Blacking out vs passing out
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: roanoke va
Posts: 62
Blacking out vs passing out
I read just now that blacking out is not the same as passing out.
I would really like more info on that.
I drink to the point of I do not remember. I see food that I have fixed, left on the countertops, but have no memory of eating. I have phone calls on my cell that I have no memory of making.
Am I blacked out...........I mean I wake up and see these things that have happened with no recollection of what is going on. I guess I ate but have no memory of eating and I am starved when I finally get around to waking up.
I am clueless?
I would really like more info on that.
I drink to the point of I do not remember. I see food that I have fixed, left on the countertops, but have no memory of eating. I have phone calls on my cell that I have no memory of making.
Am I blacked out...........I mean I wake up and see these things that have happened with no recollection of what is going on. I guess I ate but have no memory of eating and I am starved when I finally get around to waking up.
I am clueless?
Member
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Western USA
Posts: 46
When you pass out you've basically crashed and that'a it.
What you are describing are classic examples of Blackouts. One gets to the point that the brain ceases to record what is going on and you are on automatic pilot. Google, "Alcoholic Blackout" for more detailed info.
Now that i think about it... One of my former co-workers was drinking hard in a bar and next thing he knew, he was waking up in a motel room with his car keys in his hand. He turned on the TV and was startled, then he checked the phone book and hotel info sheet. To his dawning horror he realized that he was almost 500 miles from home! Topping it all off, he couldn't remember where he left his car.
He called the police to explain the situation and help him find his car, then called a doctor he knew to check into rehab.
What you are describing are classic examples of Blackouts. One gets to the point that the brain ceases to record what is going on and you are on automatic pilot. Google, "Alcoholic Blackout" for more detailed info.
Now that i think about it... One of my former co-workers was drinking hard in a bar and next thing he knew, he was waking up in a motel room with his car keys in his hand. He turned on the TV and was startled, then he checked the phone book and hotel info sheet. To his dawning horror he realized that he was almost 500 miles from home! Topping it all off, he couldn't remember where he left his car.
He called the police to explain the situation and help him find his car, then called a doctor he knew to check into rehab.
Yes, you are blacking out. You're functioning and awake, but your brain isn't processing the information (it doesn't store it in long-term memory - sometimes they call it alcoholic amnesia).
Passing out is when you become unconscious.
I've only blacked out once, way back in my twenties - it was so strange to be told what I did and as hard as I tried, I didn't recall any of it. Black outs are scary - they're also dangerous.
Are you trying to get sober?
Passing out is when you become unconscious.
I've only blacked out once, way back in my twenties - it was so strange to be told what I did and as hard as I tried, I didn't recall any of it. Black outs are scary - they're also dangerous.
Are you trying to get sober?
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: roanoke va
Posts: 62
I have a friend that lives just a few feet from me. I obviously went there and we obviously talked and spent some time together. I have no recollection what so ever of being there.
I knew I was there because he left a message on my cell phone asking me if I got home ok.
I was like what...?
2 days later, when I was finally able to get out of the bed, I called him.........he told me all this stuff we talked about and a video we watched..........I still have no clue.
I knew I was there because he left a message on my cell phone asking me if I got home ok.
I was like what...?
2 days later, when I was finally able to get out of the bed, I called him.........he told me all this stuff we talked about and a video we watched..........I still have no clue.
Guest
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: The Deep South
Posts: 14,636
I burned about 25% of my hair off once in a blackout by sitting too close to a candle. It could have been much worse. I've also left the stove on after attempting to cook awful conglomerations of food... The stove had been left on all night. I did this more than once. I've also realized the next day that I ate raw eggs and raw meat thinking I had cooked them. Also I've waken up the next morning with my front door not only unlocked... But wide open. I'm lucky to be alive.
Hope you stop the insanity now. Good luck.
Hope you stop the insanity now. Good luck.
Forward we go...side by side-Rest In Peace
Join Date: Jun 2002
Location: Serene In Dixie
Posts: 36,740
Passing out means you drank to the point you became unconcious.
You may or may not have been in a blackout.
too was a blackcout drinker...this is from the book "Under The Influence" and it was certainly true for me.
