Anxiety/Alcohol Problem??? - Anxiety Message Board

cheeto3 · 05-11-2006, 06:19 PM

I don't know if this is an alcohol related or anxiety problem.I am hoping someone can relate or knows someone that has my problem.I have Social Anxiety which I band-aid with alcohol and anti-anxiety drugs (i just started taking 1 month ago).I take 10 mg a day of Celexa in the morning and have a couple of glasses of wine with dinner.My HUGE problem is that my Social Anxiety makes me want to flee and I get sweaty.I do use deodorant and put on hand lotion after washing my hands but I do not wear perfume and when I get around people they start to sniffle and sneeze like they are allergic to me.I have told myself there is cold season etc but when people get near me this always happens which makes me more anxious.It does not happen when I drink or when I take more pills which I have to add my Clonazepam at work if this happens which calms me and takes away my anxiety.I am having a hard time at work because everywhere else I can leave and get away but this is making my work life really stressfull.I dread if I have to go into a meeting or training (which I have next month),where I usually call in sick to avoid.This is something I have never heard of before and I have only told a friend or two and they just think I am imaging it cause they are not at work with me when this happens and have made fun of it and even started to mention it to others which totally embarrasses me.I really hope there is someone else that has this cause even my Doctor just wants to prescribe me more pills.

hry33 · 05-12-2006, 05:20 PM

ask doc if you make him sniffle or sneeze
celexa will help a lot if you can get it working for you, how long have you been taking it? the dose may need upping as 10 is a low dose, discuss with doc

a beta blocker med will also help a lot for sweating and other physical anxiety problems and can be taken daily or as needed only

BTW people can smell vodka on the breath, if thats what you are self medicating with

stay with your doc as some wont prescribe any clonazepam or other valium type meds at all
for the training, extra clon and a beta blocker such as inderal will help a lot

remember to breathe deep and slow when anxious

cheeto3 · 05-12-2006, 07:22 PM

Thanks for the replys.I have only been taking Celexa for a month or so and want to up the dosage but it makes me feel a little nauseated and I yawn a little.I heard it gets better over time so I am going to up the dose in a week or two.
I am really getting paranoid of the sneezing and sniffling when I am close to someone.I try to sit and stand farther away and worry if I have to drive in a closed car with someone.I cannot have a relationship because I am scared about touching,holding hands,sweating and causing sniffling & sneezing.This is really causing me to stay home more and avoid anything that makes these syptoms come on.
I don't drink during the day only a couple before or during dinner.I do have drinks with my friends on weekends but everyone is.

ASDGRMama · 05-13-2006, 07:27 AM

It's not the amount of alcohol you're consuming (at this point) that is the issue, it's how you feel about it. If you feel you "need" it to relax and settle down and then find yourself needing it more and more (or can't wait to get home for it) ...you know you have a problem.

My dad spent 30 years with anxiety attacks and alcoholism because it was the only way he knew how to deal with his anxiety. He had social anxiety that eventually progressed to the point of drinking constantly to cope .

His new wife encouraged him to seek out medical treatment and he is now on anti-anxiety meds and only rarely drinks.

Continue working on finding the right dose for you! My mom recently shared with me that her side effects completely subsided after the first two months of treatment (she's on Effexor but has been on xanax and paxil in the past).

A couple of drinks of wine is not a problem but it's not the solution either. Don't give up! It may take some time to find the right dose and combination to help you

.

Kelly

Texanne · 05-13-2006, 09:14 AM

I think that almost everyone who drinks too much has some sort of mood disorder. That is why they "self-medicate" with alcohol.