Alcoholism Support Group
Alcoholism is the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages, even when it is negatively affecting your health, work, relationships and life. If you think alcohol is causing you to lose control, it's time to seek help. Our group is a safe place to vent, check in, get back up if you fall, and reach sobriety.
Hello everyone,
I am a 29yr old woman with a severe alcohol addiction who has just been informed by an E.R. doctor that if I don't stop drinking, I will be "on a transplant list soon and dead in 2 years".
I am ready to stop. I am so scared and so ashamed of what I've done to myself.
Stats: I usually drink anywhere from a liter to a liter and a half of wine everyday, all day. Sometimes I have shots of vodka too.
I have been drinking since I was 18, but it's been so much more out of control since I was 25.
The effects that brought me to the E.R. include:
I have lost close to 100 lbs over the past 2years without trying
No appetite because I drink too much
The whites of my eyes have began to yellow at the bases
My skin is super thin
When I bruise or get cut it takes me so much longer to heal than it should
Extreme depression and anxiety
Thinning of my hair
All of these are due to my diminished liver function...
The doctor said I have a small window of opportunity to turn this around, but I need to stop now.
Now, I can't go cold turkey as I am waaaay too afraid of extreme withdrawal.
I also don't want to use a benzoid-based detox program...they gave me Librium at the E.R. and I couldn't take the side-effects.
I want to taper at home and I'm just looking for some advice...maybe someone has even done this before?
I found this article http://mnalternatives.com/how-taper-off-alcohol.html and was going to attempt to follow this schedule.
Also, I have a dr. apt. on Nov. 5, and I thought that if I could finish this taper before my apt. it would be better than if I did nothing productive for the next 4 days...I'm just so scared to not try to make some sort of progress...I mean, what does "soon" mean? To me, it means NOW.
I am on day one of my taper today...so far so good, I was just hoping to get some different insights maybe....
Thanks for any help!
I am a 29yr old woman with a severe alcohol addiction who has just been informed by an E.R. doctor that if I don't stop drinking, I will be "on a transplant list soon and dead in 2 years".
I am ready to stop. I am so scared and so ashamed of what I've done to myself.
Stats: I usually drink anywhere from a liter to a liter and a half of wine everyday, all day. Sometimes I have shots of vodka too.
I have been drinking since I was 18, but it's been so much more out of control since I was 25.
The effects that brought me to the E.R. include:
I have lost close to 100 lbs over the past 2years without trying
No appetite because I drink too much
The whites of my eyes have began to yellow at the bases
My skin is super thin
When I bruise or get cut it takes me so much longer to heal than it should
Extreme depression and anxiety
Thinning of my hair
All of these are due to my diminished liver function...
The doctor said I have a small window of opportunity to turn this around, but I need to stop now.
Now, I can't go cold turkey as I am waaaay too afraid of extreme withdrawal.
I also don't want to use a benzoid-based detox program...they gave me Librium at the E.R. and I couldn't take the side-effects.
I want to taper at home and I'm just looking for some advice...maybe someone has even done this before?
I found this article http://mnalternatives.com/how-taper-off-alcohol.html and was going to attempt to follow this schedule.
Also, I have a dr. apt. on Nov. 5, and I thought that if I could finish this taper before my apt. it would be better than if I did nothing productive for the next 4 days...I'm just so scared to not try to make some sort of progress...I mean, what does "soon" mean? To me, it means NOW.
I am on day one of my taper today...so far so good, I was just hoping to get some different insights maybe....
Thanks for any help!
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check out that smoke ring. It tasted really good. I smothered it with Maulls BBQ sauce which is Local to St. Louis and one of the best I ever had.....
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I was recently separated from my wife of 33 years and it's complicated. Anyway I rented a room about 15 minutes away and I see my kids about once a week. I see the people who own the house I live in once in a while but other than that I stay in my room where I do my cooking, wash dishes in the shower, read, color, and sleep. I get out at least once a day. I grocery shop and I attend 2 meetings...
If I were you I'd not be concerned about handling this yourself I'd look for a detox and check yourself in! Or at least call your Dx and see if you can get a earlier appt. . and be honest with them Why!!
Hug!
Billy
Drink a LOT of water and something like coconut milk or Gatorade, to replenish your electrolytes and flush out your system
Set clear goals for each day that are reasonable based on how much you drink. You want to reduce the amounts but not so quickly that you need to get to an ER
Monitor your intake so you are staying on track
Expect some discomfort -- that's okay. Seek medical help if you need it.
Good luck. You have a clear choice -- quit or die. You CAN do this. Livers can repair themselves, but you have to stop drinking alcohol, which is pure poison to you now.
You are very welcome to the DS forum, where you will find a wide range of opinions and suggestions. It is wise to take the doctors warnings seriously and to do whatever it takes in order to recover from the alcohol problem. I used to think that such warnings were nothing more than scare mongering but alas I have stood behind the coffins of many good people who died from this problem so I know that the warnings should be heeded.
