At Long Island Treatment Center, we focus on helping our clients overcome drug and alcohol addiction. Our experienced team can safeguard your health and provide you with the tools you need to stay sober. We offer a variety of therapies, including partial hospitalization programs, medication-assisted treatment, and outpatient rehab.

Acetylcholine is necessary for learning and memory, so blocking its action may temporarily impair these processes. Mixing Benadryl with alcohol can intensify these side effects and will impair a person’s daily functioning. Now that you know that Benadryl and alcohol don’t mix, you should be aware of sources of hidden alcohol that you should avoid while taking Benadryl. This is not to say, however, that it is okay to go on a bender while taking Claritin, Zyrtec, Xyzal, or Allegra—Dr.

Calls to our general hotline may be answered by private treatment providers. We may be paid a fee for marketing or advertising by organizations that can assist with treating people with substance use disorders. It is intended for general informational purposes and is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. If you think you may have a medical emergency, immediately call your physician or dial 911. The only exception to this hard-and-fast rule is if someone has a severe allergic reaction to something, like food or an insect bite, in the midst of alcohol consumption.

Many people rely on Benadryl to get them through allergy season each year. However, withdrawing from alcohol simultaneously with another substance, such as Benadryl, adds to the potential risk. For this reason, continual monitoring is essential to ensuring your safety. More than 71 percent of those drug overdose deaths included diphenhydramine, sold by its brand name Benadryl.

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Unfortunately, mixing Benadryl and alcohol is extremely dangerous. Doing so can cause an array of negative side effects such as sedation, dizziness, and even overdose. If you or your loved one is mixing both drugs intentionally, please seek professional help as soon as possible.

Remember that every person’s body is different and may metabolize substances at different rates. But if you’re willing to have a good night’s sleep, don’t believe a glass of wine and some Benadryl will do the trick. It’s possible that abusing Benadryl and alcohol will cause you to feel lightheaded and interfere with your ability to fall asleep. Due to this slowness, a person is more likely to experience a negative interaction between Benadryl and alcohol. So, if you are getting older, you must be careful about alcohol consumption.

What Happens if You Mix Benadryl and Alcohol?

Usually, people who mix Benadryl and alcohol do so to get some sleep. But this type of polydrug abuse can be dangerous and have long-term consequences. Since both substances are central nervous system depressants, drinking while on Benadryl can cause some troubling side effects. Mixing Benadryl and alcohol can depress your central nervous system far beyond what is necessary to get to sleep.

• If you believe someone may have alcohol poisoning, call 911 to obtain immediate emergency medical care.
• Outpatient programs and aftercare provide continued support for as long as you need it.
• At Long Island Treatment Center, we focus on helping our clients overcome drug and alcohol addiction.
• The combined effects of Benadryl and alcohol enhance the desired effect of the individual drugs and intensify each substance’s potentially harmful side effects.
• The combination of alcohol and Benadryl can also provoke memory impairment and a higher risk of falls and accidents.
• In addition to regular outpatient programs offering weekly therapy, we also provide more intensive forms of treatment.

Speaking of which, its anti-inflammatory and calming properties make Benadryl the primary choice for treating conditions like hives. If you or anyone you know is in need of alcohol and benadryl treatment then reach out to your local clinics and centers for more information. The combined sedative properties of mixing alcohol and Benadryl severely impair the central nervous system. The central nervous system is in control of speech, movement, emotion, and more.

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Mixing diphenhydramine with alcohol, particularly in large doses, is extremely dangerous. In fact, an overdose on Benadryl and alcohol is possible and may lead to death. Benadryl not only stops histamine production, but it can also block acetylcholine–a neurotransmitter in the brain that is essential to learning and memory. Similarly, alcohol is known to impair memory, causing brown-outs and blackouts when consumed excessively. Combining these two substances substantially increases the risk for memory and cognitive impairment. Polydrug abuse is the improper use of multiple drugs or substances, such as diphenhydramine with alcohol, simultaneously, which is dangerous.

After all, for many people with allergies, using Benadryl® or other antihistamines is a regular thing, something they need to do every year, for weeks or even months at a time. Many people start wondering whether they can take alcohol with Benadryl because they are dealing with allergies but still want to enjoy the effects of alcohol. You will need to ask yourself whether you feel discomfort at the idea of not drinking while you take Benadryl. If you find yourself unable to pause your drinking, you may have a substance use disorder. Benadryl is already so sedating that some people use it as a sleep aid, and mixing it with alcohol makes things even worse. You might nod off randomly, and you can even slip into unconsciousness.

