Binge drinking and anxiety

[saus]

I'm in college, and once a week I usually drink, sometimes more than I had planned, and get pretty drunk.

I recently started taking lexapro for GAD. It seems to be working but then again the last few days I've had the same old anxiety. I'm wondering if alcohol has a long term (more than 24 hours, say) effect on anxiety levels. Also, does lexapro still help if there are significant effects from alcohol, or is it useless when combined with binge drinking?

It should be very easy to cut myself off at a certain point if this is making my anxiety worse.

[Topcat]

Can I Drink Alcohol on Lexapro?
According to the Lexapro® (escitalopram oxalate) manufacturer, drinking alcohol while on Lexapro is not recommended. Because medicines and alcohol act upon similar chemicals in the brain, the concern is that Lexapro will increase the effects of alcohol -- whether this is increasing depression symptoms or affecting motor skills.

When many healthcare providers are asked whether it is okay to drink alcohol while on Lexapro, they recommend that if a person chooses to drink, he or she should drink only light-to-moderate amounts. He or she should also drink alcohol only after fully understanding the effects that Lexapro (and other medicines he or she is taking) may have on the body.

[northstar]

good post from topcat :D

you may also like to be aware of the fact that alcohol can actually induce anxiety and if you drink a lot then cutting down or cutting it out may really help with the problem. basically alcohol messes with your blood sugars, it dehydrates you and it makes you burn through your B vitamins (the ones that are important to help us cope with stress & that make us feel relaxed).

i personally drink very little now because i know the blood sugar drop that comes after drinking will make me feel very bad. just one glass of wine will give me heart palpitations! but i find it's less scary when you know whats happening, i used to panic when i felt those palpitations, but now that i know it's coming from the alcohol it takes all the fear out out of it - do you know what i mean?

so it may be a good idea to give it a try and see if cutting down or cutting it out for a couple of weeks helps you to feel better. you might also like to have a look at this post on the other things you can do to help with the anxiety: http://www.anxietyforum.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4087

i hope you're feeling better soon :)

[danstelter]

I have also seen that dehydration (alcohol dehydrates your body) causes fatigue, general tiredness, and headaches, among other things. One way your body can respond to dehydration is by using anxiety. So, those next couple days, while you are getting hydrated again, the alcohol is most definitely causing additional anxiety.

My doctor also said that you should not be binge drinking (you can drink 2-3 drinks or so) when on Lexapro. That being said, I did do it a couple times and really noticed no effects.

So, just be prepared for the consequences if you do binge drink, or stop binge drinking if you want your anxiety level to go down.