question!!!

[anita66]

my brother in-law is an alcholic and has drank everyday of his life since he was 16 or 17, hes now 56. a week ago monday he went into the hospital for detox of his own will. was in for 3 days. while he was in they had him heavily medicated with tranquilizers (20 a day). He had a horrible detox, shakes, tremmors, the whole nine yards. He got out on Thanksgiving and when he first came out it was like he was paralized. he drug his one leg, he could barely hold himself up to walk(fell a couple times) could barely hold a sandwich in his hand to eat. As eachday has gone by he has slowly gotten better but still nowhere near where he was before. He looks like he has aged 20 years, he sits in his chair and watches tv with his head tilted to the right just staring at the tv, his hands shake a little, and his personality isn't there anymore, once in a while he will crack a joke or chuckle but other than that its like he is numb. My question ishas anyone else experienced this?? i told mysister maybe there is a chemical imbalance now since his bodyhad been getting alchol every single day for 40 yrs and now its not and it happened so abruptly. She seems to think maybe he had a mini-stroke while detoxing. Any ideas??? any help would be greatly appreciated...Oh btw he hasnt had a drink in 12 days and hasnt even mentioned wanting one.

[working dog]

maybe my withdrawl was so long and bad because i did't get any help...no drugs..no body helping..nothing..(i'm not saying don't get help).i know i was not at all normal for months...i did find out i had hep c right after i quit so i guess i really got double trouble..but still i would give him lots of time to recover..it's great that you are there for him with support...good luck...billy

[anita66]

the only underlying illnesses are high blood pressure and borderline diabetes. All his other labs came back fine, even his liver and kidney functions! thank god. And u r right i cannot even begin to understand what you all have gone through, thats why i have come here to get advice from those of u who have walked the path andare still walking it. thanks again everyone

[anita66]

how much did he drink a day? not quite sure, but i do know when he went to the detox center he blew a .385 on the breatalizer,and that was at 11:30 am and he was fully functional.

[Soccer15]

It does not take 6 weeks to detox.  Usually the first 5 or 6 days is the actual detoxification of the alcohol/drugs and the balance of time, anywhere from 28 days on, is the rehab, which can be quite different depending on the facility.  A stroke is a possibility, mainly if he had another underlying illness (like pneumonia).  Many alcoholics have run their body down so badly that when detoxing while so ill causes seizures and strokes.  Alcohol and Benzo's are the most dangerous addictions to detox from.  While addicted to other drugs you may 'feel' like you want to die, but with alcohol, you CAN die.
Many people don't like AA as they feel it has a 'cult' way about it.  If one can get past that, it's a great place to go where people TRULY understand what you are feeling.  Many people feel, "oh, no one can understand or no one has experienced what I have".  There is a saying, "if there is a word for it, it's because it's been done before".  Good one to keep in mind.  People who do not have addiction problems simply can not truly understand what addicts feel.  The emotional rollercoaster, the cravings, the depression, lack of motivation etc.  It's important to talk to those who know exactly what you are going through.
OK...that's my 2 cents worth for what it's worth.
Lori

[pace2121]

Sorry for the typo... I meant that I have been to 4 rehabs for drugs and alcohol abuse not for "drunk" and alcohol abuse. haha sorry

Paul

[pace2121]

Sounds like either he is just experiencing the effects of alcohol after using for that long but how much per day did he drink?  That is very important because some people consider folks that drink 3 beers a day an alcoholic and I don't believe that to be true.  But when you go to detox and then act like that after it ..it sounds like he has some problems like either a small stroke "unlikely but possible" or is just adjusting to his new life and I understand all of this because I have been to 4 rehabs for drunk and alcohol abuse and have now been clean for 7 months so I know a lot about this stuff.  Let me know how much he has been drinking and maybe i can give you a better explanation for his activity.

Good luck!

