Constant stress, misunderstandings with loved ones, difficult working conditions - all these factors lead to disorders of the psyche and nervous system. as a result, insomnia appears. This is not only the inability to fall asleep in the evening, but also early awakenings, interrupted sleep and nightmares. Such problems have an extremely negative effect on the psyche and nervous system.
The patient is forced to see a doctor and take sleeping pills. Many people choose a sedative drug themselves, and begin to drink it without consulting a doctor. Often, sedatives are combined with alcohol. At the same time, few people think about the consequences. Is it possible to take sleeping pills with alcohol - this question should be of interest to everyone who dared to take pills for insomnia.
Varieties of sleeping pills
In modern clinical practice, the anatomical-therapeutic-chemical classification of drugs with a hypnotic effect is used. This approach simultaneously takes into account both the structure of the active substance and the anatomicalstructures affected by the drug and the spectrum of its therapeutic activity.
All sleeping pills can be divided into the following groups (according to the principle of action and composition):
- barbiturates (drugs whose main active ingredient is barbituric acid);
- benzodiazepine derivatives;
- GABA receptor antagonists;
- aldehydes;
- aldehyde derivatives;
- hormonal drugs with melatonin;
- orexin receptor agonists;
- other sleeping pills.
Some classes of drugs are only used as sleeping pills in hospital settings. High toxicity and the occurrence of physical and psychological dependence make it impossible to use these medicines at home.
How to choose the right sleeping pill
Most sleeping pills can cause many side effects. They are toxic to internal organs and exceeding the recommended dosages can cause chronic diseases. Taking some sleeping pills with alcohol can be fatal.
Therefore, it is strictly forbidden to prescribe such drugs to yourself. Only after consultation with a psychiatrist and neuropathologist can you get a prescription for one or another sleeping pill. Also, the doctor will advise the optimal dosage, based on the individual characteristics of the patient and the course of the disease.
If a person is worried about constant nighttime awakenings, difficulty falling asleep and superficial sleep, then heyou should choose a drug among agents with an average or short duration of action.
If sleep disorders are not severe, then you should also choose new drugs, abandoning benzodiazepines and barbiturates. Neuropathologists recommend the following drugs that are relatively safe when combined with alcohol:
- "Chloral hydrate";
- "Doxylamine";
- "Melatonin".
The effect of alcohol on the nervous system and psyche
Before answering the question - what kind of sleeping pills can be taken with alcohol, we should especially note the effect of ethanol-containing drinks on the body and psyche of a sick person.
Ethanol is the very substance due to which the state of intoxication is achieved. Euphoria (and in some cases sadness, melancholy), impaired coordination of movements, dizziness, fun and an inadequate state - this is what the state of a drunk person implies. This effect is achieved due to paralysis of the nervous system. Hundreds of thousands of neurons (nerve cells) die, which are subsequently excreted in the urine.
Two or three hours of intoxication result in a real stress for the body. Without touching on the effect of alcohol on the state of the liver and organs of the gastrointestinal tract, one can note a literally "deadly" effect on the psyche.
In the morning after alcoholic fun, a period of hangover and then withdrawal syndrome inevitably sets in. If there was a binge, then on the second or third day, in the absence of sleep, an acute delirium develops in the patient, or, as it is called inpeople, "squirrel".
It is when the patient cannot sleep during withdrawal and hangover that he decides to take sleeping pills. Indeed, some drugs are compatible with alcohol. But most often, simultaneous use is fraught with serious consequences, even death.
Sleeping pills with alcohol: consequences
Both drugs and ethanol-containing drinks have a depressing effect on the nervous system. As a result, such a double influence can lead to an alcoholic coma.
If the patient's he alth was initially weakened by chronic alcoholism, the liver is damaged and unable to cope with double intoxication, death may occur.
The metabolites of almost all sleeping pills harm the liver. The fatty degeneration of the body begins. With an overdose of sleeping pills with alcohol, toxic hepatitis can develop, which will inevitably lead to cirrhosis over time. especially if you continue to abuse alcoholic beverages. The liver is the only human organ capable of regeneration, but with constant poisoning by drug metabolites and ethanol, the organ will fail even in the he althiest person.
Benzodiazepine derivatives with alcohol: consequences and effect
List of the most commonly prescribed benzodiazepine derivatives:
- "Midazolam";
- "Flunitrazepam";
- "Nitrazepam";
- "Cinolazepam";
- "Oxazepam";
- "Triazolam";
- "Temazepam";
- "Flurazepam";
- "Estazolam".
All of these drugs have a mild sedative effect. They are effective for anxiety, restlessness, hyperactivity, increased excitability of the nervous system. All of them can be psychologically addictive - often with a long course of treatment, the patient is afraid to give up the effects of drugs and return to life without pharmacological support.
A benzodiazepine sleeping pill with alcohol will only induce deep sleep, the so-called alcoholic coma. It can take up to twelve hours. The danger to the patient's life is that vomiting may open during sleep, and since the person is in a coma, it will go through the nose and clog the airways. Death as a result of mechanical asphyxia - this is the name of this process.
The thought of alcohol with sleeping pills crosses the mind of many patients. Someone is interested in trying new sensations and experiencing strong intoxication (which you can not expect - a person will simply fall asleep and that's it). And someone decides to commit suicide in this way.
