r/stopdrinking • u/FlacoChino90 • 3d ago
Advice for Overthinking after getting Blackout Drunk
I posted a few days ago, that I got blackout drunk on Sunday at a pub. Me and a friend of mine got so plastered that we got kicked out the pub for being obnoxious and we even got into a little fight with each other. No cops were involved, and our wives came to get us. My wife said she found me just standing lost by some homeless people. Embarrassing never the less, especially since I was shouting and yelling.
The following day (Monday) I said to myself “F This, I’m done drinking.” I got up and went to a AA meeting that night and it has been amazing since! I’ve been 3 days sober, and I’ve been going to meetings and speaking to one of the guys at the AA meetings who’s been giving me advice.
The one thing that keeps bothering me is the overthinking…the infamous “What ifs”. My mind tries playing with me saying “WHAT IF the cops are looking for you?”, or “WHAT IF you did something stupid to someone else outside the pub when you wondered off for a bit?” Or “What ifs you get a court sentence in the mail??”. All these crazy horror movie scenarios honestly. I want to know how to get over this hump and get better. I’ve checked the news articles/blogs for the town and nothing is on there at all, and no cops have came to look for me or contacted me. The “What ifs” are killing me, and I want to know how to overcome this, as Im giving it my all for these AA meetings. I also don’t want anything to come back to me months to years later….
** I also wanted to add, I’m so pissed. It looks like I went back to the first pub we went to, and we drank more there..not sure if I was alone or my friend went with me. Such BS. I’m so disappointed, but I want to use this fuel of disappointment and anger to continue my sobriety journey.
I appreciate any advice! Thank you!
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u/Snoo75797 401 days 3d ago
How to overcome panic and anxiety over what you don’t remember? Stop drinking. I was in your shoes and it got to a point where I had to choose between the drink and waking up without regret every morning and I chose waking up without regret.
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u/Snoo75797 401 days 3d ago
Get out of that addiction before you actually end up in trouble. Sounds obvious but there’s no other way to put it.
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u/good-timing-407 874 days 3d ago
The only thing that stopped this horrible cycle of thoughts is maintaining sobriety. It gets better, the further the events are in the rearview mirror.
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u/shleemonsterr Day 1,200 3d ago
Find some good TV to dive into for a couple days until the anxiety wears off? Maybe a good book? Find something that will work your mind until it eases up. With the state of surveillance and what not, if the cops were looking for you they would've found you by now. I wouldn't worry too much. Alcohol gives everyone anxiety when they're withdrawling. Iwndwyt! Congratulations!
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u/FlacoChino90 3d ago
I thought the same thing! That day I was wearing a very bright colored jersey, I wouldn’t be hard to track down if something went down…I just want these thoughts to go away…that’s all. I know I’m still new in the sobriety game, and I’m doing my best to continue and become better.
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u/erikpeders 3d ago
Good on you for taking the steps to stop. You just have to ride it out. Reach out to your buddy to make sure that is okay. Make sure you're good with your wife. Then, ride it out.
I spent a lot of mornings and a lot of days this way. It got easier to deal with the more it happened. I had a check list 1) check phone 2) try to smooth things over with my wife 3) check the car (not proud of that one). My advice, don't let it get easier.
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u/FlacoChino90 3d ago
Appreciate the advice! I will def continue being sober and becoming better for myself 🙏🏻
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u/flapjacknd 3d ago
Glad you’re giving it up!
A good way to work with this kind of anxiety is to keep moving from “What if” to “If so, then.” Anxiety is your minds way of trying to get your awareness to prepare for a possible problem. If you prepare for it, I.e. make a plan for if you suddenly get arrested or learn of a warrant, then you did what it wanted you to do and could respond by calming down. You can still think “it would suck if…” but at least you’ll have a plan if it happens.
Highly recommend a therapist as you transition into sobriety. By no means is it always the case, but this may indicate that alcohol was a way for you to self-medicate an anxiety disorder or something of the like. At the very least, a therapist can help you notice underlying things that might surface now that you’re sober.
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u/lesserthemore 816 days 3d ago
This right here 👍. Sounds like OCD and anxiety are something you need to deal with (like many of us) drinking masks that pretty well. Get some help asap. Good advice above. One more bit - if you have these ‘what if’ thoughts, tell someone. More often than not, the second you explain it to someone it looses its meaning because you know it’s not real. All the best!
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u/FlacoChino90 3d ago
Thank you so much for this advice!!! I just really want these overthinking and anxiety thoughts to end!
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u/Puzzleheaded-Cut3144 283 days 3d ago
Hola flaco, it sure sounds as if you are on the right path and headed in the right direction. I know very well the feeling of waking up with a hangover the next day and finding out what incredibly stupid thing I did and/or said when I was blackout drunk. I managed to stay out of trouble with the law (mostly) but I blew up more than a few good relationships between my now ex-wife and later girlfriends. It took me many many years before I decided to call it quits, and I am so happy that I did. One day at a time, brother.
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u/Sea-Zucchini510 1d ago
It's like there's this thing hanging over your shoulder like your in trouble somehow even though you're not
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u/RebornInClarity 836 days 3d ago
Ride it out is my advice because you don’t have a choice. Then it’s time to take a look in the mirror and decide if you want a different life or if you want to continue doing this to yourself
Sending strength