When a person consumes liquor, the alcohol causes the body’s sugar levels to rise, then later fall far below normal glucose levels for the following 12 hours (Valenzky, 2025). It’s especially dangerous to mix them when driving.It’s important to always talk with your doctor about whether it’s safe to consume alcohol with your medication.Medications such as clonazepam and lorazepam are benzodiazepines that can cause a life threatening interaction when mixed with alcohol. It should not be used in place of the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider.
How does alcohol affect people with epilepsy?
Delirium tremens is a serious, life-threatening complication of alcohol withdrawal. The GABA receptors that alcohol over-stimulates decrease the likelihood of seizures. Hypoglycemia causes seizures and is more likely to occur in those who use medicine to keep their blood sugar levels in a normal range.
Alcohol Seizures and Brain Damage
- Alcohol and some antiseizure medications can have similar side effects, and taking them together can cause potentially dangerous complications.
- One of GABA’s functions is to prevent seizures.
- People who use alcohol often wonder if alcohol can cause seizures and what the risks are.
Alcohol withdrawal can be dangerous for many reasons, but seizures and the possible development of delirium tremens increase the risk of severe complications or even death. People who drink a lot of alcohol for an extended period can develop permanent changes in their brains, and removing alcohol can lead to withdrawal symptoms. Taking recreational drugs increases the risk of seizures and of mental and physical health problems, which in turn may make seizures more likely. Research has found that the risk of SUDEP is twice as high for people with epilepsy who have a history of being dependent on alcohol.
Alcohol Withdrawal Seizures
In people with epilepsy, drinking three or more drinks may increase the risk of seizures. can you drink alcohol if you have seizures Alcohol-related seizures in those with epilepsy mostly occur due to alcohol withdrawal rather than the act of drinking itself. Those with epilepsy who have alcohol dependence and stop drinking suddenly have an additional risk of withdrawal-induced seizures.
Seizures can also disrupt the oxygen supply to the brain, potentially leading to permanent brain damage. This can cause head injuries and irreversible brain damage. Seizures can also lead to brain damage in other ways. Seizures may cause lasting brain damage in many ways. Seizures often occur during delirium tremens but are not always a symptom of this condition.
If you or someone you know has epilepsy, you may find it helpful to learn more. Any of us could potentially have a single epileptic seizure at some point in our lives. There are many different types of epileptic seizure.
Epilepsy Society’s confidential helpline is available for anyone affected by epilepsy.
If a seizure occurs from alcohol withdrawal syndrome, it will most often happen within 12–48 hours. Alcohol poisoning can increase the risk of seizures beyond what simply using too much alcohol would. All these factors combine to increase your risk of seizures while using alcohol.
Can You Drink Alcohol if You Have Seizures?
Heavy, long-term alcohol use and withdrawal from alcohol can lead to seizures. This is not the same as having epilepsy, which is a tendency to have seizures that start in the brain. Taking cannabis, ecstasy, speed, cocaine, and other recreational drugs can trigger, or increase the frequency of, seizures for some people. Some people find that they are OK to drink, while others find that it makes their seizures worse.
GABRA1 Related Epilepsy
Alcohol usually doesn’t cause seizures while you’re drinking. The highest risk for alcohol-related seizures is typically during detox. Many medications can help prevent seizures; however, these are only used in those with epilepsy or who are likely to have seizures. By avoiding binge drinking, you will prevent the seizures it may cause.
For some, seizures may be experienced during a hangover, when alcohol levels drop, and although drinking water may reduce the possibility of a hangover, it cannot prevent a seizure (epilepsy society, 2024). Seizures often seem to develop in the hours after you stop consuming alcohol.Medical professionals often recommend that people with epilepsy avoid or consume a moderate amount of alcohol. Their stance is that drinking less is always better for your health than drinking more, but even moderate drinking may have risks.Before taking your medications, it’s a good idea to check with your doctor or your pharmacist to see if it’s safe to mix with alcohol. Anyone who may experience alcohol withdrawal seizures should detox from alcohol using a medical detox. Additionally, epilepsy medications can increase the effects of alcohol, causing each drink to make you more intoxicated than it usually would. Heavy alcohol use of three or more drinks in a day can also increase the frequency of seizures in those who already have epilepsy.
- Medications such as clonazepam and lorazepam are benzodiazepines that can cause a life threatening interaction when mixed with alcohol.
