Dr's have said not to do that, as it can cause complications like seizures.
Hubby thinks that 1st Feb seems like a good date to stop? Easy to remember.
He told a friend of his today, that he is giving up drinking and told the friend about his diagnosis. This seems a positive step forward.
Do I let him go ahead and give up Mon or should I try and persuade him to wait and maybe go for 1st March instead.
Hi There from personal experience I would say no I had 2 seizures when I stopped which resulted in me being induced into a coma as my organs began to fail and 6 weeks in hospital I'm not saying this will happen it depends on how much he's drinking my drinking was uncontrollable please stay safe and listen to your GP I wish I had, keep us posted and I wish you all the very best being T Total is a wonderful feeling 👍😃
Hi Lisa, No. I used to say similar things, I would plan a date or day to stop drinking but it never happened. The withdrawal was too bad,
Why has he not started to cut down? He should at least stop 10% per day of what his intake is to make it safe.
Linda x
I quit cold turkey, but I didn’t have any major medical problems. I will say it’s deeply unpleasant and a huge shock to the system. Go with the 1 March date, but as Millie says it has to be reduced every day.
Drinkers are experts at planning when/how to drink so why not make a list of quantity per day between now and March?
Hi, he's more likely to stay off the alcohol if he cuts down gradually than going cold turkey, cold turkey is not very pleasant to go through and he could just grab a drink to take the withdrawals away, its best for him to cut down gradually and safely.All the best xx
If he goes cold turkey he will need medication to prevent the withdrawral symptoms. It was confirmed to me the other day that my husband will have had some in amongst the many prescribed medication he was on.There is just no easy way out once they reach this point. I really feel for you.
Laura x
Benzodiazepines for withdrawral symptoms
Yes , I was prescribed diazepam for withdrawral Laura, Don't think I could have gotten through my first hurdle without them also it keeps the dangerous first 3 days as safe as possible with the seizures x
Thanks for the advice. I have read the comments to hubby and have suggested that he waits until he has spoken to the Hepatology Alcohol Nurses on Monday. Hubby says he thinks it will be harder to reduce gradually as he fears the need for alcohol will make him drink more and make cutting down slowly harder. So he feels going cold turkey will be easier? As he says if he tells himself no more then he will have to stick to it. He says by still having alcohol in the house and reducing slowly will make it easier to drink more?? It's hard as I am not addicted so do not fully understand his rationale???
Hi Lisa,.I totally understand what hubby is saying, I too thought the same and had the same logic .
Hubby needs to know how dangerous going cold turkey is and extremely hard.i really hope the nurse can help him with this.
Take care linda x
I’m a bit torn here. In my drinking days, if I’d had alcohol in the house, I’d probably drink it. I must’ve had some sense back then as I’d buy “only” one bottle of wine each day as I know if I’d bought more, I’d drink more. It’s a hassle, but what about buying a can or two at a time? A drinker can, of course, nip out and buy more, but it’s an extra step having to go out in the cold, etc, and could be the difference between one can or six.
Hi Lisa, like others have said its not wise going cold turkey. I was of the same ilk, ill cut down lose a can every 3 days but I did so far and couldn't do no more as the withdrawal was horrendous so had to medicate and get more alcohol. It really is a horrible addiction as you have to carry on doing the thing that's killing you to get better, but sticking to a withdrawing process of gradual unit reduction.
I could never do it so it wasn't an option for me, my drs wouldn't prescribe me diazepam as the amount of alcohol I was on they wouldn't touch me, so i had many detox's and was given Chlordiazepoxide, i was allowed them as much as I needed till the worst was over which was 3 to 4 days of hell on earth ,but without them I wouldn't of been able to do it.
All sober now thank God, and only thing keeping me off the booze is willpower and self control, there isn't a drug for that unfortunately lol so it's there everyday testing me, wanting to beat me I just choose to not let it now. I wish your husband nothing but the the best wishes and he will beat it, and for you also to have better times ahead. Take care ,keep us informed of his progress and all the best going forward. 👍
Ashley
I have been monitoring what hubby is drinking each day. This is something that i have not done for years and years, as I used to upset me. Anyway due to the appt with the Hepatologist, I decided to start monitoring it again, as I think hubby truly has no idea exactly how much he is drinking, as he forgets. Sun 19.56 units = cider and wine
Mon 15.23 units = cider and wine
Tue 12.67 units = cider
Wed 10.03 = cider
Thur 19.56 = cider and wine - which is the day he got his full diagnosis
Fri 8.62 = cider
Sat 15.84 = cider
So he had started cutting down, but Thursdays appt through him off course. Hopefully the tel appt tmrw will help him to get back on course again
Hi Lisa That's good!
