Amy Winehouse family says alcohol withdrawal killed her.

[RandySF]

As Amy Winehouse's album Back to Black climbs back onto the charts and whispers begin about a treasure trove of unreleased songs, Winehouse's family has a hunch about what we might find in her toxicology report—that she died from alcohol withdrawl. They believe that laying off the alcohol cold turkey may be what caused Winehouse's sudden death last weekend at age 27. A source close to the family explains, that " doctors had told Amy to gradually reduce her intake of alcohol and to avoid bingeing at all costs. Amy told him she couldn't do that. It was all or nothing and she gave up completely. Mitch (Winehouse's father) said the shock of giving up, after everything she had been through over a bad few years, was just too much for her to take. Abstinence gave her body such a fright, they thought it was eventually the cause of her death."

So what exactly is alcohol withdrawl? And can it kill someone?

According US Department of Health and Human Services, symptoms of alcohol withdrawl flare up five to 10 hours after a person's last drink, and intensify between the 48 and 72 hour mark. Symptoms include anxiety, depression, fatigue, clammy skin, enlarged pupils, shakes, loss of appetite, etc. During the first stages of withdrawl, most people feel an intense craving for alcohol. Symptoms can persist for weeks.


http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/amy-winehouse-family-alcohol-withdrawal-killed/story?id=14181980

[Zookeeper]

1. Shouldn't that kind of withdrawal be done with medical...

supervision, then?

[elleng]

9. Yes, of course, and usually is done so.

[Cal Carpenter]

11. Yes, it should

But it doesn't always happen that way, unfortunately.

It may or may not be what killed Amy Winehouse, but I have witnessed a hardcore alcoholic go through detox and it is HORRIBLE. I don't doubt that it is possible that it killed her, given her drinking history.

[LaydeeBug]

18. I believe I read that she had met with her doctor the night before. nt

[Warpy]

22. Yes. Untreated DTs are 50% fatal.

People have to be brought down chemically with a combination of anti anxiety drugs, blood pressure drugs, and often other drugs like anti seizure medications.

They do things differently in the UK, expecting alcohol addicts to be able to taper their daily intake down. Here we put them through up to a week of detox care before they can start the real rehab.

The fatality rate for untreated DTs is why I give money to street people and look the other way if they buy alcohol with it. They know what they need to survive.

[jwirr]

35. Agreed, Just seizures untreated can kill.

[NNN0LHI]

40. Years ago I remember a guy who was hospitalized who the doctor had an order for beer in his chart

He had to be hospitalized unexpectedly and his doctor didn't want him going into DTs so he prescribed the beer. The nurse would bring it to him. The guy was a heavy drinker for years.

This was decades ago. Not sure if they ever still do it or if it is all done with drugs now?

Don

[Warpy]

43. Oh, sure, and they can get ethanol IV if they're getting emergency surgery

They're usually detoxed for elective surgery since alcohol complicates pain management. But yes, beer is prescribed for problem drinkers when docs are afraid withholding it will complicate their conditions.

Alcohol is a drug, period. Only our insane laws allow addicts to think otherwise.

[Horse with no Name]

2. Withdrawal can kill.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001771/

[TBF]

7. I don't know the science behind it -

but I did work as a nurse's assistant in a hospital years ago (rehab), and do remember they would have folks in the facility for detoxing - they would monitor them especially coming off hard drugs.

[Horse with no Name]

15. As a nurse, I worked in the acute part of the hospital

we weren't a rehabbing facility and we would give heavy alcoholics a beer with their dinner.
Cold turkey isn't the way to do it.:(

[TBF]

19. Yes, my recollection is that there were certain pharmaceuticals to help

them come down off harder drugs, and that certainly could've been involved with alcohol as well. Some people refuse to believe it, but I see alcoholism as a disease to treat.

[elleng]

24. Alcoholism is most definitely a disease.

http://www.lakesidemilam.com/

[Morizovich]

3. So LET's KEEP DRINKING!

:beer:

[digitaln3rd]

4. Whatever.

I get the family is trying to make excuses but this is just nonsense.

[Luminous Animal]

16. And you base this on nothing but your own uninformed opinion. People do, in fact,

die from alcohol withdrawal. IF, she had given up cold turkey, her chances of surviving in rehab would have been greater but not guaranteed.

[cwydro]

42. Exactly. nt

[cwydro]

27. No it is not nonsense...

Alcohol withdrawal is a very dangerous business.

