View Poll Results: Can YOU successfully drink in moderation?
Yes
44
9.28%
No
430
90.72%
Voters: 474. You may not vote on this poll
Can YOU successfully drink in moderation?
Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Athens, Georgia
Posts: 962
With Glass in hand....
I am 60 years old, and I drank for 40+ years. I identify with what is written in Step 1 of the 12 & 12...
With Glass in hand, I warped my Body & Mind into such a condition that only an act of Providence could help remove my obsession to drink.
I fully identify with the reality, for me, that if I put alcohol into my body, I have a condition wherein I will CRAVE more, with little or NO control of how much I will drink until I am able to stop, or something stops me. Then...when I do sober up, that will have triggered the mental obsession to drink again.
The thought of having to come out of that cycle of hell is unbearable enough for me to NEVER consider putting alcohol into my body ever again.
RDBplus3
With Glass in hand, I warped my Body & Mind into such a condition that only an act of Providence could help remove my obsession to drink.
I fully identify with the reality, for me, that if I put alcohol into my body, I have a condition wherein I will CRAVE more, with little or NO control of how much I will drink until I am able to stop, or something stops me. Then...when I do sober up, that will have triggered the mental obsession to drink again.
The thought of having to come out of that cycle of hell is unbearable enough for me to NEVER consider putting alcohol into my body ever again.
RDBplus3
Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,372
Hi Spared - most of us here on SR have tried moderation and failed...if you're looking for moderation success stories it's probably a question better asked on the MM forum.
Just google 'moderation management and you'll find it
I'd go back and at least read your first thread here tho. Do you really want to risk going back to that?
D
Just google 'moderation management and you'll find it
I'd go back and at least read your first thread here tho. Do you really want to risk going back to that?
D
Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 567
"Moderation is not in the lexicon, so therefore it's only a theory"
Strife,
How about straight from the the book,
Principle here is; I could not have written it any differently, so why re-create the wheel, principle.
BB 1st edition pages 20-21
How about picking the eyes out of that section of the book, does anyone honestly identify with any of the above lines?
I ID with the section that starts with "what about the real alcoholic"
In other words, more research had to be done to understand exactly what that meant, and it does not necessarily mean a person laying on a park bench, brown paper bag with a bottle of cheap red wine, but that's where one ends up at best if they don't do something about their own drink problem.
This who don't ID with the real alcoholic, then you are probably Hard Drinker or Moderate Drinker category.
The Real Alcoholic category has, (1) a physical craving that manifests for more of the same after the first drink, (2)has a mental obsession that this time it will be different, and at worse, (3) his or her personality ( spirit ) is broken.
Strife,
How about straight from the the book,
Moderate drinkers have little trouble in giving up liquor entirely if they have good reason for it. They can take it or leave it alone.
Then we have a certain type of hard drinker. He may have the habit badly enough to gradually impair him physically and mentally. It may cause him to die a few years before his time. If a sufficiently strong reason - ill health, falling in love, change of environment, or the warning of a doctor - becomes operative, this man can also stop or moderate, although he may find it difficult and troublesome and may even need medical attention.
But what about the real alcoholic? He may start off as a moderate drinker; he may or may not become a continuous hard drinker; but at some stage of his drinking career he begins to lose all control of his liquor consumption, once he starts to drink.
Here is the fellow who has been puzzling you, especially in his lack of control. He does absurd, incredible, tragic things while drinking. He is a real Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He is seldom mildly intoxicated. He is always more or less insanely drunk. His disposition while drinking resembles his normal nature but little. He may be one of the finest fellows in the world. Yet let him drink for a day, and he frequently becomes disgustingly, and even dangerously anti-social.
Then we have a certain type of hard drinker. He may have the habit badly enough to gradually impair him physically and mentally. It may cause him to die a few years before his time. If a sufficiently strong reason - ill health, falling in love, change of environment, or the warning of a doctor - becomes operative, this man can also stop or moderate, although he may find it difficult and troublesome and may even need medical attention.
But what about the real alcoholic? He may start off as a moderate drinker; he may or may not become a continuous hard drinker; but at some stage of his drinking career he begins to lose all control of his liquor consumption, once he starts to drink.
Here is the fellow who has been puzzling you, especially in his lack of control. He does absurd, incredible, tragic things while drinking. He is a real Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He is seldom mildly intoxicated. He is always more or less insanely drunk. His disposition while drinking resembles his normal nature but little. He may be one of the finest fellows in the world. Yet let him drink for a day, and he frequently becomes disgustingly, and even dangerously anti-social.
BB 1st edition pages 20-21
How about picking the eyes out of that section of the book, does anyone honestly identify with any of the above lines?
I ID with the section that starts with "what about the real alcoholic"
In other words, more research had to be done to understand exactly what that meant, and it does not necessarily mean a person laying on a park bench, brown paper bag with a bottle of cheap red wine, but that's where one ends up at best if they don't do something about their own drink problem.
This who don't ID with the real alcoholic, then you are probably Hard Drinker or Moderate Drinker category.
The Real Alcoholic category has, (1) a physical craving that manifests for more of the same after the first drink, (2)has a mental obsession that this time it will be different, and at worse, (3) his or her personality ( spirit ) is broken.
Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Economy
Posts: 19
Originally Posted by Spared 
I thought abstinence was the way, but I heard someone talking about MM, which seems more attractive (to my AV, perhaps). Had anyone had success with MM?
The only difference is, once you learn to control it, it's not a life sentence.
Although, if AA works best for you, go for it.
Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Economy
Posts: 19
Yup, and way better than AA did. AA made me drink insane amounts, MM made my drinking under control. Just my preference though. Again, not knocking AA, but there are other alternatives, including those that allow drinking.