If you keep track of the units you can easily take 10% off then you know how many ML to reduce by the next day, even if its only 50ml or 100ml that's a start.
I see the wine top up seems to be the biggest jump up in unit obviously.
Why not suggest that the wine is stopped? Maybe if he is desperate for that extra bit to use something with less alcohol volume.
I say this as anything that Is less over time will reduce the anxiety you get and the craving
Linda x
Also if you can try reducing the percentage of the Alcohol, keep drinking the same amount of cans bottles etc just try and go a lower percentage thats what I was told as well even though I couldn't/wouldn't but it could help you hubby. I was trying to go from K cider to change 1 or 2 of them to strongbow which would of made a massive difference i just couldn't do it but each of us are different, so hope that might help.
Yes Ash , absolutely! I did a similar thing myself, this was when I was psychologically dependant. I could go all day and all evening without any alcohol but come 10pm BANG ! my drinking head came on ,
I was then drinking skol lager not cider and non alcohol lager , it eventually made me stop , this was my last big episode of relapse after losing my dad
Good call Ash x
It's brilliant that he's chosen a set date to end on. That's a real mental hurdle to clear in your mind and if it's entirely his own decision then I really think his plan would make stopping over the long term much more likely.
The issue is the short notice. As we know, it might not be safe. However, I would worry that deferring this date would greatly risk losing this positive momentum.
The advice I would give to be to get an emergency appointment with his GP tomorrow. Tell them what he is going to do and ask for some benzodiazapenes so that he can do it safely. Go with him - You'll need to assure the doctor that you will be on hand to monitor him and be responsible for any medication he's given (unfortunately, alcoholics have a tendency to abuse benzodiazapenes). Ask them to write you a plan for tapering off the pills after he's started.
I've done many detoxes, both using benzos and cold turkey. Cold turkey has given me one of the most traumatic experiences of my life BUT I did it when I was incredibly weak and heavily dependent. In that case I wouldn't dare to try it - far too dangerous. However, I gave up last year, setting myself the date of January 1st. I felt in good health and so went for it, drinking just enough to get by on the day before to help ease it a little. It went fine.
If you do risk it without the benzos then keep a hidden bottle of spirits and get rid of all the other booze. If it starts to go skewiff then you can medicate with a measured dose as needed.
P.s. If you're recording his alcohol consumption without his knowledge then I would be very careful. Everything in stopping has to come from his own volition and it is possible that anything you do regarding this without his consent may backfire and break down his feeling of self determination.
I have put a sheet of paper on the fridge to help him monitor what he is drinking. Plus I have put photos of all of us, to help remind him why he is doing this. Today we were talking about him giving up and I have read him the comments from on here. Hubby says that he has come up with a new plan. He says he is going to try and have nothing tmrw and then 2 cans on Tue. He says he will try this for a week and then try and cut it down further. He has just taken me to the fridge and showed me that he only has 2 cans of cider left. He seems determined to try it his way. I told him that I too have been keeping a list for the alcohol Nurses. He was fine and laughed saying he checked the fridge this morning as well. I am thinking that I have to let him do it his way in order for him to have any chance of success. I will carry on monitoring and call for help if things start to go wrong. He still has his telephone appt tmrw, so we will see what their advice is too.
Thanks for your advice everyone
Good luck Lisa 👍x
I quit using the harm reduction method. I used a shot glass and measured every intake, writing it down, slowly reducing, only taking a shot when the shakes came on. It was awful. Not a drop or dream of a drop since. I know if your partner wants to quit he will, they HAVE to want to. Good luck and God bless. It really was awful coming off, I can’t go back to that memory
as anyone gone to Bupa
Husband just diagnosed with cirrhosis. Question about stages.
Decompensated liver disease
I over heard my family talking about me as if I was exaggerating my symptoms
Update from a worried mom.
