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Waking up in strange places...?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
It has been known for me to binge drink on a frequent and heavy basis for about the last six years, often providing nights of hilarity which were once well documented on this site and that I will never forget. However, I'm begining to grow slightly concerned with my increasing inability to recall anything much from recent nights out.
From my randomly attended college and uni Psychology seminars I know I owe my lack of recall to Korpsakoffs Syndrome (I haven't spelt that right, I know). The theory is that when excessive amounts of alcohol are consumed the brain struggles to turn short-term memory into long-term memory, which is often why I can't remember the taxi ride home along with the last hour or so of the club being open. Recently, its got much worse, I "come round" in strange places with no idea as to how I got there or what I've been doing (apparently leaving nonesense answerphone messages is common). This used to happen every now and again, but it's now happening almost every other week, and has been for the last two months. My last memory is usually arriving at a bar, having a few pints, then blank... that's a bit scary, isn't it? My alcohol tolerance appears to have fallen to a new low despite my continued best efforts!
A few things have changed recently, mainly I've moved to a new city and am still learning my way around (which might start to explain the occasions when I find myself nowhere near where I live / went out, usually in the middle of the night). Also, I've also increased my intake of hash, quite commonly smoking a bit and then going out for a "polite" few rounds. Is anybody thinking that this might be whats causing my suddenly frequent black-outs?
I'd like to think I would cut-back on the booze, or at least minimize the state I end up in, but it doesn't happen. I think I know where I'm going wrong, but as I've typed it I may as well see if anybody can point me roughly in the direction of sanity.
From my randomly attended college and uni Psychology seminars I know I owe my lack of recall to Korpsakoffs Syndrome (I haven't spelt that right, I know). The theory is that when excessive amounts of alcohol are consumed the brain struggles to turn short-term memory into long-term memory, which is often why I can't remember the taxi ride home along with the last hour or so of the club being open. Recently, its got much worse, I "come round" in strange places with no idea as to how I got there or what I've been doing (apparently leaving nonesense answerphone messages is common). This used to happen every now and again, but it's now happening almost every other week, and has been for the last two months. My last memory is usually arriving at a bar, having a few pints, then blank... that's a bit scary, isn't it? My alcohol tolerance appears to have fallen to a new low despite my continued best efforts!
A few things have changed recently, mainly I've moved to a new city and am still learning my way around (which might start to explain the occasions when I find myself nowhere near where I live / went out, usually in the middle of the night). Also, I've also increased my intake of hash, quite commonly smoking a bit and then going out for a "polite" few rounds. Is anybody thinking that this might be whats causing my suddenly frequent black-outs?
I'd like to think I would cut-back on the booze, or at least minimize the state I end up in, but it doesn't happen. I think I know where I'm going wrong, but as I've typed it I may as well see if anybody can point me roughly in the direction of sanity.
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Comments
How many units are you using in each session?
To be honest it does sort of sound like you might be developing a bit of a dependance/problem.
Recently, it's been a welcomed shock to wake up in my own home and not braving the elements after a night on the tiles. I live in quite a rough area and I'm starting to think I might be lucky to wake up at all.
I'm not an alcoholic though, I haven't had a drink since Thursday, apart from one little bottle of beer earlier this evening. I do admit it is rare for me not to get leathered at least once over a weekend, but it has just happened. A few of my mates have gone out tonight to watch the Futureheads and then drinking, but I have managed to resist.
I'd honestly say I drink about seven or eight pints and a few shots in a night out, which is rarely more than twice a week. There are the odd exceptions where I'll have drunk more (like having a bottle of red wine before even going to the pub) but that is not standard procedure.
I don't know if Korsakov's syndrome is a realistic diagnosis, but if you are worried enough to have found out about that then I suggest you seek advice from your GP.
it was around 5.45 am and i knew that at the time cos the 6 till 2 shift at the cotton mill beside me were arriving for work and avoiding my efforts to stand up.
i brushed myself down as best i could and staggered to a nearby cafe for a fry up ...paid for with a soggy one pound note.
yes ...pounds used to be made of paper!
8 pints at 3 units each plus a few shots easily gets you into serious binge drinking which isnt good for your mind or body.
And used to be enough for a fry up!
Maybe Korsakov's isn't it then, because I'm not suffering from amnesia. I was just aware that drinking can cause Korsakov's and a symptom of it is not being able to recall much.
It's probably more likely that I'm still not very familiar with the areas geography and that I'm so intoxicated I'm unable to use simple logic to locate my house. I'm drinking the same as I always have but usually I'd be asleep at home and not exploring the city suburbs fueled on Jack Daniels.
