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of intoxication, you may only “brownout”. Basically you have a
spotty recollection of the evening’s transgressions, only failing to
recall brief chunks of time. Of course, if you often find yourself on
the podium for self-abuse you may experience a total blackout; the
proverbial, “the lights are on, but nobody’s home”. But whether
you’re taking a moment or two off here and there or totally
punching out for the night, the cause and ramifications are the
same.
“Whether you’re taking a moment
or two off here and there or totally
punching out for the night, the cause
and ramifications are the same.”
Alcohol disrupts the function of a part of the brain called the
hippocampus. The hippocampus is integral in both memory
formation and spatial navigation. When your BAC rises rapidly,
some receptors in the hippocampus fail to transfer a compound
called glutamate. Without glutamate, neurons in the hippocampus
won’t communicate properly, which really gums up the works. If
enough neurons are disrupted your brain will temporarily lose the
ability to create new memories, and you blackout.
Recent studies have shown that blackouts are most common
when there is a sudden and dramatic surge in blood alcohol content.
In fact, if the rise in BAC is quick enough one could lose the ability
to create memories before much of the other effects of alcohol
abuse kick in. In other words, you could be carrying on a lucid
conversation with your dear mother while playing minesweeper
and writing an essay on overindulgence, and not remember any of
it. Frightening, yes? Well what about the nightmare scenario where
the intoxication has fully set in (i.e. poor judgment, rash decisions,
aggressive behavior), and there is no recollection of it? You, my
friend, came in like a wrecking ball (you wre-e-ecked me).
fsmomaha.com
’m jarred suddenly into consciousness, as if revived from arrest.
I feel bewildered, confused and ultimately depleted. I can’t see
anything. I’m actually not sure if it’s too bright for my eyes to work
or if they’re crusted shut. Why do I still have all of my clothes on? And
why are they all wet? The floor doesn’t seem damp, so I don’t think
I wet myself. Oh great, I slept on the floor. At least it’s my floor. I
should get up. Oh my God my entire skeleton just cracked at once.
I think I’m dead. No wait; I couldn’t be dead if my ears are ringing.
Also, this intense throbbing sensation I’m experiencing is probably a
sign of life as well. I have established life. This is good.
And once we are given life we must immediately question it. This
is the nature of humanity, or more succinctly, extremely hungover
people. Where am I? How did I get here? What did I do last night? Did
I ever really enjoy LOST? Lord knows I’ve had my share of doozies. A
dozen or so intoxicants filling me past my God-given internal line,
forcing my hand into some ‘Great Unknown’, and yet still we don’t
know. We must verify our deeds with others and listen in shame as
our follies come home to roost. So many memories, however trifling
they may be, live on only in the minds of others. They’ve become
a sacrifice. I have created it, but I cannot truly attain it. It does not
belong to me.
We all know damn well what causes this phenomenon: getting so
absolutely pickled that the fellow in charge decides to engage autopilot. Let’s dig a little deeper though. Get down to the real nuts
and bolts of what happens to your brain when you try to drown
it in hooch. In fact let me recount for you exactly what transpires.
Maybe then you will think of this the next time you notice your
grasp beginning to slip.
Of course, not all blackouts are created equal. They differ in
severity based upon the same general rules regarding intoxication,
as in gender, height, weight, amount consumed, time elapsed,
food, tolerance and so on. If you haven’t reached extreme levels
“The tie to binge drinking also links
blackouts to a veritable laundry list
of long-term ills.”
“The correlation between BAC spikes
and memory loss has muddled the
long-held assumption that only
severe alcoholics black out.”
There is some semblance of a bright side, however. The
correlation between BAC spikes and memory loss has muddled the
long-held conception that only severe alcoholics black out. In fact,
a recent study at Duke University found that social drinkers were
just as likely to experience blackouts as your garden variety trench
coat wearing, speech slurring, diatribe spouting everyday drunk. So
if you’ve experienced these symptoms you may not necessarily be an
alcoholic – yet (but, let’s face it, you probably are a dang lush).
Unfortunately the tie to binge-drinking also links blackouts to
a veritable laundry list of long-term ills. Basically the entire list of
causes for American deaths has been associated with alcohol abuse
in one form or another, which makes sense. Any time you alter )ѡ