Community Forum Archive
The Epilepsy Community Forums are closed, and the information is archived. The content in this section may not be current or apply to all situations. In addition, forum questions and responses include information and content that has been generated by epilepsy community members. This content is not moderated. The information on these pages should not be substituted for medical advice from a healthcare provider. Experiences with epilepsy can vary greatly on an individual basis. Please contact your doctor or medical team if you have any questions about your situation. For more information, learn about epilepsy or visit our resources section.
Alcohol hangover and medication
Tue, 02/09/2010 - 19:24Hi. I have had two grand mal seizures in my life. One when I was 18 and another, a year ago, when I was 22. Now I am 23. Both of these seizures happened after a night of very heavy drinking. Those two times were the worst hangovers I have ever suffered in my life. After the first one when I was 18, I had an EEG done and it showed no abnormalities. I continued partying and drinking heavily on the weekends for over four years and nothing bad happened until last year when I had my second seizure. I had an EEG done again and this time it showed abnormalities. My doctor sayd that i should go on medication. But i refused and told her that we should see what happens in the next months. Now almost a year has passed and I have had no seizures. I do not consider myself an epileptic. Rather a low seizure threshold maybe? For a long time I did not drink a drop of alcohol, but during the last few months I have started to drink again... I have tried to avoid hangovers by drinking a lot of water and taking magnesium and multivitamins and getting a good long sleep after drinking alcohol. But still, even when I feel almost no hangover the next day, I still take xanax or diazepam a couple of times during the day but they work like tranquillizers and make me feel very sleepy and tired for the whole day. My question is: what AED would be good for me to take during the next day after drinking? What would be a good choice to take for just one day since i don't need medication normally, I am not having any seizures. But for the hangovers... I need some drug to make me feel safe. I know... i probably shoud not drink, but with my personality, the neuroticism and anxiety, I sometimes NEED to get drunk on a weekend...
So, what drug would you recommend for that kind of occasional use? I have been doing some reading and it seems that pregabalin would be good to raise GABA levels in the brain after drinking. I am quite sure that hangover seizures are a result of low GABA levels after drinking (that is why I take xanax or diazepam, to raise my gaba levels, to feel safe and not be afraid of a seizure).
English is not my native language, I hope everything I wrote is understandable.
Comments
Re: Alcohol hangover and medication
Submitted by digitalbath on Fri, 2010-02-12 - 21:01
Re: Alcohol hangover and medication
Submitted by juperee on Fri, 2010-02-12 - 23:06
Hey there.
I hate to break it to you, but seizures are a well-known side effect of Xanax in some people (it's listed on any drugs information page for Xanax side effects). So you're not necessarily helping yourself out by taking Xanax to "neutralize" your hangovers.
Also, if you have epileptiform spikes and such on your EEG, I wouldn't be surprised if you have "partial seizures" more than you realize. I did so for years (without knowing what they were; i just thought I was losing my marbles) before I finally had a grand mal seizure and got diagnosed.
Look up the symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and see if they sound familiar to you. Sometimes TLE auras and partial seizures are experienced as fear or anxiety...It could be that if you lay off the anti anxiety junk and treat your epilepsy instead, that might solve your problems. Give yourself time to adjust to the drugs; increase the dose gradually and make sure your doctor knows you're concerned about side effects.
Good luck!
Hey there.
I hate to break it to you, but seizures are a well-known side effect of Xanax in some people (it's listed on any drugs information page for Xanax side effects). So you're not necessarily helping yourself out by taking Xanax to "neutralize" your hangovers.
Also, if you have epileptiform spikes and such on your EEG, I wouldn't be surprised if you have "partial seizures" more than you realize. I did so for years (without knowing what they were; i just thought I was losing my marbles) before I finally had a grand mal seizure and got diagnosed.
Look up the symptoms of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and see if they sound familiar to you. Sometimes TLE auras and partial seizures are experienced as fear or anxiety...It could be that if you lay off the anti anxiety junk and treat your epilepsy instead, that might solve your problems. Give yourself time to adjust to the drugs; increase the dose gradually and make sure your doctor knows you're concerned about side effects.
Good luck!
Re: Alcohol hangover and medication
Submitted by rosegirl on Thu, 2010-02-11 - 20:10
It sounds like you are using Xanax or Diazepam recreationally almost. To take a drug that powerful and mix it with alcohol, no matter how long it's been since you've drank, is a death sentence. It truly is. I won't say that I don't drink because I do. However a glass of wine with dinner or a drink with friends doesn't make me afraid of a seizure in the morning. I've learned that heavy drinking is never good. Alcohol is also a depressant or tranquilizer. How do you get Xanax or Diazepam? It's not like they're an over the counter drug. You need a prescription for that stuff. Self diagnosing is never good so talk to your doctor. Or try, please try to lower your alcohol intake.