The best news...they stopped immediately when I quit drinking...
The middle-stage alcoholic has probably been having blackouts from time to time. Blackouts are a very distinctive feature of alcoholism, and one symptom that clearly distinguishes alcoholics from non-alcoholics. The events which occur during an alcoholic blackout are not forgotten; they are simply not stored or are imperfectly stored in the brain. There is nothing there to be recalled later.
During a blackout, the alcoholic may be functioning normally and aware of everything that is happening around him. He continues to talk, walk, eat, drive a car, conduct a business deal, or make love to his wife. Yet on sobering up, he has no memory trace of what occurred during a certain time period -- it could be a minute, an hour, or even several days. In the early stages of the disease, blackouts are relatively infrequent, but as the disease progresses, they occur more often and last for longer periods of time.
Jack attended a series of weekend meetings held in a city 90 miles from his home. The last meeting ended in midafternoon, and Jack retired to the bar with several friends. It was happy hour, and the bartender announced a special on martinis: six ounces of gin for just $2.00. Jack drank four specials and then decided to order dinner before he drove home. With dinner, he drank a bottle of wine. It was late when he started driving, but he remembered watching the moon rise over the low hills. The next thing he knew and could later recall, he was travelling 110 mph and was 25 miles past his exit. He had driven 100 miles in a blackout.
It is not difficult to imagine how frightening blackouts can be. The alcoholic may wake up in the morning with no recall of the events of the previous evening. He gets out of bed, afraid to inspect his clothes -- did he get sick? Then the question occurs to him: "How did I get home?" He looks out the window, fearful that the car will be missing. He does not remember driving home.
The car is there, and he has another, even more frightening thought: "Did I hit something or someone?" He runs outside and looks at the front end. He searches the seats for clues to help him piece the lost time back together. Humiliating thoughts race through his mind: "Did I disgrace myself? Will my friends talk to me? How can I find out what happened when I am too embarrassed to admit that I don't remember?"
Blackouts can be so frightening that they make the alcoholic question his sanity. For the first time he may realize that he is in deep trouble with alcohol. Despite his increasing problems, however, the middle-stage alcoholic rarely considers giving up drinking...
Page 115-"Under The Influnce" by Milam Ketcham
Thanks to member GreenTea..we have a sticky post with more excerpts
The Alcoholism and Addictions Help Forums- by SoberRecovery.com (Excerpts from "Under The Influence")
That is the book that convinced me to finally stop...tho not everything pertained to me...a lot sure did...
The supplements and eating plan are not on our link...but that too worked out very well for me..
You may or may not have been in a blackout.
too was a blackcout drinker...this is from the book "Under The Influence" and it was certainly true for me.
The best news...they stopped immediately when I quit drinking...
The middle-stage alcoholic has probably been having blackouts from time to time. Blackouts are a very distinctive feature of alcoholism, and one symptom that clearly distinguishes alcoholics from non-alcoholics. The events which occur during an alcoholic blackout are not forgotten; they are simply not stored or are imperfectly stored in the brain. There is nothing there to be recalled later.
During a blackout, the alcoholic may be functioning normally and aware of everything that is happening around him. He continues to talk, walk, eat, drive a car, conduct a business deal, or make love to his wife. Yet on sobering up, he has no memory trace of what occurred during a certain time period -- it could be a minute, an hour, or even several days. In the early stages of the disease, blackouts are relatively infrequent, but as the disease progresses, they occur more often and last for longer periods of time.
Jack attended a series of weekend meetings held in a city 90 miles from his home. The last meeting ended in midafternoon, and Jack retired to the bar with several friends. It was happy hour, and the bartender announced a special on martinis: six ounces of gin for just $2.00. Jack drank four specials and then decided to order dinner before he drove home. With dinner, he drank a bottle of wine. It was late when he started driving, but he remembered watching the moon rise over the low hills. The next thing he knew and could later recall, he was travelling 110 mph and was 25 miles past his exit. He had driven 100 miles in a blackout.
