KidsEverywhere

This is my second time stopping, the first time was seven years ago off the heels of a divorce. Leading up to treatment, I was drinking a 1.75 liter bottle of whisky every 3-4 days (two per week). When I quit after this past Sunday, it was 2-3 of those little 100ml "pocket rockets" a day and offen a few beers too. But aside from my 15 months off seven years ago, I've been pretty much a nightly drinker for 15 years.
Having said that- how much and for how long was it when enough was enough for you (for those willing to share)?

Saskia

I drank a bottle of wine a day and it didn't feel so great. I first got drunk when I was about 20. Drank off and on for the next 15 years, quit for about 6 years, drank again for 5 years,not hen quit for 13. A year after gastric bypass surgery (RNY), I had one glass of wine and was off and running for 3 years. This last time it was very, very tough to stop and stay stopped. I'm now at 14 months sober and never want to go back.

JD

I don't think it really matters how much one drinks. It's when it becomes a problem for us that matters. You'll find that probably all of us can't moderate. That doesn't mean we all drink until we pass out, just that the booze becomes more important to us than almost anything else. Personally I drank 4 to 5 beers every night after work and more on the weekends for probably 30 years. Some have drunk more than that and some less. But for me drinking was becoming all I did and at that level for so many years it's taking a physical toll on my body.

KidsEverywhere

Good perspective. Makes a lot of sense. Thanks

Hevyn

In the end, it was never out of my system. 24/7 maintenance drinking - not sure how much it amounted to each day.

Venecia

Too much, too often.

TroyW

About 1L of whiskey / rum / vodka / gin per day for about 14 years. I guess there were a few days a year where I'd have to take a break due to family obligations or whatever, but for the most part, 1L/day.

I was just permanently drunk. Wake up, go to the bathroom, pour a whiskey, sit down at the computer, and try to get as much work done as I could. Health reasons and horrible withdrawals is what woke me up.

EDIT: Actually, there were a couple times I cut back drastically. Once when I was 22 -- I got fat, and wanted to drop it, so I did. Was living out of hotels at the time. I don't know, trying to find myself and what I wanted in life I guess. Spent the days walking, ate only a 6 inch Subway sub each day, had a few drinks at night, but nothing bad. Dropped the weight in no time.

Then first time I fell in love I still drank quite a bit, but dropped my consumption level by a fair amount. Only lasted maybe 6 months until I was back to 1L/day though.

BBQBOY

You should check with your Dr. before going cold turkey, always a good idea. I was drinking a liter of vodka a day ...straight. I don't recommend it to those who are faint of heart. Of course that was at the end of my drinking career. Now I drink a couple of liters good ole H20 a day...much better for me! Best Wishes!

Upwardspiral

Whether I had 15 drinks or just one, I was OBSESSED with MORE from the first sip. Every time.

gettingsmarter

About a half liter of 100 proof a day. My esophagus was so irritated each drink felt like pouring boiling hydrochloric acid down my throat. I lived with my "heartburn" for a long long time in almost total denial of the cause. Quit almost 6 mo ago and haven't had "heartburn" in 6 mo. HMMMM.

Rio97

I used to drink more liquor but for the past few years mostly beer. Anywhere from 10-15 beers a day/night.

Angie247

I started mainly with shots of captain morgan during the end of my marriage until I just couldn't handle it anymore, was drinking too much of it. Then I switched to tall cans of beer and that lasted for several years, and it was never enough. I would usually drink 4 tall cans (211 or Hurricane) of beer a day on the weekends and would be paranoid about having enough to maintain the buzz. The depression I had when I had to stop drinking for the night on Sunday makes me wince for the sad person I was not too long ago and hope to never be again.

thomas11

I was drinking a 1.75 (70 proof) every three days, for about 3 years. Damn near killed me. Never went to detox or rehab, just broke the cycle after a come to jesus meeting with my wife. It was hard, but necessary to save my life.

daz135

12 beer's a night every night, no nights off. Til it was 14 beers a night. Just went up and up. It's definitely progessive.

