My De tox

Avatar for carol777
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
My De tox
19
Thu, 06-08-2006 - 4:46pm

My Personal Experience..

Day 1 Vomiting... Stomach Cramps... Heart Racing
Sweating and Twitching... Blurred Vision

Day 2 Pain in liver... Head and Body Aches... Nose Bleeds
Hearing Voices... Convulsion

Day 3 Hallucinations...Compulsive Showering...Violent Dream
Jello and Broth stayed down

Day 4 Exhausted and finished!

I was so ignorant of the danger that I did it at home with a friend
who had gone to rehab.
Really lucky as I had several indications I needed medical help.

Don't be as risky as I was....do it with medical supervision.

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Avatar for carol777
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
In reply to: carol777
Thu, 06-08-2006 - 4:56pm

My Tips For Easing Withdrawal

Water Drink oodles of water

OJ+Honey is also good

Cut out caffeine

Eat a soft diet

Aspirin for aches

Hard candy for shakes

Rest if you can not sleep

A multi vitamin +B complex daily

By day 4 I was done with physical symptoms

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-08-2006
In reply to: carol777
Thu, 06-08-2006 - 5:03pm
Thanks Carol, good to know. Scary, but good to know.
I am proceeding with extreme caution. My plan is to taper. One question though - how long had you had withdrawal symptoms, ie been physically addicted, before you went cold turkey? I know it's best to get into rehab, but for a number of reasons I just can't do that right now. But I am trying to gauge my risk, and figure out what to expect. I just started noticing withdrawals in the past week, so I am hoping that's an indication that detoxing now is going to be easier, and more importantly safer, than later. But then, maybe there's no correlation whatsoever.
I had a bottle of wine and 2 beers last night, stopped around 10pm, and the tremors started a little before 1pm today, which is about 7 hours after the alcohol would have cleared, which makes sense. One beer fixed them, and it's been 2 hours and I'm still ok. The weird thing is, I never started drinking until the evening, and suddenly started getting the symptoms in the early afternoon. Maybe I just didn't notice.
I cannot even fathom what you've achieved, but I hope to be there one day.
Peace
Bobbi
odd...there's no emoticon for scared...
Avatar for carol777
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
In reply to: carol777
Thu, 06-08-2006 - 5:36pm

Certainly...the sooner you quit the easier I think.

By the time I started AA I was drinking daily...as a bar drinker I really
have no idea how much...perhaps a quart of Scotch

Only in the am did I have withdrawal while I was actibely addicted.

I was drinking 2 strong Screwdrivers + a Valium to stop shaking before work.
I always threw up the 1st..Yuk!

I was also 52 had been drinking alcoholically for 5 or so years.

I suspect my age and hard core addiction made my de tox more difficult.

There are free beds in most treatment centers you have to really be
aggressive to get one as they have waiting list.
The salvation Army runs a super free program.

Yes..do see if you can taper. Why not?

Take care...

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-04-2004
In reply to: carol777
Thu, 06-08-2006 - 11:57pm

Welcome Bobbi!

