[ElJamo]

Hi everybody,
I have a pretty standard case of Bi-Polar and I was wondering if anyone (Dr.s would be appreciated!) here might have any advice regarding bi-polarity and moderate alcohol consumption.
I am a sophomore in college and was diagnosed with it about two months ago.
I understand alcohol can cause mood swings and should be avoided, but does that mean that I can't have one beer, or two throughout the course of an evening?
All responses would be appreciated!
Thanks

[Moose72]

It can react with most meds. I avoid alcohol.

[Clinte89]

My doc says no alcohol at all. But I don't listen. Lol

[southpole]

I'm sure it reacts in some ways and I am definitely "down" after a night of drinking yet I do it anyway

[manicminer]

As a recent college grad also dx'd in college and conflicted about drinking I can offer you my story and the advice that goes with it.

First of all, if you have any kind of a drinking problem (binge drinking, dependance, abuse, etc) quit while you still can. You'll be doing yourself a huge favor down the road.

Having a beer or two is fine, as long as you make sure its just one or two. If you're like I was and "if I have one, I have thirteen; There just ain't no in between.." then alcohol should be avoided.

This is especially true if your meds are metabolized through your liver. The depakote and risperdal I was taking both were. So I was essential making my liver work triple duty. You may be able to remain stable while drinking, but just think of the damage you are doing to a vital organ.

I learned one thing for sure: Less whiskey + More sleep = a healthier, more balanced me

[hamster-bamster]

I try to have a glass of red wine daily but am not quite there yet, primarily because. I do not have an easy to use corkscrew so I cannot open some bottles and depend on others to do that for me. If someone can recommend a good solution for me so that I become indepent with my wine bottles, I would greatly appreciate your suggestions.

Wine does not interact with my medications in an untoward way: I am stable with wine or without wine. Just fine.

The only medication I take in an appreciable quantity is Lithium so I recently did searches for advice on alcohol consumption and Lithium in French. Moderate consumption was mostly advised, not abstinence. American authorities beg to differ, e.g. NAMI's fact sheet on Lithium advises abstinence. So it depends on whom you ask and cultural biases seem. To play as much of the role if not more than solid science.

A close friend of mind practices psychiatry in Russia. His MD is from Moscow and his continuing education is from Paris. He has not been educated in the States. He advised me that alcohol interaction is dangerous with two types of psychiatric drugs: those that cause extreme sedation such as clorazil and all benzos. I do not take those. I was only interested in interactions with Lithium. He said alcohol with Lithium is fine.

[manicminer]

They make plastic plugs with grips to replace corks. Just purchase a few of these, have a friend remove the corks from several bottle, replace with the plugs, and enjoy!

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/wine-b...topper/s268704

[hamster-bamster]

Cont'd and sorry for the typos due to the phone.

I do not drink beer because I detest its taste, but I know that 12 oz of beer a day is considered a moderate, healthy dose for a woman by US health authorities, and benefit health in longevity in many ways except for one - it slightly increases breast cancer risk in susceptible women. However, that risk increase can be mitigated in whole by supplementing with folic acid.

But you are probably way too young to try to decrease the risk of stroke by drinking beer anyway.

The dose that is considered appropriate, moderate, and healthy, differs from country to country as well. The Dutch health authorities approve of higher consumption of beer than their American counterparts.

You can probably test for yourself to determine how beer affects you.

I sympathize with your situation a lot. Again, nothing would convince me to drink beer because I hate its taste, but I can see how a college student would want to fit in and drink beer alongside everybody else.

So I have given you enough of a cross-cultural perspective to inform your choices. Remeber

[hamster-bamster]

Thank you, MANICMINER, now I will be a self~made woman who does not depend on guys.

OP, remember from your American history class that we had Prohibition here while France and the Netherlands did not. Prohibition ideology might still weigh heavily on American doctors.

That said, if, God forbid, you have been afflicted with anything from the list that MM put together so well, then it is better not to consume any alcohol primarily because you may find yourself unable after you have drunk a healthy dose. And in high doses alcohol quickly becomes toxic and very high, lethal. So the first question is always whether you are in full control of your serving sizes and the second question is how it affects your mood and daily functioning.

