Do you blackout more than other people?

[Mchong]

I have had common occurrences throughout my life of blacking out when drinking. Doesnt happen a lot but I've experienced it a handful of times. Not looking to engage a debate on the merits of alcohol here. Just wondering if this is related at all to ADD brains moreso than the general population.
I'm talking about where you are basically running on auto pilot and have lost the ability to form memories. Yes, the kind like in tv shows where people wake up next to each other and can't remember what happened

[Jackal119]

I definitely do, but I also drink more than most people.

I would say based on my experience with it that IF it has something to do with my ADHD it has more to do with the condition and less to do with the medication I've been taking to treat it (although most of the ADHD meds have been proven to effect one's alcohol/drug tollerance).

I only say that because it has happened to me since I started drinking (splitting bottles of Patron and chugging Grey Goose, that kind of stupid stuff after 6 or seven other drinks) and it was happening a year or two before I ever started taking medication for my ADHD (and I was in fact taking no medication of any kind during the two years prior). It has continued since I started the medications as well.

I like to party hard and on occasion drink only to excess when I can afford to (better than the daily calories from 2 beers/glasses of wine). That said I am not an alcoholic.

Another wierd thing I've noticed, I've never gotten a hangover the morning after this happens, or really ever. In fact, I usually feel at my best the morning after I blackout and have told hungover friends to their confusion (and admittedly my own) that I've felt like "running a marathon!" But yeah, I'd say I black out 6-10 times a year (I am a college student though...).

Just my experience, interesting question though since I never considered that there could be a link between the blacking out and the condition.

[fracturedstory]

Depends how much you've been drinking.

I have atonic seziures (blackouts) after drinking a regular amount of alcohol. About half as much a crazy party goer drinks.

[ADDinHDefgHi?!]

When I used to drink a lot I would tell people I never blacked out. However over time I realized that quite a few people had claimed to have conversations with me that I can't recall. These conversations were verified by other people I know, so they happened, I just didn't remember.

the conversations or the people... couldn't remember either.

This was around the time I realized that my perception of myself when I was drinking was often different than others perception of me when I was drinking.

I also used to have people regularly tell me that they could never tell if I was drunk or sober, so I don't know who is right or wrong. I blame the alcohol not the ADHD. I remember getting yelled at for being a quiet drunk. Then I remember getting yelled at for being an obnoxious drunk but I never thought I was being obnoxious.

One night I went on a formal date with a girl I had recently met and I woke up in bed with an ex gf in her current boyfriends house (boyfriend was out of town, but nothing happened according to her, except a lot of vodka drinking). I'm not sure what happened that night. No memory of a good chunk of that evening/night.

I swear I had more fun when I used to drink. I just don't enjoy it anymore. I got to the point where I'd wake up shaking from alcohol wd's, sometimes I'd wake up at 6pm on a Monday and miss important work. So yeah, I guess I blacked out quite a bit, but I really can't remember for sure, that's what sucks about blacking out!

[choco222]

Everybody blacks out if they drink too much. Nothing to do with ADHD.

[fracturedstory]

Forgetting what you did the night you drunk loads is not the same as blacking out. I keep meeting these people who know who I am quite well and I haven't got the darndest clue how they know me. Right, that party, where I got so drunk I started eating candle wax.

The morning I woke up from about 10 separate black outs (Jagermesiter) I didn't have a hangover, but I can only recall throwing up constantly that night too so I think I threw up my hangover. Or the alcohol wasn't in me for that long.

Maybe it's got more to do with being impulsive and compulsive that makes a person with ADHD black out. Also, different people have different tolerances.

[CheekyMonkey]

It would make more sense to me that ADHD people are more impulsive and perhaps more likely to drinking in excess, and therefore blacking out.

[mww254]

Originally Posted by CheekyMonkey

It would make more sense to me that ADHD people are more impulsive and perhaps more likely to drinking in excess, and therefore blacking out.

I would say this is a likely explanation..

I used to drink alot every now and again, but I dont really enjoy it..

Try doing this, next time you go to a party where people are getting really drunk, stay sober and observe their behavior. Then realize that its the same behavior you exhibit when drinking.. I've done this a few times and its made me pretty disgusted with myself, and other people as well..

Now I'll go to a party and have a few drinks, but leave it at that, and I have so much more fun. Plus I never have to worry about what I might have done the next morning..

Not trying to preach, because everybody kinda realizes this as they get older.. except the ones who die from cirrhosis

[fracturedstory]

That happened at the last party I was at. It's almost like when I watch people who are high and they just remind me of my natural self.

But seeing as I prefer to hang out with the kids at family gatherings I have stopped drinking. I still enjoy an occasional glass but it's not good for me to drink because I can be impulsive. Better to shop than drink. As long as it's not alcohol.

[Twiggy]

I've never blacked out before or puked, even when I drank waaay too much a few times in the past.

[markadd]

Yes I black out as well... I can drink beer all day and be fine but add some liquor even just a shot or two and I wont remember the end of the night.

Since starting an SSRI(Zoloft) I notice it happens more even with less alcohol.

ADHD and the impulsive aspect definitely can add to drinking more.

However blacking out is something people experience who have a genetic predisposition towards alcoholism. Don't get me wrong anyone who drinks enough can black out... but most non alcoholics will get sick or pass out before they ever reach that point... alcoholics for whatever reason do not and can drink to that point.

Something you might want to think about and perhaps monitor yourself closely. Also the fact that you experience less or no hangover at all is also a red flag for alcoholism.

Do you know if your family has a history of alcoholism??

[shamrock]

To quote Amy Winehouse....yeah baby and the rest.

Some people just dont remember getting home. They are brown outs..the youngest sibling.
Some people forget the night from about half way through. They are dark grey outs.
Some people dont remember going out in the first place. They are the big daddy of blackouts.