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Old 04-23-2006, 01:09 PM
  # 7 (permalink)  
fritolay
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Santa Fe, NM
Posts: 59
I drink Heaven Hill 40% vodka bottle in 2 days. Then I would not drink ANY alcohol for 15 days. When the 15 days pass, I again buy another bottle and drink half one day then half the next. I been doing this for 2 years same brand of Heaven Hill bottle. My question is since I don't drink every day should I worry about my health or keep doing this.
So, you're a binge drinker. You binge drink about 4 days per month. That alone should signal a problem. Binge drinking can have adverse health consequences that you wouldn't otherwise experience if you spread that bottle over the entire 2 weeks. There are many non-alcoholics who drink as much or more alcohol than you, but that doesn't mean you don't have a problem. I think the fact that you are measuring your drinks and have a routine and a system in place for your drinking is a sure sign that it is a problem for you. If I were to ask any of my sober friends what and how they drank during the past month, none of them would be able to tell me with any degree of confidence as you have. Most people don't think in terms of how many bottles in how many days and you must do it every 15 days--that's your mind rationalizing the behavior.

But, let's be honest. If your drinking never got any worse than it is now, it is unlikely you will experience any major health crisis as a result. The binging does increase your chances of acute gastritis and other associated illness that follows nights of heaving binging, however. What are the chances that your drinking won't progress, though? It's anyone's guess, but I would bet that it will, since you already show signs of having a problem.

Try this. Skip one cycle of the vodka, and see how you feel. If you feel terrible, your body is addicted to the routine. Try replacing a bottle of vodka over the course of 2 days with one beer with a friend at a restaurant. Does your body recognize that as a drastic change in routine, and will that upset your chemistry? If it does, you're on the road to alcoholism.
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