As for how well I'm eating, I'd have to say not very well. I hadn't really taken this into consideration, which I certainly will now.
still getting hangovers? thats a bad sign if you have been at this lark for a while. for many people, hangovers disappear in their twenties. this would indicate poor quality alcohol / soakage / bad mixing of alcohol.
you said 8/9 pints a night plus shots? thats a lot by government standards etc - but do not listen to them, they hardly go on the batter every weekend so what do they know. by conventional irish standards anyway, 8/9 pints is not a night out. it's more like 12/13 these days. so volume is probably not the problem unless you weigh 8 stone. you also mentioned jack daniels. that right there is a problem. that stuff will rot your stomach and turn you barmy. if you are really drinking JD, i would recommend a switch to something nicer - thats distilled better, and results in a cleaner whiskey - such as Canadian Club, Makers Mark etc etc. cheap alcohol will kill you slowly.
try drinking better - eating before and maybe after you go out and don't mix your drinks. this worked well for a friend, and he now remembers about 75% of his nights out as opposed to 30%. it can be very worrying if you are not remembering your nights - it almost feels like a waste of money - as how can you be sure you were enjoying yourself?
think about it - if you were taking a drug and it was creasing you to the point that you couldnt remember anything the next day- you would probably stop taking it after a short while. if you want to stop the memory loss - you will have to "fix" your drinking.
i stopped drinking vodka, budweiser etc a long time ago now - as i was waking up the next day in tatters, in a ferocious mood, with no money in my pocket, and no idea of how i got home, with whom, etc etc. i got sick of that anger the next day so i quit drinking shorts - full stop. now when i go out - i lower about 10/12 Guinness and thats about it. i normally go for an indian after the nights drinking - and i wake up on sunday mornings in comparatively great shape. give it a try - cut out the rubbish you're throwing down your throat such as shorts, shitty beer etc and keep yourself tanked up with food. i bet you it will make at least a noticeable difference.
Please tell me you are joking with this.
What do they know because they arent out 'on the batter'?
The unit count is small by some people's measures, but just because it seems small doesnt mean you can totally ignore it without any problems. Drinking two or more times the recomended limit will damage you.
so when you look purely at the average joe soap, getting locked as a teenager in fields. then binge drinking at weekends in his twenties. calming down in thirties and then drinking red wine at home from then on - WHERE IS THE PROBLEM? he had a good time. it is part of growing up. the governemnt seem to want to deprive us of this - to shield us from the horror of getting shitfaced in a field at 15 and basically laughing about it for the rest of our lives. it is a rite of passage and we should not be shielded from ourselves in this regard. the emphaisis should not be on alcohol - as most people enjoy it - the emphasis should be on alcoholics - who need help and guidance - because if they don't get it - they will drink themselves to death. that is their lot in life and they will kill themselves unless someone can pull then out of their reality - and give them a life to lead that will in effect, take the place of alcohol.
i "binge drink" every weekend along with everyone i know. i am still alive and in good health - as are all of my friends, co-workers, family and neighbours. the recommended amount of alcohol? how can there be a recommended amount of alcohol when people are so different in mental and physical makeup? since when are we expected to listen to the government?
the point is - 8/9 pints in a night out - and by night out you are usually talking about 7/8 hours in total - is not that much for a grown male who in all fairness, has probably drank that much (and more) a hundred times.
"Drinking two or more times the recomended limit will damage you" - so if i go out and have 12 pints of Guinness i am basically damaging my body, right? - WRONG. excess alcohol is burned off. it does not form into lumps in the brain like mercury. a good feed the next day and you are right as rain. people need to chill the fuck out about drink and start enjoying drinking with their friends. that is what alcohol is for. it is a social lubricant. not mercury.
Alcohol will damage you, its a poison, drinking that much consistantly will put strain on your liver and damge it. You've lost me on the mercury comment.
I'm not suggesting people give up drinking totally, but you are recomending a level of drinking which is dangerous.
alcohol is not a poison - if it was - 12 pints of it would kill you. i do not drink that much consistently - i f i did i would be an alcoholic. i drink that much once a week - then maybe a few during the week.
im not suggesting people drink as much as they can - but as much as they want. im not suggesting anyone drink to the point where health is damaged - that is basically alcoholism to me. i do not recommend anyone drink any particular amount of alcohol - it is rediculous to think that someone can tell you how much to drink - i would never presume to tell people that they should drink X amount. once you are having fun and it is not interfering with relationships / work / helath etc then enjoy it. that is what it is for.
