What Is Wet Brain?
There’s no doubt that moderate to heavy drinking over time makes a negative impact on physical and mental health. Medical experts state that plenty of patients that drink heavily year after year end up suffering from things like chronic depression or liver disease. But what you don’t hear too much about is something the health experts call “wet brain.”
What is Wet Brain?
Wet brain is the colloquial term for Wernicke-Korsaff Syndrome. It’s a condition of the brain that is caused by excessive drinking over time, depleting the body of essential nutrients for optimal functioning. Vitamin B1 is one vitamin in particular that, when missing from the body for long periods of time, can cause swelling in the brain and serious brain damage.
Granted, heavy drinkers or alcoholics tend to slack when it comes to feeding the body nutritious foods. You may know someone who skips meals and just keeps drinking and may even make a joke about it. Or they wait until they’re done drinking in the middle of the night and then eat a bunch of junk food before passing out.
With alcohol being a toxic poison and the body not receiving adequate nutrition, it’s just a matter of time before the body starts breaking down. Health experts also state that when a heavy drinker consumes high amounts of sugar, that excessive sugar can actually trigger wet brain.
Wet Brain Symptoms
Without a sufficient amount of nutrients, your body will begin to experience symptoms. Without thiamine or vitamin B1, the brain will begin to suffer, and you may experience wet brain symptoms like:
- Trouble with vision
- Weakness of the eye muscles
- Hallucinations
- Balance issues; may stumble around
- Confusion
- Memory loss
How to Know If You Have Wet Brain
If you suspect you or someone else has wet brain, it’s essential that you visit a doctor immediately to get your blood tested, particularly for thiamine. It’s also essential that you’re completely honest with the doctor about the amount of alcohol used regularly, so they will know to test specifically for Wernicke-Korsaff Syndrome.
How to Treat Wet Brain
When someone is diagnosed with wet brain, they’ll be advised to stop drinking immediately. To continue drinking could cause irreversible changes in the brain. It’s likely that the person experiencing Wernicke-Korsaff Syndrome is an alcoholic in need of detox, so they may be referred to a detox center.
Detoxing from alcohol usually takes around one week, but can take longer for some people. The worst withdrawal symptoms usually occur within the first three days. A medically supervised detox is recommended, so the person can be monitored around the clock. Also, certain medications can be administered to help decrease withdrawal symptoms.
Detoxing at home is not recommended for heavy drinkers. Serious withdrawal symptoms could occur, putting them in danger. Consult your doctor or a substance use disorder professional before attempting to detox from alcohol.
Alcohol Treatment Can Help
From the detox center, it’s recommended that the person attends an inpatient rehab center to continue treatment. Most alcohol rehabs in Texas suggest a patient stay about one month to learn about addiction and how to live life without picking up a drink. There they can learn about the disease of alcoholism, as well as tools for coping with emotions and/or past trauma. Oftentimes, counselors are present to assist them.
Treatment will also include thiamine supplements, along with a variety of vitamins to help their bodies regain strength and vitality. Regular exercise may be encouraged as well.
Is Wet Brain Reversible?
Most healthcare professionals state that once wet brain is experienced, it’s challenging for the brain to recovery fully. It may be possible to reverse some damage if large IV thiamine doses are given within a few days of the onset of the syndrome, but there’s no guarantee.
However, the lack of thiamine over time tends to do irreversible damage to the brain. While someone may be able to make some progress, they may very likely continue to suffer from memory loss and coordination issues. In fact, some people who have wet brain tend to fabricate stories about their lives to fill in the gaps of their memory losses – otherwise known as “confabulation”. They may truly believe these stores to be true, as their real memories have vanished.
How to Prevent Wet Brain
Is there a way wet brain could be prevented besides abstaining from alcohol? What about the alcoholics that won’t stop drinking? Can something be done to reduce their risk of getting wet brain?
Some suggest adding thiamine to alcohol beverages. This way, the drinker is getting the necessary nutrients that could prevent them from experiencing irreversible brain damage. However, this has already been done, starting as early as 1936 when some beer and liquor companies started fortifying their beverages with thiamine.
This solution sounded like a no-brainer to healthcare professionals, as the thiamine did not alter the taste and ultimately, prevented wet brain. But the government put a stop to this because they ruled against alcohol beverages having “vitamins” on their labels.
Are You Struggling With Drinking?
If you or a loved one is struggling with moderate to heavy drinking, it’s time to really think about getting help to stop drinking. Maybe you’re not that concerned about getting wet brain because you don’t feel you drink too much. Or perhaps you feel because you eat decent food you’ll never experience this.
You may be right. Maybe you’ll never develop Wernicke-Korsaff Syndrome, but if you continue to drink, you can certainly experience other negative consequences. From liver disease to loss of family to heart disease, there are many painful things that can occur in your life should you continue to drink.
How Do I Stop Drinking?
“What is wet brain” might not be a question you’re concerned about – you might be more concerned about how to stop drinking. Admitting that you want to stop drinking is the first step to quitting. If you’ve tried to quit drinking before to no avail, then you know that you may need some help. The good news is that there are plenty of substance use disorder professionals ready and willing to assist you to get on the path of sobriety.
Once you’ve made up your mind to quit drinking, it’s then time to decide what recovery path you want to get on. Some opt to attend an inpatient treatment center, where they will leave their home and attend the rehab 24/7 for about a month. They have the option to stay longer if they choose.
Others will opt to attend an outpatient treatment center and attend a certain number of meetings per week. There they will undergo the same type of treatment they’d get at an inpatient center, but they’ll get to head home after the sessions.
Still, others opt to attend counseling and/or attend 12 Step meetings like Alcoholics or Narcotics Anonymous. The path of recovery may look different for each person, and that’s alright. It’s finding whatever works for you. The important thing is to do something to get on that recovery path as soon as you can and work hard at staying there.
There is life after dependence on alcohol. It may be tough to see it now, but know that as you courageously move forward with the intent to quit drinking, things will start falling into place. You can go on to create the kind of life you really want sober and free, so go ahead and reach out for help today.
