Am i likely to get the DT's

I drink between 4 - 12 units of vodka a night and i want to quit but i really want to do it alone (my partner will know) i have drank like this for around 7 years - surely when i only have 4 for about a week after that i can just quit?

Please help - its ruining my life :-(

[Jacker]

From what I've read, there is not always a rhyme or reason why some people get DT's and some do not. Or why some get cirrhosis and some do not.  Some of it has to do with your genetic make-up and other factors when combined with the alcohol.  

Whether you get tremors or not, the first few days can be a trial, and it's good to have some help during that period.  And what can be harder on you is if you feel better quickly, because the alcoholic mind will play tricks on you.  If you feel really good at day 8, it's common to tell yourself "I was just making a big deal out of it.....I can afford to have a couple now".  Except for me there has never been such a thing as "a couple"....it's a code word for "many"

Don't judge your quantities by comparing yourself to others. Some people can handle a lot of booze for a long period, and some reach the bottom with smaller quantities.  

For me, my quantities weren't as high as many that I've met on these forums or at AA meetings, but i was relentlessly "regular" with my drinking, seldom missing a day in over 15 years. That was enough to cause some problems and waste too many productive years in life.  

At minimum, have a friend watch over you for the first 3-4 days.  

[Punkinhead75]

How much is a unit? I was drinking about 1.75 liters over a period of two days for about 5 yrs.  During the six months prior to stopping a drank the same amount in day.  In the last month before I stopped I was drinking close to a gallon a day.  I weened down (with help) over about a week or two.  I don't remember exactly.  I was allowed to have 3 rocks glasses in the afternoon and then went cold turkey.  I had a little bit of anxiety but no shakes.  I have been told I was very lucky.  I hope this helps and wish you the best.  Have you thought about AA?  With what I learned in AA and with the help of the people I have met I haven't had a drink in over 5yrs.  God Bless!!!

[Garnetdawn]

Thats a difficult one. My ex was a drinker, and so was my mother, so I know how hard it can be for people to quit. You're going to have to reduce the amount you drink over a gradual process. It's hard for drinkers to just stop. They may manage a few days, but they will start again. Don't be hard on yourself either, even a doctor will say drinkers find it hard to just stop, and sometimes its dangerous to. Plan it out, and cut it down slowly, you're more likely to succeed then.

[working dog]

i would get help...my withdrawals were like going through hell...i would get to a doctor..get something for the anxiety..also withdrawals can kill you so why take the chance when there is help out there...i didn't know i had hep c when i quit and it is said withdrawals can be 7 times worse then folks without it...i think i got the 7 times worse...i drank vodka..most nights about a third of a fifth a night...i still worked...most of my friends said i didn't have a drinking problem but i knew i did so i just stopped...on the third day i was sure i was going to die..had a friend drive me to a health center where a doctor told me i was in alcohol withdrawal...i didn't even know there was a alcohol withdrawal...anyway...the doctor told me to drink some beers every day and wean myself..or take drugs...i did the beer thing..i wish i took the drugs....5 beers a day for one week...4 a day for the next week...3 a day for the next two...then 2 a day for the next year...then i stopped all the way...i had a awfull time..my anxiety was so bad.....felt sick for two years....had just as bad of withdrawals quitting the 2 bears as i did stopping the vodka a year before...nightmares..getting up not knowing if i was alive or not...not knowing if i was in a bad dream or awake..lots more bad stuff.....looking back i would have gottin help from the start...good luck.....billy

[LeslieVernon29]

I get dt's on occasion if I drink every day(massive amounts typically a bottle of vodka, box of wine, or 18 to 30 beers in a day)for a period of a few months...  I used to not get them, and the first time I quit drinking, had none after being a big drinker.  7 years sounds like a lot of time, but not sure how much the 4 to 12 units is.  

