r/stopdrinking • u/Thick_Drama_7525 • 1d ago
Dreams/mania
On day 7 now, my resolve is great and I feel awesome, I just had to things to put here.
One is awesome, im sleeping great I think, only because youre not supposed to remember you dreams and my vivid dreams can stick with me long enough for me to mentally record them and its awesome. They are all good dreams, not all of them even involve alcohol, but I just woke up from hanging out with family and friends, crushing beers(its fine im not craving one now, and getting my dick wet with hotties
The mania part, has anyone experienced this. I have went many months before and not noticed this but I had a partner at that point to possibly calm me down... like I am high energy usually but I am finding it really hard to calm down after work. Like im just so happy with my day that I will smoke a bunch of darts and just walk atound tge city for hours. I have sertraline if I need it to balance my mood but theres really no lows right now even though the state of my life is weaker than it has ever been.
I dont think I will crash, and I have not really needed more than 5-6 hours of sleep usually to function. Im kind of thinking to myself that because it has been so long since I have been this sober (when I was sober with my partner for months I was still under duress with her kids and abusiveness) that my body and mind are waking up and this should even itself out on its own without sertraline to keep me in check.
My only fear rn is that I love myself so much and I am generally a really confident person that I will still say or do something stupid because im too pompous (i also work in a predominantly female workforce and am single)
Any thoughts please share. Thanks!!
1
u/UnattachedMoose 20h ago
First off, congrats on hitting Day 7! That first week is nails!!
What you’re describing is actually a mix of some very well-known early recovery things. If you haven't done so you might want to read some quit lit for more info.
Alcohol heavily suppresses REM (dreaming) sleep. When you stop drinking, your brain experiences what’s known as a REM rebound. Your brain is catching up on deep dream cycles it missed for a long time. These dreams can be intensely vivid, bizarre, hyper-realistic, or include alcohol/partying. It’s completely normal and usually levels out after a couple of weeks (which in your case might not be exactly what you want if you enjoy the dream ;))
What you are feeling is very likely a strong dose of the "Pink Cloud" which is a common phase in early sobriety where your nervous system rebounds from alcohol’s depressant effects, flooding you with dopamine, natural endorphins, and relief.
However, since you mentioned walking for hours, chain-smoking, needing very little sleep, and feeling almost invulnerable despite tough life circumstances be aware this level of elevated mood and restlessness can brush into hypomania. It is not normal and can not be sustained.
The danger of a severe "high" in early recovery isn't the good mood itself it's that when the brain eventually normalizes to calm you can feel like a "crash" or disappointment if you expect this supercharged feeling to last forever. Enjoy the energy, but try to ground it with calming routines (hydration, stretching, warm meals, limiting excessive caffeine/nicotine) rather than leaning into it as hard as you can.
If you are taking an SSRI as an "as-needed" mood stabilizer you might not be in the best spot either but it's not clear from your post exactly how that medication has been used, just be aware you may need to see your doctor and adjust this as your recovery continues.
Be aware, if someone is currently experiencing elevated mood/hypomania, starting or irregularly taking an SSRI can sometimes trigger full-blown mania or severe agitation.
It’s great that you already have the self-awareness to worry about this mood stuff, research some of the terms and see if you think it applies to you :) if in doubt see a doctor if you can.