As you may appreciate nobody here has the right to give you medical advice, except to remind you that alcohol withdrawal can be dangerous and should ideally be done under the care of a doctor. It does not necessarily mean that you have to take unpleasant medications but for your own peace of mind and safety it is good to have an honest talk with the doctor. I have personally gone from very heavy drinking to total abstinence without any great health problems but everyone is different and the doctor is the best authority.
You can try tapering off between now and your appointment on November 5 and get probably away with it. I would cut out the vodka completely and gradually reduce the wine. The real battle could be after you have stopped drinking as you may need to do something to change your way of thinking. If you are an alcoholic (only you can decide) the doctors warning will keep you sober for a while but the fear will eventually wear off and you will be in great danger of drinking again.
Like, I'm trying to be as positive about this tapering as possible. I am experiencing some discomfort in the form of chills, and waves of anxiety but I know I did this to myself and I know it's gonna really, really suck to get off of alcohol. I'm sticking to the schedule I posted earlier...but feeling a bit discouraged.
I'm just so unbelievably heartbroken over what I've done to my body...and I try to hang onto positive thoughts and prayers, I'm just so weak physically that any time I start to spiral with my thoughts, it seems like 10 times worse. I start saying to myself, "this isn't going to work. U waited too long. U're gonna leave your mother, sister, and grandmother devastated b/c u can't make it."
If I were you I would try some detox. Go to your doctor and get help In the meantime keep posting here and read other's posts.
Thanks again and ttys
If you have family that cares about you, they will be devastated at your passing and guilt ridden over their inability to stop you from committing a slow suicide. Your problem, sadly enough, affects the whole family!
My mother died from sirosis at the young age of 52 and she had all of the symptoms you just described, so I say, to hell with the tapering and stop immediately! If you need detox and in or outpatient treatment to help you stay sober then so be it! They have other drugs besides librium that they can give to you in detox! You need to do all it takes to get sober and to stay sober or you will die....sorry to be the bearer of bad news but that is exactly what the alcohol is doing to you!
I have seen so many people at this point in time, not heed their doctors warnings and guess where they are right now???
Google AA meetings in your area and go. They are free.
I wouldn't take any chances if I were you. If the doctor says "Now," he means NOW! He did not say taper!
I feel bad for you and your family because I know the end of this story if you don't stop!
I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
God Bless!
5 yrs later, I was the Charge RN at the same hospital. I realize now that instead of refusing the meds, I should have taken the things. Alcohol Detox kills people! Librium is the drug of choice for doctors. There's a reason for that. It helps to keep the blood pressure and heart rate under control in order to prevent DT's which leads to death. This is the real deal.
If you are trying to taper, you, most likely not be successful. I could not sober up with a brain saturated in booze. I had to get help from other sober alcoholics who had been there, done that.
AA (and outside help) gave me a life worth living. The joy, gratitude and peace of mind are priceless. I haven't thought about booze in I don't know how long.
BTW, you seem to be in end stage alcoholism. Please listen to your doctor. This can be the best decision you'll ever make. Good luck
If not and/or until then, go to AA religiously or a place much like it.
I will keep you in my prayers, and thank you personally for posting. It keeps me on the straight path. Sobriety is SO MUCH better than living in a fog of shame, guilt and illness.
29...way too young to go, but going at any age at the hands of the addiction is against what I believe our Higher Power wants for us.
Blessings dear soul.
I AM NOT A DOCTOR: but I would quit now. Do whatever it takes. Easier said than done. Drink water and get some food in your system. In reality, I drank way more than you described, more amounts of wine and vodka. I had none of the side effects that you had except the depression and anxiety.
Try not to focus on the withdrawl, try to think about improving your life and liver. Have a super good day, we are all going through something...
So I'm on day 2 of my taper. Day 1 was going well until the evening when I had a massive panic attack, but my mom was there to talk me back to earth, and I did NOT break my taper schedule. Sleep was hard: sweaty palms, waves of anxiety, really dark thoughts. But I just clung to my Rosary and kept my eyes closed and told myself to just hang in there.
Day 2 is going well so far. I just keep thinking I'm almost there, (to my apt. on the 5th) I'm almost there. I just need my doctor to set me up with a plan and I WILL follow it. I'm really struggling with negative thoughts right now. I just can't seem to push them away for very long...I try to picture my new, sober life...and then I negate those thoughts with something like "Well, too bad u waited so long. Now you'll never know."
I want to thank all of u again for your supportive thoughts and words and your insights. They are a steadying force in my life right now.
- ARI
You are doing well so keep with it. The negative thoughts can difficult and sometimes you just have to give it time. No point in regretting the past as you cannot change it but you certainly can plot a bright new future. Providing you take care of yourself you can do a lot with your life so think positive and take action.