DUI... Alcohol is no longer consumed by me.

Your post really hits home for me!!! I have had a problem with alcohol and the black outs. We all just talked about this on this board last week. Over the weekend my husband and I had a few drinks at a local bar and the next morning I asked him who drove home and he said that I had. OMG, I dont remember a thing. We live out in the sticks and was a country road but still, that could have been a disaster like you had to deal with. Normally I only drink at home because you never know when the blackout is going to hit, sometimes after 1 or 2, and then sometimes I can drink alot more or maybe not. I havent had a drink since the other night and am really scared to have one.That was a wake up for me just like yours was for you, Im just fortunate nothing happened. Its to bad it takes something like that to make us wake up, God bless you for being honest and good luck, Debra

Hi Jess

You say this was very hard for you to post but there was no excuse for you to be drinking.I read everyone post and all I can say ,they just patting you on the hand.Ok this just my opinion,THAT WAS A VERY STUPID MISTAKE YOU DID ,this is coming from a nurse who works in a trauma center.I see many people with multiple injuries from DUI some come out of it ok and other don't. 2ND you was so intoxicated with your date (you could of been harm for the worst). 3rd When women drink alcohol it stay longer in our body,we don't burn it quickly like men do. I don't want to sound harsh but you could had a soda.I know alcohol is tempting but alcohol get absorb in our body very quickly and gives you that quick buzz and boom you're out as a light. I'm glad your ok but I don't condon the action you took that day.Your life or someone else life could of been lost.                                                                                                                                                                                                          CLAIRE

Claire,  You are absolutely entitled to your anger or frustration at me, and I dont' begrudge you that at all. You are right, it was stupid and yes, I could have made other decisions....the point is I did not..and I paid the price and yes, I know how damn lucky I was to not kill myself or others. That is why I posted. What is done, is done..and now I have to pay the piper, which I will do with the knowledge that I had other choices..and I made the wrong one. I can either beat myself up over this, or I can learn from it, grow from it and teach others how to be safer as a result of it. But thank you Claire, sincerley..thank you for your honesty. I expected more posts along the line of yours.    Just wanted to let you know my reason's behind posting this..  Peace be with you, and I hope I'm able to help someone make a better decision than I did.  Jess

Hi Jess,

BeeBee here.  I was sad to hear about your experience.  I am so thankful that you were not physically harmed by your date and again thankful that you were not killed driving and that you did not kill or injure anyone else while driving either.  You learned a very valuable lesson that people who cannot drink safely will become insane and do insane things when they do.  Period.  The same thing will happen if you switch to wine.  Or beer.  Or pills.  That's the insanity.  We think it will be "different" if we do something different.  It won't.  The blackouts will come again and you will once again do something you don't remember.  Save yourself the pain and humiliation.  Stop while you are ahead...and alive.  You must acknowledge that you unfortunately cannot safely drink.  If you have any doubts, go on www.oprah.com and type Suddenly Skinny in the search box.  Look on the Messages and read some of the posts to her show on gastric bypass and alcoholism.  It will scare you to death.  It did me.  Hugs and wishing you the best, BeeBee Please keep us posted how you are doing.

 

My mom had RNY 7 yrs ago and in the last few years has had several blackout instances. Several of them should have been her wake up call, but she continued to think that "Just one won't hurt" "It's just a glass of wine". The problem is that 1 drink to blackout is a short trip for her since RNY. 2 yrs ago She was called at home by a stranger for a date. She apparently had driven to town (30 min each way) and at a stoplight flirted with this guy and threw her phone # thru his window! She has been HAPPILY married for over 30 yrs & had absolutely NO MEMORY of even getting into a car!!! Later that year she had "A glass of wine" and the rest of the bottle just vanished. She stripped and got into the hottub. HER FATHER had to sit there and keep her head above water because she refused to get out and kept passing out. Over 24 hours after her last drink she tested her BAC at work (ER nurse) and it was .3 !!! Last summer she had put vodka into water bottles and was drinking it in the hottub while she was babysitting her 7 yo grandson and he was in the swimming pool. When my sister came down (following a req. from different sister to do mom-check because of slurring on the phone) she started screaming at her and clawing her to get the bottle back. This was when we put our foots down and told her she couldn't be alone with the grandkids until she went to AA or made some REAL progress. It has taken years, but she FINALLY gets that she can NEVER drink again. It is not worth it!! I tell you this because I have learned a lot from her. I know that there were many more instances of blackout, but these are the ones I know details about. None of this makes her a bad person, but it took her many wake up calls to finally understand that drinking just isn't an option. We still have mom-patrol when we know things are stressful for her, but she is doing amazing now! She is an amazing woman who is the classic caretaker of everyone else. She has finally learned to take it One day at a time! Not sure you really wanted to hear stuff like this, just sharing my experience with this issue. Good Luck to you and your Family, Diana

Diane, I do want to hear this. This is excellent information to know. I know there will likely be a time when I think "oh, just one glass of wine won't hurt me"... but I can now remember this. I've NEVER had a problem w/ alcohol prior to surgery. I figured..I don't crave it, so I must not be an alcoholic. I think that perhaps I am now though. My situation on Saturday night was not the first one. In the past 3 weeks, I've slept with (I dont' think I slept w/ the Sat. night guy..and the scary thing is that I just dont' know for sure) 2 other guys both under the influence of alcohol and details are very, very sporadic. I am no longer drinking/dating again... and I am looking forward to a sober life where I can enjoy every second of it. I would give almost anything to have my  "black out" minutes/hours back. It terrifies me what else I might have done that I dont' remember. Thank you for sharing your experience and I'm happy that your mother did not hurt herself or others. I hope she continues on her path of sobriety.  Warmest thoughts, Jess

During this process I have learned a lot and when we first noticed that she got drunk really fast and seemed to stay drunk, there was very little info. out there. Now there are several studies that show scientifically that post RNY folks get drunk faster and stay drunk longer than non-RNY.  Mom is an RN and has worked with several bariatric surgeons in the area and learned that studies also show that the sugar in alcohol is metabolised differently by RNY patients and causes a craving of sorts that can easily lead to problems for ppl who never had problems before. My mom does admit that she enjoyed drinking before surgery, but not to the extent she did after. The interesting thing was that the smallest amt of sugar will make her dump but alcohol doesn't. It all works together to make us more susceptible. This is something I know my husband and I will also have to be cautious of after our surgery. Responsibility is key. Easy to say, but still one day at a time. I wish you luck and good health in the future. Take Care, Diana

Hi Jess! I just got a DUI 11/17/07.  In fact not only me but my boyfriend got one on the same night when he was coming to pick me up from jail.  I'm so horrified and ashamed!  I've never been one to drink and drive and I blew an incredible .244.  I so feel for you!  If you need support or just want to chat send me an email.  I just went for an evaluation for an extensive outpatient alcoholism clinic.  The counselor I met with said she is seeing more and more gastric bypass patients.  It really sucks to trade one addiction for another!  I also wanted to recommend the addictions forum to you.  There are wonderful people there *****ally understand. Hugs, Jen