Physical symptoms?

Old 05-24-2009, 12:24 PM
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Physical symptoms?

There is no better place to ask this than in this forum. I am wondering if anyone has had physical symptoms due to their drinking and if they reversed. I am not talking about a hangover or vomiting (I can only *wish* alcohol had that kind of effect on me, but it doesn't.) For some reason my genes are programmed to handle enormous quantities and I never get sick - in the traditional sense.

Anyway, I am doing the best that I can, but am falling short of the mark. Lately my left foot swells on a regular basis. I know it could be something very bad and I know the thing to do is to not drink one drop. For some reason I want to be in denial. It's the craziest thing. Here I am in an IOP preceded by in-patient and I cannot seem to get a handle on this thing. Maybe I need to go back in-patient, but where does a person like me go? Perhaps I am just truly addicted, like with cigarettes. I will push on and see what happens in terms of my IOP. Maybe I am a hopeless case, however. There are those out there and maybe I am just one of them. I am not making an excuse, but for some it just seems to be reality. I hope I am not one of them.

At any rate, have you dealt with complications that arise from drinking too much?
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Old 05-24-2009, 12:58 PM
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I never had a booze problem but dope turned me into a very sick dude. I hadda go inpatient to get away from it.
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Old 05-24-2009, 01:24 PM
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Katie...I don't think you are in denial...I think that you have a great understanding of your situation...unfortunately you are more comfortable where you are than where sobriety will lead you.

I will disagree with your statement that you are hopeless...nobody is until you believe it.

The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding go out to meet it.

I hope you find your way Katie...there is much more to life than being a drunk.
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Old 05-24-2009, 01:36 PM
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Originally Posted by bugsworth View Post
Katie...I don't think you are in denial...I think that you have a great understanding of your situation...unfortunately you are more comfortable where you are than where sobriety will lead you.

I will disagree with your statement that you are hopeless...nobody is until you believe it.

The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding go out to meet it.

I hope you find your way Katie...there is much more to life than being a drunk.
Thanks, I just read this and I cried. It's all good.
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Old 05-24-2009, 02:04 PM
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My feces was consistently yellow while I was drinking. It takes at least a month after stopping for it to become a normal color.

My acid reflux (whatever it is) is rarely a problem when I'm sober. When I'm drinking it's really bad.

I have heart palpitations...don't know the cause (could be due to stress). I'm on blood pressure meds for that and along with being sober, I barely have them now.
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Old 05-24-2009, 02:09 PM
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Thanks, Bam. I do suppose everything will normalize provided I do my part. Mentally, I am not doing so hot this weekend. Can't wait for this holiday to get over. I imagine I am not alone.
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Old 05-24-2009, 03:44 PM
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At any rate, have you dealt with complications that arise from drinking too much?
I didn't deal with them LOL.

Not until I stopped drinking, and even then it took me 6 months to go to the Dr about the stuff that hadn't 'gone away'....

Doing the best we can Katie is at least seeing a doctor when we're unwell, along with always trying to stop drinking.

No-one is 'truly addicted' - I used to say it too with booze pot and cigs - it's just shorthand for 'I don't really want to face that', for whatever reason

I've never met a hopeless case yet.

D
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Old 05-24-2009, 04:00 PM
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When I was drinking heavily I began losing sensation in my legs and I began suffering from extreme back pain. Abstaining for just 2 weeks made it all better, but when I tried drinking the pain came back again. I notice the symptoms reappear after just two or three consecutive drinking sessions.
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Old 05-24-2009, 05:37 PM
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I would be shocked if anyone could provide an alcohol related medical explanation for why only one foot is swelling. It seems to me that this is something else; perhaps something urgent, and you should see a doctor.

The symptoms that I had while drinking too much were mostly gastrointestinal. It was a really good time.

