Changingthegame

So I am trying to work something out. I only drink alcohol once a week but when I do I generally get drunk. I would be able to drink half a bottle of vodka or 2 bottles of wine. I also don't think I drink in the same way my friends do even though they may drink as much as me. I also feel bad about it in the morning. These things from my reading suggest I have a problem. Now the other side is that I am very unsociable if I don't drink and end up being a bit of a hermit. So it seems to me that the cost benefit of stopping completely doesn't work. I am not someone who can have 2 drinks though so it seems I either stop completely or get drunk once a week. I don't know, when is it a problem that has to be addressed? I am 40 years old, does it get worse if you don't stop? Am I deluding myself or is my drinking more normal than I think? Thanks in advance for any thoughts given.

Changingthegame

Sorry, to add. I read about how people crave a drink in the first few days and possibly have withdrawals and I don't get these things.

Dee74

Whenever you think it's a problem then it's a good time to address it Steve

Many of us have a faulty off switch...and for me, that got worse as the years went on.

As for being unsociable...that's true in the beginning - I was a bit of a hermit too cos all my mates where drinker like I was...but I found new friends and I made a new life

I'm sure you will too if you stick with it? How long were you sober for?

Well we're all different - just cos you 'don't get those things' doesn't necessarily mean there's no problem, yeah?

D

Changingthegame

Thanks D. I think you are right. I just wonder if I am being paranoid as I was married to someone who is a 'normal' alcoholic and I might not have even started thinking about this if I hadn't had the experience of being married to an alcoholic. I have been sober a few times for a month or so and then the lack of social interaction generally gets me back to it.

Dee74

I dunno...I think not having an off switch definitely is a real tangible problem and is something to be cautious about Steve.

Apparently that's not normal but I thought it was...feeling bad about it isn't normal either but again, I thought it was.

Maybe you have a heightened awareness of this due to past events, but maybe that's not such a bad thing?

D

PurpleKnight

Not being able to stop when I started drinking until I was blackout drunk was the first real sign that I may need to make a few changes to my relationship with alcohol, also things progressed from only weekend drinking to weeknight drinking over a period of time.

I think what was "normal" became blurred in my own mind over time, and so it is a good thing to question our perceptions, I used to drink a lot of the time on my own, I would hide my drinking, feel bad in the morning, and polish off a half a bottle of liquor a night, but that's not what "normal" people do, the 1 beer after work or a few on weekends and then home to your family, or to get up for church on a Sunday morning, there are many people out there that have that relationship with alcohol.

The fear of what we would loose if alcohol was taken out of our lives, is almost a worrying sign in itself, is alcohol that important to your life? my mind went into overdrive too when I thought of life without alcohol, the reality is life goes on, the "non drinkers" in this world seem to get by ok socially!!

Great to have you here, read and post, hopefully you find out what works for you!!

Changingthegame

Thank you Purpleknight. That is insightful.