Well, I'm back...

POOKISTAN · Member

Well, I'm back...

sheilasdad · Senior Member

Hi Pookistan,
I am certainly no doctor but in my experience, as one who "overhydrated" for years, it sounds as if you'll be okay if you stop now. I drank prodigious quantities of Irish whiskey for years (ages 26-36 mostly) and I seem to be okay. I did develop diabetes, which can cause an occasional trip to the hospital, but that could have been caused by my less than stellar eating habits. Most of the people I know that got sober young, and have stayed sober, are pretty healthy. On the other side of the coin - the guys that I drank with... some are dead, some are in jail,and some just keep going and going. They drink all the time. Maybe they can get away with it. I can't. Good luck and I'm glad you're giving sobriety a go. Sorry about the stomach.
Mike

Quetzal · MIP Old Timer

Hi Pookistan,

It's good to see you back.

Excessive drinking causes so many accidents that the hospitals here in UK treat a large number of alcohol related injuries over the weekends compared with during the week.

Also, continuous heavy/alcoholic drinking causes many health problems. Irritation of the gastrointestinal tract can occur with erosion of the lining of the esophagus and stomach causing nausea and vomiting, and possibly bleeding; vitamins are not absorbed properly, which can lead to nutritional deficiencies; alcohol affects the nervous system and can result in nerve damage and severe memory loss. Chronic alcohol use also increases the risk of cancer of the larynx, esophagus, liver, and colon.

In answer to your second question, I have never met or heard of anyone who stopped drinking and stayed stopped dying at a young age. Although I'm sure that there will be exceptions to that, I have never heard of anyone.

And, here's a useful link covering symptoms of liver disease:-

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000281.htm#Symptoms

Please keep posting and letting us know how things go for you, won't you?

Take care,

Carol

Sobrietyspell · MIP Old Timer

Hi Pooki, so good to have you back, have missed you & been hoping & praying that you'd be ok. I knew you'd have been back out there drinking & trying your luck but you seem to be listening to what your body's telling you & that's great. Hopefully curiosity doesn't have to take you any further than that. Getting sober's tough, staying sober's the trick! I hope you can find the support you need in some meetings perhaps. Here is great but the face to face stuff will really enhance your journey in sobriety too. Did you read the last posts added to your last on this site? I left a bit of ES&H with regards to slipping to maybe give you hand in the trials to look out for. I hope you stay strong & get all the support you need. Your health will improve tenfold & get better all the time now that your prepared to give yourself a break & let your fantastic system do its work at healing. Good luck, Pooki, keep us posted & keep coming back. Chat with you soon, Danielle x

Phil · MIP Old Timer

Welcome back Pook..

