How does alcohol affect your count?

Anyone else find their count is affected by alcohol? I'm rather partial to wine (mostly Jacobs Creek rose!) and when my count got to 90 after 2 months of being completely sober, I decided I could start drinking again and was having perhaps 2-3 glasses of vino in a week. 4 weeks later and my count had plummetted to 36. Which made next to no sense as prior to my going sober, I'd got a bit carried away on my Grandad's 90th birthday and had about 3 bottles in 5 days, bringing my count down to 44.

My haem nurse says there's probably other things at play which are causing such dramatic drops (she doesn't think the moderate drinking should make that much difference), but does anyone else experience this?

I don't tend to drink much at all, so I'm not sure. I only drink on special occassions like birthdays etc. I did just read the warning page on this site and it does list alcohol as something that could reduce platelet counts.

As a fellow ITP sufferer I know the things you have to give up in life to enable you to safely manage the problem. My main hobbies in life were contact sports and road cycling. Not the best hobbies to have if you bleed easily.
Therefore unless drinking alcohol drops your platelets below a level that would be deemed dangerous I wouldn't forgo a drink.
The only way to test your theory is to have a blood test, note the results and then have a drink and get tested again and see if there's any difference but you'd have to stick to the same foods and other variables over the same days to get a true answer..something I don't think would be possible.
I certainly wouldn't drink though if your taking Prednisolone for your ITP. I did and regretted it the next day.

funny mine have gone up and gone down with no relationship with when i drink.now having said that i dont drink nearly as much as i used to.i drink a couple of beers here and there in fact i was checked 2 week ago was taking 5mg pred and was i 138 this week i,m at 188 and no pred.and i drank a few beers everynight...this ITP is elusive

My doctor has alcohol on my "do not touch!" list. Alcohol is a blood thinner, and can affect your platelet count.

I'm really not much of a drinker - I like an occassional beer, glass of wine, amaretto, Bailey's Irish Creme.

But I am wondering - the haem nurse said she doesn't think moderate drinking
should make much of a difference - is drinking 3 bottles of wine in 5 days considered moderate?

I was never much of a drinker, but I didn't let ITP stop me if I did want to drink. I never saw that it affected my counts, and I just avoided it if counts were too low.

Melinda wrote:

I'm really not much of a drinker - I like an occassional beer, glass of wine, amaretto, Bailey's Irish Creme.

But I am wondering - the haem nurse said she doesn't think moderate drinking
should make much of a difference - is drinking 3 bottles of wine in 5 days considered moderate?

Don't take this the wrong way and i hope i don't sound offending, but i would say that is heavy drinking as it is almost a bottle of wine a day, that is my opinion probally just cause like i said i don't drink much at all, so i hope u don't take that the wrong way, someone else might have a different opinion.

It's not me Lauren drinking that - I like to be in control of me and if I drank that I
know I wouldn't be.

That is why I was asking the question, because I don't drink hardly at all and I don't know if 3 bottles of wine in 5 days is moderate drinking.

Note that the 3 bottles in 5 days was prefixed by 'Grandad's 90th birthday' and 'got a bit carried away' - since my diagnosis I've kept my drinking to an absolute minimum, and saving it for when my count is in triple figures, and even then 2-3 glasses a week MAXIMUM, often going without for a week or so. Of course 3 bottles in 5 days is excessive, but it was pretty much a week of celebration and wine with meals, and my false sense of security with a count of 138 the week before, and a lack of bruising during that week. Believe me, I'm never doing it again, regardless of the occasion! A few weeks back I'd bought one glass and someone had very kindly bought me a second, which I then had to politely explain that I couldn't drink. The moderate drinking was in reference to my 2 small glasses a week. Can even that little wreck your counts by so much?

wow I'm not much of a drinker but i haven't had any alcohol since last year December. Not because of the platelets but because of the all the medication i'm on. I think my poor little liver has quite enough work to do! lol

When I was diagnosed I asked the haema about alcohol and she said don't drink so much that you fall over and bang your head but otherwise it's fine. And that's the way it's been for me. I've had high counts and low counts after alcoholic weekends away and I'm sure that none of it makes any difference whatsoever.

But having said that, my experience is that we in the UK are far more laid back about alcohol than the Americans, many of whom seem to think that having two drinks makes someone an alcoholic.

But having said that, my experience is that we in the UK are far more laid back about alcohol than the Americans, many of whom seem to think that having two drinks makes someone an alcoholic.

