Aellyce

Yes I totally understand that. I'll see how things work for me, right now I'm quite happy with it but it's far too early. I'm totally open to seek any other kind of help from now on if this turns out to not be enough. Luckily I have a couple of people in my 3D life with whom I can talk about my ordeals without boundaries, so that's good too. I will probably also pop in to a few AA meetings, just in case (and who knows maybe I find them helpful, I have never been). And thinking about therapy as well. I would like to be prepared and open to a variety of options in case I need them.

Thanks for the sharing, Freethinking, I appreciate and will sure keep in mind that what seems to work in the beginning or for a while may no work forever!

MamaGoat

I drank vodka and beer and smoked pot every day until I passed out. I don't remember going to bed at night for the past 2 years. Towards the end I was drinking vodka around the clock. OH...and taking Ativan on top of it.

KateL

I drank incredibly hard. Day long binges, anything from 2 bottles of wine to nearly a bottle of vodka a day, which is a lot for a shrimp. Bit it's not really the amount or the time of day, I think it's the affect it has on you xxxxxx

alphaomega

I remember thinking I could not possibly be an alcoholic because *I* don't drink during the day.

I never drank around the clock because I couldn't stomach drinking whilst hungover - (that probably saved my life).

But I have been an alcoholic since my conception. That's just my reality. And I'm OK with that.

Tamerua

I was a binge drinker and would drink more than some men I knew. Nothing to be proud of but I certainly drank like an alcoholic. Glad I don't do that anymore. Stick around and keep writing here.

Kaneda8888

Freethinking

I really think it doesnt matter how much you drank but its the effect it has on you. Also, I think making comparisons doesnt really help. If i did that, then I would shrink in shame as I am so old compared to the recovering alcoholics I meet in the rooms.

Having said that, to make you realise that we all have different tolerances, there was a young woman I met who was probably about 5 foot 7 and not large. She drank over 2 litres of vodka per day. For more than 5 years. She is the heaviest drinker, man or woman, that I have ever encountered.

kcvalentine

I just asked my husband because I couldn't remember and he said at our height we were each drinking about a fifth of vodka every day - sometimes more. As in 2 fifths a day between the two of us. A TON of drinking. It was awful.

NoelleR

I'll get to my daily intake a bit later, but to settle this.........a fifth is 750ml or four-fifths of a quart or one-fifth of a gallon.

(o:
NoelleR

LadyBlue0527

My best friend was never without a drink. She had it right by her bed and would hit off of it if she woke up during the night. She drank from the time she got up in the morning until she passed out. She brought bottles with her to work (she cleaned people's houses)

On February 14th she will be gone for one year. She got so drunk one day she dropped a cigarette into her couch and passed out. She woke up to a fire and was so drunk she tried to put the flames out with her arms and body. She had burns over 80% of her body and died 4 days later.

CupofJoe

Hi there,

I just wanted to pipe in, too, because I used to have the same problem with feeling isolated as a woman. I drank more than a lot of men I knew, and definitely more than any women I knew in person. On average, a pint or pint and a half of vodka every day (for maintenance, without it I'd get really, really sick) and a liter or more on Sat or Sun, but that was only because I had got to the point where I could put away a handle of vodka easily. If I bought a bottle, I'd finish it, no matter what the size. I drank in the morning and if I wasn't working, I'd drink all day long. Multiple day benders and multiple day blackouts.

But I didn't start out that way. I started out with just a few drinks with friends maybe every other day when I was much younger, but I never could control it. It just got progressively worse.

When I was new to recovery, I used to judge myself and others based on the amount drank. I now realize that was foolish. An alcoholic is an alcoholic. Some people drank more than me, some less. But we all have the same problem and it can destroy our lives or kill us, whether a bottle of wine or a handle of vodka.

But I get the feeling of isolation of being a woman who feels like she drank more than others. I felt really alone and like a freak, which is the only reason I'll talk about how much I drank sometimes, if it seems appropriate. But honestly, it really doesn't matter.

I think the more important thing, though, to remember, is that no matter how much or how little someone drank, if it's a problem, it's a problem. And no matter how far down we've gone, there's always hope for recovery.

Today I'm happy to say I drink absolutely zero alcohol and don't miss it one bit.

GracieLou

Every single day for 23 years. I drank before that but my daughter was born in 1990 so everyday after that.

After two cups of coffee I drank. 4am, 5am, 6am...didn't matter. After the coffee it was on.


1/2 gallon every two to three days.


I think I qualify.

Pipping

I am 5ft tall and I won a drinking contest at a comedy club against a huge 6ft 5 guy who was on his bachelor party. Won hands down. The other guy was sick all over the place, I was fine. I am not saying this to brag at all but it just shows how big the tolerance gets. At the end I drank all day everyday and it nearly killed me.

sher70

Yeah, I drank ALOT 5-6 days a week for the past 4 years. DH would wonder how I got so drunk when I only had a couple cans of beer. Little did he know I was more like a case of beer in with 4 or 5 glasses of vodka too.

thatcat

49, female, mom of two adult girls. You sound a lot like me. I drank to escape and I also enjoyed the rush of sneakiness.

I bought a big one (the one with the handle) every two days. Vodka or rum. Round the clock too. Drank through the night each time I woke. Puked every morning (if I'd slept a few hours because shakes set in) until I could finally get a a few swigs to stay down. Barely ate. Took it to work, shopping, everywhere. I couldn't go very long between drinks without withdrawal. Rotated liquor stores in town. Threw empties in parking lot garbage cans. Drove all the time. It was a horrible existence. Yet somehow I managed to appear normal to much of the outside world, and thank goodness never hurt anyone while driving.

There were times after dozing off and waking that I couldn't figure out if it was 6am or 6pm and had to check the tv listing channel to figure it out. Other times, I'd get back from a liquor store only to immediately forget where I'd just gone.

I was hospitalized with jaundice once. Relapsed two years later. Dui. AA. Relapsed a year later. Sober now two months after a nasty withdrawal - the worst one yet. I thought I was going to die, but did it alone (stupid).

After that, I confided more in my doctor and family. It was hard but is making all the difference for me.

Btw, liver fully recovered, as livers can do - but I know I was playing with fire, because a lot of people aren't so lucky.

Never again.

freethinking

Thanks for all the replies here. I know it is not healthy to compare, but I do sometimes...and it made me feel better to know I am not the only female morning drinker who drank mass amounts of alcohol. I feel less "alone" now. Thanks