learning · MIP Old Timer

Pookistan,
You mentioned that it would take serious health problems for a functional alcoholic to quit. That is NOT necessarily true. Right at present off the top of my head I name at least
four people I know that have had problems AND continue their path of destroying their health. (Funny as I was writing that more names came to mind!)
First and foremost the one who came to mind was the man I had married 30+ years ago.
Noticed he had problems recalling or remembering. Used to tease him about it and we both
sort of chalked it up to getting older. Snores during the night sometimes drove me crazy.
Then my attention was alerted to periods where he would stop breathing and for SERVERAL
seconds sometimes up to 1/2min. would stop breathing. He began rubbing his hands complaining he how they hurt....arthiritis? is what he had said. He also complained of his
one leg aching all the time and developed difficulty walking. He attributed all this to the fact
he was a truck driver who had irratict sleep patterns, who unloaded heavy boxes on a daily
basis. Sounded reasonable? All this worsened however. Impotence...... began to creep in.
It is then I wondered seriously about the effects of alcohol. I suggested to take time to seek
medical help. Refused because financial affairs "won't allow it" or "can't afford it". Came
home one night and said finally "take me to ER, I had a couple of weird experiences today
and I may be at the onset of a heart attack" I did take him. I wasn't however there to hear
what dr. had told him. He was released next morning, came home showered and left and
returned many hours later.......drunk. This is the point our relationship began to take a
nose dive. Blamed everyone except our kids for all his problems.....mostly financially.
Blamed me that he was still having problems with impotency......."wasn't appealing.... didn't
dress sexy...... had gained weight." I turned some of that around. Still wasn't enough.
When I remotely suggest alcohol had/was playing a part in all of this.......it was always
"bullshit." Began an affair......she bought him a tavern......and he moved in above it with her. Seen him once while they were remodeling it........sicker than heck, but was told "you'll
be the first to know......if something happens. Ended up ...... he fell could not walk rushed to
hospital and had arteries stripped in that leg. Didn't stop him from returning to alcohol.
Continued to drink......."life is so much better....." One year to the day after that surgery
out in Georgia some where unloading a truck. There was another gentleman there who
made runs to this place that he knew here from our town. Good thing..... He went into heart
attack mode and the guy called 911 in time. Three stents later..... and two arteries still blocked this man is STILL consuming. Doesn't take meds for heart condition. Has been
kicked out of affair once. Rumor has it they argue all the time. Between he and I.......
when on occassion I have ran into him..... I've noticed how remarkably old he looks and
how he seems to move so fragily. (I know 90 yr old men who look and move healthier/
younger than he does.!) The last time......his breathing was very labored as if he was gasping for each breath. He went to another room to sit as I and our son (your age) talked.
When I was leaving found him stooped over. "....back hurts all the time very badly". Did
I mention he also has lost most of the hearing in his one ear. When he carries on a conversation with anyone turns his head so he can hear you. His face/neck are abnormally
reddened.....sign of high blood pressure. He is overweight but has an abnormally protruding
stomach. AND HE STILL "FUNCTIONS" as for working at job and CONTINUES ON THIS
PATH.
Have been told the mistress has a problem worse than him. Aaahh, bless Jimmy Buffet....
he has at least one big fan hooked on margaritas! Already suspected that one, as I was told by someone close to them that there was always 2 cases of premade margaritas ordered and
set aside not to be sold. Supposedly she has had serveral malignant tumors taken from
various places in her body and has endured chemo. Yet consumption goes on, on and on.
As you, thought about how alcohol effected my body. After having gone through a few
NASTY hangovers, decided long ago......the stuff wasn't good for the body since I felt so bad.
It also was very important to be able to function with a "clear" head when we decided to have children. Wanted to set a good example, to be able to care for their needs, health ect.
So I quit. Could still however go into a bar and drink soda. Some ribbing about it yet no
one REALLY condemned me for that........ except AH in that last year before our separation.
I have faced cancer....... and for whatever reason God/HP had, I was given the grace
and good fortune to have it arrested completely and continue this earthly life. For me there
was and has been no comparison between experiencing the disease cancer and the disease
of alcoholism. Hands down the cancer was by far sooooooo much easier to bear!
I sort of think of alcohol in relationship to the body like this.......if it is all that it is "cracked up" to be then why do doctors not recommend it to be given to newborns from
the start of life? There is basically no difference in a wee body versus an older one......
the organs are the same and each functions the same. Alcoholism is in one's thinking.
One can start out "thinking" it is fun, it is great, ect. Then it becomes something one "thinks"
one needs......on to "thinking" one CANNOT live without. And the entire time it is like this
little silent army creeping ever so slowly into body organs capturing each one at a time......
Some are very lucky only one is sieze and yes, they will quit. Others however,............
and the ultimate price can be that they have NO LIFE.
I do hope you stick with your decision. Mine is only one of the many thousands that
are out there of the effects. I hope by telling you all of this.......it will seal/cement/finalize
to continue sobriety. None of us here can make that choice for you. We can only share
what our experience has been and it is safe to say that life.......TRUE life of health and all
else is far richer lived and blessed by sobriety.
Hope you continue to post and share. You may not realize the impact you can have on
others. By going through these things and telling your story you may very well be one
to save another.
Wishing you the best,
Wanda

miller2 · Senior Member

I drank a fifth a day, some times more, for years.... seven days a week. I weigh less than 140 lbs...
I know another guy that drank about the same. Due to a glitch in a computer some where, even though he's been sober for some time and done every thing he' been told... he got bumped off the liver doner list... and will soon die.
It's not always our bodies... it's not always what we do...
some times.... it's just a twist of fate.
Willing to risk it again?