considering that i have been drinking since i was 13 - i know enough about alcohol now to make the right decisions - because i made all the wrong decisions when i was young - such as mixing drinks and generally drinking too much. i learned that its a complete waste of time to be getting trollied - you are much better off getting drunk. nicely drunk - and having a good time AND remebering it. this form of drinking to me is a tribute to alcohol and how much fun you can have with it. i enjoy my pints immensely. not for the alcohol content of the drink - but for the laugh i know i will have when i go to the pub. at this stage - and considering my age and body weight - i drink 12 pints on a typical saturday night. i am not falling around - unruley - rude - or obnoxious ( at least no more than usual!) i am simply having fun. if the government wants to tell me that i am binge drinking and i am killing myself, then unfortunately - the government can go and shite. what do they know? do they follow me around and see my behaviour? no. they see the shit that arrives in the emergency room at 2am on a sunday morning and decide that alcohol is evil - binge drinking is evil. for many it is. but not for me and and my circle of friends. so i resent the current witch hunt.
the governemnt would just love to turn us all into a huge bunch of fags - complete respect for each other and for ourselves. i say fuck that. enjoy yourself. that is what we are here for. all of the sad bastards who spend their lives drinking kamboucha and watching television will learn, when it is way too late, that they wasted their life. this is the one universal. we are here to enjoy ourselves. if we have to work to achieve that goal (i.e. to make money to travel etc) so be it. it is only when we die that we can become enlightened - we cannot achieve this state whilst alive - or rather WE cannot. some can. read up on the tibetans. the complete bitch here is, that after becoming enlightened - do they realise that they have wasted their life sitting around trying to be enlightened? isn't this the biggest slap in the face? after all - if they had just partied hard, had a good life and fathered some kids to keep the genes going, they would have been enlightened anyway when they died. its rough and lots of people get scared by the thought of oblivion - but that it what is on the other side of this life. you cannot get drunk in oblivion - nor take drugs or see the sunset over Ankor Wat. the only chance you have to enjoy yourself - in this universe - is now. not tomorrow or the day after. right now. people try to live too long these days - when they probably should be trying to life well.
the mercury comment is very simple - if you drink liquid mercury you won't die. but if you continue to drink it it will build up in your brain and eventually form a lump (of mercury) that will cause brain damage / death = mercury poisoning. alcohol does not do this to you. it does not build up. it is processed by the body and expelled. the damage it does, is when you either drink shit alcohol, or drink too much alcohol in general, your poor liver is on overtime. you "pickle" it - to borrow a term from the doctor in Super Size Me. this is the biggest risk - as your liver can only repair itself if it has a minimum level of health. once it crosses a threshold it cannot repair so it will decline and you will die a horrible, yellow, hospitalised death.
Aaaah, homophobia as well as ignorance and denial. Get a grip.
:eek2:
I think the drink is dangerous and you're thinking like a 12 year old.
No 12 pints of beer won't kill you but it is fucking up your liver...And if you binge drink every week, then technically, yes you do have a problem.
mercury
and again...
:yeees:
I haven't seen such irresponsible advice on these boards in a long time...
"People die from alcohol poisoning every week." - not sure if this makes any sense. how can this be true? surely people around the globe are dying at every minute of every day from alcohol poisoning.
these are extreme cases - when talking about alcohol - there is nothing more extreme than drinking yourself to death. people also eat themselves to death. and i have seen someone starve themself to death. all sorts of crazy extremes in todays world.
as said above - "And if you binge drink every week, then technically, yes you do have a problem" - i cannot stress enough my total disagreement with this. i explained in reasonable detail in the earlier post why people should be able to go out and get drunk. it is part of my life. irish people typically love alcohol and for the most part, have a very healthy relationship with it. living in ireland, i have the perfect point of view from which to watch alcohol at its best, and worst. i know many alcoholics. most have taken to drink not for its own sake, but from boredom and so many other reasons i couldn't even imagine. if you think that going out on a saturday night and drinking your fill is wrong - then don't do it. you don't have to drink to have fun - but it is what i and my friends do and we are very happy with it thank you very much. if you believe that alcohol is a poison - stay clear of it - you would have to be an idiot to drink it if you believe this. i do not believe it is a poison. - as if everyone who drinks is actually drinking poison and they just don't know it! it turns poisonous when alcohol levels in your body reach the stage where it cannot be processed. this differs from person to person - so one persons poison, is simply anothers saturday night. that is reality. and as is the case with reality - you can accept it, deny it, or try to change it. i choose to accept it because it suits me to do so. i consider myself lucky in the regard that what i want - is very closely alinged to my reality. comments here would hint at a view to change reality. more luck to you.