It is not difficult to imagine how frightening blackouts can be. The alcoholic may wake up in the morning with no recall of the events of the previous evening. He gets out of bed, afraid to inspect his clothes -- did he get sick? Then the question occurs to him: "How did I get home?" He looks out the window, fearful that the car will be missing. He does not remember driving home.
The car is there, and he has another, even more frightening thought: "Did I hit something or someone?" He runs outside and looks at the front end. He searches the seats for clues to help him piece the lost time back together. Humiliating thoughts race through his mind: "Did I disgrace myself? Will my friends talk to me? How can I find out what happened when I am too embarrassed to admit that I don't remember?"
Blackouts can be so frightening that they make the alcoholic question his sanity. For the first time he may realize that he is in deep trouble with alcohol. Despite his increasing problems, however, the middle-stage alcoholic rarely considers giving up drinking...
Page 115-"Under The Influnce" by Milam Ketcham
Thanks to member GreenTea..we have a sticky post with more excerpts
The Alcoholism and Addictions Help Forums- by SoberRecovery.com (Excerpts from "Under The Influence")
That is the book that convinced me to finally stop...tho not everything pertained to me...a lot sure did...
The supplements and eating plan are not on our link...but that too worked out very well for me..
I remember telling a man I was dating that "I always black out when I drink" and he said "I've never seen you black out you talk, you laugh, you make love..etc" he was legitimately shocked/surprised that I had no memory of any of it; the more years of drinking that went by the worse the black outs got. Initially just parts of the evening were blacked out, then hours and more hours. The last time I drank I don't even remember taking the first drink due to blacking out, and the night (and almost my life) ended with me taking an overdose of prescription sleeping pills and pain killers..I have no memory of what I did nor of why I took the pills I had not been planning on suicide. Please stop drinking before things get worse.
Englishrose70
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Melbourne
Posts: 190
The times I just dont remember the latter part of the evening at all and definitely not remembering going to bed were become more and more frequent, what a waste of my life!
I have been sober for 3 weeks today, I love being in control of my bed time routine, remembering, snuggling under my sheets and giving thanks and gratitude for the restorative sleep I will have, waking up naturally as nature intends, rather than when the alcohol wears off. Feeling vibrant, alert and good about the day, even if its stressful, I know I will manage it.
It feels SO good, this is a massive driver for me not to pick up. It really is.
Great post and thanks Carol for the excerpt.
I have been sober for 3 weeks today, I love being in control of my bed time routine, remembering, snuggling under my sheets and giving thanks and gratitude for the restorative sleep I will have, waking up naturally as nature intends, rather than when the alcohol wears off. Feeling vibrant, alert and good about the day, even if its stressful, I know I will manage it.
It feels SO good, this is a massive driver for me not to pick up. It really is.
Great post and thanks Carol for the excerpt.
I never really understood the meaning of 'blacking out' as a result of drinking, until reading about it yesterday (my 21st day of sobriety); I knew that I passed out when I drank, but didn't realize that the "missing time" was a blackout and not just memory loss (maybe even something to laugh at) due to drinking too much. I knew that I forgot parts of (or entire) conversations, somehow 'drove home', probably (or definitely) did and said things that I never would have done/said sober, etc but I never realized that this wasn't a 'normal' effect of drinking. Thank you for posting this - Under the Influence is on my list of books to read and I think it will be a good reminder for me why I cannot and will not drink again.
Hi SD,
Over time my blackouts became longer and more frequent - even when I was drinking less frequently - to the point that sometimes a ridiculously small amount of alcohol could result in mayhem. I was totally unpredictable and although (I'm told) I could usually hold a lucid conversation, in this state I would often take stupid risks. I am very lucky not to be dead or in prison. Today is a new day though, and it never has to happen again. Welcome to SR and good luck.
Over time my blackouts became longer and more frequent - even when I was drinking less frequently - to the point that sometimes a ridiculously small amount of alcohol could result in mayhem. I was totally unpredictable and although (I'm told) I could usually hold a lucid conversation, in this state I would often take stupid risks. I am very lucky not to be dead or in prison. Today is a new day though, and it never has to happen again. Welcome to SR and good luck.
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