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xanax and alcoholism
by erik2776, Jul 04, 2001 12:00AM
my wife has a history of alcoholism and anxity in her family.
every member is treated for anxity including the mother. the father is an alcoholic.
my wife has been treated for anxity attacks with xanax for well over five years. my wife takes 3mg at night"to sleep". she also takes at least a liter of wine everyday. she has blackouts and very abusive days. in the mornings she acts much better.
i called her doctor to tell him about her alcoholism. he in turn called her at work to tell her. now i am the enemy.
i am at the end of my rope.
what can i do to help?
thank you,
erik2776
every member is treated for anxity including the mother. the father is an alcoholic.
my wife has been treated for anxity attacks with xanax for well over five years. my wife takes 3mg at night"to sleep". she also takes at least a liter of wine everyday. she has blackouts and very abusive days. in the mornings she acts much better.
i called her doctor to tell him about her alcoholism. he in turn called her at work to tell her. now i am the enemy.
i am at the end of my rope.
what can i do to help?
thank you,
erik2776
http://www.recovery.org/aa/
The above is the national on-line AA recovery resource page. There you will find a phone number in your area with someone on the other end who knows what you're going through and can help.
http://www.findtreatment.samhsa.gov/
This second URL is the federal government's version of AA's recovery resource page. I recommend trying the AA page first.
Whatever you do, don't let her abruptly stop the Xanax or she'll most likely have a seizure within 36 hours. (warning signs are numbness in the hands and tightness in the chest, and anxiety "off the meter."
erik, I am not an AA evangelist at all, just someone who has lived with addiction for thirty years. The people at AA can and will help you today if you call today. Good luck.
Thomas
Erik,
She may take more xanax than she admits to since it gives a similar physical response to the body. She in fact probably uses the xanax to fight the shakes and aggravating withdrawal symptoms of the alcohol addiction.
You can have seizures from abrupt withdrawal from alcohol as well as from the benzodiazapine drugs. Alcohol seizures and DT's usually start within 24-48 hour after the last drink although the shakes can get uncomfortable even after only a few hours in a highly alcohol dependent person. The DT's are really the post ictal delirium from the severe and persistant seizures that ocurr in some alcoholics as I experienced back when I was trying to stop drinking.
I thank my HP that I was able to quit drinking but I have suffered alot along the way and now have a permanent seizure disorder from the numerous relapses I had when I first was quitting as an outpatient.
Erik, this person needs in-patient detox to come off the xanax and alcohol but they will do the alcohol first and then taper slowly off the xanax or other benzo they may replace the xanax with to avoid the seizures and DT's. [Good Luck.] Her best help is in-patient, not a doctor like the one that called her work, [although his intention may have been to get her workplace to force her into in-patient treatment to save her life]. Many workplaces will assist in helping their employees depending on the length of time worked and performance etc. Most alcoholics and addicts are in denial and won't quit until they hit their so-called bottom or die from the disease.
Dervish,
That may be true with some people. but many people really want help but just don't know how or where to get ask for it.
Also, many spouses push and push and don't allow the person a chance to move at a reasonable pace for recovery and continue to use it against their spouse which is the worst thing and will surely end the relationship.
Too many people are also afraid to ask for help becaause of the stigma attached to admitting to being an addict. Many people literally look at us like we are scum of the earth even if we live a normal middle class life like them.
I'll start because I am not ashamed, I am an addict both alcoholic in complete remission and a prescription drug addict active on three addictive meds. I also am not ashamed to say I have seizures! I cannot help it they just come when they come. Many epileptics are treated like retarded trash because people can not accept the shock of seeing a seizure in action.
It's time the sick, the addicts, the abnormal people stop hiding away in the closet and start helping one another through forums such as this one! We are all God's creatures, just some of us are given more challenges to cope with than others and somehow we all manage. All those other criticizers would probably kill themselves if they suddenly were placed in a situation like we are in. It takes a strong will and God's help to get us through and many times we just want to give up. Luckily so far, all of us on this forum that we know of are hanging in there. All we can do is offer advice and hope and prayers.
I'm in my Temporal Lobe Babble Phase again so I had better cut this off. I am no angle at not almost giving up either, I would be a hypacrit if I said I was.
Power & Magick 2 U all,
Peace & Light on us,
Wizard
wizard,
I am not quite sure you read my post correctly or you took something I said in the wrong context. I am in complete agreement with you and that is what I was pointing out by indicating that we are normal like everyone else but other people still look at us differently like we are sick or abnormal and it is quite annoying. Some of us are sick physically as well and that is why we are addicts, don't forget that one, many of us have cancer, lupus, fibromyalgia, etc, etc. And yes I have walked the walk and have every right to talk the talk!
wildcat
I just spent 10 days with my five Grandchildren. Hope your vacation was a blast! J.B.