Brain symptoms:

Delirium tremens is a problem where 2-10 days after you stop drinking, you become extremely confused.
Korsakoff's syndrome has symptoms of a loss of memory and confusion. This is due to vitamin B deficiency and anemia.
Marchiafava-Bignami disease affects the outer lining of the nerve cells in the brain and the rest of the body. Symptoms can include loss of coordination, chronic tremor, seizures, and coma.
High blood alcohol concentrations can weaken the blood vessels in the brain which can cause the vessels to scar down causing obstruction of blood flow (ischemic stroke) or the blood vessels in the brain can weaken, an aneurysm can form, and intracranial bleeding can occur (hemorrhagic stroke).

Gut symptoms:

Liver injury occurs after just one drink, so you can imagine what chronic drinking over years of time does to your liver. It gets fatty, it scars up, eventually it does not clear toxins from your body. Since the liver produces clot factors, many people in liver failure die because they spontaneously bleed to death. The food in the intestines is taken to the liver through the portal vein. With liver damage comes portal vein hypertension, a condition where all of the veins which drain into the portal vein become enlarged and the blood becomes static. The veins die, and in many instances, these become sources of gastrointestinal bleeding. Thus, the stomach and the esophagus also can be damaged from chronic drinking.
Pancreatic injury occurs because the alcohol can directly flow backward through the biliary duct and pancreatic duct to the pancreas. Inflammation of the pancreas can occur, and recurrent inflammation of the pancreas can cause pancreatic damage and diabetes.
All gastrointestinal problems caused by drinking can eventually end in cancer.

Heart symptoms:

High blood pressure, atherosclerosis, stroke and heart failure can all occur from chronic drinking.

All of the above can kill you.

Some other problems which will not kill you include skin damage and a decreased sex drive.

You want to quit, you are trying to quit and you are seeking support. I don't think that any alcohol addiction is hopeless; I think the more that you focus on your own reasons why, and the more that you try, and the more help you get from other people, eventually you will succeed.
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Old 05-24-2009, 06:02 PM
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high blood preasure, dry skin, diabedics, pancreatitis, swolen ankles, diarea, scratching, low potasium to the point of being life threatening, magnesium low, infections (anitbiotics not effective when drinking), vomiting, low blood sugar, too week to walk more than 2 feet without support.

I doubt thats everything but you get the drift.

most cleared up within the first year...the pancreatitis caused the diabetics, and i am fortunate that the pancreatitis appears to have cleared up...only one episode about 3 weeks ago and before that had been at least 6 mos.

Dr. says i will probably be off the bloodpreasure meds pretty soon and my A1 results were spectacular on the diabedics.

I was told that if i drink i can expect all of this back in very short order...i don't have another 8 year binge left in me. And the damage may not be reversable if i try this again.

I feel lucky (in a wierd way) when i have a strong desire to drink, i am able to remember how bad it really was....and i don't ever want to live my life the way i did those last years.....i think the thought of that is just more unbearable than anything life could throw at me today.
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Old 05-24-2009, 06:25 PM
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I know family that wasn't alcoholic and had gout. I know friends who had hearts that shut down.

The only person who can make a determination is a doctor which is why we have this rule
10. Medical Advice: No Posts giving medical advice, medication advice, or psychiatric advice.
Your symptoms can be very serious. I recommend you see a doctor.
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Old 05-24-2009, 07:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Alera View Post
I know family that wasn't alcoholic and had gout. I know friends who had hearts that shut down.

The only person who can make a determination is a doctor which is why we have this rule


Your symptoms can be very serious. I recommend you see a doctor.
Thanks, Alera. I did call my Dr on this but it comes and goes. Kind of hard to see him when it's not there, so I guess I put it off. Of course, I do know that no one here is a Dr. Guess I'm just looking for others input into what has happened in their drinking careers, so to speak.

For me, I elevate my foot and it goes down. No doubt I need to address this.
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Old 05-24-2009, 08:51 PM
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Katie, I too, think you should go see the doctor...

