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Alcohol and medication

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garyflinn
garyflinn

i have been on various anti depressants for anxiety and depression due to my multiple sclerosis , it's taken months to settle on 20mg citalopram and 15mg mirtazipine but I've been drinking fairly heavily since Xmas whilst taking the meds , it was an average of 8-10 bottles of corona a day most days , I stopped drinking  once for 10 days then a month ago went back on it , I'm now on day 4 of stopping again , I'm suffering with heightened anxiety and tingles and shakes (mainly in mornings ) I'm taking thiamine and multiplayer vitamins , does anybody have any advise as to wether my fatigue and numbness/tingling are typical withdrawal symptoms after a few months of binging ? Please ?

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  • RHGB
    RHGB garyflinn

    Posted

    It's different for every person. I have a mate that drinks regularly, can down a bottle of whisky in a day, but if he has to work and drive for the next couple of days solid, can just stay off alcohol without any withdrawal symptoms.

    Somebody who hardly drinks can suffer withdrawal symptoms. You've told us from Xmas, but what about the years before?

    But with the little information I have, I'd say you're suffering mild withdrawal symptoms.

    • garyflinn
      garyflinn RHGB

      Posted

      I have drank for years but not on medication and only at weekends
    • RHGB
      RHGB garyflinn

      Posted

      I wouldn't worry about the medication side too much, I took/take eight medications a day (prescription) and they didn't seem to have an issue with the alcohol (daily). It is only when I stopped the alcohol, that I started withdrawal symptoms.

      Your previous weekend drinking shouldn't have presented you with a problem, Your current short lived binge, may have just caused your body to get mildly addicted to it. Stopping and starting, can cause an effect called kindling, which makes each withdrawal worse.

      Four days should be enough for it to be out of your system, based on what you have drunk. The symptoms you list are the sort you get from alcohol withdrawal without any medication to help (detox), but as you already suffer from anxiety, I'm not sure how that will be affected. Hopefully someone will be along, that is familiar with suffering anxiety before withdrawal.

  • ADEfree
    ADEfree garyflinn

    Posted

    garyflinn   -

    Check in with your doctor on that, for sure and on the increased drinking too. If you google SSRI Alcohol Craving, you will see reports of people claiming that their drinking increased after starting one or the other antidepressant. You will also see reports from others (for the very same antidepressant) that their drinking levels went down, yet others will say there was no change at all. I know it's been a tough go finding an AD you get along with, but your doc should hear about how this is affecting you if he doesn't know already. There may be other AD's out there that could be a better fit for you. Did the AD you were taking before this cause your drinking to decrease? 

     

    • garyflinn
      garyflinn ADEfree

      Posted

      My drinking escalated as a coping mechanism for my m.s and losing my job , boredom really , but haven't drank for four days and don't miss it , I know that the alcohol will contradict the desired effect of the a/ds and to be honest I settled really well on the a/ds I'm on and was thinking positive , I'd had a rough year and was tried on many different a/ds , I'm really hoping that if I stay of the booze my a/ds will have a better chance of helping .

      im also on a drug called Gilenya which is an immunosuppressant and baclofen a muscle relaxant so I assume alcohol should be a big no no , what I'm basically asking is can alcohol have such an unpleasant withdrawal from the amount I drank for a few months with the meds .......sorry to go on .....

    • RHGB
      RHGB garyflinn

      Posted

      Ah, baclofen is also used in the treatment of alcohol addiction, so there may be something there.

      I don't know much about baclofen, so I'll let some who does, comment.

    • ADEfree
      ADEfree garyflinn

      Posted

      Yeah, best to stay off the alch, kind of a wildcard. The shakes and fatigue could be from withdrawal, but the numbness seems odd. It could be that your meds are the issue here as you're not knocking back a huge amount of booze. I'll side with RHGB here, let's see what others have to say. Hang in there!
    • RHGB
      RHGB garyflinn

      Posted

      I can't put you a link, because they all get moderated and it is usually 24 hrs before they get released.

      But put 'baclofen alcohol' in Google and have a read.

    • garyflinn
      garyflinn RHGB

      Posted

      Got it thx , I see it's used in withdrawal , I'm on it for m.s , hoping I'll feel better in a few days 
    • RHGB
      RHGB garyflinn

      Posted

      When you were prescribed it, you probably weren't hitting the beer. It may be the cause. I know you have it for another reason, but its addiciton properties and your drinking may not mix well.

      The only trouble is, if you ask your GP, their standard reply is, you shouldn't mix alcohol with medications, because it covers them for all bases if there is a problem later. If you've got a sensible GP, who will look beyond that, ask him.

  • OOOOO
    OOOOO garyflinn

    Posted

    Hello garyflinn.  I was just wondering if your meds have got info about interaction with alcohol.  Some say avoid alcohol.  I take different meds and get totally confused when changes are needed. I do know that some make the alcohol more of a problem, with effect and after-effect.  Withdrawal symptoms... another possible layer of mixture, I suppose.  Someone else might have same meds as you.  I wish you well with stopping.  I am struggling on, taking Selincro for last 6 days, to try cutting down.  I hope to stop later on.
  • Misssy2
    Misssy2 garyflinn

    Posted

    My sister has MS...and I'm sure you know that drinking and MS don't mix  since they both affect the brain.  As far as your withdrawals...in my opinion no one can escape them no matter how LITTLE you drink...if we drink and take meds...the withdrawals become a little more bothersome.

    What they do in the hospital and what I model when I quit...is carry a pitcher of water around...and DRINK water all day.  Take vitamins...B12, Thamine, Folic Acid....drink a sports drink with some electrolytes in it...

    Get plenty of rest...eat a little bit at a time to get your appetite back.

    If you have access to a benzo....those are a big help.  Like diazepam.

    Hope you feel better.

  • Paper_fairy
    Paper_fairy garyflinn

    Posted

    I have taken. Baclofen in the past for alcohol withdrawal without success. Re to stop drinking. Why did they prescribe it to you for MS? 
    • ADEfree
      ADEfree Paper_fairy

      Posted

      I was surprised to read that too, but I guess it can help with muscle spasms and cramping from MS. I only knew about it's use for Alcohol Use Disorder until I saw this thread. 
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