the reactions here are typical of the society we live in - everything you do is wrong these days. well i'm not budging. show me your perfectly healthy liver and i'll show you how useful it will be to you when you're pushing up daisies. you cannot compare someone who drinks at weekends to an alcoholic - who is literally attacking their liver on a daily basis. the two things do not lend themselves to comparison. you must see the difference.
homophobia? i don't think so. terrified of men acting as women - yes. you really can't beat someone calling you a racist or a homophobe in an effort to discredit you. unfortunately that is so old at this stage it is completely transparent and worthless. ignorant? in denial? of what? get a grip - on what? i have a very firm grip on my reality and am about as level headed as they come. i accept things as i see them - not as i am told they are.
i view the man who sits in front of television day after day - as a far worse case than the man who goes for drinking everyday. at least the latter is out there - ALIVE. the former is just wasting away in front of what is complete rubbish. sure his liver might be in great shape - but is he poisoning his mind with scripted bullshit. if i had a choice between my mind and my liver - well then my liver can just go to hell. (that is not to say that we have two options in life - TV or drink, but the comparison allows me to make a point)
re: links to mercury - is that a effort to disprove something i said? everyone has access to search engines so posting little tit bits you found on the internet is not very impressive unfortunately. from experience with the chemical - (experiments on density etc such floating a cannonball in a large reinforced vat of liquid mercury) - i know the dangers associated it. that is not the point anyway. if you do not like what i'm saying - so be it - i wont loose any sleep over someone disagreeing with me. attempting to disprove something with web links is fruitless. you can quite literally back up any crappy comment with websites, links, "web publications" etc these days. give it a rest. i can search the net myself if i want to read rubbish.
people really do need to chill the fuck out when it comes to alcohol. people abuse it - just like people abuse everything. name one thing that is not abused by humans and i'll name everything else in the universe! it is there to be enjoyed.
in closing to my rant - i do not believe that alcohol is a curse. the curse is your thirst for it. deal with it and learn to enjoy alcohol. just because you drink - does not mean you are an alcoholic. and even if it did, there are worse things than being an alcoholic.
In my youth I'd go out and get fully bannistered three times a week, drinking my mind back to its default factory settings. I'd get lashed off all sorts of vodka redbull cocktails, shooters and beer combinations... even Absynthe. I eventually realized that I couldn't keep that up, so this has fallen to once (or twice) a week.
I usually drink 7+ pints of Stella / 1664 / Grolsch or other strongish lager, and a couple of Jack Daniels or double vodkas - maybe more depending on the venue. But a night out for me usually begins at 10pm, so it's usually only a four hour stint until throwing out time.
If it's an "all-dayer" then I'm in serious trouble (remembering the 15 hour session on my 21st, and the two-day numbing hangover that followed it).
BTW, the whole mercury analogy was very good!
i am a hobophobe though. they freak me out.
you're irish? So what, I am too. You're an embarressment and your idiotic opinions serve to further make your countrymen look like drunken arseholes.
I dont particularly dislike what you're saying, but you're wrong. Those links provided evidence to discredit your theory that mercury -in any quantities- is safe to be consumed or even handled.
And you're homophobic. Wtf? When your av is bananaman?
If you're talking about elemental mercury you're quite correct. Mercury salts and organic Mercury are far more dangerous.
Rubbish. Elemental Mercury should pass straight through you - it is not easilly absorbed by the stomach or by the skin. If you inhale it though I think you will have problems.
No alcohol is toxic. Ethanol is toxic.
When you drink it, it is broken sown by the liver into acetaldehyde which is itself toxic.
To say that binging every now and again doesn't do you any harm is just plain stupid.
Captain Kirk -
Everything you are saying sounds oh so familiar! I wish I could say 'Ah - I remember those days like they were yesterday!' but obviously I can't! I have literally years of blank in my memory, which can really suck when you're 30 and you can't join in with the remeniscing of your friends.
The thing that happens with this whole black-out thing, is that we reach that point where we've had enough and any more will lead to a black-out... and we drink past it. (I used to actually crave the oblivion.)
I would say that the first step you could take is just try and notice when you reach that point. I'm not saying, 'Stop drinking' as soon as you reach it - because that's hard and may take some practice, (plus it probably seems so boring and party pooperish) - but at least try to notice it.
I knew I had to do something when I had no memory of attacking someone with a very heavy object - and I had the nerve to confront him saying he was being moody the next day! I had absolutely no memory of what I had done until he started to tell me, and they I could see flashes of it - it was f***ing scary.
I have a feeling that once we are in black-out mode, we can do things that the normal 'me' and 'you' would not do. This is obviously dangerous for you and for others around you.
The whole bloody point of this section is harm reduction, so when you suggest that this person swaps from 7 pints and shots to your habit of 12 or more pints it doesnt really fit in with that.