DS (14) in hospital after drinking almost a full bottle of vodka

[MumofDrunkTeen]

He has Type 1 diabetes as well and I was terrified of alcohol poisoning after seeing him uncontrollably puking, not able to walk and talking absolute nonsense.

He seems to have bought it from a local corner shop (who I have reported to the police) and took it with friends to drink in a nearby forest.

I checked his FindMy as I do when he’s out and noticed he was there for a while and had an instinct and when I called him his speech was slurred.

I thought at first it may be a hypo and his CGM was wrong (as it has been recently) so rushed there and his friends were trying to hold him up. They said he was drinking but they weren’t and helped me get him to the car.

He’s had a drip of fluids and slept for a few hours and is talking sense now, just waiting to blood sugar to go up as it’s staying low.

Anyone else experienced this?

Mortified he was swearing and shouting like a road man, demanding more vodka and drugs, while young kids in cubicles all around us!

He’s normally extremely polite and that was an alien side to him!

Worst thing was he was saying, ‘I hate my life why do I have to live with this shit, I want to die’about his Type 1. He will never talk about it and be open about how he feels and this has just made me feel so terrible for him!

You were Lucky. I've got a hangover by proxy just reading it 🤭

My youngest did this at just turned 15, he drank a whole bottle of pink gin and his friends dumped him face down on our driveway in the rain. My neighbour noticed him and banged on our door, luckily. I thought he had had a freak heart attack or something, it was the worst moment of my life…I was so, so angry when I realised he was drunk, I could have throttled him. He also ended up in hospital, also roaring and bellowing and being bloody rude to the healthcare staff who were having to clean up his nonsense 🤬

He was very sorry the next day, and hasn’t really overdone it with alcohol again since (he’s 21 now). He did, however, have some unresolved mental health issues, self esteem difficulties and, as it turned out, ADHD and dyslexia…I echo the previous poster who said to get your son some psychological support once you’ve finished bollocking him rigid. I wish we had got our son some therapy earlier (in fact I think most teenagers would benefit from some counselling).

He’ll be ok, you can breathe now!

Except for saints, I think we all overdid alcohol at a similar age and learned from it.

He's a teenager who took an enormous risk and says he hates his T1 life. But nooooo, a psychologist is a silly idea...

I think the awareness of what T1D is so poor, even here on mumsnet many are just unaware of what it is and how you cant manage it, its a condition that you fight against every second of the day and night for the rest of your life. Very few conditions are like T1D, got too high run the risk of DKA and death or health complications long term, go too low run the risk of immediate death…Even if you do manage to get everything right, complications can come out of nowhere. There really needs to be a public awareness campaign on T1D, its an autoimmune condition that so many are so uneducated on. Then there is the stigma by the uneducated. I guess thats why I got very emotional when they released a T1D Barbie last month because the condition is awful and children with it feel so alone!

Thankfully, your son is getting seen to but its dangerous especially alcohol as the risk of hypo is massive even with controlled measures. Just be there for him and get him help for the detrimental mental health that this bastard of a condition is no doubt causing.

I was that teen 30 years ago.. drank too much Vodka, ended up in hospital, school nurse informed all a massive family drama.
good news is I have never drank Vodka since and am still frightened how I nearly died

Hi OP, not sure where you're based but I know of an NHS paediatric diabetes psychologist who sometimes does private work- DM me if you want the details.

My dad was fuming and took me to a pub at lunchtime for beers (we lived in a country where you could drink at 16) but it quickly became clear that I was just getting tipsy again instead of it turning my stomach 😅

To be fair, I don't think I've touched vodka since unless it's been buried in a cocktail!

The worst part of it all was that when I was being sick, my friends had put me on a deck chair in the garden and left me to chill out. It started to rain, so I crawled back to the house, through the kitchen and into the hallway. I came to rest on a big pile of everyone's costs...and proceeded to spew my guts up one last time, all over them.

Big dry cleaning bill 😭

I did this when I was 13. Honestly I still feel some shame about it now as I was in hospital, coma, recovered and it was never talked about again. It should’ve been. I would’ve liked them to ask why and maybe talk about why I was feeling so shit. It is a teenage thing, and fairly normal, but some of us take it to the next level. Maybe find a diabetic role model, someone who has succeeded and is happy and can manage it. And try to do the TikTok thing and listen but don’t judge. You will, I imagine, be naturally super protective of him because of his type 1 and while this is unavoidable it’s also stifling. Good luck x

@EstherGreenwood19 I am glad you survived and came out the other side of the bad patch. I like your idea of a diabetes role model. Peer support is so valuable for chronic health issues . I had a serious health issue (ME/CFS) when I was the same age as the OP's son and struggled feeling alone. Some years later I found a postal support group for young people with this condition, and it was very helpful indeed.

I was going to say it DID sound like the first time. I would have been the same at that age without diabetes. Not sure I believe his friends weren't drinking too though

OP I’m a GP and agree with other healthcare professionals on here that it’s extremely common for teenage type 1 diabetics to go off the rails in some way and really rebel against it. They are notorious for it. And sadly they really can’t afford to, they are taking more risks than they probably have the ability to comprehend as teens. There are far more consequences for them than their peers engaging in the same behaviour. It’s hard to overestimate the risks, though you seem pretty clued up on the reality of the situation.

