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Drinking alcohol can cause many effects on the body, which can persist when a person enters sobriety. Fatigue can occur during prolonged alcohol use and abstinence, which can cause and worsen many physical and mental effects of alcohol withdrawal. Managing sobriety fatigue can help maintain sobriety and improve the recovery process.
- Sobriety fatigue is a common experience during alcohol recovery, caused by physical and mental changes as the body adapts to functioning without alcohol.
- Factors like dehydration, disrupted sleep, neural changes, stress, and the healing process contribute to feelings of exhaustion and reduced energy.
- Managing sobriety fatigue through hydration, healthy eating, a consistent sleep schedule, stress management, light exercise, and support networks can improve recovery outcomes.
What is sobriety fatigue?
‘Sobriety fatigue’ refers to the feeling of physical and mental exhaustion that commonly occurs when someone stops drinking. This fatigue can occur after a once-off night of binge drinking or when someone with an alcohol addiction quits drinking.
Often, people entering alcohol addiction recovery experience exhaustion, reduced motivation, and fatigue in the early stages, along with other symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. There can be many contributing factors to this, as the body begins to heal and detox, adapting to functioning without substances.[1]
Why does sobriety fatigue occur?
When a person stops drinking alcohol after a prolonged period of use, the body experiences several changes as it adapts to the absence of alcohol. This can affect physical and mental well-being in various ways that have an impact on energy levels.
Contributing factors to fatigue
The contributing factors to sobriety fatigue include: [1][2][3][4]
- Dehydration: Alcohol use and alcohol withdrawal can cause dehydration, which leads to symptoms including headaches, confusion, extreme tiredness, and weakness.
- Neural changes: Prolonged alcohol use and addiction cause changes in brain chemistry. During abstinence, stress and reward pathways that have been altered during the time of alcohol use can lead to an increase in symptoms related to fatigue, including sleep changes, stress, and low energy.
- Changes in sleep: Alcohol affects sleep quality in various ways, including breathing issues during the night, increased need to urinate during the night, and changes in stress hormones which increase stimulation and awakenings. These effects disrupt the circadian rhythm, the body’s natural clock. When alcohol use is stopped, it can take some time to restore the circadian rhythm and people may have difficulties falling or staying asleep, which contributes to fatigue.
- Increased stress: Some people use drugs and alcohol to manage emotional difficulties or stress. When they stop drinking, these feelings, along with psychological withdrawal symptoms, can emerge, which can cause feelings of mental and physical exhaustion.
- Healing: Prolonged alcohol use can damage the body in many ways, such as liver damage, which can contribute to fatigue. [5]
Signs and symptoms of sobriety fatigue
Symptoms of sobriety fatigue can include:
- Feeling extremely tired and wanting to sleep a lot
- Insomnia and other sleep disturbances
- Feeling very thirsty
- Being unable to concentrate
- Experiencing a lack of motivation and energy levels
- Mental changes, such as anxiety, stress, and low mood
- Feeling emotionally and physically drained and unable to cope
How long does it last?
Sobriety fatigue can last a few days to a few months. This varies depending on the individual, how they manage their symptoms, the severity of their alcohol use and dependency, and whether they utilize support when quitting alcohol.
Often, alcohol withdrawal symptoms are alleviated within a couple of weeks, although some effects can last longer, sometimes up to six months. Once withdrawal symptoms are reduced, it is common to experience an increase in energy levels and improvements in sleep, which can reduce fatigue.[1]
Fatigue's impact on recovery
Recovery can be a challenging process, and unpleasant mental and physical symptoms can contribute to this. Fatigue can impact a person’s motivation to remain abstinent and may worsen withdrawal symptoms, which can add to relapse risks.
Fatigue can also cause people to feel unable to engage in positive behaviors for their recovery, such as eating healthily, attending therapy or treatment sessions, and focusing on self-care. This can increase negative feelings around recovery, which may contribute to a desire to drink alcohol.
How fatigue affects well-being
Fatigue can impact personal, social, and professional functioning, causing difficulties in continuing with responsibilities or hobbies and potentially impacting relationships and attendance or performance at work.
As such, fatigue can lead to harmful changes in physical and mental well-being, such as poor sleep, changes in appetite, reduced exercise, decreased concentration, low mood, anxiety, and stress.
Managing sobriety fatigue
Managing sobriety fatigue can help reduce the impact it has on recovery. Self-care techniques that can help manage sobriety fatigue include: [6][7]
- Regular hydration: Drinking plenty of water can significantly improve energy levels and prevent or reduce dehydration.
- Eating healthy foods: Healthy food can increase energy levels and mood and combat fatigue, while also helping the body to recover. In contrast, high-fat or high-sugar foods can increase lethargy, thus worsening fatigue.
- Sleep schedule: Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day can help restore the circadian rhythm, which can contribute to improvements in sleep quality and quantity.
- Managing mood and stress: Engaging in therapy, mindfulness, meditation, or relaxation techniques can help reduce stress and negative emotions, helping to reduce fatigue.[8]
- Exercise: Although fatigue can make it difficult to feel motivated to exercise, engaging in some light activities, such as walking or yoga, can improve energy levels, along with providing mental and physical benefits.
- Support networks: Spending time with loved ones can help people stay motivated in their recovery, provide emotional support, and reduce feelings of stress and loneliness, all of which can reduce fatigue.
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