- Alcohol may negatively affect sleep, and sleep disruptions may trigger seizures.
- Alcohol may also affect anti-seizure medications, which could trigger seizures.
- Withdrawal seizures also happen independently of delirium tremens, and having seizures during withdrawal doesn’t necessarily mean that delirium tremens is present.
- The leaflet that comes with your medications can advise you on whether it’s safe to mix your medication with alcohol.
- This happens because chronic alcohol use alters brain chemistry, suppressing excitatory functions and enhancing inhibitory mechanisms.
Seizures After Drinking Too Much Alcohol
Whether to drink alcohol or take recreational drugs is a personal choice, but it is worth knowing the possible effects they could have on your epilepsy. It is important that a person with epilepsy or a history of seizures contact their doctor so that they are well-versed in the risks they may face. Drinking heavily for a long period of time could result in alcohol dependence, which could then lead to alcohol withdrawal and its symptoms. Alcohol consumption effectively contributes to the occurrence of seizures by affecting signals and receptors in the brain.
Consuming alcohol seems to aggravate seizures in people with epilepsy and may lead to increased seizure frequency. If, however, a person continues dangerous drinking habits and experiences alcohol withdrawal, they can participate in a medical detox, where the body is alleviated of alcohol and drugs, resulting in withdrawal symptoms (Valenzky, 2025). Generally, binge-drinking is avoided, and those who choose to drink do so in moderation, limiting themselves to only 1 to 2 alcoholic drinks a day to prevent triggering a seizure; many have found that the risk of a seizure increases after consuming 3 or more drinks a day. If someone suffers from seizures or is diagnosed with epilepsy, it is important that they consult their doctor or medical professional to understand the implications that may arise from drinking alcohol. Equally concerning, binge-drinking, consuming considerable amounts of alcohol in a short amount of time, may also result in epilepticus, a difficult and life-threatening situation where seizures occur for more than 5 minutes or happen repeatedly. However, it is wise to know that alcohol withdrawal is not assured to happen to most; only those who have drunk heavily over the years, have a record of diabetes, or other underlying health concerns for seizures have a higher risk of experiencing alcohol withdrawal.
Lifestyle Quizzes
Although these are general guidelines, your tolerance or consumption recommendation can vary based on your overall health, size, and medical condition. Alcohol withdrawal happens when you consume alcohol heavily or regularly enough that your body has developed a dependence on it. Common triggers include lack of sleep, stress, alcohol, and not taking their prescribed anti-seizure medication (ASM).
Each of us has a different tolerance for alcohol. It is important to turn a person on their side as soon as possible during a seizure so they do not choke on any vomit or saliva. However, they may cause people to fall and sustain potentially serious injuries, such as head injuries. During the seizure, a person may feel a change in awareness or a lack of control over their body. Medications such as clonazepam and lorazepam are benzodiazepines that can cause a life threatening interaction when mixed with alcohol.
Over half of those with alcohol withdrawal seizures may have repeat seizures, and up to 5% of cases may lead to status epilepticus. Unprovoked seizures that occur more than 48 hours after a person’s last drink may be due to another cause, such as head injury or withdrawal from other drugs. Seizures may occur in around 5% of people with alcohol withdrawal syndrome. It is also possible to experience seizures as a result of alcohol withdrawal. It is possible for chronic alcohol consumption to cause seizures in people without a history of seizures. Heavy alcohol consumption is a common trigger for seizures in those who already have epilepsy.
Seizure medicine requires a prescription, and doctors do not typically prescribe them to people who think they may have seizures from drinking. While managing your drinking can help you avoid seizures, drinking in moderation can lead to more drinking, creating a risk of developing addiction and dependence. Developing alcohol dependence means you drink enough to have withdrawal symptoms if you stop drinking.
Seizures, and a severe condition called delirium tremens, are possible complications of alcohol withdrawal. There’s a complex relationship between seizures and alcohol. Prolonged drinking causes changes in the brain, often leading to dangerous and painful experiences. Likewise, since seizures seem to obstruct oxygen’s path to the brain, brain damage is, again, a likely consequence (Valenzky, 2025).
People who use alcohol often wonder if alcohol can cause seizures and what the risks are. A doctor can assess individual risks, considering the type of seizures, medication, and personal health history, to provide tailored recommendations. Some individuals with focal seizures might find they can tolerate small amounts of alcohol, whereas those with generalized seizures may face higher risks.
