spiraling out of control, and it  examines the shallowness of bonds formed through the booze and partying culture.  One thing is for sure, laying off the booze takes ten years off your face and makes weight fall off.  

[Commongoal123]

13 hours ago, MsJayne said:

It took three years of therapy for me, unloading a lot of repressed anger and having someone validate me as a person. From there it became self discovery, understanding what was driving self destructive urges, and eventually just the process of maturing as a person. Changing my social scene was also a vital part of it because until the age of 35 most of my friends were the same as me, and destroying ourselves with booze and drugs was called "partying" rather than what it actually is, social dysfunction and self loathing.  Like you I'm not someone who would attend AA, for personal reasons, so I had to make the trip on my own. I don't have any books to recommend, but I do recommend a movie called, 'Ruben Guthrie'. By the time I saw the movie I'd already changed my social habits, but if I hadn't I would have seen myself in the title character and it may have helped to speed up the process of making changes in the sense that I may have thought to myself, "Why do I have to be the life of the party, (ie: make a fool of myself), at social occasions even though it's detrimentally affecting my life and causing me grief?" It's a great movie, exposes the amount of pressure our friends put on us to be the fun-loving party animal while they ignore our lives spiraling out of control, and it  examines the shallowness of bonds formed through the booze and partying culture.  One thing is for sure, laying off the booze takes ten years off your face and makes weight fall off.  

This all has been really helpful MsJayne.  Thank you.