Glad your back.

Zster · Veteran Member

Welcome back, Pook! I am sorry that you find yourself in medical distress again so soon, though. I was one of those "functional" alkis who initially quit due to health reasons (triglycerides and all cholesterol values too high to measure, due to alcohol effect on my liver), so I can sort of relate.

In terms of liver physiology. If one has enough functioning liver to regenerate from, then stopping the insult on it (in my case, alcohol) should allow it to heal. My guess is, if you are not jaundiced, then maybe such could be the case (only our doctor can tell). I would make sure to have the stomach problem thoroughly worked up, in case anything serious could be over looked - other than drinking (which could be exacerbating an underlying problem, OR be the primary problem in and of itself).

In the meantime, feel free to PM me any time, should you need the support with your recovery.

I am coming off of a bit of a hurdle myself, and know first hand what its like to need to reach out to someone.

I wish you the best, and hope to encounter more posts/replies from ya!

Wren · MIP Old Timer

Y'know, each time we go "back out", even if we consider it minor, or we drank less,etc. we fail to remember that physiologically, the disease is progressive. It's going about it's business, just kinda waiting until it gets triggered again. So each time we decide to stop, it's harder and harder on the body and brain. The process of our body trying to detox itself and stay alive is going to become rougher also. My youngest son's late father never had dt's. He never had any physical symptoms of any great degree. He sobered up because of DUIs, and the loss of his business. He had been sober nine years, started back up, and was dead within about two years or less. His heart blew, his liver was compromised and couldnt clot his blood. He died after heart surgery.

I, on the other hand, had all the rotten physical aspects. My liver swelled so far with cirrhosis I had to wear maternity tops. Couldnt sleep on my left side from the bloat. I was lemon yellow, ended up with hepatitis. I hemorrhaged and was hospitalized more times than I can count. NG tubes down my nose to pump blood out and cool water in. I did this for a few years. Just vomit blood until someone would find me passed out. Jesus. And horrible, painful gastritis.

Within a few years of sobering up, my liver panels began to return to normal. Of course, the bleeding stopped. I had nose bleeds off and on for about a year after, but they subsided the longer I stayed sober. After sobering up, I started to pay attention to my health and my diet, and began work on getting healthy again. So far, so good. After all was said and done, all these years later, I have high blood pressure that's not even related to my history. I'm one of the lucky ones.

I'm totally blessed to be alive. I can remember my doctor standing over me at the hospital and saying "I don't know if we can pull you thru this one, Christine". Something deep inside must have wanted to live.

Mind you, they physical didnt start all at once. It took a few years of drinking, but shit, when it hit, it went full bore. Wish I would have listened to my stomach in the beginning. You're very fortunate. You could have ended up like me, and the chance is always out there. I am one lucky woman to even be alive and not have wet brain. My best friend from the time I was fifteen, and eventual drinking buddy has jake leg and can't finish a sentence her brain's so mushed. It's all out there just waiting. And yeah, I took maalox, I remember...be gentle with yourself. It didnt take four days to get you this sick, so it'll take time for your body to begin mending. My thoughts are with you, Chris

destinydreamer · Senior Member

wow Wren... very happy you are still with us!! Glad you pulled thru when you did!!

Wren · MIP Old Timer

Good ol' medi-cal. (california coverage for fools like myself). But even then, they reached their limit, and told me I'd have to go into a rest home (at 30 yrs old!) because they couldnt keep financing my hospital "visits". Ah, and then I went back to work after sobering up, and got to pay it all back in taxes. All things considered, I don't mind a bit......Now I have military coverage, and it is awesome, but shoot, I rarely need it anymore.....