SeanS

Hey All,

Just want to share my experience on this.

So, I walked into this bar one night to get, well, drunk and to flirt with the bartender. I see her there, and it must have been her day off because she wasn't working. I walked up to her and said "hey, how's it going?" Then the startling thing. She kinda' just looked at me for a second in suprise. This made me feel uneasy. She then said "You don't remember, do you?" And I say "Remember what?" Then she said "Well, don't worry about it. We're still friends." She then turned her back to me and started back with a converstation that I had interupted. Then I stood there rather confused and shocked. I had to no what I did. So, I asked her again. And, well, I got the same response. Whatever I had done, she did not want to tell me.

I left that bar and never went back. After another month, I had finally hit bottom and went to AA. I've been sober for a little more that 3 years now. My life is great now.

Blackouts are not a normal part of drinking. I would suggest finding an AA meeting in your area.

Good luck.

Dinty

I was on-line looking for information on alcoholic blackouts to try and dispute the fact that i may or may not have had one. I have always considered myself a "social drinker" up until the point i was told that I was all over some guy in a bar. I have NO recollection of this at all and will carry the guilt forever that I have let my husband,family and myself down. Alcoholism runs in my family. How do I know if I am an alcoholic?

daddysgirl29

Hi Cathy. I learned in detox/rehab that "yet" means "You Eventually, Too." Good thing you caught it now and are aware of what lies ahead if you continue. From what you've described when you're drunk, (doing things out of character/blackouts) you've already crossed some "lines" that distinguish a problem drinker/alcoholic from the rest. I'm SO not throwing stones b/c I've been there. Just trying to reach out so your situation doesn't wind up where mine was.

Good luck, friend.

dizzy11523

I've done stupid things as well. I probably lost all chances with the girl of my dreams because of stupid things I've said when I blacked out. Nothing is worse then reading an email you wrote that you humilliated yourself in cause you were drunk.

sceagacros

Hi cathy123 ,
I have blacked out more times than I can remember !!!(HA! Get it?)my last one was the catalyst in my decision to quit drinking immediately and seek help.Today is my sixth day of sobriety.Looking back I definitely see a progression-blackouts were present but rare from the begining and escalated in frequency and duration towards the end , to the point that any time I went beyond my evening maintenance drinking and went out , or celebrated, they would occur.And I can vouch for the weird way they come over you with less and less alcohol needed.I've drank incredibly large amounts of beer and other alcohol during my life but usually "handled" it amazingly well .Lately I would blackout with ridiculously small amounts(relatively speaking) and it was terrifying , unpredictable , and felt like I was possessed by some outside force at it's whim.Last time I drank -I only drank two bottles of red wine (usually just an evenings maintenance-barely a buzz)and -one minute I remember sitting with a glass of wine in my hand - and suddenly it's hours later and I've had a horrifying , violent episode with absolutely no recollection.
It wasn't the first time but with GOD's help it WILL be the last.If I had stopped drinking and said to myself "ok , I guess alcohol and me don't mix " the first time I had a blackout , my life and quality of it would be completely different than the situation I find myself in today.I didn't do that - but you can... forums like this didn't exist back when I was begining my drinking - and I can't say that if they did I would have listened to the advice anyway.But hopefully you will consider the opinions here and carefully do what you feel is best to take care of yourself.
Personally I've never met someone who "blacks-out", about who a strong case for a drinking problem or addictive personality couldn't be made.

j'ade d'arcy

Blackouts were for me the most terrifying aspect of my addiction. I could not prevent nor predict how the episode would end. And during the blackout, I have to assume that I did not care one way or the other what I did or said, and sometimes what was done to me. I too have come out of a blackout in a cell and a couple of times in a hospital bed, one of them in a psych ward. If you are experiencing blackouts, please seek some kind of help, whatever works for you. You may not always have friends close by to help watch over you. And eventually, as the blackouts increase (and they will), they may not want to watch out for you either. I would ask my friends why they didn't prevent me from doing whatever it was that I was doing in my blackout and then felt shame about later. They often told me that they could not prevent me, and later that they just could not be part of the drama that would inevitably unfold.

CarolD

For facts on Blackouts.....Page 119 in

"Under The Influence" by Milam & Ketcham

can be ordered from Amazon.

The book is a super resourse for alcoholism.

This thread is way old....
interesting to see how many of us are still here!