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Old 05-25-2009, 01:56 AM
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This was exactly my symptom - one foot swelling. It was gout, and alcohol related. But as everyone else has said, see your Dr and be completely honest with him/her in regards to your drinking habits and history.
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Old 05-25-2009, 08:36 AM
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Originally Posted by dgillz View Post
This was exactly my symptom - one foot swelling. It was gout, and alcohol related. But as everyone else has said, see your Dr and be completely honest with him/her in regards to your drinking habits and history.
Thanks, yes, I hate doing that (having to be completely honest). I was with mine and he said it just makes him sad. Told me if I don't quit now I'll have long term health problems. Why is it so damn hard to quit - or maybe stay quit. Guess that's the hard part.

At any rate, I've been poking around researching Britain's got talent and Susan Boyle for fun this a.m. It just makes me smile to see this older woman who has never been kissed rise through the ranks of talent. I will for sure be buying her CD. Ok, slightly OT, but makes me smile.

I hope everyone here has a fab holiday!!!
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Old 05-25-2009, 09:15 AM
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As long as there a willingness to continue on the road to wellness, even in the face of profound despair there will be hope. I think when all hope dies, the mind and body are soon follow. Also I believe there varying degrees of success. An instructor of the Addiction Disorders Study class's I have attended once said about drug addiction recovery rates: One third of the people in recovery get better. One third stay about the same and one third get worse. I myself have wavered on many occasion in my recovery between getting better and staying about the same. All I really know is if I stay in addiction treatment, I'll have a chance. If I stop all treatment and go out...I wont last long.
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Old 05-25-2009, 09:25 AM
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Originally Posted by zencat View Post
As long as there a willingness to continue on the road to wellness, even in the face of profound despair there will be hope. I think when all hope dies, the mind and body are soon follow. Also I believe there varying degrees of success. An instructor of the Addiction Disorders Study class's I have attended once said about drug addiction recovery rates: One third of the people in recovery get better. One third stay about the same and one third get worse. I myself have wavered on many occasion in my recovery between getting better and staying about the same. All I really know is if I stay in addiction treatment, I'll have a chance. If I stop all treatment and go out...I wont last long.

(((Zencat))) I am really glad you keep trying. Katie
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Old 05-25-2009, 12:06 PM
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Smile

Originally Posted by The Zen dude
As long as there a willingness to continue on the road to wellness, even in the face of profound despair there will be hope. I think when all hope dies, the mind and body are soon follow. Also I believe there varying degrees of success. An instructor of the Addiction Disorders Study class's I have attended once said about drug addiction recovery rates: One third of the people in recovery get better. One third stay about the same and one third get worse. I myself have wavered on many occasion in my recovery between getting better and staying about the same. All I really know is if I stay in addiction treatment, I'll have a chance. If I stop all treatment and go out...I wont last long.
Originally Posted by Katie
(((Zencat))) I am really glad you keep trying. Katie
I'm just a glad your doing the same .
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Old 05-25-2009, 12:20 PM
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Katie...I work in an industry where maybe 5% of the people I come in contact with survive...and by survive I mean get well enough to die at home. I will tell you what I tell my patients...FIGHT damn it...your not done yet. You are still young...despite your foot issues you are in good health...you are obviously intelligent so what do you have to lose??? FIGHT damn it!!! LOL...Change how you look at things Katie and what you look at will change. You are way more powerful than you give yourself credit for.
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Old 05-29-2009, 01:26 PM
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At the risk of being in the "too much information" catagory, my liver was so clogged up my feet were swelling nearly every day & I would get swelling in my groin. My knees were constantly killing me- avoided taking the stairs whenever I could. My right calf whould swell so badly that I could feel the skin stretch-hurt like hell! I had man-boobs. Face, puffy & swollen. blood Pressure? 160/100 was common. Speeding heartbeat? NINTY after sitting for half a hour. Needless to say, I couldn't relax EVER. which doesn't help the disposition AT ALL.
After seven months sobreity, along with BP & anarhymia (sic) medicine these symptoms have largely disappeared. My joints especially have improved.BP & pulserate are below average. Muscle tone much better. Of course I am not growing any younger, but I FEEL younger. I guess my point is it took ME about 5 1/2-6 months before I could REALLY tell that my physical condition had improved..........
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