Barbiturates with alcohol: a deadly danger
This is the most dangerous combination. Strong sleeping pills with alcohol can be fatal.
Barbiturates are the sedative-hypnotics of the past generation. Modern doctors do not prescribe such drugs to their patients for a long time, as they causestrong physical addiction. But pharmacies still continue to sell such drugs, often without a prescription.
Known to all "Corvalol" in addition to essential oils contains phenobarbital. This substance is just a barbiturate. In Corvalol, the specific proportion of phenobarbital is extremely small, but when combined with alcohol, it is enough to achieve severe intoxication.
Decrease in the activity of the respiratory center is a common result of the simultaneous use of barbiturates and alcohol. Alcoholic drinks and so reduce respiratory activity, taken tranquilizers aggravate the situation. As a result, a person can simply die in a dream without waking up. Mixing ingredients like alcohol and barbiturates to put a person to sleep is extremely risky.
Which sleeping pill is compatible with alcohol?
This question worries some patients with an already formed addiction. There is no need to mix over-the-counter sleeping pills with alcohol. There is only one condition in which such a measure is justified.
This is a state of alcoholic psychosis, or delirium. It occurs approximately on the third day after drinking. Ethanol is almost completely eliminated from the patient's body by this time. But often alcohol metabolites are still walking through the blood. So, a person cannot sleep, and hallucinations begin to haunt him.
How can you not end up in a mental hospital in such a situation? The only way out is to take sleeping pills. If there is no possibilitycall a private narcologist at home (he can write a prescription for sleeping pills and prescribe the optimal dosage, make a medical dropper that will help you fall asleep), then you will have to buy the pills yourself.
Recently, even the purchase of Phenibut requires a prescription. What can we say about more serious drugs.
You can try to buy "Melatonin" or "Donormil" - these drugs are mild sleeping pills compatible with alcohol.
The opinion of narcologists about such a combination
Alcoholism is treated by psychiatrists and narcologists. They can write prescriptions for pills to relieve hangovers and withdrawal symptoms. It is the narcologist who can competently answer the question - what kind of sleeping pills can you take with alcohol?
Any competent doctor understands that taking pills in parallel with alcoholic beverages is a polydrug addiction. This condition is very complex, and it takes longer to treat than ordinary alcoholism and ordinary pharmacological drug addiction. The combination of these two addictions is literally a "ticket to the next world".
Polydrug addiction cannot be treated with pills, it cannot be operated on. Only a competent psychotherapist can help a patient with such a diagnosis. Psychiatry is a branch of medicine that treats the soul, not the body.
So no honest narcologist who wishes well for his patient would advise sleeping pills after alcohol if there is no threat of delirium. Such a recommendation may cost the patienta man of life - you just need to slightly exceed the dosage.
Taking sleeping pills during withdrawal symptoms
It's a completely different matter - the need to take sleeping pills during the withdrawal period. This condition is characterized by depression of the psyche after a long period of use of psychoactive substances. It develops not only after many years of alcohol abuse, but also after substance abuse and drug addiction.
Withdrawal condition:
- motor restlessness;
- frequent awakenings in the middle of the night;
- insomnia;
- limb tremor;
- irritability;
- unmotivated aggression;
- reluctance to interact with people and participate in social life.
This condition after prolonged intoxication is quite normal, and can last for a year. It is during this period that sleeping pills are needed to smooth the healing process. It is worth noting one of the most important points - in no case should you allow repeated drinking of alcohol, since a sick person will not be able to stop at one glass and, as a result, will again fall into a cycle of binges and a hangover.
To avoid such problems - the period of remission should take place under the strict supervision of a competent narcologist. It is great if the patient can attend psychotherapist consultations where he can share his thoughts about whether it is okay to drink sleeping pills with alcohol or not.
The main point of such therapy is the patient's own realization of the fact that polydrug addiction (taking pills with alcoholic beverages) is a slow and painful suicide.
First aid for alcohol and pill intoxication
If you witness alcohol poisoning mixed with sleeping pills, you should provide the victim with the following assistance:
- the patient is unconscious - be sure to turn him face down, because if he lies on his back, vomit will enter the respiratory tract and he will suffocate (mechanical asphyxia);
- after that, call an ambulance, describing the situation over the phone;
- if the patient is conscious and sick, it's good, the body is being cleansed;
- you need to give the patient as much clean water as possible to drink in order to clean the stomach to the maximum;
- you can not eat any food - only drink clean water during the day (you can give the patient "Rehydron" to drink);
- if there is a suspicion of intentional poisoning, in no case should the patient be left alone, as he may repeat his attempt.
Calling an ambulance is a prerequisite if a person has lost consciousness or has uncontrollable vomiting. Most likely, after the doctors find out the reasons, the patient will be hospitalized in a psychiatric hospital. Such hospitalization will cause the inevitable registration of the person as mentally deranged.
If the psychiatrist thinksthat a person drank alcohol with sleeping pills deliberately, in order to harm himself, then the patient will be registered for many years. He will not be able to get a driver's license and get a prestigious job in government agencies and large corporations, which always check employees for registration in the IPA.
