Superman in the Bones

When I was in college I saw a theater production called Superman in the Bones. It was a powerful event along the lines of an Ionesco play, theater of the absurd in style. My muddled memory includes references to French poet Baudelaire (Les Fleurs de mal) and another writer Antonin Artaud. I vaguely recall a reference to someone who drank himself to death in public, Dylan Thomas perhaps?

After recently reading about a 21-year-old who drank himself to death I wondered how long it takes to accomplish this feat. A Google search led me to a website that carried a discussion on this sad topic. What follows is delivered to you straight and unadulterated.

andy-hughes (Sun 01:13 29/Jan/06)
It depends on a huge number of variables - age, weight, diet, lifestyle, type and strength of alcohol ingested, frequency - the list goes on. It's a 'how long is a piece of string' question, with no really set answers.

xrayspecs (Sun 10:15 29/Jan/06)
You could make a "supersize me" type documentary where you film your decent into alcohol abuse, joblessness, homelessness and finally death. At the very least you'll get a prime time slot on chanel 4, if your not so lucky, chanel 5.

lyndunnpoet (Sun 23:31 29/Jan/06)
It could kill you the next time you drink a large amount. I drank every 2 days and drank till I was drunk for 10 years and was told I was dying my liver was giving in. So I thought life was worth more and went into a detox hospital for one week with meds etc...

I have now stopped drinking and have not touched a drop in nearly 3 years. Im a woman of 33

Don Quixote (Mon 01:13 30/Jan/06)
I've just buried my brother in such circumstances ... you really don't wantta go there! Acute renal failure caused by liver failure! George Best was 'lucky'! He had a "second chance" with thre liver transplant, but it's very difficult to know how close these guys are to the edge!!!

ianess (Mon 12:33 30/Jan/06)
There's no easy answer but it's not unknown for death to occur within a couple of weeks of cirrhosis of the liver being diagnosed. Trouble is, by the time you take the problem to the doc, it's usually too late.
In my area the door to the Social Security office is usually log-jammed by Special Brew drinkers at any time of the day. Makes you wonder how or if they can manage their finances or any other aspect of their lifestyle.

druiaghtagh (Mon 14:50 30/Jan/06)
Well done lyndunnpoet for staying sober all this time from another ex drinker.

bundybob (Fri 06:20 22/Sep/06)
DIARY OF DEATH
I'm a 32 male who drinks every day at least 4 litre's of wine plus anything else i can afford or have others shout for me. My diet includes maybe a bowl of 2 min noodles every day, sometimes every second day. That's it... I dont remember the last time i had veggies or fruit. My goal is to drink myself to death.... Drinking alcohol is the only thing in the world i enjoy doing now and with my small framed body weighing only 51kg, i dont think it will take all that long.. (with a little luck). Muscle deterioration and energy loss are starting to take affect, Dull constant pain in the lower back region, bowel problems and delusion. Managing your lifestyle is easy because you dont have one. All there is to do is drink and drink more till you pass out or fall asleep which ever you prefer. Its not hard to collect a benifit, go to the local hotel, stock up on booze and smokes, a few packets of 2 min noodles from supermarket across the road from bottleshop then home to repeat process in lounge chair in front of t.v. Bills can be paid via direct debit now everywhere so managing your finances is easy and trouble free which leaves more time for drinking... This is my choice and mine alone. I grew up watching it and now im doing it... Just shows how the human race really is like a giant flock of sheep... i truley have grown up to be a loser...

Daave (Fri 21:53 22/Sep/06)
you could kill your liver by drinking to excess within a few hours..

you'd probably die after drinking 2 litres of vodka in one session,

i read the "proper" levels for a lethal dose of alcohol somewhere, but cant remember them, it was lower than i thought it would be

vrider80 (Thu 12:56 21/Aug/08)
Me too Bundybob...at least your not alone.

Invinoverita (Wed 11:15 11/Feb/09)
I'm with you Bundybob, glass for glass and I love your honesty - it's refreshing. If I was to say the same thing to anyone I know they'd be appalled, but that's because they have no idea how lousy it is to be alive feeling as I do. Female here, 48. Life is absolutely crap, I'm absolute crap and things aren't going to change now so I just open the bottle and drink to oblivion. I can't face life sober. And other people truly are hell.

Cheers

Invinoverita (Wed 11:21 11/Feb/09)
ps

Bundybob and vrider, why don't we set up our own forum and exchange our stories of disintegration? That's if either of you aren't already dead.

wonko (Sat 22:31 14/Mar/09)
I've been trying to drink myself to death for the last 5 weeks, and I think I'm getting closer. I was diagnosed with hep B recently, but have had the symptoms for the last 8 months. I've been waking up in the morning, vomiting and deficating quite alot of blood, and am hopefull that it will all soon be over. My life is crap, I hate my self, and the only satisfaction I get is from getting slobering drunk untill I pass out so I can start over. It feels good to know that there are others out there that feel the same way. I feel sure that very soon I will be at peace!

maxwellplank (Sun 01:17 21/Jun/09)
bundybob i pray that at this time you are still around and i wish to ask you what it is that would make you want to drink yourself to death? dont get me wrong i am a person who has been to the darkest depths, ive held the razor to my wrist and even taken the experimental cut but have not. and i am glad to have not taken that step. listen, i understand your desire to not continue in this world, i do, ive felt it enough times and even now i do. the difference is that now i have god on my side and this is a force i am greatful and unworthy of receiving but which i have. do not mistake me for a religious man, i am not. i simply found god through my own means and i think that you can too . any pain you claim to feel, i have felt it...the pointlessness of life the dull aches the new day brings but by the same token there are so many beautiful things the sunrise brings. the laugh of a child, the warmth of a summer day, the joy of god. do not give these up on the whim of drink. would you sell your house for a penny? no i doubt it! so do not give up your life for a lesser price. life is painful but it is also magical. it cuts deep but it also offers the greatest pleasures. please i ask of you, give it another chance and please if you need council i shall be your ears, should you need a shoulder, i'll be there for you or for anyone. please, consider me before death. what harm could it do?

dinner1981 (Mon 05:47 07/Dec/09)
bundybob is obviously dead.. it's been 3 years since his post.. i'll see you there soon bob... i too am on that path. thanks for your honesty

blakedwi (Thu 17:45 10/Dec/09)
I am 40 yrs old. I have been drinking all my life. I have tried to drink myself to death this year. I managed to get about 2 weeks or so the first time. A friend called "Crisis Services" and i got taken to a hospital. I detoxed. But I still think about it constantly. I feel that I was close enough that another 10 days or so and I would have been dead.
I was drinking 24/7 Vodka,Scotch and Wine. No food or water at all. I was delusional and shaking uncontrollably in the hospital. I don't remember the hardly anything of the 2 weeks or so I was trying to drink myself to death. I just know that it was extremely painful to come back out of it. My body was rejecting food. It took weeks to get my body and mind back together. My motor skills took a few weeks also.
I still believe that I will do it someday. I will be better prepared and I will go somewhere away from everyone I know so no one can stop me.

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