Combination of symptoms - could they be connected?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. The seizures are scary enough, but seeing him in the midst of a panic attack is awful and I just can’t help but thing everything is related. Might not be though.

Mental health/alcohol are related for sure. A lot of alcoholism is self medication for mental health challenges.

[Anonymous]

The seizures and sudden hypertension seem most concerning. I hope the neurologist can help!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. The seizures are scary enough, but seeing him in the midst of a panic attack is awful and I just can’t help but thing everything is related. Might not be though.

Mental health/alcohol are related for sure. A lot of alcoholism is self medication for mental health challenges.

+1 I think he should focus on his mental health/alcoholism. And OP you might want to check out Al-Anon -- your DH is an alcoholic. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

At a rock bottom minimum, he should be completely candid with every provider about how much he was drinking (and maybe you leave the room for the discussion of how much he IS drinking).

These may not be detox seizures, but if they are they are life-threatening, so him lying about it won’t benefit him.

[Anonymous]

I would first rule out the alcohol as a cause. Seizures are often a result of quitting cold turkey. They even happen within two days of quitting. I would have a doctor help him quit as doing it alone is dangerous.

[Anonymous]

OP, just read hallucinations can also be alcohol withdrawal related. I know this may seem overwhelming to deal with alcoholism, but having an answer and a way forward is great. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you all so much. He has been candid (in my presence) about how much he drinks and he does acknowledge it’s a problem. Honestly, I’d rather these issues be due to alcohol rather than unknown, as we’d at least have an answer (yes, it’s still a mountain to climb).

Not to beat a dead horse, but can you still have a withdrawal seizure, even when you’re not binging & stopping? I have a family member who would drink herself to near death with vodka for days on end, then stop, and have a seizure. Can the same happen for someone who drinks “consistently” - I.e. in our two scenarios:
A few beers each night, every night, then suddenly seize the next day?
A few beers each night, every night, then cutting back to only 2 nights / week, and having a seizure after one of those nights?

I am not looking for any sort of excuse, I am genuinely wondering what the circumstances are around what exactly would cause it in terms of withdrawal, because otherwise wouldn’t they happen to a lot more people?

[Anonymous]

OP, did he have high blood pressure before the first incident?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you all so much. He has been candid (in my presence) about how much he drinks and he does acknowledge it’s a problem. Honestly, I’d rather these issues be due to alcohol rather than unknown, as we’d at least have an answer (yes, it’s still a mountain to climb).

Not to beat a dead horse, but can you still have a withdrawal seizure, even when you’re not binging & stopping? I have a family member who would drink herself to near death with vodka for days on end, then stop, and have a seizure. Can the same happen for someone who drinks “consistently” - I.e. in our two scenarios:
A few beers each night, every night, then suddenly seize the next day?
A few beers each night, every night, then cutting back to only 2 nights / week, and having a seizure after one of those nights?

I am not looking for any sort of excuse, I am genuinely wondering what the circumstances are around what exactly would cause it in terms of withdrawal, because otherwise wouldn’t they happen to a lot more people?

I'm one of the PPs and I honestly don't know the answer to these questions. I know in the case of the person I knew, she claimed it was wine only but we discovered there was vodka being consumed out of a water bottle...things like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you all so much. He has been candid (in my presence) about how much he drinks and he does acknowledge it’s a problem. Honestly, I’d rather these issues be due to alcohol rather than unknown, as we’d at least have an answer (yes, it’s still a mountain to climb).

Not to beat a dead horse, but can you still have a withdrawal seizure, even when you’re not binging & stopping? I have a family member who would drink herself to near death with vodka for days on end, then stop, and have a seizure. Can the same happen for someone who drinks “consistently” - I.e. in our two scenarios:
A few beers each night, every night, then suddenly seize the next day?
A few beers each night, every night, then cutting back to only 2 nights / week, and having a seizure after one of those nights?

I am not looking for any sort of excuse, I am genuinely wondering what the circumstances are around what exactly would cause it in terms of withdrawal, because otherwise wouldn’t they happen to a lot more people?

I think you should consider the possibility that your husband is drinking more than you observe him drinking/more than he admits to. Someone who can do 8-10 drinks in a night, as he was, is not a lightweight. The likelihood of someone cutting back from a consistent habit like that to "a few beers a night" is probably lower than the likelihood of them continuing to drink more, secretly.

These are all questions for your husband's doctor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, did he have high blood pressure before the first incident?

Yes, he did. He had high BP for about 5 years. His PCP kept telling him it was fine, since he was an avid runner. But it would be up to around 170-180/100-110 sometimes.
When he was hospitalized for the first seizure, the doctors in the ER were hyper focused on his BP as a cause but eventually ruled it out.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t rule out a physical cause for the panic attacks, but in the meanwhile he should be seeing a therapist weekly who can educate him about panic attacks and how to de-escalate. Also that person can work with him on the medical trauma and drinking.

Is he drinking at all while on BP meds? That can’t be good - have you looked to see if any of his meds have side effects or alcohol interactions?

[Anonymous]

You need to remove all the alcohol from your house. Second he needs help from a doctor to detox. You can't quit cold turkey without help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. The seizures are scary enough, but seeing him in the midst of a panic attack is awful and I just can’t help but thing everything is related. Might not be though.

Mental health/alcohol are related for sure. A lot of alcoholism is self medication for mental health challenges.

+1 on this. He may have underlying panic or anxiety disorder that he’s self medicating for. Not all alcoholics drink to get “drunk” - he may be drinking large amounts, but steadily and in small doses through the day to just feel “normal” and calm.

Seizures and extreme hypertension are not uncommon in acute alcohol withdrawal. It’s one of the very few things where withdrawal can be fatal.

While not the only possibility of what’s going on, it’s a likely one. Being athletic, etc. doesn’t mean he doesn’t have a disorder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone. The seizures are scary enough, but seeing him in the midst of a panic attack is awful and I just can’t help but thing everything is related. Might not be though.

I'm very sorry you're going through this. Your poor DH. When my sibling was having a lot of mystery symptoms she was hospitalized for intensive testing in a couple of local hospitals. They didn't find anything to explain the symptoms. She then was sent to Johns Hopkins where she spent days undergoing testing. They found out what was wrong with her. At the time of her diagnosis her disease was very unusual (today it seems to be a lot more common) - probably why it was not picked up at the first couple of hospitals.