TheCure

Hello - new here - from the UK, am 38 and male.

I have a bit of a history with alcohol - from around 1992 - 2003 I used to drink white cider everyday - 3-4 litres of from 1992 to around 2000 and then went back to normal cider. Never thought I was an alcoholic though and functioned perfectly well. Around 2000 I went through one of hell of a break up and started drinking lager and cider before work and just before I got signed off sick I had actually drank half a bottle of vodka in the morning before work. I never normally drink spirits and still do not now. After I was signed off an ex took me home and looked after me and my drinking returned to what I would call normal, ie 3-6 pints a day. In 2004 I met a girl and stopped drinking during the week and just kept it to Friday and Saturday with the ocassion mid week treat and I also stopped drinking cider and just drank lager - 5% stuff and its been the same since up until a few months ago when my marriage ended

In the last year I have found myself increasing my intake of alcohol again due to various reasons. I have been drinking more in the week. This is what happens.

Thusday night its nearly the week-end so I might have say 3-4 pints - 5 max as I have to drive the next day and do not want to risk it with amymore than 5. Next day I feel hazy and hungover. Friday I will have between 6-8 pints minimum and the Saturday will not feel as rough as Friday morning. Saturday - more of the same 6-8 pints minimum and again on Sunday

One thing I notice sometimes is that on a saturday or a sunday if I start drinking around 11am - the 1st few pints make me feel worse - make me feel slightly shaky and sketchy - fidgety and unable to sit still - then once they go down I am fine again. Does anyone else get this ?

I have also had a couple of panic attacks in the last few months and this has left me feeeling very anxious for weeks after each episode. Has anyne had anxiety or panic attacks after prolonged or heavy drinking sessions ?

I have not had a drink since sunday this week as I have been back to work and I as I said I do not normally drink in the week, I would normally drink tonight as I am going round a friends but I am concerned that alcohol is causing these panic attacks / anxiety feelings so I am going to leave it tonight and have some tomorrow and Saturday instead.

I generally get through 40-60 units ( beer at 5% max no spirits ) between Thur/Fri and Sun which my doctor always screams at me about but I have a full liver blood check every year and it always come back ok, I do wander if I am an alcoholic or on the way. I do drink at home alone and I do go out and solo pubs which I qute enjoy but I am also able to say no - like tonight or cut down and have days off if I think its becoming excessive.

I also have symptoms like short term memory loss and I have also had what I would consider 2 day hangovers - this is not normal is it ?

Thanks for listening

oh some other stange things I do - get more beer late at night - in case what I have in is not enough - enough for what I am not sure, I suppose enough to ensure I am drunk enough. If I drink and then do not drink for a few hours I start getting anxious, sketchy, light headed etc so have to get some lager down quickly

visch1

"I also have symptoms like short term memory loss and I have also had what I would consider 2 day hangovers - this is not normal is it ?" For me it and other parts of your post was normal but I'm an alcoholic who hasn't had a drink in years. When I started going to AA it was pointed out many horrible things alcohol does to the body and brain. Scary! But alcoholics are hard to scare because mine was damaged from drinking. Finally when I got honest with myself I started to get better and am still on the road to recovery because some are sicker than others. BE WELL

doggonecarl

Stop drinking. You will know soon enough if you are alcoholic by the difficulty in staying stopped.

I can tell you this: Normal drinkers can't recount their relationship with alcohol in the detail you can. So you are right to be concerned.

Climber122

Agreed with the previous post. Can you recount how many of anything else you've eaten or drunk in the last few years? Not normal my friend - you may be one of us. Take this test if you like - can't hurt: Alcohol Abuse Self Test

If you want help - it's out there, but you have to want it. Let me know if I can help...

Gottalife

If you can stop or moderate, you are not alcoholic. If you find you can't stop, or, once you start drinking, have little control over the amount you take, then you could be alcoholic.

artsoul

Welcome, TheCure!

Only a doctor could say for sure, but a lot of the symptoms you describe could very well be due to alcohol. Even 3-4 pints a night is way over the healthy limit, and if you've been drinking that much for 20 years, you could be causing a lot of damage.

Towards the end of my drinking, when I became a nightly drinker, the anxiety got pretty bad and the hangovers lasted a lot longer then they did when I first started drinking. I don't think I even realized how bad I felt until I got sober and all those symptoms started going away.

This place really gave me the support I needed to give sobriety a try. I hope you keep reading and posting. You're not alone!