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-08-2006
In reply to: carol777
Fri, 06-09-2006 - 1:25am
Thank you Tracy! I have really enjoyed reading here and plan to be here often. I have to make a change or I will die, it's that simple.
I've read a lot of your posts, including your journals, and I wanted to say thank you for your openness. In the course of this one afternoon/evening, I have gone from being one of those people who fiercely hides my alcoholism (so I think!) and being totally disgusted/ashamed, to feeling like I can at least open up about it here, and you really helped with that. I have gone from being terrified of losing my "best friend", to being excited about the new life I will have. I can be so much more than this.
One thing you just wrote, and I saw you mentioned it in 1 or 2 of your other posts, referred to amount of time it takes alcohol to leave your body vs. withdrawals, and that you hadn't ever really gotten a clear answer on it. I have been doing a lot of reading, and I think I can help clear that up a little. If anyone wants to correct me or add to it, by all means please do, I am learning, but here's what I got:
As we all know, alcohol is processed by your poor tired liver at the rate of one drink per hour, give or take. But the time it takes your body to get rid of the alcohol you just consumed, and the onset of withdrawal symptoms, are not the same thing. The withdrawal symptoms begin when your body doesn't get the dose it has come to expect. Depending on how much and how often you drink, this can begin anywhere from 4 hours or more from when you were "overdue" for a drink.
The thing is, it just begins then. If you have been a regular, or even every other day drinker, and then you just quit, the withdrawals can continue to worsen for 3-4 days. Read the start of this post, sounds like fun eh? But as i understand it, those symptoms don't start until you've been "dry" at least 4-6 hours, maybe more.
You really, really want to quit drinking before you get to a point where you have to deal with this. Trust me, I now know I'm there, and I'm scared. Withdrawing from alcohol can literally kill you. I didn't know that until last week. It's the *only* drug where the withdrawals can kill you. No joke. I just started having physical syptoms of addiction to alcohol, and am so scared of what I now know about withdrawing. Don't let yourself get there. If you drink every night/every other night, even in moderation, you could be closer than you think. It's not just the amount, it's the consistency.
I'm not preaching, I'm just telling you what I really wished I had known, now that I'm...here.
Best to you. Keep us posted. Sorry this is so darn long!
B.
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-07-2003
In reply to: carol777
Fri, 06-09-2006 - 7:38am
Folks - Those of you who are looking to detox at home - I am scared for you. Please seek medical help before doing this. My withdrawal from alcohol was mild compared to some - and it was bad enough. I could not have done it alone.
I just felt I needed to throw in my 2 cents here - I am not judging anyone - I just want you all to be safe and make it through detoxing without serious problems.
God bless,
Leslie
iVillage Member
Registered: 06-08-2006
In reply to: carol777
Fri, 06-09-2006 - 1:29pm
I'm not planning on detoxing, but rather tapering as fast as possible. If I start to see symptoms I'll ease up, and if I have to, I'll check in somewhere. I am *definitely* not advocating it either, quite the opposite, I'm advocating not getting to that point. I don't think I'm alone in not having realized at all how dangerous it is to detox once you are physically addicted, and if I can share that with even one person, I will.
I was just trying to clear up the confusion Tracy had (not because I'm the best source, but because she said she had never gotten a clear answer and no one else jumped in to answer) between getting rid of BAC and withdrawals, and if I could, make an impression that it's really dangerous, and that you don't want to get there if it's not already too late. If I had known, I might not be where I am.
B.
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2006
In reply to: carol777
Fri, 06-09-2006 - 9:47pm

Sometimes I feel I shouldn't post about the benefits of alcohol on this board but there are also times when I feel I should.

1-2 drinks per day for a woman is shown to have many health benefits. And those benefits come from the daily dose. Anything over that, however, is shown to have health risks.

I have read that one can experience withdrawal even if they are drinking only 1-2 drinks per day. But, I have also read that anyone at anytime who drinks ANY amount can experience withdrawal. So I don't know how much is fact and how much is simply scare tactics.

Now, my point in bringing this up is not to discourage a person from abstaining. But to possibly encourage them to abstain. Maybe after cutting back to 1-2 per day. I would definitely talk to a doctor but my bet is that you'll be fine, if a little cranky. Every body is different. I have an alcoholic friend who drinks to passing out every night. Occasionally he abstains for a few weeks and has absolutely no withdrawal problems. My DH, however, doesn't drink every night and when he tried to abstain he felt shaky and had sugar cravings. I can abstain for a few days with no problem but I haven't gone longer than 3 days or so simply because I don't want to.

In short, try it. You might like it....lol. But talk to a doctor, first.

Lucky

Avatar for carol777
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
In reply to: carol777
Sat, 06-10-2006 - 12:11am

I would be interested in seeing the source of your information as to the health benefits of drinking.

Just curious Lucky...

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-22-2006
In reply to: carol777
Sat, 06-10-2006 - 12:29am
Hi, I am just a lurker on this board and your sentence:
I can abstain for a few days with no problem but I haven't gone longer than 3 days or so simply because I don't want to.
fits me too but doesn't that make you feel like a traitor on this board? It seems to me that here is where you come to quit and clearly, there is no quitting involved in that sentence, not that I am ready too either. I guess I am just afraid of people not understanding the complexity of the whole "timing" issue.





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