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Posted 7/17/2010 2:34 PM (GMT 0)
Hi everyone.

I am a new member as I have AIH but I would like to ask a question about my step daughter.

Sarah is an alcoholic and has quite advanced liver disease. She is in hospital at the moment for the usual visit to dry her out and stop the vomiting and dehydration she frequently suffers from.

While she has been in hospital she has suffered from a fit of some sort. As I am only her step mother the hospital would not give me any information and her mother and I are not exactly friends at the moment.

Can anyone say why she would have a fit and what causes it?

They intend discharging her today or tomorrow and I am worried that she is not safe on her own.

Thanks

JP51

Posted 7/17/2010 5:20 PM (GMT 0)
Could be hepatic ecephalopathy. When the ammonia level rises it can sometimes cause people to go into a psychosis of sorts. What level it triggers varies from patient to patient. Of course, she really cannot be drinking and if she continues to drink she will get worse.

Hang in there!
Posted 7/17/2010 7:05 PM (GMT 0)

Hi, JP!  What do you mean by a "fit?"  A seizure or just acting aggressive and explosive?  In either case, it's most certainly caused by her alcoholism.  If a seizure, it could be from alcohol withdrawal.  They should be giving her a tranquilizer while she withdraws.  If behavioral, probably hepatic encephalopathy as Mer suggested.  In either case, it's going to get a lot worse if she doesn't stop drinking.

Hugs,

Connie

Posted 7/18/2010 2:55 PM (GMT 0)
Hi there

It was actually a seizure she had. And even managed to bite her tongue during it. She is usually given quite strong tranqs while she is in hospital and I'm quite sure she was on them when the seizure occured.

She has discharged herself again today and will be straight back on the drink. She has been told by the docs that she has a matter of months if she continues to drink but it has made no difference to her.

There is nothing we can do for her. She is 38 years old and able to make her own decisions and she has decided that she wants to drink. Apart from tying her up and locking her up there is nothing we can do to stop her.

She is permanantly jaundiced, has very swollen and ulcerated legs and is covered in bruises.

As a sufferer of AIH I feel very angry with her as I have this disease that is trying to kill me which I didn't ask for and she is doing this deliberately. I know alcoholism is an illness too but I do struggle to cope with my feelings sometimes.

Sorry for going on like this but I suppose I needed to vent a little.

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

JP51

Posted 7/18/2010 4:27 PM (GMT 0)
Talk to her about getting a medical directive and power of attorney set up... for what she wants... if this is the inevitable... get ready... don't give up... but prepare... important that you speak directly to her about plans... obviously she wants to drink... and is fighting everyone on that level... so deal with that... and look around for those things that can be done.. preparation.... emergency plans .. people... etc... dr's.... and take care of yourself.. at some point one has to step back and view the situation objectively... maybe she will turn this around... but she has to make the choice... however if every conversation is filled with anger... about her drinking choice... it takes away moments to speak directly about making preparations.. I don't know if this makes any sense... and somewhere a person has to separate their own feelings and emotions from that of the person doing the active drinking... we become so emeshed with the drama and ups and downs... of the medical crises... we lose ourselves... step back... take a breath... look over the situation and see what you can do... instead of what it is that you can not do.. and take care of yourself... sorry so long... and my thoughts and prayers are with you...
Posted 7/18/2010 6:26 PM (GMT 0)

Very good suggestions, Arneeb.  You cannot persuade her to stop drinking...she has to come to that decision herself, and it seems she has decided to continue drinking.  As a sober alcoholic, it makes me angry, too,  But I also know that nothing and no one could've made me stop drinking until I was ready.  She is unable to imagine "living life on life's terms" without the buffer of alcohol.  What she doesn't realize is that she is making matters worse, not better.  Living life sober is a terrifying thing for an alcoholic--and why they need help from a program like AA.

If you can get her to make out a Living Will (if she doesn't already have one) and to express her preferences regarding cremation or burial, etc., it will prevent a lot of hassle and heartbreak when the end comes.

Hugs,

Connie

Posted 7/19/2010 12:44 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Jp and welcome to our forum, i am sure yo will beableto get the advice needed. your step daughter is lucky she has you to lookout for her, she must have put herself through a lot being in her thrities and suffering from esld.
first of all, my mum is an alcoholic, who started having serious health issues just over three years ago, she was told then she had three months if she continued to drink, she has ..and the nightmare goes on. she is currently in hospital through having a prolonged seizuire. On Thursday she had about three small ones, then a big one, when the ambulance came they could not get her to stop, the seizuire lasted over an hour. She never had seizuires before, but she has them now and then, they put her on Tegretol. there does not seem to be a pattern other than they mostly occur when she has had loads to drink and stays off it the next day because she is so sick to drink. The seizuires have been treated as an emergency and she has ended up taking several strokes. I do not know if that is what will happen with your daughter (step) or something similar, but they are definately caused by the alcohol.
If she is stubborn, bad tempered then it might not be possible to approach her about a living will, but it is worth a try.
Like everyone says you could be in for a long haul, slow down and look after yourself,
Posted 7/19/2010 3:53 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for all your replies guys

Unfortunately Sarah is not approachable about anything much really so discussing the future and what it will bring is a no no. So I guess her Mother, Father and I will just have to be there when she needs help and let her make her own decisions.....just help her in any way we can.

Thanks again

JP51

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