Alcohol Induced Dementia

The fellow was going around town saying his wife was cheating on him.

They came for counseling.

Asking about alcohol consumption, the fellow in his 60’s had been consuming about 12 ounces of hard liquor daily.

This current amount had been worked up to over the course of his adult life with considerable drinking throughout.

His wife, a church member and otherwise quiet woman denied his accusations. Indeed, her husband was so assured she had cheated on him, he could recount specific incidences.

He did have other beliefs and memories, that although he was certain off, just didn’t make sense.

I suspected an alcohol induced form of dementia that can occur with a history of such high alcohol consumption.

The symptom displayed by these faulty beliefs and wrongful memories held as true is called “confabulation.”

It is as if the brain has to fill in gaps to make sense of what is going on when the brain can no longer fully process events in a reasonable fashion, the result of alcohol induced brain damage.

This form of dementia is called Korsakoff Syndrome.

In this case I referred the fellow back to his doctor for formal diagnosis based on my suspicion.

I continued to see his wife for a short while to provide some education and support until she was able to attend a support group.

Not all lies are intentional and not all beliefs have a basis in reality.

Confabulation is the brain’s way of trying to make sense of matters beyond an ability to process.

Sadly, this form of dementia, Korsakoff Syndrome, is self-induced.

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Gary Direnfeld is a social worker. Courts in Ontario, Canada, consider him an expert in social work, marital and family therapy, child development, parent-child relations and custody and access matters. Gary is the host of the TV reality show, Newlywed, Nearly Dead, former parenting columnist for the Hamilton Spectator and author of Marriage Rescue: Overcoming the ten deadly sins in failing relationships. Gary maintains a private practice in Georgina Ontario, providing a range of services for people in distress. He speaks at conferences and workshops throughout North America. He consults to mental health professionals as well as to mediators and collaborative law professionals about good practice as well as building their practice.