As I’ve said I’ve gone a week without alcohol after decades of drinking and have had no cravings and more importantly, and surprisingly, no withdrawal symptoms.
The no cravings I can understand. The book I read made sense. Once you realise that you’re just adding poison to your system when you drink why on earth would you do it? Yes there have been times when I’ve thought “I would normally be having a drink while doing this, before doing this, after doing this.” quickly followed by “What an idiot I was!”. So yeah no cravings makes sense.
But no withdrawal symptoms? Thats a physical thing. Your body has had this input for years to suddenly take it away is going to disrupt the body’s “metabolism” isn’t it?
Now I’m not a doctor or a health professional (or even a first aider) so these are just the thoughts of a lay person. What if I’ve replaced my “need” for alcohol with another substance?
I heard a snippet of a radio show the other day where they were discussing how excercise was a good treatment for depression. Why? Because excercise releases endorphins which enhance your mood. Interesting.
Got me thinking. What if my positive mental state about never drinking again and the happiness I felt about the rest of my life (after withdrawal) produced endorphins which then totally negated withdrawal symptoms? It’s a thought, no?
Now let me make it clear I’ve never been one of these mind over matter, peace loving hippie, yogi medidating people but hey maybe there is something in this.
Anyway it’s a thought to put out there.
endorphin
/ɛnˈdɔːfɪn/
noun
plural noun: endorphins
any of a group of hormones secreted within the brain and nervous system and having a number of physiological functions. They are peptides which activate the body’s opiate receptors, causing an analgesic effect.