Recovered from Hopeless State
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: New Jersey, USA
Posts: 2,156
Originally Posted by freecoffee
The only difference is, once you learn to control it, it's not a life sentence.
Although, if AA works best for you, go for it.
Although, if AA works best for you, go for it.
Member
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Washington, MO
Posts: 2,306
AA has never made me drink, nor has it ever made me not drink. My want to drink came from me as did my want to not ( which was preceded by a LOT of ...drinking ). I go to meetings to be with others (with strikingly similar stories as mine) of the same ilk. As has been said, most of us here have passed this stage long ago but I'm open to one beating the beast any which way they can. Many other sites support harm reduction and I suspect this one will if enough wheels squeak (maybe not). Congrats to anyone who can learn to drink non-alcoholically!
Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 3,359
Originally Posted by freecoffee
Yup, and way better than AA did. AA made me drink insane amounts, MM made my drinking under control. Just my preference though. Again, not knocking AA, but there are other alternatives, including those that allow drinking.
Do your best
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 67,047
Originally Posted by jdooner
Curious if you tried crack and enjoyed the sensation of a little crack every once in a while, moderated of course, would be fine?
I always say you don't have a crack pipe/drugs at the Christmas table why alcohol ?
They don't know where to look when I drop it like that
If this moderate question was asked on who wants to be a millionaire and you didn't know and you had to ask the audience (us) what answer would you go with
Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 3,359
My post may sound cheeky, as it was intended. But for the addict there is very little difference in the drug of choice in terms of the chemistry that is occurring in an addicted brain. So, while we might abhor crack or meth at the dinner table as Soberwolf points out because society has instilled this in us, there is very little chemistry that is different in our brain. As such, moderation for the alcoholic is just as silly and absurd as moderating crack cocaine or meth amphetamine. Below is from the American Journal of Psychiatry and a abstract that supports my position.
Lower levels of dopamine D2 receptor availability have been previously reported in cocaine abusers, alcoholics, and heroine abusers. This study extends this finding to methamphetamine abusers. The association between level of dopamine D2 receptors and metabolism in the orbitofrontal cortex in methamphetamine abusers, which replicates previous findings in cocaine abusers, suggests that D2 receptor-mediated dysregulation of the orbitofrontal cortex could underlie a common mechanism for loss of control and compulsive drug intake in drug-addicted subjects.
Am J Psychiatry. 2001 Dec;158(12):2015-21.
Low level of brain dopamine D2 receptors in methamphetamine abusers: association with metabolism in the orbitofrontal cortex.
Volkow ND1, Chang L, Wang GJ, Fowler JS, Ding YS, Sedler M, Logan J, Franceschi D, Gatley J, Hitzemann R, Gifford A, Wong C, Pappas N.
Lower levels of dopamine D2 receptor availability have been previously reported in cocaine abusers, alcoholics, and heroine abusers. This study extends this finding to methamphetamine abusers. The association between level of dopamine D2 receptors and metabolism in the orbitofrontal cortex in methamphetamine abusers, which replicates previous findings in cocaine abusers, suggests that D2 receptor-mediated dysregulation of the orbitofrontal cortex could underlie a common mechanism for loss of control and compulsive drug intake in drug-addicted subjects.
Am J Psychiatry. 2001 Dec;158(12):2015-21.
Low level of brain dopamine D2 receptors in methamphetamine abusers: association with metabolism in the orbitofrontal cortex.
Volkow ND1, Chang L, Wang GJ, Fowler JS, Ding YS, Sedler M, Logan J, Franceschi D, Gatley J, Hitzemann R, Gifford A, Wong C, Pappas N.
Member
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Ireland
Posts: 25,826
The underlying flaw in moderation for me is that 1 or 2 drinks is no fun, I don't want to be able to drink a beer and stop, I don't see the point in that, I instead want to be able to get drunk and not have the consequences that come with getting drunk, therein lay the problem!!
This is why moderation never worked for me, I'm not a 1 beer after work kind of a person, I might as well have an orange juice, alcohol was only useful if I was having large quantities of it to get me to the feeling I wanted, or the perceived feeling that large quantities of dopamine released into my brain caused!!
Drinking large quantities of alcohol without consequence is attractive, but not obtainable if that indeed is your goal!!
This is why moderation never worked for me, I'm not a 1 beer after work kind of a person, I might as well have an orange juice, alcohol was only useful if I was having large quantities of it to get me to the feeling I wanted, or the perceived feeling that large quantities of dopamine released into my brain caused!!
Drinking large quantities of alcohol without consequence is attractive, but not obtainable if that indeed is your goal!!
Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 3,359
Perhaps you were attempting to self medicate like I was? Until I was able to map a portion of my genome I was unable to know conclusively what I lacked naturally. It actually is all starting to make sense. I was self medicating through alcohol, Ritalin, Aderall and Cocaine. I have now built a healthy diet with some supplements such as Magnesium, B6, B12, SAM-E, and flora.
Mini Novel Post Writer
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Maine
Posts: 3,649
I remember I did this same exact poll back in 2013 and to prove the same point. Same outcome. Those who stated that they could didn't back up their vote and I don't blame them. Who here would just simply accept what they posted? Next, if someone is here in the first place I think we can almost safely say that they've not yet gotten to the point where they realize that it's not possible. How many times did we all try? Finally, if a person is successfully moderating then why would they be on this board. There would be no issue right?
I also think I remember changing the question to add that the moderation was successful for a long period of time. Hey, I moderated successfully for a while. I call it my period of self torture.
I also think I remember changing the question to add that the moderation was successful for a long period of time. Hey, I moderated successfully for a while. I call it my period of self torture.
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