People always talk about heroin withdrawal, but alcohol withdrawal is every bit as dangerous, if not worse.

[Aerows]

30. People can DEFINITELY die of alcohol withdrawal

If she had been hardcore drinking for several months, abruptly stopping would be extremely dangerous. Frankly, that's why attempting to come down doing something like AA alone without getting detoxed is highly discouraged (though some well-meaning, but ill-informed AA'ers do encourage it). Even residential programs detox people.

Hard core alcohol abuse is very different from cocaine abuse. Cocaine users can usually stop. Alcohol abuse is a lot like heroin abuse in that you can't just stop if you are at the point of physical dependency. It's just too dangerous.

[LARED]

5. I'm pretty skeptical about this. nt

[cwydro]

25. Do some research

or risk sounding even more ignorant.

[LARED]

39. In what way am I ignorant?

No where did I say dying from alcohol withdrawal cannot be fatal. I am skeptical that was the reason Whinehouse died.

[cwydro]

41. Uh, ok.

Sure.

[Luminous Animal]

6. This happened to the dad of one of my daughter's friends last year. He was in a rehab

facility and died from withdrawal. The dad's parents, who essentially forced him into rehab (they had had it, continuing supporting a 45 year old man - paying his rent and giving him an allowance) have barely been able to deal with the guilt.

[elleng]

12. Not much of a rehab facility, unless they weren't told

about from what he was withdrawing.

Awful story. Sorry.

[Luminous Animal]

14. The dad was apprised of the risks... he had to self-report to the facility.

His parents and son had no idea what he signed at admission. The parents simply wrote the check.

[Horse with no Name]

20. We had a trauma patient once that we couldn't get to quit seizing

no matter what we did.

After spending about 12 hours straight, the doctor AGAIN questioned the family for some reason that he might be doing this (for the 3rd or 4th time)despite the fact that we were treating the seizures aggressively...FINALLY the family admitted that he was a heavy alcoholic but "didn't want to mention it so that it wouldn't be in his medical records".

The Doctor was livid.

We almost lost the guy because the family wasn't being honest.

[closeupready]

8. This should be moved to the showbiz forum.

nt

[Luminous Animal]

13. Yes, because death from alcohol withdrawal is sooooo entertaining. (n/t)

[cwydro]

29. I've seen posts about birthdays in this forum...

and the neverending kid threads...

I think this belongs here.

[Luminous Animal]

10. Wiki says 5%-15% die from withdrawal.

Unlike the withdrawal syndrome associated with opiate dependence, DT (and alcohol withdrawal in general) can be fatal. Mortality was as high as 35% before the advent of intensive care and advanced pharmacotherapy; in the modern era of medicine, death rates range from 5-15%.<1>


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_tremens

[cdsilv]

23. I've been through it. It is NOT a fun time.

I'm a 'serial alcoholic' and have been through the DT's a few times. Hospitalized. It is not fun. Yah, you get some good drugs, but
you also get the night sweats, really bad indigestion, the shakes/seizures and all that. And really bad acid diarrhea.

I'm tired of it all.

Amy Winehouse probably tried to quit booze 'all at once', which cannot be done. Once the shakes start, you better call 911 or you'll die.

Simple as that.

BTDT.

[Shandris]

17. Alcohol withdrawal from Amy Winehouse? I can easily see it.

It's a toxic shock when the body no longer receives what it expects; if you don't sweat it out almost immediately, the residual poison makes your body desperate for more, your heartbeat picks up, you can't breathe right, the only thing you can think of is that next drink. You can't sleep worth a damn because you've used it to enter sleep for so many years, your neurological patterns are linked to it. If you can't find something to replace the feeling, to literally suck your full attention away from the lack of alcohol, your body will begin to collapse under its own strain.

This isn't playtime or 'excuses from the family', this is hardcore put-you-in-the-grave shit. It takes an extraordinary amount of willpower to quit alcohol cold turkey, and most of that willpower is in literally forcing your body to keep going because you won't ALLOW it to give out on you. You focus your attention, you get angry when the alcohol lack tries to seize attention, you survive on rage until its ALL. SWEATED. OUT. And that takes a lot longer than you'd think, and your heart will STILL begin to race for years at the very least at the mere SIGHT of an alcoholic beverage -- even one you can't stand. Years down the line, NYQUIL will still affect your heart rate, your liver, your need. The HHS says a week? I finally got over it after 6 YEARS, to where I can only now look at an alcoholic beverage without my body responding on its own with a craving.