Paul

[working dog]

when i stopped drinking i kept thjinking this can't take this long...the weeks went by and the first 3 months were nasty...lots of symptoms...at the end of 5 months i was kind of normal...now its been 9 months and i'm feeling so much better...it just is so slow....you have to look out there months not days or weeks...at least thats what it was and is for me....my nightmares are gone..my guts feel good..my constant light headedness is almost completly gone..thats something i thought might never go away...the mental problems are almost gone...i couldn't get up on a roof or go into a crawl space without getting freaky...(i work constuction)i also couldn't drive very far without bad anxeity..thats way better now...i  have always loved snakes and when i first quit i remember snakes looked strange to me..i can now remember my dreams ..thats cool...and i'm 55...not too old to quit..anyway give it lots of time and don't exspect anything real fast...good luck...billy

[walternowotny]

My mother who died 6 months ago after 50 year of alcohol (and Rx meds) abuse(she was sober for last 14 months of her life) had a strange tendency to make up stories.I always thought she was just an"embelisher" but then I realized she just didn't remember what happened sho she made it up or accepted someone else's version of the events.
Briefly before she died she told me that she doesn't remember much from 70's and 80's.
Quite sad when your own mother doesn't remember you growing up....
Walter

[anita66]

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! All your anwers have helped so much!!!! At least we know this is "normal", part of the process. He is going to start AA meetings as soon as he feels up to it. Again thank you all and i will keep u posted.

[jo929]

i was just wodering about the detox center i was under the impression that it took 6 weeks to detox they did not keep him long enough to even see what side affects he would have can you not talk to the center and ask some questions maybe also a reg doctor  just an idea   i feel for all of you  keep us posted. he has not been away from al;cohol long enough so he really needs lots of support now. it is so easy to slip    please keep us posted   jo

[ibizan]

way cool 4 ur sobriety girl!so good!yes in detox they medicate us so we don't die and it is a documented fact that over 40% of alcoholics/addicts have clinical issues with depression/anxiety that warrant meds...and who knows for how long they ned 2 take it 4?in 1983 i could've benefited from some short term meds...but back then the docs sed no way!i chomped down on an imaginary bullet!:)))i'm happy to see the field has changed and their giving it to folks who r in need and theres good stuff out there to help that is non-addictive!u r a power of xample to him and uber knows what she's talking about here...so the best 2 u 2 him and keep us posted!

[uberadtx]

ibizan and zj are on the money with this.  It might take him more than a month to get clear from the alcohol.  Its a VERY slow process.  I wouldn't be surprised if he had a distended liver.  The best thing to do is be aggressive with his nutrition and he might come around.  LOTS of fruit juices and balanced meals.  He needs lots of B vitamins and niacin right now, that might bring him around a little.  He has depleted his major organs of the proper nutrition and they are crying out.  You are seeing the reality of alcoholism and its effects.  Not pretty but a lot of us have been there.  He can get better and I am sure he will.  keep us posted

[zj123]

Frist of all my brother died of alchol. He tried to detox himself one more time and he had a heart attac. Im gratefull for that because otherwise he would have die a slow and horroble death. Im a recovering alcohlic myself and I understand the way some detox places work.  (I've been to several)  however some of thoughts places I believe do over medicate us but then sometimes they must or we could die. Alcohol is the worse detox because you can go into seisures, convalsions, all kinds of things. He is walking around like that because hes sober he just trying to stay off the stuff and its not easy. It takes alot of time to fell better..I can tell you affter about 3 month sober I need to go on meds for different reason becaues of what the alcohol did to my brain but Im okay with that and fell better.   But I'm gonna tell ya something and you can suggest it to him from the bottom of my being..... I'm a member of AA. I't saved my life and today continues to do so.I  go there for me to keep me sober. ITS not a place of selfesh people ,however sometimes I need to  say things like that because I need AA to keep me alive..So tell him when he gets to felling better don't walk but RUN to the nerest AAmeeting. and check it out and if you do'nt like it and you think everybody in there is nuts   then you tell him he's probable right ware he needs to be. May the force be with him. and your family becaues my brother was way to young to die.   From someone who knows and cares about others like myself

[ibizan]

oh yes he has caused some tissue damage upstairs with the brain...soaked with alcohol like giant sponge.it is now wringing itself out.Google Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome aka PAWS.....and i think u'll find he has many of these symptoms.....let me know what u think!