Doodlebug

I am curious how many have tried to drink in moderation or only on occasion. How mamy times did you try it before you were finally convinced you could not do it and had to totally abstain for life? One time? Two?

I have not tried it, because I am afraid to. But I must admit the tempation to see if I can return to "normal" drinking... simply because prior to 10 years ago I did drink "normally" So I was just curious.

Five

I know I cannot do it - I know in my gut.

Mongo

Hi DB

I have tried moderation, with no success, many times.

I really can't remember myself drinking normally, though, not sure if I ever did drink normally.

Keep well

Mongo

brigid

I just think, why??????? why gamble it??????????? why??????????????

I tried to moderate before I quit, I tried and tried and tried. I am a better person without alcohol, I enjoy life more without alcohol, I function better without alcohol.

I will not risk it, my life is so much better now and it keeps getting better. It still has its ups and downs but even these are getting easier and better to handle. NO alcohol is not something that I think I can moderate with.

OK my brother has gone back to drinking after a few years without drinking at all. I don't have enough to do with him to know if the drinking is a problem for him, but he does seem to have his life together. I don't worry about him.

BUT I WILL NOT gamble my own happiness and risk going back to a life that revolves around alcohol for the sake of trying one or two drinks. I have worked out how to NOT drink when I am out with people, I am pretty comfortable NOT drinking when out and I am less emotional about the whole issue.

I also think that once a chemical pathway has been established in our bodies our bodies remember that pathway and will easily revert to it. Once over the edge, always over the edge ... at least that is what I think.

Tricky brain, tricky body, tricky thoughts. Take care.

peace and love,
Brigid

Josiol

I've tried 4-5 times with no success. I would tell myself I'd only have one and of course 1 turned into 2...4...6....

Lizrox

Honestly,

It's weird but I can drink in moderation. For some unusually reason I usually can't stand the taste of alcohol (except for G&T's.

When I go out with my hubby I CAN have one or two and stop. I have no clue why this is..During my worst alcoholic days I drank until blackout 24/7..

My problem now is the pain pills...

Liz
aka-Lizrox

PaperDolls

I can't even count the number of times I attempted moderation. I also tried the, "I just won't drink beer anymore....only hard liquor...." thing too. Obviously, neither worked.

It's almost a compulsion to attempt moderated drinking. My light bulb came on and I finally realized I can not do it. Now, after 244 days sober.......it is not even worth trying. I've already proved to myself tons of times I can't do it.

Beating a dead horse or denial?

hugs,
doll

BSPGirl

I tried and succeeded.

Marte

Paul83

Never tried it & don't care to. I never related with the mental & physical craving followed by the first drink with alchohol, but I certainly did with drugs. I DO follow through with the theory of that curious mental phenomenon that parallels my sound reasoning that there inevitably runs some trivial reason for taking the first drink.
That's all it is for me today, some trivial reason. Why WOULD I drink? I can't think of anything good coming from taking a few drinks so why bother..

Sugah

Everytime I drank.

Peace & Love,
Sugah

leviathon

It is a funny thing with alcohol, some are able to get to the point of moderation, others never will. For me, I just choose not to indulge so that I don't have to face the possibility of having to go through the crap all over again.

Peace, Levi

Salsa

I tried many times, and while I could do it for a few days, I always went back to my old ways. I learned my lesson and finally gave it up over 7 months ago....I will never go back! Every now and then a drink sounds good, but thankfully I've gotten smarter than that and not done it! I can't!

kali ma

I tried to drink in moderation many times. I would make rules...no vodka at the house...but there was always an excuse for it to come right back in. Excuses, excuses, excuses. Or when I went out, I would say I would only have one martini. Three later, I wonder what the problem was. Or I would try to only drink on the weekends, (but then there were the exceptions. I would have a day off in the middle of the week, or someone was sad, or someone was happy, or I was sad or I was happy, or one of my friends was in town. Never worked for me.

Free Roll

I tried twice while I was still drinking. The second time, I would allow myself 1-2 beers a day. Only drink on a full stomach. Sip the beer, not chug it. It would take me 3 hours to drink a beer. But of course the obsession was still there, and it was no time before I was back to 12 ice beers a day. I think total abstinence is easier.

Erin

I don't think I can. I tried when I first tried to stop drinking regularly.

Like **** Ma says... drink when you're happy, drink when you're sad etc. Also if I buy beer not the hard stuff. Put a little bit of rum in a diet coke. Have only 'one' more.

So now even though it's tempting I know I can't because I don't want to go back to where I was.

tramp

i started trieng to control my drinking when i was 18. i never ever could. i would actually be proud of myself if i could remember the night before. i think when i was about 38 i gave up hope and resolved myself to being drunk or stoned until the day i died. i was never able to control my appetites, never.
i am strong willed and stubborn, that was part of the problem, passive acceptance wasn't in my vocabulary. everything was to be fought and defeated.
so at 40 i decided i was posessed by a demon. had to be. nothing else made any sense. figgered he/she /it must be at least a few hundred thousand years old, fat chance i had. until i found that i couldn't fight this thing and win, i was lost. enslaved by my compulsions. so one day i gave up. it's that simple.

NYCGirl

I am getting this terrible vibe from your post that you are getting uncomfortably close too that big slip.

Moderation, I think if you have to think to hard about moderation that it ain't going to work.

Hypothetical scenario:

Going out to dinner gong to have two glasses of wine.

Okay dinners over, had two glasses of wine, still sober still in control gong home. On the way out the door tow old friends are sitting at the bar, stay and have a drink with us, okay you think to you self that will only be 3 I'll be cool. You but the round and before you know in there is an upside down shot glass being placed in front of you for your next drink, hmm do I stay or just have one more.... okay what one more...

Okay now who's in control, I know I wouldn't, would 5 be not to far behind???

hoobie

I can control my drinking but I don't have any fun doing it. One or two drinks always leaves me wanting more. If I cut myself off, I end up obsessing about it or crabby that I can't drink and just wanting to leave the party/bar/event.

When I am drinking, I'm good at not drinking so much that I'll be hungover, but I need to be drunk in order to feel satisfied. I used to do this almost every day.

August 20th will be my 30 day point and I still haven't decided what to do but I'm feeling great right now.

PapaG

Last time I tried drinking in moderation it went o.k....at the beginning.

We had friends round for a barby and some beers. i drank 3 or 4 throughout the afternoon. When they all left, i spent the rest of the night drinking everything that was left including 2 bottles of wine. It ended with my GF dragging me from where i fell off this computer stool to the big cushion in the corner. When I woke up she was NOT happier. But you all know who felt the worse out of the 2 of us.

Just ain't worth it unless it's free of alcohol

Phinneas

Once I became a pickle, I couldn't go back to being a cucumber. Meaning, once I crossed the line into alcoholism / addiction, I could not ever control or moderate. It was all or nothing for me. Today I am happy to report that nothing is wonderful!