What damage are us drinkers doing to ourselves?

[Bruno1979]

Hi guys,

After my little relapse yesterday i have been wondering all day what the actual effects of drinking are.

Ok you make a fool of yourself, struggle keeping slim, spend too much cash, cause problems in your relationships etc,

But what honestly do you think the medical effects are on the body? What type of damage can you expect to have happened to your liver and kidneys after years of abuse? What other medical conditions can we expect? Some people mentioned diabetes to me on here and it really is scary stuff that something that started off as a bit of fun can cause so many problems after a period of abuse.

Thanks as always,

Bruno.

[tomsteve]

cirrosis, central nervous system damage, brain shrinkage, high blood pressure, ulcers, cancer of the mouth and throat, wet brain, and death to name a few.

[Dee74]

I think it varies from person to person Bruno but there's a long list of what might happen - everything from red face to gout to diabetes, cancer and wet brain really...there are long lists everywhere on Google...(tho like hypo says you can really freak yourself out)

and all that's not including the many injuries we sustain when drunk or the injuries some of us have sustained in detox....

Simply put - it's not good.
D

[ODAT63]

Erectile dysfunction

[GirlFromCO]

Check out this blog: immortalalcoholic.blogspot.com

[hypochondriac]

Funny enough it was googling this very question that brought me to SR

It's scary Bruno but not really surprising.

I don't recommend googling anything. Just have an honest chat with your doctor and find out what's going on x

[Vajra]

A host of problems, including damage to our neurotransmitters. Damages the pathways that affect moods/emotions. Mental illness ,particularly depression and anxiety disorders, can be a directly caused by alchohol abuse.

[desertsong]

Have a look:

Medical Consequences of Alcohol Abuse | Alcohol Research & Health | Find Articles

[thesun]

Mental issues.

[sugarbear1]

sleep disorders as alcohol interrupts REM and SWS sleeping cycles.

early onset of alzheimer's in our future is more likely, also.

esophagus, stomach, and intestinal changes as alcohol robs us of the pH necessary to break down B vitamins (don't take in early recovery, wait a while and eat well as the linings need to heal first).

there's more.....

[artsoul]

Yeah, the list is reeealllly long.....

Alcohol affects every organ in the drinker's body. (NIAA - National Institute on Drug Abuse, CDC - Center for Disease Control)

[midgetcop]

For me personally, I was particularly worried about my cardiovascular system. My arrhythmia and blood pressure issues were serious enough that I constantly worried about heart attacks and strokes. I literally felt like a walking time-bomb.

[soberbythesea]

The liver damage is the thing that freaks me out the most. I was absolutely certain that even if I never got myself in to any other kind of trouble again because of my drinking (not likely), eventually my liver would be fcuked. That is a BIG reason why I finally stopped.

[sousvide]

Originally Posted by GirlFromCO

Check out this blog: immortalalcoholic.blogspot.com

God, that is one scary site.....I haven't read much of it, but if I get this right, THAT alcoholic has one hell of a spouse....

Again......really, really disturbing.

[Bruno1979]

Thanks for the replies guys,

Is it normal to have problems sleeping?

I'm only managing about 4hrs max a night. :o

[LDT]

For me, a straight 4 hours of sleep would have been a God send. An avergage night for me was a total of 4-5 hours of very sporatic sleep. I could only stay asleep about 1-1/2 hours at a time. I read a lot of books during that time. It's much better now though. Have patience with your healing.

[Bruno1979]

Originally Posted by LDT

For me, a straight 4 hours of sleep would have been a God send. An avergage night for me was a total of 4-5 hours of very sporatic sleep. I could only stay asleep about 1-1/2 hours at a time. I read a lot of books during that time. It's much better now though. Have patience with your healing.

Thanks for the reply LDT,

That's what a mean by 4 hrs, 1 or 2 hours at a time.

[soberred]

Originally Posted by sugarbear1

sleep disorders as alcohol interrupts REM and SWS sleeping cycles.

early onset of alzheimer's in our future is more likely, also.

esophagus, stomach, and intestinal changes as alcohol robs us of the pH necessary to break down B vitamins (don't take in early recovery, wait a while and eat well as the linings need to heal first).

there's more.....

Esophageal varices. Dilated veins of the esophagus. I had one patient go into shock because his started bleeding and they couldn't stop it. Scary stuff.

[soberred]

duplicate

[soberred]

Originally Posted by Bruno1979

Thanks for the replies guys,

Is it normal to have problems sleeping?

I'm only managing about 4hrs max a night. :o

Yes it is normal Bruno. I started taken a natural herb and it has been wonderful for me. I haven't experience any side effects so far. It will level out for you eventually. My sleep pattern has always been off but it was unbearable in the beginning of sobriety.