Do I need to Detox?

General health and lifestyle
1

I'm trying to pull myself together and drastically cut down on my drinking. I've been drinking pretty much every night for about a month or two. I've been going on binges of drinking every day a week or so at a time for the last couple years, and then I would stop for a week and start over again. This has been the longest period of drinking every day. It started with two tall boys a night, and progressed to a six pack of 16ozs on the weekdays, and then heavily bing drinking one day a weekend. I didn't think that I was drinking enough to experience withdrawals if I suddenly stopped. I've done this before, and never experienced withdrawals. This time was different.  

I drank heavily last Monday, and then didn't drink again until Friday night. I was very anxious, had some episodes of the shakes, and I was in a pretty bad fog. My head hurt and I was thirsty all day, I couldn't get enough water. I couldn't think, I just didn't feel right. I caved in and drank a six pack Friday night, and then yesterday was my birthday so it was just a waterfall of booze. I don't know how much I drank, but it was a lot. 

I feel terrible at the moment, partly due to the nasty hangover. I'm feeling very stressed out and anxious. The shakes are starting to creep in, along with the fog. The realization that this has become a problem is giving me a lot of anxiety, I have moments where I feel like I'm just going to break down and have a panic attack. I can't believe I let myself go like this. 

Anyways, given the amount of alcohol that I have been consuming, should I be concerned about DT's or seizures? I made it around 90 hours with seemingly mild withdrawal symptoms, considering. No one knows that I drink like this, I'm a closet alcoholic. I'm afraid to tell anyone, because I don't want them to know that I've sunk this low. I don't want anyone worrying about me, which is why I've come here. 

Any help or advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading. 

2

Hello Randy,

It sounds to me that you DO need a detox. You must not try to stop drinking without medical assistance.You should drink the amount you require to stop the withdrawal symptoms but try not to drink more than that (easier said than done, I know).

DTs (Delirium Tremens) is a term often used for shakiness alone which is massively inaccurate. It appears that you know that it is far more serious, it is actually a medical condition which is extremely dangerous and its symptoms can include confusion, disorientation, hallucinations as well as other mental or nervous system changes. It is most likely to occur between 12 and 48 hours of your last drink. It needs urgent medical attention and should be treated as seriously as a heart attack. Seizures can occur even before DTs with alcohol withdrawal.

It doesn't sound like you have suffered this but that is no guarantee that you wouldn't if you tried to stop drinking without medical help.

You must go and see a doctor and ask for an alcohol detox. You should also ensure that you are taking plenty of clear, non-alcoholic fluids and try to eat a reasonable amount, in the meantime.

Don't beat yourself up about this. Alcohol addiction is a result of a medical condition in which some people react differently to alcohol than others. It is NOT a self-inflicted condition and it is NOT your fault. It IS, however, your responsibility to get it sorted out because nobody else can take the decisions you need to take, on your behalf.

Good luck!! smile

3

I had delirium tremons for 5 days and sat with ghosts and apparitions coming out of the walls. They followed me around for day tormenting me saying they were going to kill me.

DTs are not the shakes.

I'm 9 months 13 days without a drink. I couldn't stop on my own. I had tried before and always returned. I gave in and asked for help from the book of A.A.

4

Hi Randy, You received a pretty comprehensive reply already, so allow me to just add that although the next week or two will be fairly challenging should you choose to detox, the payoff is well worth it, in terms of quality of life.  I wish you the best, but as Paul J Turner said, you MUST seek medical attention, especially since you've binged and stopped in the past.  All the best to you!

5

Hi Bella

A simple way to see if you're alcoholic is to drink. Try to stop abruptly. If you drink more than intended, you probably are alcoholic.

"He may start off as a moderate drinker; he may or may not become a continuous hard drinker; but at some stage of his drinking career he begins to lose all control of his liquor consumption, once he starts to drink."

I lost the power of choice in drinking alcohol. Once the first drink was ine me, I lost all control and drank more until I passed out. If I decided not to drink, I would obsess about drinking. No matter how long I decided to stay away from the booze on willpower alone I would always return to it and then I would drink more than intended. I couldn't stop on my own.