I did once have a teenage diabetic patient who tragically died in her mid-teens, though in that case she was rebelling by not taking her insulin a lot of the time (again not that uncommon, especially in girls because it helps them be skinny 😭 even though it seems completely mad and one of the most risky things to be doing).

When we discuss as GPs what the most difficult patient group is to manage many of us will say it’s the teenage type 1 diabetics. If you can get him through the teenage years usually they settle down and accept reality. It’s almost a phase of denial of their illness. But it’s just so scary when they do this and my heart goes out to you. If he was only diagnosed age 12 I can see how he probably would still be adjusting to it psychologically. But I will say even the teenage diabetics who were diagnosed as toddlers often do this too! So it probably wouldn’t have made any difference.

I would not totally bollock him tomorrow I think, teens just tune that stuff out. I would aim more for having a heart to heart with him, try to get him to understand that he genuinely could have died etc. And explore how he is feeling mood-wise when he is sober to see what support would be best for him.

I think it’s great you were able to use your intuition (and Find my tech!) to rescue him from the situation he was in before it went further. It may be worth having a word with his friends, if they’re decent friends and you explain the very real risks for him, they will agree to call you if they think he’s in danger with his diabetes through alcohol or anything else.

But yes I agree if you can find a child psychologist specialised in diabetes I would jump at the opportunity if you can persuade him to engage with them. Not engaging
with healthcare professionals is another feature of many teenage type 1 diabetics as a group. It’s extremely challenging to manage them professionally and I imagine it’s a million times worse for their poor parents.

This.
It's a rite of passage. Silly arse!

So glad to hear your update. He sounds like he has good friends. I'm sure he'll be mortified tomorrow.

@MumofDrunkTeen tagging you to try and draw attention to this post.

It’s bad enough when healthy teenager knack a bottle of vodka but another level when they are T1D.
It is normal behaviour, my DM was a diabetic liaison health visitor with the same role as a diabetic nurse in today’s NHS. She specialised in pediatric diabetes but as a health visitor her job extended beyond the clinic into the home where she could better connect with patients. In the days s before digital monitoring and modern tech she was the “App” and would work with patients attempting to stabilise their blood glucose. Boys, in particular, become unstable through puberty due to the changes in their body mass and the whole endocrine system. Rising levels of testosterone really mess everything up. Girls hit their growth phase and puberty much earlier when they are still under parental control, boys are often mid teens before their bodies change dramatically.

There are a number of high profile T1D in sport and in the media. A few footballers, a couple of international rugby players and a few pop stars including Adele. Steve Redgrave, a five time gold medal Olympian was diabetic and I think his biography details his struggle.

There is so much going on in their heads at 14 it must be overwhelming having to take responsibility for their diabetes as well. I would sit down with him and have a chat about how he is managing. If you have micro managed him so far he’s likely to be worrying that he’s now having to deal with it. Most teenage boys are really not very independent, they try to take over the reigns but deep down are more than happy to let someone else sort everything out. He does have to take responsibility but maybe negotiate a gradual transition.

My DS had a form of childhood epilepsy which caused some issues and he was reluctant to tell people. Fortunately his friends were well aware of his condition and with minimal fuss he was able to carry on as normal, although he never learnt to ride a bike.

Drinkng spirits was never a problem, DS doesn’t like being sick.

I have a friend with type 1 diabetes, she found it so hard to deal with during the teen years and also found it hard to articulate her struggle. Sounds like he is in need of some emotional/psychological support. Talk to the staff on the ward about it, they may be able to get him a mental health assessment on the ward and he may be referred to some relevant support.

Forgive me if this sounds trivial, but my nephew is type 1 and struggled badly. He found listening to the comedian Ed Gamble talking about his experience very helpful.

I did this exact thing to my poor Mum at the same age. She collected me and got me medical attention. The next day she calmly said to me that she was really worried about me the previous night and was I ok? We spoke about how strong straight spirits are and her being calm and speaking to me massively helped. I was expecting to be shouted at and ready for a fight and to shut down and she totally disarmed me. Not saying I never drank underage again but I never touched spirits again! One of my friends was t1 and had a hard time in our teen years as she just wanted to drink and join in with us all, their mother was very supportive and by 18 the allure of underage drinking had well and truly worn off. Is he able to get a pump? I’d be supportive. We all made stupid teenage mistakes and I hope he’s sorry for worrying you. X

I’m glad he’s ok. You were very aware and responsive. He’s lucky he has you - you sound like a good Mum. This is very common with this age group. Hopefully something he won’t repeat. Hope his hangover isn’t too bad although it may be helpful in preventing further episodes. My advice would be not to shame him. He’ll feel shit enough. Take care.

Will you please update in the morning? Begging as a mum of a 13 year old, I think I'll have this to come. Glad hes safe and home.

I've heard about diabetic teens doing this too.

OP I think all teenagers should have a 'get out of jail free' card where they can call a parent and the parent will pick them up with no judgement or telling off.

If you know these friends then it might be an idea if they have your number and know that they can call you if he does this again and how dangerous it can be for him.

Were you rebelling against your Type 1 diabetes?

@MumofDrunkTeen my DH was diagnosed as a young teen and really struggled with it. He always says he wouldn’t wish it on his worst enemy. He copes well with it now and very gradually became more responsible. His DB was diagnosed as a baby and feels that it was quite unfair how everyone said oh you will be fine you have grown up around DB and know what to do. DB said it’s been easier for him because he has never known any difference and that is so true!
Hopefully meeting others with it and speaking to counselling services will help.