[laylah]

21. ...

:hug:

[WillyT]

26. Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome

Alcohol withdrawal syndrome is the set of symptoms seen when an individual reduces or stops alcohol consumption after prolonged periods of excessive alcohol intake. Excessive abuse of alcohol leads to tolerance, physical dependence, and an alcohol withdrawal syndrome. The withdrawal syndrome is largely due to the central nervous system being in a hyper-excitable state. Unlike most withdrawals from other drugs, alcohol withdrawal can be fatal. The withdrawal syndrome can include seizures and delirium tremens and may lead to excito-neurotoxicity.

Link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcohol_withdrawal_syndrome

:shrug:

[cwydro]

28. Thanks for posting this...

lots of ignorant posters on this thread.

[elocs]

31. It certainly appears that way. I've learned from this though about withdrawal and alcoholism.

My dad was an alcoholic and it killed him by the time he was 49.

Right now I have a neighbor who is a hardcore alcoholic and is on SS disability and has been hospitalized a number of times this past year. She recently paid me for some yard work I did for her last summer and seemed to be on the wagon.

A few days ago she asked me to do some more work for her (paid me upfront) and seemed straight and sober and determined to stay that way, saying that her doctor told her if she was to start drinking again it would kill her. The next day she appeared tipsy and it sure looked like she had been drinking.

Pretty sad, but I don't know if she could ever safely quit drinking cold turkey on her own and evidently doing so could kill her as well.

[undercutter799]

32. at least she left a legacy

candle burned bright

she created some awesome music that billions of people listen to and draw inspiration from, more than can be said for the rest of us

[jwirr]

33. Withdrawal usually takes place in a detox center or hospital. She

was home alone. Wonder why she made that decision.

[Lucian]

34. Sounds like a bunch of crap to me.

[Marr]

36. I saw Amy Winehouse do cocaine *on stage*.

In the middle of a performance. She had a major drug problem. Don't you think drug overdose is a little more likely than alcohol withdrawal? I mean, I know it can kill-- but you're talking about family members' conjecture here, and this would be about the most positive (for the want of a better word) interpretation possible.

Assuming she wanted to quit is one thing, assuming she was in the process of quitting is yet another, and assuming the culprit was simple alcohol instead of hard drugs is yet another.

[H2O Man]

44. Her history of

substance abuse likely weakened her body significantly. This includes damaging her immune system, as well as compromising her internal organs ability to function properly. Yet of those substances, the alcohol could very well have been the key. There are levels of physical dependence that require medical supervision/treatment to stop and withdraw from.

There are also rumors that she attempted to self-medicate with other substances to ease the discomfort of withdrawal. This is, of course, not uncommon with poly-substance abusers.

Whatever the exact cause, it seems clear that addiction played a primary role. It's a tragic story. But it is one that has, and will continue to be repeated. And the number of very talented young musicians/artists that die young like this is but a tiny percentage of the overall numbers. Some people seem to be born in pain; others have it inflicted on them in their first years of life. Still others are happy people, who simply become addicted to the same substances that others can use in moderation.

[fredamae]

37. My Nephew died from Alcohol Withdrawl-It's not BS n/t

[Scottybeamer70]

38. I can tell you from personal experience

this is conpetely true! After having a few (and short) blackout spells, I decided to stop drinking completely.
Poured the last bottle of alcohol down the sink and haven't touched a drop since. ( 10 years ago )
BUT......it almost killed me. Two days later I started having dizzy spells. Had to hold on to the wall to
even walk. Finally had someone take me to the doc. He tried Xanax to stop the dizzy spells. Told me I was
extremely lucky to still be alive! The xanax worked...........used it for about 6 months......and no more
dizzy spells.
I have lost two younger friends who were in detox centers, but died from seizures.
YES........it is extremely dangerous to suddenly stop the alcohol. Anyone who says it isn't, does not know
the truth.

[cbdo2007]

45. based on her behavior in the days before her death alone.....

she wasn't detoxing, she was high as a kite.

Look up the video of her at that concert 2 days before her death. She was wasted and it wasn't on alcohol, she was a hard core drug user.

I know it is possible for people to die of alcohol withdrawal, and it's pretty much a mute point for us to argue since the toxicology report will come out and settle our debate in a few weeks, but she wasn't just an alcoholic, she was a well known drug user who admitted to not wanting to rehab for years.