Originally Posted by
jerseytomato 
I have been attempting to quit drinking on and off for four years now and the longest I have gone was 6 months. I haven't really quit at all and have been hiding heavy drinking for 4 months now from my family. I hate that I can control it when I know I will be seeing someone but when left to my own devices I break down every time. I won't tell my family that I started drinking again but I want to quit. I know everyone is going to say be honest but that is not an option because of financial consequences and consequences for my kids right now. I have no problem being honest when I get some time, but being honest right now will be detrimental. I want to quit but it is so hard. I feel like I am one of those hopeless cases. I guess I am looking for advice on how everyone got through the physical and mental agony and got to the other side. How do you get through the intense cravings and anxiety and irritability? How long does it last?
I hear you on the "be honest" thing. Honesty may be needed for certain programs but everyone's situation is different. My drinking was well hidden. What being honest about the 5-6 beers a day I was drinking got me was my already subtly abusive fiance at the time becoming more abusive and blaming alcohol on it. To the point where even when I had not had a drink in a month, and he became physically violent against myself and my pets, he used my past alcohol use as an excuse. After I left and the relationship ended, he tried to manipulate me into doing some work for him and when I wanted to charge him for it same as I would anyone else, he threatened to call DCF and have my daughter taken away because I am an "alcoholic". i had quit drinking completely at that point. I got an injunction for protection against him based on that and other threats.
To this day, he is still running around telling everyone our relationship ended because I am some alcoholic sociopath.
So yeah, be honest if you can. If someone may use it to manipulate or harm you, don't share it with them. Then question just how useful your relationship is with them if you honestly want help and can't be honest about it.