15 Signs Your Body Is Telling You You're Drinking Too Much

You may avoid these nasty markings by adopting the proper lifestyle practices and following the tips mentioned in the blog. Erin is a Nurse Practitioner with 8 years of experience in midwifery and women's health. She has spent the past 5 years specializing in the treatment of opioid and alcohol use disorders. If you’re experiencing alcohol symptoms like easy bruising, or you simply want to break free from alcohol misuse, Confidant is here to help.

With so many effects on the body, the usual first step in treating alcoholism is detox—or getting alcohol out of your system. Depending on the severity of the alcohol use disorder, this stage can be mildly annoying or severe. Early withdrawal symptoms include headaches, anxiety, nausea, irritability and shaking. If you think a family member or loved one might be showing signs, signals or symptoms of alcoholism, know that it won't “go away” on its own.

Weight gain

Once a person develops an alcohol use disorder, they will continue to drink, even in the face of serious consequences, such as health problems caused by alcohol. Brain changes from repeated alcohol misuse lead to compulsive drinking and make it difficult to stop without treatment. Chronic alcohol abuse can lead to liver damage called alcoholic fatty liver disease. It’s what happens when chronic inflammation (hepatitis) does cumulative damage to your liver over time.

Back of the leg showing extensive discoloration of the skin and extension of hematoma under the skin.

Night sweats

As a result, the blood’s platelet count may fall, resulting in bruising and bleeding. The liver makes proteins that the blood needs for clotting, so if it's not doing its job, you may bleed or bruise more easily. It could be a sign that you've got a condition called cirrhosis, which is scarring of the liver.

By Heidi Moawad, MD

Heidi Moawad is a neurologist and expert in the field of brain health and neurological disorders. Dr. Moawad regularly writes and edits health and career content for medical books and publications. Since nutritional deficiencies are partly to blame for alcoholic neuropathy, supplementation with vitamin B12, folate, vitamin E, and thiamine may be recommended.

What Are the Warning Signs of Alcohol-Related Liver Damage?

Listen to relatives, friends or co-workers when they ask you to examine your drinking habits or to seek help. Consider talking with someone who has alcohol and bruising had a problem with drinking but has stopped. The symptoms for this liver condition may vary depending upon the severity of the liver disease.

It offers no nutritional value and instead breaks down into poisonous chemicals. Some of the symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy can be partially reversed. But if the neuropathy becomes advanced, it might not be reversible. The knowledge of the nature of the phenomenon of alcohol-induced thrombocytopenia in a clinical environment allows decisions that are more rational.

Strategies for Dealing with Alcohol Use Disorder: What to Say and Do

Heavy drinking means different things for men (and people AMAB) and women (and people AFAB). For people assigned male, it’s about four standard https://ecosoberhouse.com/sober-house-boston/ drinks a day or more than 14 drinks per week. For people assigned female, it’s about three drinks per day or more than 7 drinks per week.

• This is your body’s way of attempting to heal and ward off further injury.
• But sometimes you spot a bruise and you can't figure out how you got it.
• When it comes to drinking alcohol, several factors can increase the risk of bruising.
• Severe alcoholic hepatitis can come on suddenly, such as after binge drinking, and can be life threatening.

Hence, drinking alcohol makes it harder for your immune system to gear up and mount a defense response against invading pathogens and viruses. As a result, you may find yourself catching colds and infections more often. If you’ve noticed consistent weight gain, it may be time to reflect on your drinking habits. According to the CDC, moderate drinking is defined as having two standard drinks or less per day for men and one drink or less per day for women. Because denial is common, you may feel like you don't have a problem with drinking. You might not recognize how much you drink or how many problems in your life are related to alcohol use.

But as you continue to drink, you become drowsy and have less control over your actions. Alcohol use disorder can include periods of being drunk (alcohol intoxication) and symptoms of withdrawal. Every food and drink you consume passes through your liver for processing. When alcohol goes to your liver for processing, it acts as a toxin.

Alcoholic neuropathy is one of the most common but least recognizable consequences of heavy alcohol use. People with a long history of alcohol misuse might experience loss of balance, pain, tingling, weakness, or numbness after drinking alcohol. Chronic alcoholism may be a predisposing factor for retropharyngeal hematoma due to the high incidence of head trauma, neck hyperextension by convulsion, and hemostatic disorders. However, taking an accurate patient history is sometimes difficult because of the effects of intoxication or alcohol withdrawal. If a patient with chronic alcoholism presents with symptoms of airway compression, then a retropharyngeal hematoma should be suspected, and emergency intubation should be considered.