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I have a friend who was an alcohol addict. She stopped 2 days ago and I think she's experiencing withdrawal symptoms. She's been having a hard time sleeping, and when she does sleep, she gets bad dreams. She experiences nausea a lot and has clammy hands. I told her she should get herself treated, but she doesn't want to. Is this normal?

Your friend is experiencing mild to moderate withdrawal symptoms. You should contact the local hospital or a healthcare provider so he could fully assess your friend's situation. Your friend probably needs to be treated for her withdrawal. This can possibly be done on an out-patient basis. She may need social support groups, medication, and therapy. Don't think she can handle this all on her own. It would still be better to get medical help.

2007-05-30 01:31:05 by cielo t

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I have a friend who happens to be addicted to alcohol. Since she stopped drinking two days ago, she has been experiencing what I think are withdrawal symptoms. She's having a hard time sleeping, and when she does get to sleep, she experiences bad dreams. She's also nauseous a lot of times, and her hands get clammy. I've already told her to seek medical help, but she's stubborn and doesn't want to. Will this go away?

Your friend is having mild to moderate withdrawal symptoms. The best thing to do would be to contact the local hospital and find a doctor who will be able to assess your friend's condition. Your friend needs to be treated for her withdrawal. Consequences can arise if she doesn't get treated. She needs social support groups, medication, counseling, and therapy too. You can do an alcohol intervention for her if she refuses to undergo treatment.

2007-07-26 00:50:00 by clare i

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i.e. alcohol addiction, oxy cotton, etc. Are you still clean now? Describe your experience. Any valid info would be much appreciated

I'm a recovering alcoholic. I took my last drink 9 years ago today.

I drank enormous amounts for about 25 years, so I expected to have terrible withdrawal symptoms when I quit. I "deserved" to have major DTs. However, I was lucky. My acute withdrawal (that is, the first few days) was relatively mild. I could not sleep, my heart raced, I sweated a lot, and I had some mild shaking . . . but no hallucinations or seizures. All in all, not that bad.

There is, however, a thing called post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS) and I had pretty bad PAWS for about 9 months. Sleeping trouble. Night sweats. Difficulties with muscle coordination and balance. Strong cravings for sugar. Extreme mood swings. Anxiety attacks. Everything subsided with time but I'm glad I had the AA meetings to go to so others could reassure me that I wasn't in for a lifetime of that; it was hard.

I'm still in AA, by the way. I never want to go back where I was, and I love to help the newcomers!

2007-08-30 05:41:36 by Lee

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I have a friend who stopped drinking alcohol two days ago and she has been experiencing what seems to me like withdrawal symptoms. She's always craving alcohol and gets clammy hands. I told her these are signs that she should get herself treated for addiction but she won't listen to me. Am I right? If so, what can I do?

Your friend does have mild to moderate withdrawal symptoms. (other signs would be restlessness, insomnia, dreams of alcohol, hallucinations...) These are indeed signs that she should get herself treated for her alcohol addiction. The best thing you can do is to get her checked up by a doctor and he will then assess your friend's condition. Your friend needs to be treated for her withdrawal. If she's not swayed by your pleas, you can do an alcohol intervention for her.

2007-08-14 00:14:31 by annaliese r

I am an alcoholic and I'm currently weaning myself off alcohol, I'm afraid to go cold turkey because I tried that once before and had a couple seizures, hallucinations & DT's, the Dr's at the time told my family that I might not survive, after 5 days in ICU I did recover and stayed sober several months but about a month ago I sucumbed to my addiction at started drinking heavily again. I want to stop drinking but I don't want to risk death in doing so. This time I hope to wean myself by gradually reducing my daily intake of alcohol. I'm currently down to 10 beers a day and my plan is to reduce my daily intake by one beer a day until I get down to no beers a day. Is this weaning method safe or do I still run the risk of severe alcohol withdrawal even if I wean myself vs stopping cold turkey. I've heard the Vitamin B is essential for the proper function of the nervous system, will a vitamin B shot help minimize the chance of me experiencing severe withdrawal systems? Please advise.

You do need B vitamins but they do not prevent seizures alone.

But the bottom line is the following-
You have a history of DT's therefore you are high risk for more DT's upon withdrawal.

The standing orders we used in the Jail Clinic in Houston were the following:

Librium beginning very high and tapering over two weeks is crucial to preventing DT's and early seizures.

Phenytoin loading dose immediately then maintenance dose. This is an old line seizure medicine.

Thiamine to prevent brain damage- which is given by IM injection 100mg/day before anything else to prevent Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome.

B Complex tablets which is the source of Niacin, twice a day, for 10 days, then daily.

Multivitamins with minerals and trace elements twice daily for 10 days, then daily.

Balanced plate lunch diet three times a day.

Daily physical examination for neurological status, and close management of concurrent chronic diseases (usually Diabetes, COPD, Hypertension, Liver disease and Heart Disease as a base-line).

Observation, supervision and on duty medical providers 24/7.

Immediate referral to Ben Taub General Hospital for complications and medical or surgical emergencies.

This is NOT a prescription, but is a functional outline of one protocol that worked 100% without seizures, DT's or fatalities over a year period that I worked there.

Absolutely positively do not try this at home.
That is rock solid, do not even think of doing it at home: you need prescription meds, close 24/7 medical attention and care to prevent seizures and DT's which is a medical emergency and kills.

The best treatment for the seizures and DT's of alcohol withdrawal is prevention. Prevent them during the fragile period and you do not have fatalities. Allow them to begin and you have serious problems.

Rock Solid Advice- you should not only not go through withdrawal with your history at home,
you should not do it in any hospital or clinic that does not do this every day with good success and outstanding prevention of seizures and DT's altogether.

Since this is your life in the balance: find the in-house treatment facility which not only treats but totally prevents the life threatening complications of alcohol withdrawal.

They exist. It can be done. Do it right and live.

Good Luck on the rest of your life and remember Hoss, God Loves You. That makes a difference.

2007-10-01 21:45:20 by Mike K