MyJoey

I was just wondering..........scary huh?

Are all drug addicts, also alcoholics? Another words if your a recovering drug addict, do you also stay away from alcohol? I know for some drug addicts they trade one addiction for another, but is that true of all?

sojourner

Absolutely - a drug is a drug is a drug - some are liquid, some are not.

So recovering "drug" addicts stay away from alcohol also.

Callie

I wouldn't say so. AH doesn't like to drink - you give him some pills and he's good to go, but he doesn't like feeling "drunk".

I do know at rehab, they strongly advise against drinking if you're a drug addict.

outtolunch

My daugter was addicted to heroin. She never touched alcohol.

She will turn 21, this summer. She knows that all mood altering substances lead back to her DOC. It's up to her to apply that knowledge, or not.

Seren

I don't know.....my fiance's AS nearly died by drinking himself to death and only did crack occasionally (well, as far as wel know, right?) and then moved on to crack full time after the alcohol nearly killed him.....Oy!
HG

justanothrdrunk

The program of NA says that alcohol is a drug and should be avoided.

But, I do know of addicts who seem to be okay drinking "normally."

I'm not one of them. I'll abuse anything I can get my hands on.

Ann

Almost every recovering alcoholic I know, thought they could smoke pot once in a while. And almost every recovering addict I know, thought they could have the odd beer.

All that I know, discovered they were sadly mistaken. Perhaps there are some who can, but is it worth risking your life to find out?

Substance abuse is often not fussy about what substance is used. Any one of them can kill.

Hugs

Serenity Bound

Julie, My AD is a dual addict, both drugs and alcohol.

MyJoey

Callie,
That is what my son said, he thinks people who drink act stupid. He don't care for it at all.......I have a feeling that will change.

Anvilhead, you crack me up!

My father was an alcoholic, drank everyday till he died. I never had that problem with drinking daily, but when I was younger I didn't know when to stop. Once I started, that switch never went off that said "hey you have had enough". OOOO man I remember them two day hangovers. I was told I had a chemical imbalance to alcohol, who knows? Today I am fine with it, I can go out for dinner, have a few drinks and I am fine. When my son was at the first rehab (the one he got kicked out of) they told me, he is a future alcoholic, I found that kind of strange because he don't like alcohol, but if he gives up drugs I think that may be the next addiction for him and being my father was an alcoholic the odds are good he will turn that way.

winnie12

So the rehab was run by fortune tellers and gypsies?

BrokenBridges24

From my own experience watching from the sideline... if a recovering drug addict drinks...he drinks too much. if he is recovering from herion and smokes pot.. he smokes too much. From what I have seen nothing is one drink, one smoke, one pill... it starts off with one and ends with more then a person should be able to handle.

It is not the drug...it is the high but that is just what I have seen...

kj3880

I've seen many addicts leave their recovery because they thought they could have "just one" beer, or whatever. It took my ex back out. He recovered and was clean from heroin for 2 years. He thought beer would be OK for him, just beer. So he started with one or two after work. Very gradually, within about another year, he built up from one or two after work to a case a night. More on weekends. "Beer Yucky" is right! At least it was for him. I'm not telling anyone else what to do, but for me, I wouldn't risk my recovery over a beverage that, IMO, just isn't all that great anyway. I can live without it for sure. But can I live with it? I don't know, and I don't ever want to find out.

Love,
KJ

MyJoey

OOOO winnie,
They said they were. I guess you just can't believe anyone these days. LOL

marteen

After hearing from my RAD, when she was "riding high" or so she called it, she would like the taste of a cold beer but she didn't like the taste of alcohol. She said that getting drunk made her sick and she didn't like it. I guess once they find that "doc" (drug of choice) a lot stick to that but I think they'd be game for anything if they couldn't get their hands on it after time.

Angelic17

Addiction is a compulsion. It is compulsive behavior with your drug, or drink. I don't think it matters what the substance is, or if its alcohol. If you have addiction to a drug, you will most likely have that addiction to alcohol as well. Everyone is different. Addicts that have gotten obsessive with their doc, kept trying to reclaim that very first high. Alcohol would most likely have the same affect on them. It's not so much about the alcohol or drug, as it is about the persons behavior. However, I heard that alcohol is one of the hardest things to quit. It's harder than drugs, and can kill you trying to get off of it.

tsukiko

Good question.

Only answer I know is: it depends on the person.

If you're an addict, no matter the drug, you've a battle on your hands when it comes to most things usually.

I was physically addictedto alcohol, then alcohol and speed and using loads of other crap on top of that. I wanted to quit drinking for a long time, but whenever i tried the wds terrified me. When i started using gear it was partly to taper off the drink and keep the wds at bay(yep, I was a fool...don't worry, i have since realised that).

Funny thing is...I drink now, but i rarely consider myself alcoholic. Ok, so I was addicted to drink and even now I can't do it like most my non-addict mates do, but in the last month I've drank while out with mates on two occassions. Heroin totally cured my alcohol and speed dependancies...it blew them out of the water. I've drank and used speed since and speed is something i feel nothing for and drink, well that's harder, but so far do-able. The minute I over do it or over step my boundaries then its over...no more drink. Knowing that makes it easier to not over do it.

I know some people will disagree with how i go about things, but hey ain't that the the fun in life. That's my choice and i accept the consequneces.

liesagain

an addict in recovery should refrain from
ANY mind altering substance and alcohol is mind altering .............Plus the big book of AA / NA say Alcohol is a drug.

Kinda like pot.......they say many addicts try the pot maintaince plan use pot or alcohol to stay away from the real drug of choice ...........and that general ends in failure.

So my 2 cents is no pot no alcohol no drugs for any recovering addict

ex D-Boy

The short answer : No.


The long answer : Why even bother risking it? During my 4 years of heroin addiction I had tried all other drugs and alcohol. I could take and leave them all, even refuse them when offered to me (free of charge) My love affair was with heroin and heroin only. That drug demanded my full attention (physical, financial, emotional)

What I have found during my recovery is that while I am not in danger of switching addictions (from heroin to coke or heroin to alcohol or heroin to pot) that when I ingest any substance that alters my ability to make good judgements I am at risk for relapse. After drinking a few beers my confidence suddenly is much higher and I believe I can handle just 1 or 2 shots of dope.

I found it was like a little tease for me. Getting high or drunk on other substances just gave me a little taste of what I was really looking for. Within a matter of a few hours I was looking all over town for any dope or pain pills I could find...

So for me, it is just much easier to stay away from all substances and live life sober

JustAYak

In my opinion, addicts are not all alcoholics, I know I'm not an alcoholic because I don't drink. However, I could easily become one I'm sure. I think any addict can trade addictions.

Angelic17

Hmmmmm, I have been addicted to opiates, but never to alcohol. Years ago back in the day, I could go out and have a few drinks. I was always sick or hung over the next day. Even from one drink. Alcohol always made me sick. But I never craved it or had an addiction to it. I have to admit the opiates made me sick at times too, but I still took more. I craved them and I was addicted to them. I know that there is something called addiction transfer, where you transfer your addiction from one substance to another thing. All addicts need to be aware of that. It's a compulsive behavior and a mental obsession.