Ann I don't think that has anything to do with this thread - the question was how does alcohol affect your count? I could give a rat's behind how much someone drinks as long as they don't drive and hit me - that's this American's view. So if you aren't bashing us for a word we use you are bashing us for what you THINK we feel about drinking. You are very presumptuous aren't you.

in all fairness Ann we're possibly a bit too laid back! A lot of British culture does revolve around drinking, which does make it a bit difficult at times - I'm just glad that I can say "I have a medical condition" - choosing not to drink is simply considered weird. I've grown up in an environment where my parents will usually have a glass or 2 of wine with dinner most nights, so for me that's normal and 2 glasses a week feels restrained, but I live with it - I don't have much choice! But if you drink with ITP, it's up to you to keep an eye on things and decide for yourself when it's safe to drink and when it isn't. And when my Dad has said towards the end of a meal "might as well finish the bottle" and tops up everyone's glass including mine, you go along with it vowing to go sober afterwards.

I would call myself an "occasional drinker." I don't drink every day, only when out to dinner and then most of the time, I don't even drink. I would say I have a drink 1-2 times a month, if that. But...I have had some times (parties, get togethers, etc.) where I have consumed much more than I usually do....*huh hummm* but, I never noticed a change in my counts because of it. I think in moderation, as with all good things, drinking from time to time is fine. :0)

Melinda wrote:

Ann I don't think that has anything to do with this thread - the question was how does alcohol affect your count? I could give a rat's behind how much someone drinks as long as they don't drive and hit me - that's this American's view. So if you aren't bashing us for a word we use you are bashing us for what you THINK we feel about drinking. You are very presumptuous aren't you.

hehe.. tetchy. Of course it's relevant because it explains the different things that patients are told by their doctors. Social and cultural differences are interesting too.

Your accusing me of 'bashing' you about a word is nonsense. The differences are interesting but sometimes I don't understand what is meant. There's nothing wrong in asking.

Yikes....do I sense tension? Let's not take too many things out of context, here. We are all friends :0) We all have shitty platelets :0)
And it seems like we all need a little something something every now and then. I'll drink to that fact!!!!!!

Natalie

There are definite differences in culture as far as alcohol. I don't understand the European way and they don't understand ours. That doesn't make either way wrong, it's just a different lifestyle.

I'd like to know though, just out of curiosity: Do you guys have drunk driving laws or have people killed in drunk driving accidents? Do you have families that are destroyed by alcoholism? Please don't think I'm being mean, I'd just like to know since the subject came up.

Interesting thread. I'd personally not risk it by drinking, but that's just me. If I was drinking, I'd make sure I had on a medical alert bracelet, just in case.

No I think it's about finding a happy medium - if you're not comfortable with drinking, that's fine, but I for one know that I have to be disciplined and careful about it, and that it's up to me to decide if it is or isn't a good idea. Right now with my platelets at 36, it definitely isn't a good idea. All things in moderation. Hopefully I'll recover soon enough and still be able to drink from time to time without wrecking my count - all personal choice though.

I usually only have one drink a week(at my parents on Sat's), but I have on occasion had more and it hasn't affected my counts either way. My preferred drink is a nice cold beer on a warm day.

Any alcohol and my platelets really drop. I can't even have a low alcohol beer.

rhf330 wrote:

Any alcohol and my platelets really drop. I can't even have a low alcohol beer.

Recently I discovered Koppaberg 0% pear cider - if you hadn't told me it was alcohol free, i would never have known! Unless I'd had 5 and was wondering why I could still walk in a straight line.....

i have a question that relates to this topic. i was told i was in remission on may28th2010 and it was my birthday on july 22,2010 and i had a little too much to drink that night and i ended up throwing up like 5 times that night and 2 the next day and the last couple of days since then i just haven't been feeling right. i have been light headed alot... which i don't normally get that way, my ribs are hurting me when i lay down. and i wake up with headaches and i can never get rid of them no matter what i take or do they aren't horrible ones though. and upset stomach and just feeling exhausted no matter how much i sleep. on saturday iwent to bed at 1130pm and i didn't wake up til 1030am and i felt like i haven't slept at all that night and i was just wondering if even though i am in remission would my itp have something to do with how i am feeling. im still trying to figure things out with this disease yet. so if anybody has any advice to me i would really really appreciate it. and i have hemo apt in august sometime. thank you.

danielle

last count- 464,0000

I usually feel tired and worn out and more emotional when my counts are low, but i don't feel light-headed or have sore ribs or upset stomach, you might have stained a muscle or something when you vomited and perhaps your coming down with something. I'd probally go and see your doctor if your feeling light headed cause i think that is a sign of low blood pressure.

Danie:

I think you have a virus or something else going on. If it doesn't go away, I'd call your GP.

I understand that this is quite an old thread, however, one of my friends is facing similar situations and I am trying to help him out. Earlier he used to work for a DUI lawyer but now is at home and not able to cope up with what life has thrown at him.

What has life thrown at him?