takes a while for your brain to recalibrate. alcohol is a depressant so it makes sense that you were depressed when drinking. but now that you have no alcohol flowing into your noodle, you also have low dopamine levels. takes awhile to balance it out. take a walk or try to acheive super small wins in virtually any way (i.e. make a cup of coffee) and you should get some dopamine cooking
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Hey Sophia, I understand how you feel…. The waves of depression feel paralyzing. But I believe in you. You can fight this. Ride the wave with grit my dear. You got yourself sober and only you and God know how hard that first part was. This next part I believe will not last forever and you will see you are not flawed but an amazing person made in God’s image with specific talents. Dont ever give up.
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Clearly we do this one day at a time but I'm in agreement with the 1st responder... Getting a good home group even having a therapist these are good steps to help with issues that may have caused you to need to change the way you felt in the 1st place. I had bigger problems too and that's what caused me to make it necessary too Siri to change the way I felt by drinking. But with therapy and strengthening of my fellowship in AAI've been able to maintain sobriety now for a while and and really be pretty happy with life.
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For me when i start getting depressed its because im expecting too much. I have to take a step back and accept life on lifes terms. If you have a big book read 417-420
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5th step really helped me with depression.
Your thinking too much, stay busy and make a list of things to accomplish. You'll feel better. Keep adding to the list, even if it's simple stuff like doing the dishes or walking 10k steps
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I’m with ya. I’ve been depressed and anxious for months now. It’s awful, and I think about the same stuff. The thing is, I smoke a lot of pot nowadays and I don’t know if I should be sharing that. Im rooting for you!
Hi Sophia,
I'm not sure if you have sought any professional help in regards to the depression, but found it to be very helpful guiding me through my emotions along with an explanation/correlation to certain events/traumas in my life. I found that drinking was a way to cope with those suppressed feelings. Drinking may not be the issue, it's moreso what is the root of the depression? I practice EMDR and DBT therapy to cope and manage my feelings, but I am sure there are other types of therapy out there... Food for thought when; "if I can bring light to one broken soul, then I will have lived. If I can place myself in another's shoes and imagine their plight, then I will know what empathy means. For to know another's journey & show compassion with certainty, is to see a person in their entirety" hang in there 
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This was the reason I relapsed the first time I tried getting clean. Life is a struggle down to its core but what I’ve learned recently is the patience is essential in the process. Drugs and alcohol provide instant gratification and an easy solution to depression but it is only temporary. You have to stay strong and believe that all of this will pay off in the long run. Trust me, you’ll only find yourself back in this same situation if you begin using again. Get through the hard part now so that you’ll be able to reap the rewards sooner rather than later. Hang in there, I believe in you!
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I’ve been there for sure!! I fought like heck to get out of my alcoholic drinking pattern for a few months but then when I started to feel like I was getting my obsession with the alcohol manageable I came to the realization I had a bunch of trauma, feelings I had no idea how to process and just a bunch of anxiety and depression… that frankly alcohol worked well to numb for a long time until it became the monster it did. 3-6 months of sobriety is when I went through this. I had success with working the 12 steps of recovery to learn how to manage life on life terms and it changed my life. I still have some anxiety and some depression but it is not all consuming like it was for me during that period time . Keep at it it does get better and you are worthy
its important to first identify why/what type of depression.
- circumstantial/life event related.
- natural physiological.
- post chemical imbalance from substance withdrawl.
- psychological.
each has a slightly different path, but i can say one thing with certainty: step work helps in all cases!
Not all depression stems from drinking. If you need more help seek a professional. That’s in the Big Book too.
I know how you feel bro