A friend suffers from alcoholism as well as bi-polar depression. I suggested she try keto - she dove right in, eliminated the carbs right away, and enjoyed that way of eating. She barely suffered from any negatives symptoms. What she experienced however, was a buzzed high feeling, within 24 hours, and that continued. She is currently abstaining from alcohol, and said that the buzzed feeling from eating keto made the alcohol cravings much worse, so after one week she went back to eating carbs.
She is overweight, and I felt that eating keto would help with her weight as well as the depression.
Does anyone have any experience with this? Does anyone know if she continues past one week of eating keto, that this buzzed feeling will eventually go away, or that the alcohol cravings will subside?
Addiction and Keto
Crazy how those two go hand in hand a lot of the time.
Make it through the body missing carbs and you’ll truly feel better. I can’t even explain it to people other than that.
I think her sobriety is more important than anything else. If she was my friend, I would support that first and anything else comes 2nd. I get the impression that she is newly sober? Give her some time to adjust to that. When she’s ready to make some other positive changes in her life, she can try keto again.
I suffer from an anxiety disorder. My body interprets the “buzz” of keto as anxiety. It has improved over time but I have had to limit or not use chocolate and caffeinated coffee. I cannot use MCT oils and find coconut oil stimulating but I use it sometimes. Sleep was a bigger problem for awhile as I entered ketosis, due to the “buzz” effect. I did use my prescription meds for sleep and anxiety as prescribed but was successful in using less over time and but sometimes still require it. I didn’t self medicate with alcohol or other depressants so I cannot speak to that, except that I understand why people can be driven to self medicate with alcohol.
The chronic depression I have suffered for most of my life has responded more favorably to being in ketosis. As has PTSD as evidenced by fewer panic attacks and less vivid dreams and nightmares.
Chronic sleep problems have improved vastly, where as I used to average 5 hours a night, I now average 7 hours and sometimes more. Getting proper sleep has helped with managing the mood disorders so much.
I hope this helps answer some of your questions. This is how I have responded and realize that it can very extensively for others.
There is a woman in northern California named Julia Ross who has a clinic which advocates a proper supplement and nutrition protocol in regards to helping people with substance abuse issues she wrote a book called the mood cure I would recommend it to anyone who deals with stress and that is just about everyone on the planet you can also find her on YouTube this has been her life’s work for many decades,in my opinion the connection between diet and addiction is undeniable, cutting the sugar and carbs will be a huge benefit for your friend
Sorry for you having troubles like these. I wish you all the best 
@anonymous67
What she actually experienced was new and “unknown” and likely much more than what she perceived and/or shared or complained of. The cravings for alcohol are twofold (as you likely know), psychological and physiological.
So what you are asking seems to imply you hope if the buzz goes away she’ll be able to endure the sobriety and end her depression and obesity. The cravings, however, just as your way of questioning suggests, is part of the buzz (whether it be metabolism change and/or carb withdrawal).
My very strongest recommendation is that she find a good doctor to support her medical detoxification along with the lchf WOE. Remember ketosis is radical just like NOT drinking is for her. Two wrongs won’t likely feel like a right under any circumstances. This means her choosing those wrongs on purpose is the one thing that will make all the difference in the scenario, every single time she makes the choice.
My hope is that you will remain a great support and maybe understand that the choosing often has to happen over and over and over for many before an episode actually “catches on” and proof of the value for the effort is revealed. Lastly, that is BEST monitored by a trusted professional for reliable and safe guidance. 