So what were some things you did to heal yourself physically in early sobriety?

[wildeyed]

I was way underweight and physically wasted when I first got sober. I remember not feeling well at all for about a year after I began abstaining. My sleep patterns were disrupted. I would either sleep for 12 hours or 2, but rarely any amount of time in between. My initial detox was not too horrible. I kinda weaned off, sober a few days, drink for one, sober for a day, drink again, etc....... But the longterm detox was hard. I remember it was routine for me to vomit for no particular reason for quite a while after that last drink. Guess my body was still really toxic.

Good diet made a huge difference for me. Just remembering to eat regularly was a hurdle at first. Then I tackled the food groups. It was easy to get into way too much sugar, coffee and cigarettes at first. Once I had been dry for a while, I branched out into things like fruit, vegetables and protein.

Exercise was interesting, too. Like any good addict, I got into it full-on once I was clean. I had to learn to listen to my body and not drive myself to injury.

Blood sugar instability was an issue for me for years and year, which I hear is pretty common with ex-alcoholics and addicts. Through good eating and good supplements, I seemed to have mostly healed from that, too.

So what were the health hurdles you faced due to your addictions, and how have you addressed them in sobriety?

[KitchenWitch]

1. I had always been naturally thin but I was emaciated when I got sober

I am over 6 feet tall, and I think I must have weighed about 110 at the time. Basically I started eating again. Got to about 145 and was at that weight for years, until I got pregnant with my son.

I smoked cigarettes for years in sobriety, and did not quit until I was pregnant, and have not smoked since (17 years).

I was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma about 2 and a half years into my recovery. As a result, I have to be very careful about getting enough sleep, getting enough nutrients and whatnot. I recently just started taking some supplements that I have not taken before. Because the radiation treatments permanently shut down most of my saliva glands, some foods (the ones that are good for me) taste exceedingly bitter to me. In order to get enough nutrition, I have to supplement.

[Kajsa]

2. Eating nutritional foods was a start.

I had to watch the excess sugar as it
would set me up for a big rollercoaster
of energy/crashing fatigue.
Salads, nuts, yogurt and milk are my friends.

Getting a good nights sleep is very important,
yet it remains a challenge for me.
When I first sobered up, I tried to get at least
7-8 hours a night.
Lack of sleep felt like a friggin hangover, and
I was sick of feeling that way.

I drink Chamomile tea every night which helps.
And it tastes good, too.
Hey- I heard one of our dear Administrators loves
Chamomile tea, too. ;-)

Meanwhile, I try to relax and remind myself
that even though I may not be asleep, at
least I'm resting.

Oh yeah- I tell my "committee" to STFU, too!
" give it a rest, dudes" I tell 'em.

;-) :hi:

[wildeyed]

4. I get the insomnia, too.

It was much worse in early sobriety, but I still struggle with it. I find that if I keep my yoga and meditation practice really consistent, that helps a lot. Don't know if I posted this before in this forum, but this is a free guided meditation podcast that has been good.

http://www.themeditationpodcast.com/download.php

You can get it on iTunes, too. I find that listening to a podcast in the evening helps slow down my thought process. Also, I must log off the DU before 9 PM, otherwise I can get waaaaaay too wound up and obsessive. Not always so good at following that advice myself, but I do try. :hi:

[NMDemDist2]

3. I honestly don't remember.

I suppose I ate, but can't remember what. I know I didn't sleep well but seemed to function although not well

:shrug:

[idgiehkt]

5. lol

I can relate. I'll never forget one day about 2 or 3 months sober finding this bag sitting on my living room floor, right in front of the door. I opened it up and there was this big fuzzy gray thing in there, and I couldn't make any sort of identification of it other than 'big fuzzy gray object'. I lifted the bag, which was one of those netted bags, by the top corners, and threw it out into the yard, and as soon as it hit the ground the big fuzzy gray thing went 'poof' and disintergrated into a cloud of smoke. I stood there kind of puzzled until I remembered that right after I started going to AA my neighbor had brought me some food, including maybe a grapefruit or orange or two and had sat them down right inside the doorway. So up until that point each time I exited or entered my house I had stepped over that bag without even noticing it, for at least a couple months.

I can't even believe I was in such a daze back then but I was...it's a wonder I was allowed to roam freely. :hi:

[Justpat]

8. Wow.

I still keep house that way. Sobriety has done nothing for my domestic skills.

:hi:

[FloridaJudy]

6. I remember feeling like I was going nuts

Early in sobriety. Sometimes I swore I was hearing things (monks chanting, someone reading a news report in Russian, twelve drummers drumming, etc). I just wish someone had told me that this was normal: it's called "post acute withdrawal syndrome" and in no way means you're turning schizophrenic. The sad thing was that I was under the care of a so-called "addictionologist", who charged both me and my insurance company a fortune, but I had to learn this at an AA meeting! One dollar, and the coffee was free...

I found that I could control the symptoms with Yoga and meditation. I developed some meditation techniques that I later learned are actually part of Zen practice. They've worked for over 2,000 years, and that is definitely beta-tested!

I also found it helpful to get outside. Just a brisk walk with the dog around the neighborhood would sometimes clear my head. I also bought a year's admission to the butterfly garden at the local museum. Next to my DU membership, it's the most valuable twenty-something bucks I've ever spent.

I still occasionally suffer from weird sleep patterns (which may account for some of those 3:00 am posts), but those are getting better. Maybe by the time I rack up twenty years sober, I'll be consistently sleeping through the night.

At least I hope so.

[NMDemDist2]

7. I slept great until menopause

now? well, not so much :rofl:

[Kajsa]

9. Me too, AZDem!

Men are so fortunate that they don't
have to go through that mess.

Disrupted sleep patterns, mood swings,
crazy thoughts, sweats, etc.
Wow- just like detox!

I knew that bugger was familiar!

:rofl: :hi:

[KitchenWitch]

10. The night sweats are a killer!

x(

[Justpat]

11. I didn't mind them.

I'm one of those people who wear long underwear if the tempature is below 72 degrees
so the sweats were OK with me.

When I first started getting hot flashes I thought I was having a religious experience.
It wasn't so bad.

Menopause is God's gift to middle aged women.

But that is a whole 'nother group discussion, I quess.

[SPKrazy]

12. Yes, I Think That Despite The

suggestions that candy bars would help the cravings, that may be much better than drinking it is better to find healthier snacks in my opinion, things that don't start the insulin surge/crash cycle which leads to increased anxiety and craving for sugar. Since alcohol breaks down largely to sugar, along with acetaldehyde, and water. Sugar craving is pretty normal during early recovery. I never ate sweets when I drank, and finding out that I did after I sobered up was strange.

Exercise has been a back and forth thing for me. I've gotten a better routine going with exercise although I'm having some trouble with it due to arthritis right now.

[RetroLounge]

13. I was really way underweight...

No other physical issues, but I weighed 135lbs, and I'm 5'10".

I had a sponsor who liked to eat, and we went out to dinner a lot after meetings. and we went to a meeting every day.

RL

[SPKrazy]

14. We tended to gather at

Mazzio's pizza after meetings and get refillable coke cups, and we'd stay there drinking cokes until they closed (couple of hours) I'm sure they loved the hell out of us :P

But, yeah, eating after meetings happened a lot of other times and eating healthy was not something I was used to at all despite the fact that I wasn't underweight, in fact I almost immediately lost 20 lbs, in like a couple of weeks it seemed. Beer bloat I guess?

Anyway, food and fellowship saved my life as much as anything else I believe.

:pals: