Alcohol poisoning symptoms are nothing to mess around with. A young woman opens up about the night her life was saved...and changed.
“Here’s How I Knew I Had Alcohol Poisoning”: One Woman’s Near-Fatal Experience
Published on May 02, 2025
Alcohol poisoning is a serious and potentially deadly condition that occurs when someone drinks a large amount of alcohol in a short period of time. This overwhelms the body’s ability to process the alcohol, leading to a dangerous buildup in the bloodstream. As levels rise, alcohol can begin to shut down vital functions like breathing, heart rate, and body temperature—putting a person’s life at immediate risk.
Recognizing alcohol poisoning symptoms early can be the difference between life and death. According to health experts, around 178,00 people in the U.S. die from alcohol poisoning each year, and many more require emergency medical care. The Cleveland Clinic lists symptoms such as confusion, vomiting, and seizures. These symptoms and more are signs that the central nervous system is dangerously depressed and urgent medical attention is critical.
Although often associated with college binge drinking, alcohol poisoning can affect people of all ages. In fact, most fatalities occur among adults aged 35 and older. Risk increases when alcohol is consumed on an empty stomach or mixed with medications or other substances.
That’s exactly what happened to a young woman from Texas, whose mix of alcohol and anxiety medication led to a near-fatal wake-up call. Ahead, she shares her story.
How I Knew I Had Alcohol Poisoning
By Kaitlyn A. as told to Dr. Patricia Varacallo, DO
A familiar pattern with alcohol
I was 22 and in my senior year of college. From the outside, everything looked normal. I was finishing up my coursework, getting ready to walk at graduation, and applying for jobs. But inside, I was unraveling in quiet ways I didn’t fully understand at the time.
I come from a family where alcohol was always present—and not in a healthy way. Several relatives on both sides struggled with addiction, and I’d seen the fallout up close: broken relationships, unpredictable moods, scary nights.
You’d think that would’ve scared me off drinking altogether, but instead, it made it feel familiar. I started drinking in high school, often in secret, usually to numb anxiety or escape tension at home. It worked—at least temporarily. Once I got to college, drinking wasn’t just accepted; it was expected.
The build-up
By my senior year, I had a full-blown pattern of binge drinking, but I didn’t see it that way. I still went to class. I had a lot of friends. But I also had frequent blackouts, and I often used marijuana to take the edge off in between.
I was also taking a strong anti-anxiety medication, prescribed after a particularly bad panic attack the year before. I wasn’t great about taking it as directed. If I felt anxious or overwhelmed before going out, I’d take it a little early to “settle my nerves,” then drink anyway—even though I knew I wasn’t supposed to mix the two. I told myself it was fine. Everyone around me was drinking. I wasn’t doing anything worse than the people next to me. At least, that’s what I told myself.
The night I got alcohol poisoning
Then came the night that changed everything.
It was a Saturday in late April 2019. One of my roommates was having a birthday party, and people were pre-gaming at our place before heading to the bars. I was already feeling emotionally off that day—tired, anxious, a little detached—but I brushed it off. I took one of my anxiety pills in the late afternoon, assuming it would help me feel more relaxed. I hadn’t eaten much, maybe half a granola bar and some coffee. Still, I threw on an outfit, blasted music, and tried to get in the mood.
Once the drinks started flowing, I didn’t stop to think. I had a glass of wine, then a beer, then someone handed me a mixed drink. Before long, we were doing rounds of tequila shots for the birthday girl, and I didn’t want to be the only one saying no. Looking back, I realize I had consumed probably 10 or more drinks in less than three hours. But I wasn’t counting. I never really did.
(For reference: The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) defines binge drinking as roughly five or more drinks for a man and four or more for a woman within about two hours.)
Alcohol poisoning symptoms I missed
At first, I felt giddy and floaty, like I had found the sweet spot between relaxed and uninhibited. But something shifted quickly. My thoughts became fuzzy, like I couldn’t string them together. My friends told me that when I stood up, I nearly collapsed into the table. My vision was blurry, too.