Because alcohol mixes with body water, a given amount of alcohol is more concentrated in a woman’s body than in a man’s. As a result, women are more susceptible to alcohol-related damage to organs such as the liver. Alcohol, like some medicines, can make you sleepy, drowsy, or lightheaded. Drinking alcohol while taking medicines can intensify these effects. You may have trouble concentrating or performing mechanical skills.

That’s why professional treatment is an absolute necessity; it can reverse the deadly course of multiple substance abuse. The dangers of injury and death are heightened when someone attempts to operate a motor vehicle or machinery while intoxicated from both substances. Alcohol withdrawal symptoms typically appear within eight hours of your last drink. However, symptoms can appear days later, usually peaking in 24 hours to 72 hours. A Connecticut mother was accused of killing her two children by administering diphenhydramine in one and diphenhydramine and alcohol in the other. A toxicologist later revealed that the child who was fed both substances had a blood-alcohol content of .09, which surpasses the legal threshold of drunkenness in most states.

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Mixing the two substances can lead to physical dependence and addiction, requiring professional treatment. It is true that the medication is safe when used as directed, but it can also be abused for its sleep-inducing qualities. Some people even take it with alcohol to produce stronger effects.

Mixing alcohol and Benadryl can produce a level of sedation that is so extreme it causes individuals to lose consciousness. As a result, people who combine these substances should avoid driving, operating heavy machinery, or engaging in any potentially harmful tasks. In extremely high doses, an overdose is possible, requiring emergency medical treatment and hospitalization.

Therefore, mixing alcohol and Benadryl may have a more pronounced impact on memory and learning. An antihistamine works to prevent your body’s reaction to these allergens. As a result of this action, your allergy season symptoms may improve. https://sober-home.org/ Histamine has a role in the immune system of your body to allergens. This phenomenon shows why you react to something you’re allergic to by getting a stuffy nose, itchy skin, motion sickness, runny nose, hay fever, and other symptoms.

Antihistamines work by binding to the H1 receptors, where histamine binds to produce its effects. By blocking the action of histamine, antihistamines relieve allergy symptoms. When seasonal allergies roll around, people all across America take eco sober house complaints steps to stock their medicine cabinets with over-the-counter (OTC) allergy medications to provide them with relief. Antihistamines like Benadryl can effectively reduce allergy symptoms like stuffy nose, watery eyes, sneezing, or sore throat.

The combined sedative effect may cause a drop in heart rate and slow breathing, potentially leading to heart problems or even loss of consciousness. If you are considering drinking alcohol with Benadryl, speak to your doctor or healthcare provider first. Your doctor can determine whether it’s safe to consume alcohol after taking Benadryl. For some, the level of sedation when mixing alcohol and Benadryl is so high that they lose consciousness. Therefore, it’s essential to never mix alcohol and Benadryl before driving, operating machinery, or in any potentially risky situations.

• Those with moderate to severe addictions or other complications may choose to stay for a while.
• You may need to wait up to 36 hours between drinking alcohol and taking Benadryl.
• However, this reason for use often leads to Benedryl addiction.
• For some, the level of sedation when mixing alcohol and Benadryl is so high that they lose consciousness.
• While Benadryl doesn’t affect the liver, it is a central nervous system (CNS) depressant.

The same rule goes for other first-generation allergy medications such as chlorpheniramine (Chlor-Trimeton), clemastine (Tavist) and hydroxyzine (Atarax). Some medications—including many popular painkillers and cough, cold, and allergy remedies—contain more than one ingredient that can react with alcohol. Read the label on the medication bottle to find out exactly what ingredients a medicine contains. Ask your pharmacist if you have any questions about how alcohol might interact with a drug you are taking.

They can let you know if your other medications contain alcohol and if it’s safe to take them with Benadryl. Be sure to read the labels on all the drugs you’re taking to reduce your risk of accidental interactions or misuse. Impaired motor ability, combined with the dizziness and sedation from Benadryl, can cause particular problems for older adults. For instance, the combination may increase the risk of falls in seniors. Taking them together is dangerous because they can slow down your CNS too much. This can cause drowsiness, sedation, and trouble doing physical and mental tasks that require alertness.