[hamster-bamster]

I meant to say unable to stop after drinking the moderate amount of your beer.

Also, this friend of mine who OKs Lithium with alcohol is not careless. He is a good doctor. He knows more than his American counterparts because in addition to all FDA~approved drugs available in the US he prescribes from a multtitude of drugs developed and available in Europe. When I was hospitalzed with Lithium intoxication, he asked me to remind him of its symptoms because he monitors his Lithium~taking patients more closely than I was monitored so nobody reaches Lithium toxicity in his care.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by manicminer

They make plastic plugs with grips to replace corks. Just purchase a few of these, have a friend remove the corks from several bottle, replace with the plugs, and enjoy!

http://www.crateandbarrel.com/wine-b...topper/s268704

Ok, this way I will be able to store leftover wine, but how do I get the cork out of the bottle? I cannot manage with simple corkscrew I have.

[~Christina]

Hamster

http://http://www.walmart.com/ip/210...l5=pla&veh=sem

Problem solved

I'm throwing a kink into the liveliness of this discussion because I think as a bipolar
patient, you need to be alert to the possibilities in drinking alcohol.

The best I can recommend is that you read "The Big Book" or "Alcoholics Anonymous"
to get a real feel for what the alcoholic goes through once the drinking becomes
uncontrollable. It is known that the more frequently one indulges in anything the
greater the likelihood that a sensitivity may develop.

Nothing ever struck me so strongly in college as reading "Alcoholic Anonymous"
because it was such a real explanation of how alcohol use can be so destructive.
And it isn't easy to overcome, as many tell their stories.

You might appreciate giving it your attention.

And you may be one who will never develop alcoholism, but at your young
age, I'd be cautious because it can take years to develop lack of any control
over drinking alcohol. I was told by my psychiatrist never to use alcohol because it made bipolar illness worse.

You have to be your own advocate in this and other matters in your life.

Take care of yourself.

[hanners]

Personally, I decided to quit drinking after I noticed even one glass of wine can spark a depressive episode, or make an already existing one worse. Combine that with meds that don't mix well with alcohol, and I figure drinking is a bad idea.

Plus, my partner is an alcoholic. She's been sober for over 6 years now, and I *don't* want to be responsible for her relapsing!

[manicminer]

Originally Posted by hamster-bamster

Ok, this way I will be able to store leftover wine, but how do I get the cork out of the bottle? I cannot manage with simple corkscrew I have.

well, some wines come with just screw caps, but they are cheap and not very good tasting. you could have a friend come over and prep several bottles at a time. so only once a month or something you would need assistance.

[Odee]

To the OP: as long as meds aren't a problem then it's up to you to find out how alcohol effects you and simply don't abuse it either in quantity or in attitude (don't use booze to feel better....not too often, anyway). I believe ADs have a propensity to make you drunker much faster, they direction effect the same neurotransmitters that alcohol does, and apparently alcohol can negate the benefits of ADs. I know that alcohol can deplete serotonin and you will be prone to depression/anxiety the following day, hangover or no.

I was diagnosed this year as a Junior in college. I started drinking last summer. I love it, though it can also trigger very bipolar jumps in mood.

Hamster: Go for the cheap! Go for the boxed wine!! $15 for five liters, it's almost as cheap as spirits. LOL. But I wish I had the cash to be a wine connoisseur. There's a stereotype about females hating beer that I managed to avoid for awhile until I got sick off a bad batch. Now I tolerate it rather begrudgingly.

[manicminer]

Originally Posted by Odee

Hamster: Go for the cheap! Go for the boxed wine!! $15 for five liters, it's almost as cheap as spirits. LOL. But I wish I had the cash to be a wine connoisseur. There's a stereotype about females hating beer that I managed to avoid for awhile until I got sick off a bad batch. Now I tolerate it rather begrudgingly.

Like your thinkin' there, Odee. And Hampster: I have noticed an influx of gourmet wines in box form for convinience. If you are looking for quality, avoid the Franzia and really cheap wines. If quality is not a factor, these are the way to go for sure.

