yep! I've had no side effects from the beer. it's really occasional. One time before, though I had like a twelve pack cuz I was camping with some friends and the next two days I had higher than normal anxiety. But mainly it's when I take a day out on the lake in my boat that I'll have a 24 ounce Budweiser and it doesn't have any after effects.

I have energy drinks most every day. the nice thing about me and energy drinks is that I don't seem to be building a tolerance to them. One is still enough for me. some days, when I am not feeling it, I'll have two or three. But I still can get to sleep at night, and there doesn't seem to be any after effects of that either.

I am sleeping a whole lot more now. Sleeping in till I absolutely have to get up, stretching the time. Not a month ago, I was up just before five and ready to go run a marathon lol. Just my pattern I guess. I'll be up by five again soon enough... right now I'm enjoying the sleep.

So anyways, the whole point of this post is to ask who here still drinks, and if it has any bad effects for them. Same thing with the energy drinks.

Just wondering if this is something that I should stop, or if it's harmless.

[laurawwrites]

i don't drink energy drinks but i do drink tons of coffee. I take lithium and the coffee like any caffeine causes my lithium levels to drop. When I was drinking even more coffee than i do now, I definitely noticed a differance in my mood. it was more volatile. I assume the energy drinks could do the same. As far as alchohol, I don't drink at all. In spite of zyprexa weight gain, I'm still a fairly small person and i can not handle alcohol mixed with my meds. It makes me sick and messes with my mood. That doesn't seem to be the case with you though. I would just say use moderation.

[A Red Panda]

I've noticed that my tolerance is lower than normal now that I've got some lamictal in my system. Still getting used to it, but I am trying to learn what my new limit is when I'm in situations with people I trust - so that I can know where I HAVE to stop when I'm out (it's one of the few things to do in my town, so, I'm not totally cutting it out)

[kaliope]

the rule about all things in moderation is the best one to follow.

I still drink on occasion and it doesn't seem to affect me. if I drink a lot, as in get ********* drunk, I wont take my meds because I am concerned about the interaction, but one or two, I think I am ok. but again, I rarely drink.

as for energy drinks, I am really sensitive to caffeine and prone to anxiety which is made worse by caffeine so I stay away from them. I have a cup of coffee in the morning and then no more caffeine for the rest of the day or I cannot sleep at night. and I value my sleep. I even stay away from the energy enhancing vitamins and things like ginsing because they will keep me up as well.

so as long as they aren't negatively impacting your life, I don't see the harm. take care

Nice! Moderation it is! that's kinda what I was thinking too!

[BlueInanna]

This topic often rubs people the wrong way...(so I apologize in advance)... But honestly, I love to have a few drinks. I think I naturally have a low tolerance and get buzzed easily. I don't usually have any desire to drink while depressed. I used to drink too much, to the point of puking. Pretty moderate now though, and now that I understand my chemistry is different from my friends.

I don't like energy drinks because I think they taste nasty lol & usually have a ton of artificial crud in them.

You can get a good energy rush off of fresh juiced organic veggies (I love carrot, beets, radish, kale, apple) - really good rush! Pdoc told me it's all the anti-oxidants in it & she's very proud of me juicing... and I've lost weight, bonus!

My advice is know yourself & control it if you start going to extremes with either.

why are you apologizing? I can handle myself lmao! It's good to hear that there are others like me who don't let this diagnosis get in the way of everything! I'll look into the juice idea, thanks!

[deelooted]

I am hooked on the energy drinks and want to get off of them so badly. I would love to be able to just have one cup of coffee in the morning and be done with it.

As for alcohol, it is a poison of choice for me and I simply cannot keep it in moderation, so none for me been nearly 3 years sober! (from the booze, at least)

[Skittles56]

Any nutritionist will tell you that beer in moderation is a very good thing. It helps prevent blood clots, raises your HDL, and helps keep your triglycerides under control. That's when you take it in moderation, or about 16 oz. per day.

That same nutritionist will tell you that lots of caffeine is a very bad thing. It retards the detoxifying effects of natural foods.

For that reason alone, I stay away from caffeine, but also my psychiatrist told me that it tangles badly with atypical antipsychotics. YMMV.

Whats YMMV ?

[wildflowerchild25]

i quit caffeine about five years ago once i realized it gave me horrible panic attacks and messed up my gastrointestinal system. before that i was abusing caffeine pills and i think the massive amounts i took made me intolerant to it. i still drink coffee on occasion because i love it but it HAS to be decaf or i know within an hour. last weekend dunkin donuts mixed up mine and my husband's coffees and i was jittery and anxious and shaking for the rest of the day. so usually i don't even take the chance. and i can't stand the taste of energy drinks anyway so i won't drink those. i can tolerate the amount of caffeine in soda though but only one or two.

as for alcohol, i have pretty much given that up as well. even though i want to drink (really badly some weekends!) it almost always ends with me self harming because my defenses are down. last weekend was the first weekend i was able to drink in moderation and just go to bed without self harming. so i don't like to take the chance very often.

but i agree with everyone - everything in moderation!