PasserbyDave

You've been at it for a long time; I was too - I'm in my 60s, finally sober for 2 1/2 years now. I was a binge drinker, and my binges got longer and longer over the years, while my dry periods got shorter and shorter. During my binges I drank steadily, so quantity was irrelevant. Even at work, I had a bottle of half soda, half vodka on my desk right in front of me, and plenty of spares in my drawer and more in my car. I sipped from my soda(vodka) bottle at meetings, and even while giving a presentation to the CEO and senior execs. I was a deacon at my church and had my bottle right there with me while I served communion to the congregation. A sip of wine for them, a sip of vodka for me. I coached my son's soccer team and then served as the league director, all the time with my bottle in hand. I went to court to get my record cleared of charges stemming from a police officer's unfortunate misinterpretation of my actions one night long past, and I while I waited in the hall to see the judge I sipped from yet another spiked soda bottle. Finally, at the end of my last binge, I could only keep every-other drink down - it was an catastrophe. I was throwing up blood too but I was mostly concerned because I couldn't keep my vodka down. So I had my son take me to the hospital for detox. What else could I do? And of course, I had my bottle with me in the car, and had my last few swigs before I went into the emergency room. I spent 5 days in detox, Then I went to rehab (my third time), and after that I went to an intensive outpatient program. With all that history behind me, the odds were completely against being able to stop drinking. Somehow, I've managed to stay away from it for 2 1/2 years, so far. It was hard. And now, though I have a lot of hope for the future and I cherish the present moment, I keep looking back at a lifetime of drunkenness that I can't get back. Kids-E, you don't have to push it to the highest possible quantity before you can stop. Plenty of people stopped drinking before they pushed it to such an extreme. Don't believe everything you hear. Don't get to thinking that you have to hit a catastrophic bottom before you really commit to change. You can stop now, for yourself, and have some time ahead of you. Unless you're already my age, in which case, for God's sake stop now before you set a straight and fast path to your end.

Csharp

I was drinking 12-18 beers a night for 15 years. The only time I took off was when I was sick or had surgery. Pretty sad to be honest, I knew I was in trouble when I was 25 but just had no idea how to stop or slow down for that matter.

DaisyBee

At least one bottle of red wine every night for 15 years with only breaks for pregnancy and weight loss. By the time I decided to quit for good I was adding vodka and beers and sometimes another half bottle of wine to the mix. If also added in day drinking which was very progressive quickly and frankly startling. I was either drunk or hungover, not much in between and it was miserable.

Good for you for recognizing it's your time to quit.

Secretdrinker

Id drank a bottle of wine a night, at least, for ten+ years. Sometimes I'd have a few vodka and redbulls during the day, but it was always my bottle of wine I could never go without.

Over the last year, that bottle gradually increased to a bottle and a half.....then 2 bottles. I was becoming reckless, driving my kids to school in the morning still half drunk. I'd go to climb in my car, stumble, and blame the steep driveway (its not steep at all). Then I started skipping dinner so my 2 bottles of wine would get me even more hammered because I didn't want to drink more than 2 bottles of wine a night as THAT would be just oh so awful and would make me realise I may have a drinking problem.

What an idiot I was.

Dee74

Welcome KidsEverywhere

I drank to maintain my alcoholism from sunup to bedtime. Others drank more than me and others less, but I nearly destroyed myself and that's really the pertinent part of the story.


I'm glad you found us

Itchy

30 plus units a day, at least a case of beers and then some not dry red box wine to cut the yeasty beer taste I hated, and a few scotch rocks every day two years before I quit. A unit is one shot of 86-90 proof hard liquor, one beer, or one 6 oz. glass of wine.

Then I started waking up shaking ill and had to drink to stop shaking with two shots od scotch in my coffees for the last year before I quit for good. About half the time I threw it up and had to go again to just get steady. Funny thing was I was never a drunk. I was retired but had been drinking 2 beers an hour from noon to midnight. Two beers an hour would not do more than a buzz for big six foot guy like me. I drank like American guys do on Saturdays. But every day was Saturday. It took several years for my tolerance to go up such that I was addicted to alcohol without getting slurry and wobbly. No one ever knew I was drinking so much except my body. And I was chain smoking three packs a day too.

I quit both on 21 September 2010 by checking into a hospital for a seven day medical, safe, detox. I was not forced, had no trouble with the law, had not spent my savings or lost anything but my self respect until I quit. But that, was everything really. I have never looked back, never felt any craving to drink again, no temptation. I was through for good when I signed myself into the VA medical center. I would be dead today had I not quit when I did. I can't believe I did no permanent damage. Never again. All I needed was the head start of the in hospital detox. Sober life is my normal now once again. It is so easy that most children do it all the time 24/7. My life is no better externally as far as throwing curves every now and again, but I deal with them painful or not sober.