Dt's are very dangerous, and you might end up in the hospital or psych ward.  You will see stuff, get paranoid, act bizarre, talk fast, twitch(I compared it last time to feeling like I was becoming a zombie or something.)  I also couldn't eat, and would vomit a lot... If I were you, I'd go to REHAB.  They will give likely give you Ativan and some sort of SSRI(in addition to the meds you take daily from your doc or psych.)  Rehab is horrible, but after 7 years, your partner won't be able to help much.  And you will scare him/her, and really scare yourself.  Good luck, but be careful.  I actually was sure I was going to die the third night I had them...  I was seeing things and felt like I was going to stroke out.

[rod44]

When I got sober I did so under medical supervision, the DT's were bad but only lasted a few days. For me the big problem was I could not function without alcohol, when I was drinking I was not aware how much I depended on drink, how it was influencing my life. When I stopped drinking and the DT's had passed I found my head was in turmoil, I was depressed, paranoid & full of fear that I could not understand, this was the time I needed most help, I needed to understand what was happening to me and how I was going to overcome these problems WITHOUT my crutch.....the drink.
I went to AA, here I listened to how other alcoholics got sober, I decided that I wanted what they had....peace of mind. This was why I went back to meetings.....and still do.

I can only speak from my own experience, what you chose to do is in your hands but I would say that if you think you have a problem then chances are you have and will need help with the problem.....

Ray

[HughBeaumont]

Refreshing to see that someone knows what delerium tremens ("DT's") really means -- a pervasive misconception is that "the shakes" are DT's ...

Delerium tremens is actually fairly rare, and one really has to pound the ETOL to end up in that insane place, where Total System Failure can end the misery.

And for longtime heavy drinkers, blood tests, particularly ALT levels, can be notoriously unreliable measures of liver damage. If you've been at it for 20 or 30 years, the only reliable measure of hepatic crisis is a biopsy, and if the results indicate extensive cirrhosis, all you can do is stop drinking and hope for the best ... modifications to your diet will almost certainly be required.

The only other option is to call Larry Hagman and ask politely for a new liver.

--HB

[LeslieVernon29]

I've noticed that most people have no clue what they are, but that is probably just how rare they are.  Oddly enough, both my grandfather and cousin have suffered from them as well.  My grandfather was far more hardcore, and it took him almost 35 years of insane drinking to get them.  

I eat really healthfully, and work out... used to be a freak about it so I think that's part of the reason I dodged a bullet.  And after you get DT's once or twice, the shakes are actually quite pleasant.  You just won't go on a crazy bender for a 4 months thinking you're immortal, because they might happen again.  

To 54R4: I don't think you're going to get them, because I just looked up units, and a bottle of wine has 8 or 9?  It said 1.5 units is basically 1.25 ounces of vodka.  Not sure, but you should definitely quit since you're having health problems.  But it takes really insane drinking to get DT's, but you still should enter into a rehab facility.  It might not work completely, but it will help.  I don't know what kind of vodka you were drinking, but if it was the cheap stuff like Taaka.  Vodka wasn't meant to be distilled in Kentucky(only whiskey should come from there, women on the show "Justified", and white basketball players who last 2 years in the NBA should come from there.)  

[Jacker]

From what I've read, there is not always a rhyme or reason why some people get DT's and some do not. Or why some get cirrhosis and some do not.  Some of it has to do with your genetic make-up and other factors when combined with the alcohol.  

Whether you get tremors or not, the first few days can be a trial, and it's good to have some help during that period.  And what can be harder on you is if you feel better quickly, because the alcoholic mind will play tricks on you.  If you feel really good at day 8, it's common to tell yourself "I was just making a big deal out of it.....I can afford to have a couple now".  Except for me there has never been such a thing as "a couple"....it's a code word for "many"

Don't judge your quantities by comparing yourself to others. Some people can handle a lot of booze for a long period, and some reach the bottom with smaller quantities.  

For me, my quantities weren't as high as many that I've met on these forums or at AA meetings, but i was relentlessly "regular" with my drinking, seldom missing a day in over 15 years. That was enough to cause some problems and waste too many productive years in life.  

At minimum, have a friend watch over you for the first 3-4 days.  

[dominosarah]

Good advice Jacker~~