Then came the nausea. I ran to the bathroom and threw up violently. I thought it would make me feel better, like it sometimes did after a night of heavy drinking. But it didn’t. My hands were trembling, and I remember feeling ice cold. When I came out of the bathroom, my friends said I looked gray.
I don’t remember much after that. I was told later that I collapsed onto the couch and passed out. When my friends checked on me, they couldn’t wake me. My breathing had become erratic, and then I started to seize. That’s when they knew it wasn’t just me “being drunk.” Something was very, very wrong.
One of my friends called 911, and I’m alive because of that.
Being treated for alcohol poisoning
The next thing I recall clearly is waking up in a hospital bed, disoriented and scared, with my mom sitting beside me, holding my hand.
A nurse gently explained what had happened: I had been rushed to the ER with alcohol poisoning. My blood alcohol level was 0.30%, a dangerously high number that put me at serious risk for coma or death. Because I had aspirated vomit into my lungs, I was being treated for aspiration pneumonia and kept under close observation in the ICU. They had to intubate me to help me breathe, and I was given IV fluids and oxygen to stabilize my condition when I first arrived at the hospital.
The part that hit the hardest? I was told that if my friends had waited even ten more minutes to call for help, I might not have survived.
It felt like a brick to the chest. I was 22 years old, with everything ahead of me—and I had come terrifyingly close to losing it all. Lying there in that hospital bed, I knew something had to change. I made myself a promise then and there: I was done with alcohol.
A wake-up call
When I got home after spending a few days in the hospital, I knew I couldn’t go back to pretending things were fine. I sought out professional help—therapy to manage my anxiety and unpack the family history, trauma, and control issues I’d buried for years. I also met with a counselor who helped me come to terms with my relationship to alcohol.
I decided to quit drinking completely. I didn’t trust myself with moderation—and I still don’t.
The first few months were some of the hardest of my life. I felt alone and out of place. I stopped socializing. I started avoiding people who didn’t know what happened, because I didn’t know how to explain it without shame. When new friends or colleagues asked me out for drinks, I’d freeze up. I didn’t want to lie, but I also didn’t want to spill my whole life story. For a long time, I just said I wasn’t drinking “right now” and changed the subject.
Eventually, though, I found my footing. I learned how to say, “No thanks, I don’t drink,” without flinching. I started surrounding myself with people who respected that.
Moving forward without alcohol
It’s been six years since that night, and I haven’t had a single drink since. I still go out with friends, but now it’s for coffee or dinner instead of the bar. I still get anxious now and then, but I’ve learned to cope in other ways—movement, time outside, journaling, and letting myself feel things instead of numbing them.
When I think about what could have happened, I feel nothing but gratitude—for my friends who called 911, for the EMTs and hospital staff, for the chance to start over. I got lucky, and I know not everyone does.
If you’re reading this and you’ve ever had even one night where you wondered if you crossed a line, please take it seriously. Don’t wait for a wake-up call like mine. Learn the signs. Know your limits. And don’t be afraid to ask for help. You are never “too young” or “too functional” to be in danger. I thought I was both, and I nearly lost everything.
What to do if you suspect you or someone else has alcohol poisoning
If you think you or someone else may have alcohol poisoning, don’t wait—treat it as a medical emergency and call 911 immediately. It’s better to be safe and have a medical professional evaluate the situation than risk a life-threatening delay.
The following symptoms are signs that a person needs emergency care right away:
- Unconsciousness or inability to wake up
- Vomiting while unconscious or semi-conscious
- Seizures
- Slow or irregular breathing (fewer than eight breaths per minute, or more than 10 seconds between breaths)
- Pale, bluish, or cold skin
- Low body temperature (hypothermia)
- Confusion, stupor, or inability to speak clearly
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