Being a morning drinker or drinking because depressed or happy, does not constitute alcoholism. I used to think I drank to "escape" I was drinking to overcome a craving and an obsession I couldn't control. The morning drinking, the "hair of the dog" the "I'm depressed, restless, happy, angry" were just external excuses.

I agree with the following summation. This was me. "The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost the power of choice in drink. Our so-called will power becomes practically nonexistent. We are unable, at certain times, to bring into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago. We are without defense against the first drink."

"Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows. Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death."

"We learned that we had to fully concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics. This is the first step in recovery. The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has to be smashed."

"We alcoholics are men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking. We know that no real alcoholic ever recovers control. All of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals - usually brief - were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization."

"We are convinced to a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better."

Drinking alcohol was the solution. I had no control over the amount I drank and would always return to drinking alcohol.

I went to A.A. and I am not drinking today which is a miracle as I used to drink every hour of every day. My drinking started "socially" though I was never a social drinker. Never that one pint, or one glass.

I had to be honest. It took a long time. Years of fantasy living and drinking.

If you think that you are alcoholic and can honestly (I had to get painfully honest. My "adventures" in drinking were evidence enough, yet I still couldn't be honest. I finally drank again and the experience and results of my last drink which turned into a non-stop 10-day bender with only three memories is something I never want to repeat. I was beaten. Alcohol was more powerful than me and I had finally lost and surrendered) then seek help.

I wish you well.

Kind regards

Richard

6

Hi Randy

A simple way to see if you're alcoholic is to drink. Try to stop abruptly. If you drink more than intended, you probably are alcoholic.

"He may start off as a moderate drinker; he may or may not become a continuous hard drinker; but at some stage of his drinking career he begins to lose all control of his liquor consumption, once he starts to drink."

I lost the power of choice in drinking alcohol. Once the first drink was ine me, I lost all control and drank more until I passed out. If I decided not to drink, I would obsess about drinking. No matter how long I decided to stay away from the booze on willpower alone I would always return to it and then I would drink more than intended. I couldn't stop on my own.

Being a morning drinker or drinking because depressed or happy, does not constitute alcoholism. I used to think I drank to "escape" I was drinking to overcome a craving and an obsession I couldn't control. The morning drinking, the "hair of the dog" the "I'm depressed, restless, happy, angry" were just external excuses.

I agree with the following summation. This was me. "The fact is that most alcoholics, for reasons yet obscure, have lost the power of choice in drink. Our so-called will power becomes practically nonexistent. We are unable, at certain times, to bring into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago. We are without defense against the first drink."

"Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows. Therefore, it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death."

"We learned that we had to fully concede to our innermost selves that we were alcoholics. This is the first step in recovery. The delusion that we are like other people, or presently may be, has to be smashed."

"We alcoholics are men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking. We know that no real alcoholic ever recovers control. All of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals - usually brief - were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization."

"We are convinced to a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better."

Drinking alcohol was the solution. I had no control over the amount I drank and would always return to drinking alcohol.

I went to A.A. and I am not drinking today which is a miracle as I used to drink every hour of every day. My drinking started "socially" though I was never a social drinker. Never that one pint, or one glass.

I had to be honest. It took a long time. Years of fantasy living and drinking.

If you think that you are alcoholic and can honestly (I had to get painfully honest. My "adventures" in drinking were evidence enough, yet I still couldn't be honest. I finally drank again and the experience and results of my last drink which turned into a non-stop 10-day bender with only three memories is something I never want to repeat. I was beaten. Alcohol was more powerful than me and I had finally lost and surrendered) then seek help.

I wish you well.

Kind regards

Richard

7

Thanks for the advice and stories you guys, I really appreciate the help! I think that I will be okay, I can't afford to go to the hospital and miss work, I'll lose my job. Today actually wasn't too bad, the symptoms were very mild. I think that if I was going to have serious complications like delirium tremens, or seizures, I would feel much worse than I do. I'm just under a lot of stress, which is why I started drinking more. The anxiety of having to actually deal with my emotions is somewhat overwhelming. I think that part of it was mental, honestly. 

Thanks again for taking the time to help, it means a lot. 

 

8

The emotions are what defines the alcoholic before the drink and then the lack of control in the drink. Alcohol was the solution. The problem was me.

Are you asking for help?