Discussion Is alcohol really a depressant

[squillykilly]

I've been battling with depression my whole life, and even on anti Depressants I still end up self harming and planning my inevitable CTB... The only thing that makes me genuinely happy is being tipsy/drunk. "Ohh Squilly, that's a depressant! It makes things worse" why do I feel so happy when I drink and then feel the exact same (depressed) when I sober up. I don't ever want to be sober, I just want to be happy
I understand it's factually a depressant but I DONT CARE

 

[SASU-KE]

As Jeff Goldblum said,That's how it starts in the beginning. And then comes the crying and screaming.

 

[Afterglow]

Just as you said in the last line, yes, it is classed as a depressant.

Both of my friends who died by suicide were drunk when it happened.

It feels good at first, but when it becomes the new normal, everything comes crashing back down.

 

[Forveleth]

It is a depressant because of what it does physiologically not psychology. It slows CNS activity. This makes some people happier while others are sadder. Your mood can also change over time as you build tolerance with repeated use.

Is Alcohol a Depressant?

Alcohol is a depressant, but it also produces some stimulating effects. This makes it an easy drug to abuse. Learn about alcohol's depressant effects on the body.

www.verywellmind.com

 

[NotSoEnchanted]

It feels good at first, but when it becomes the new normal, everything comes crashing back down.

Exactly this. I got black out drunk last night and awoke this afternoon to a noose hanging in my kitchen, and my wrist cut. I used to just wake up to a mess or something, maybe some cookies I'd baked drunk. But now after 3 drinks I get incredibly sad. 1-2 I'll be alright, but anything past that is the 'danger zone' I miss the days where I didn't drink nightly and where I was actually happy when drunk.

 

[VegasLyra]

It is a depressant because if what it does physiologically not psychology. It slows CNS activity. This makes some people happier while others are sadder. Your mood can also change over time as you build tolerance with repeated use.

Is Alcohol a Depressant?

Alcohol is a depressant, but it also produces some stimulating effects. This makes it an easy drug to abuse. Learn about alcohol's depressant effects on the body.

www.verywellmind.com

Exactly this. When people say a drug is a depressant they mean it slows down your central nervous system, not that it makes you feel emotionally depressed

 

[apistatcommander]

I've been battling with depression my whole life, and even on anti Depressants I still end up self harming and planning my inevitable CTB... The only thing that makes me genuinely happy is being tipsy/drunk. "Ohh Squilly, that's a depressant! It makes things worse" why do I feel so happy when I drink and then feel the exact same (depressed) when I sober up. I don't ever want to be sober, I just want to be happy
I understand it's factually a depressant but I DONT CARE

When I first started drinking, it did make me feel better. But after a while I just started being such a miserable drunk. I started blacking out and waking up with my clothes wet and scratches on my body from what were probably drunken attempts to drown myself. I have super vague memories of being outside and literally crying and screaming about how I don't want to live. The loss of control is starting to scare me

 

[Jimmy.]

Yes. The next day when you have hangxiety it's even worse.

The chemical affect and the detox process is frightening.

 

[Star67]

I've also been on countless meds that haven't helped and have medicated with drugs, mainly alcohol since I was 18 (I'm 29 now). I was sober for a little over 2 years from 27 till last fall but prior to that I was drinking rubbing alcohol religiously. All drugs will creep up on you if you're an addict, and then worst of all, they'll stop working yet you'll keep using. I definitely feel closer to ctb when I'm drinking and after days of hard drinking as it IS a depressant but like you I also don't care. Fortunately I have not gotten back to the point of rubbing alcohol

 

[bipolar22]

Benzodiazepine, opoids and alcohol partially nictoine are depressants. CNS depressants. All of the are euphoriants. Clinical depressions is something else entirely ans has nothing to do with it. People confuse this ans frankly doctors push the misconception to keep people from drinking. But ist bullshit as most of what they tell ya.

 

[Forever Sleep]

I'm curious about this too. Is it more when it is taken excessively? I don't tend to get drunk as such but, I don't feel like alcohol makes me feel more sad. It just numbs me. But then- I think the term: 'depressed' can also mean- reduced. So- reduced awareness, reduced inhibition- rather than necessarily skewed negative perception.

Maybe people react to it in different ways. Some people become violent after using it excessively.

 

[bipolar22]

I'm curious about this too. Is it more when it is taken excessively? I don't tend to get drunk as such but, I don't feel like alcohol makes me feel more sad. It just numbs me. But then- I think the term: 'depressed' can also mean- reduced. So- reduced awareness, reduced inhibition- rather than necessarily skewed negative perception.

Maybe people react to it in different ways. Some people become violent after using it excessively.

if drugs are tools alcohol is a sledgehammer. it it affects so many neurotransmitter. one effect it has at high doses is emotional enhancement. meaning sadder things can feel sadder. while lower levels usually are more about dopamine and opoid enhancement causing euphoria. its CNS depressants which just means it lowers brain nerve firing like ativan or even mirtazapine or melatonin