Here's a question, and I apologise if it's already been posted. What do you know about blackouts? Can a person function normally while in a blackout state of mind and then not remember any of it later? Is that brought on by alcohol and/or drug use, or is it part of a mental illness? And how do you keep it from happening again? It seems like such a convenient excuse for bad behavior.

I had a perfectly normal phone conversation with my friend the night before the incident that put him in jail. I live a few hours away and only saw him a couple times a month when I was in town, but we did talk on the phone almost every night. I had no clue that he was off the deep end. None at all. And the next day I find out he's in jail for murdering his best friend. Apparently they were both drunk and there was a gun and it went off. I'm pretty sure they were doing drugs too. But when I talked to him earlier that evening, he sounded sober and was talking about going to an AA meeting. I think the drinking and drug use had been going on for at least a month but he hid it really well. He says he has bipolar, but the manic symptoms seem similar to someone on meth or crack, which I heard that he was doing. I don't think he remembers any of this, which is scary, because it could happen again, right?

If anyone has some experience with this, I'd like to hear about it.

Regarding your post about blackouts, just found it while browsing...perhaps it may be that he has borderline personality disorder combined with adhd which describes the mania and need to change state of mind.

People with Bipoler Disorder that have major alcohol/drug problems tend to "blackout" nearly everytime they self medicate. It is very unfortunate and sad that this happened to your friend:( My BF is a blackout alcoholic with bipoler disorder and ADD that has had drug problems in this past. He's in recovery now but when he hit the hard booze, he would blackout and would not remember how he ended up in jail. They tend to be compulsive liers so cover-up their actions. Often they also come from broken families. Yeah, it may sound like an excuse to someone who doesn't go through this themselves when they drink (for instance) or even partake in some drug usage. Those people may not experience or understand Bipoler distorder, either. :grouphug: Yes, sometimes, it may seem they are at least coherent in blackout state so you will think they are functioning normally. In order to keep it from happening again, they have to want to fix themselves and seek out professional care and get on bipoler meds. However, that won't stop them from drinking or using drugs. In fact, the meds may make the alcohol and drug buzz worse. Those that do moderate to large amounts of crack/coke and meth are especially vunerable to blackouts and violent reactions.

Another example is this: When my BF drinks and gets even a small buzz going, he starts, "loosing his marbles" so to speak because he has no concept of what is happening around him & loses all sence of time. Reality tends to go away. Meanwhile, I could be completely drunk and still have a grap of what is happening around me.

P.S. BTW and I know you don't want to hear this but guns just don't "go off."