Alcohol Withdrawal DTs

[MaryT]

My mother was in a severe auto accident about 10 days ago.Prior to the accident she was a heavy evening drinker (a bottle of wine every night for the last 20 years). Her admission blood work showed alcohol still in her system. She weighs 105 pounds. She needed surgery and was on morphine for the first 6 days of her hospitalization. For the last three days (no morphine) she has experienced hallucinations, could it be that her detoxification was delayed by the morphine? I am concerned because other family members are looking at mental illness, rather than face the mention of her suffering from DTs.

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

Although possible, it is highly unlikely that she would have DT's showing as hallucination without also having severe shakes, liver dysfunction, vomiting etc.  The motor changes would be suppressed by morphine. The hallucinations can actually be increased by morphine, depending on dose and how sedated she was by the morphine.

I would think more along the line of a post traumatic stress reaction, and ask for a psychiatric consultation.

[puma]

Dear MaryT,

Believe it or not, most doctors I have met know little or nothing about the DT's. I do, however, as I have experienced it too many times.

I also am an alcoholic and when I try to quit, the hallucinations and seizures usually start on day-4 and end around day 8-10. Klonopin withdrawal I found to be much longer and more severe.

The morphine may cause hallucinations, but if she stopped taking it, that would go away. She may have avoided the frist days of alcohol withdrawal shakes and flu like feeling because she was on the heavy pain killer. I only experience minor nausea on the first day of withdrawal but terrible shaking and eventually seizures and dilerium.

The doctors can give her Ativan, Librium  or klonopin temporarily and taper her off over two weeks if the symptoms are alcohol withdrawal related.

If she becomes at all babbling incoherently, that is a good sign that it is DT's. Her blood pressure and pulse would be elevated to a dangerous level as well. Good Luck I hope everything goes well. You need to get her to stop drinking. Try A.A. when she is strong enough, that may be helpful as well.

Chatahan

[AustinMV]

i agree with puma on this one. i've had borderline DT and have experienced my mother having DT's on swveral occasions. shes passed with cirroses btw. DT's and the symptoms of withdrawal vary from person to person my hallucinations were fairly mild hallucinations visuals,sounds and things i knew were fake. my mothers on the other hand she was unaware of who she was or where she was and would often hurt herself. there is a move out on Bill W founder of AA and a scene in which he went through a DT. it was a great representation of what a full blow DT can do to a person.