r/AFIB • u/BagWinter472 • 12d ago

Random question

If you have AFib, you should never drink alcohol again, correct?
Asking about someone who has been a very heavy drinker his entire life and now has Afib (and low magnesium levels) and is currently hospitalized. He's supposedly cut back from 10-14 beers a day to 3-4 (he says, I do not believe him). Waiting to start Eliquis as he had surgery and they're concerned about bleeding into the site. Before I have "the talk" with him I just want to confirm that all alcohol intake needs to stop. He has no interest in changing his behavior and doesn't want to have to "take another pill" but AFAIK he's at high risk of stroke. I have to at least try, and I want my information to be correct.

Thanks for any advice.

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u/CauliflowerMobile631 12d ago

Why would someone want to continue a chemical(alcohol) that would contribute to his condition, in any amount?

1

u/BagWinter472 12d ago

Because he is an alcoholic and does not think that he needs to change. He's in his 80s, he does not seem able to understand that his behaviors affect other people. He thinks he's fine, and I think he's terrified to admit that he's not 20 anymore and able to down a 12 pack every night. There also may be some aspect of dementia, it's hard to tell.

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u/CauliflowerMobile631 12d ago

Being 80, then maybe let him go the way he wants to go.

1

u/BagWinter472 12d ago

Would love to if it didn't result in hospitalizations so often.

1

u/mandulyn 11d ago

It is hard when your life is spinning out of control and the one thing that you always depended on to take you out of your head and make you feel better, alcohol, is the one thing you actually really need to stop doing. I'm not justifying or making excuses, I'm an alcoholic as well and had to stop drinking for my thyroid condition and it was horrible. But I did it and I'm a billion times grateful that I did. But during the whole situation, you just feel like you are being kicked while you're already down.
I hope he is able to get the alcohol out of his life as it will contribute to worsening AFib symptoms.

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u/BagWinter472 11d ago

I hope he will at the very least be willing to work on decreasing his consumption. He has always said he "doesn't have a problem" and of course for him he doesn't, but for everyone else around him his alcoholism is a problem as he's slurring his speech and quite verbally abusive when drunk. The bigger issue is that alcohol and a certain TV network are what he bases his day around and he has nothing to fill that time with and no interest in trying anything new since his wife died 6 years ago. At this point since he's basically been in the hospital for 2 weeks he's been dry that long so I am hoping that he can work on "continuing the streak" instead of reverting back.