[~Christina]

I this the whole " can I have a drink" ultimately comes down to your Doctors advice and knowing if you have an addictive personality. My Doctor is fine with me have a drink or 3 here and there and I take all my regular meds that day * gasp yes even my benzos* No it doesn't make me feel depressed.

There are so many "blanket statements" when it comes to Psych meds. Best advice, when in doubt ask your Pdoc.

Good luck

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by manicminer

well, some wines come with just screw caps, but they are cheap and not very good tasting. you could have a friend come over and prep several bottles at a time. so only once a month or something you would need assistance.

Precisely, I do not want to be confined to screw capped bottles just because I am not dexterous enough. Good idea about prepping.

MTW, for some reason my phones browser cannot resolve your url, so I will try on the computer tomorrow.

Genetic, I would not trust AA as a soource of authoritative info. They have been around for years yet have failed to prove the efficacy of their methods. One of my former T, a very. Cool young Polish guy and a Jungian, said that the chances of recovering from alcoholism completely unassisted and with all the bells and whistles of AA are identical. He did not cite his source though. If it is true, then AA would not pass a placebo controlled clinical trial if you use an analogy with medications. Whatever my Jungian guy. Thought, Wikipedia has a good account of attempts.to verify AA claims.

Plus, AA is cult like.

[hamster-bamster]

Hamster: Go for the cheap! Go for the boxed wine!! $15 for five liters, it's almost as cheap as spirits. LOL. But I wish I had the cash to be a wine connoisseur. There's a stereotype about females hating beer that I managed to avoid for awhile until I got sick off a bad batch. Now I tolerate it rather begrudgingly.[/QUOTE]

It is not that I tried to fit a stereotype but my tastes were formed before kindergarten and have stayed the same. When I was three, my grandpa gave me a little homemade wine he had. Made from fermenting sour cherries. Delicious! Still remember the taste. I had it with the family on all holidays. Fastforward and I still like red wine, although nothing hass ever matched the taste of grandpas creation.

When I was four, dad gave me a bit of beer to try. I hated it. Fastforward and I wtill do. Nothing has changed.

Btw, nothing horrible ensued from early alcohol exposure. I went on to be the most responsible drinker and have never been drunk in my life. Probably never will be... if it did not happen in the first half, why expect in the second?

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by morethingswrong

I this the whole " can I have a drink" ultimately comes down to your Doctors advice and knowing if you have an addictive personality. My Doctor is fine with me have a drink or 3 here and there and I take all my regular meds that day * gasp yes even my benzos* No it doesn't make me feel depressed.

There are so many "blanket statements" when it comes to Psych meds. Best advice, when in doubt ask your Pdoc.

Good luck

Oh that is right, aren't you taking an old school benzo for sleep?

[hamster-bamster]

Odee, is boxed wine tasty? I am serious, not because of lack of screws but because I am trying tto trim my expenditures on groceries. And where do you buy it? Costco?

[la doctora]

It is going to vary from person to person, drug to drug. I find that for me, drinking wine or beer daily, in moderation (2-3 glasses/beers/drinks) is perfectly fine and can actually lift my mood because I feel social like I did in college. I even binge drink on occasion and have experienced no huge mood shifts that I would say were caused by drinking.

Doc

I would drink and drink and think and stink.

I would feel no pain as the alcohol hit my brain.

I would drive them all away, the same way I would drive away the pain.
the remorse would be something I could live with...
as long as I had more to drink.

[ElJamo]

Wow! I didn't anticipate so many responses so quickly!
Anyways, I think I will not drink for a while. The last time was New Years and I don't think it had any effect as long as I keep it in moderation. I know everyone is different and I don't want to risk bringing about any mania. Drinking more than just a couple definitely brought on depression for me, but that was before taking my meds (lithium and clonazepam).
I think I'll just drink very occasionally, though I regret telling my friend last night that I am now a teetotaler!
I think saying that is more about a feeling of self-superiority perhaps. "I'm cool because I don't drink at all!" But now I feel more like a hypocrite...
Thanks!