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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 lindaloo52 on Mon, 2010-11-01 - 13:02
Re: Alcohol hangover and medication
Submitted by dbrownpilot on Mon, 2010-11-01 - 20:00
I have to ask the question. Does it seem unusual that you want to drink so bad that you feel you must take other drugs to make drinking possible? Many epileptics avoid drinking altogether because alcohol is just one more complication in in our attempts to cope with our illness.
I quit drinking on October 26, 1995. Yes, I know the exact date. I'm a recovering alcoholic. My seizures started in 2004, and are unrelated to drinking. They have been a painful and difficult part of my life since they started. But they are not nearly as problematic as my drinking was.
I wish you the absolute best as you try to solve your difficulties. I hope you will have a wonderful and seizure-free life. I can't say whether or not alcohol creates difficulty with your seizures, and I certainly don't know if you are addicted to anything, including alcohol. I can only say that my life is better, regardless of epilepsy, since I sought help from a power greater than myself.
I have to ask the question. Does it seem unusual that you want to drink so bad that you feel you must take other drugs to make drinking possible? Many epileptics avoid drinking altogether because alcohol is just one more complication in in our attempts to cope with our illness.
I quit drinking on October 26, 1995. Yes, I know the exact date. I'm a recovering alcoholic. My seizures started in 2004, and are unrelated to drinking. They have been a painful and difficult part of my life since they started. But they are not nearly as problematic as my drinking was.
I wish you the absolute best as you try to solve your difficulties. I hope you will have a wonderful and seizure-free life. I can't say whether or not alcohol creates difficulty with your seizures, and I certainly don't know if you are addicted to anything, including alcohol. I can only say that my life is better, regardless of epilepsy, since I sought help from a power greater than myself.
Re: Alcohol hangover and medication
Submitted by Stephanie3372 on Mon, 2010-02-15 - 14:18
I completely understand where you are coming from. I am 28 years old and I like to go have a good time. I don't drink every weekend but I like to go out and party which includes getting drunk. I find that if I drink liquor I feel worse as far as my epilepsy. Everyone says don't drink..don't do this or that...I live my life and have fun when I want to. I make sure that I take my meds on time and everyday. It might be a good idea to start a medication just to stabilize you. Popping a pill is not that dramatic. As far as the Xanax..I would never touch that stuff. Took one once for anxiety and it was a horrible feeling. Just know when to stop the drinking and someone is aware of you having seizures.