Alcohol

What effect does alcohol have on you? And I'm not talking about over drinking, getting plastered...just a beer or a glass of wine or two. Does it make a difference as far as anxiety, depression or raciness is concerned.

It has depressive effects in general. l Everyone is different. I can have a glass of wine here and there and it doesn't mess with me. It just relaxes me. My Pdoc has no problems with me having some.

Of course you need to be careful while taking psych meds.. the two often don't mix well

For me beer for lunch is not alcohol (#Czech).

I have pretty good metabolism what alcohol concerns, so it doesn't really do much to me, especially in small doses. I didn't notice any depresant effect on me. But that's probably just me (#Slavic chick)

Makes me highly manic. feel like a million dollars. Feel like I'm a celebrity. Can do anything. Hottest thing on this planet. Everyone is less then me. Feel I'm the best there ever was... next day a huge crash into depression. that usually ends up lasting one week or more. ..

Needless to say I quit drinking and haven't drank in a year and a half now... the one night (often filled with bad mistakes) of superman is not worth the destruction that follows..

Writing this as I'm drunk :P (trying to do my best as to correct all the 1231 typos I make)

Alcohol has a different effect on me most of the time. It can get me melancholy for the night or super spontaneous..
I had a period in the summer where alco did not really do much for me, but nowadays a bottle of beer can already make me feel drunk.

Generally, even after 4 bottles I don't do anything crazy though. Only thing I've noticed is that, at times I get a few days' low mood after a night out..

It seems to enhance what ever mood I am in at the time. If down, I go down. If up, I go up. I know it does have some adverse affects on certain medication. I believe it enhances some of the effects depending on what you take. For me, Ned's that should slow me down make me wierd like there is no tomorrow. Medications seem to have opposite affects on me so drinking does amplify. Not sure that helps you question though.

With my meds, it makes me very sleepy. Can't drink more than a glass of wine or a beer.

I've been told that alcohol and psych meds don't mix...it makes the meds not work as well. Therefore I stopped all drinking three years ago. Mind you I became an alcoholic from drinking took much and it affected my depression to the point of being suicidal. My pdoc said it was from the alcohol so I immediate stopped drinking it. I drank too lighten my mood but it was only temporary. It really does impact on how well yr meds work. I have a friend who suffers from bp depression and she drinks...it made her moods so much worse. In my opinion I wouldn't drink at all. Just my two cents. The reason I believe I became an alcoholic is because I continued to drink even tho I knew the risks of it affecting my meds and I didn't care and drank anyways. not a good thing. Good luck. Hugs

Very occasionally I'll have a glass of something. Just makes me relaxed and somewhat sleepy.

i take my meds at 10 pm so im an afternoon drinker when i drink..
i think its the meds but i can deal with 2 glasses - after that i get sluggish and kinda irritated. like being under a hot wet blanket.

as a result i dont often indulge but i tend to have a glass of wine (2 tops) on a friday afternoon when hubby gets off work. we have a weekly evaluation together and a drink and a snck just goes with that ritual,

hey,

i always forget to ask my pdoc if i can drink alcohol, not a lot of course, but a glass of wine with lunch would be like heaven for me.

i'm on lamictal and abilify and i know that messing with alcohol while od psych meds isn't good at all...

A few times a month I drink to the point of being very drunk. I generally get wild and crazy and feel extremely depressed for the next few days. My meds don't seem to have any effect- my drinking and reactions are the same medicated or not medicated.

10 year heavy drinker speaking:

Don't mix alcohol with meds - you literally are pissing away the medications because the alcohol doesn't let your body metabolize them (the meds). I used to be able to drink lots while on Effexor with no real side effects.

I'm on Geodon now and can barely have a drink or 2 without having a freakout attack. It's a really bad mix to the point where it scares me to drink while on this medication, so I stopped altogether. Not having the Geodon in my system is not a fun experience and there's no real effect of the alcohol - no buzz.... just panic, regret, and almost complete detachment from reality.

I know all-to-well the allure of drinking when you're depressed or bipolar, I did it for years and it ended up with multiple psych hospital stays at the end of it (last years).

Avoid if possible is my advice. The detrimental effects will creep in slowly over the years if you drink a lot, and the outcome is always a net loss.

I drink more than I probably should, but it doesn't seem to have any negative effect on my moods. I can act a little hypomanic while drunk, but that isn't a bad feeling and I've never had alcohol trigger depression.

I'm not on any psych meds. Moderate drinking usually improves my mood, unless I'm really mad about something, then it usually makes it worse. I went a little overkill last night & have been dealing with the rare and unfortunate hangover today! So.....THAT'S not ideal!

As soon as my inhibitions go away all I can think about is committing suicide, hence I don't drink.

After my psychiatrist made me see the BP truth, as recommended, I stopped all alcohol drinking. Many times before I did over drink, not to the point of passing out, but probably close at times. Alcohol just made my BP mouth run that much more, probably had ideas that just were not so, and of course I was self medicating all along. Think my drinking is over with, and I feel much better.

I used to drink EVERYTHING...A LOT. Then I stopped drinking altogether. Now I drink a little wine. I used to live in San Francisco and had access to great wine so I learned what was good and what I liked...and what liked me. Funny, though, now, when I have a tall glass of the Sauvignon Blanc, the only white wine I drink, it has no effect on me at all. But if I drink any dark red, just a third of a glass, I go off on a loop'd loop. Right now I'm desperately sticking to low doses of Lamictal and Xanax, topped of with dollops of Topomax and a few other goodies. So I don't know what's mixing with what. But my ENT just told me I have to stop drinking the wine, now, too. And I will, sure, as soon as it runs out. Sure.

It's what Curious said earlier. It amplifies my current mood. So if I'm aggravated or depressed I don't dare drink. I have to be in the right frame of mind or trouble ensues.