smadams11

hi, im wondering if im actually addicted to alcohol or not?!
i struggled so much to 'quit' and simply couldnt do it-it was actually painful.
then, just over a week ago, instead of buying a case of beer and drinking it all, i bought one 4% bottle of smirnoff ice and eked it out over the course of the night by pouring it into orangeade. i did this until sunday-thats just 1 bottle a night and so i obviously didnt get drunk(or even tipsy).
last saturday i drank quite a few bottles and did get drunk-'all night leaning over the toilet drunk' and i havent had a drop since.
the thing is, it isnt that hard right now to not drink. i want to but its just some silly little 'i want' that is easily controllable.
so-am i addicted? why is it suddenly so easy?
im not asking because i want to drink with out feeling guilty etc.....i dont plan on drinking for alot of reasons, but just for the sake of asking-what do you think? am i an alcoholic or not? what is going on!?
thank you x

mecanix

If you want to give sobriety a good try 90 days to 6 months of consistent sobriety was useful to get clear of this powerful drug out of my body for myself .
Why not do the same amount of time and see how you feel then ?
With 35 posts to SR that says to me you must have an issue you need to address .

Bestwishes, m

ReadyAtLast

For me stopping for a few nights wasn't a huge problem,especially after a very heavy session. It was staying stopped when I felt better that was the problem.

Struggled to quit, measuring drinks,worrying about it and even thinking you've a problem are usually indicators that there is a problem.

See if you can go 90 days and how you feel

ExWinoMom

I'm an alcoholic, and I drank like you. Welcome!

Dee74

Hi smadams

I drank like that sometimes - and I used it as an example that I wasn;t an alcoholic.

it's funny how when we're trying to moderate, a blow out at the weekend is no big deal, it's almost justified.

I'm not laughing at you - I thought that way too.

If you want a real test of whether your relationship with alcohol has changed, go 90 days without a drop.

If you really aren't an alcoholic, you should be able to do that.

D

Grungehead

No one can tell you if you are an alcoholic or not. But if you were 'all night leaning over the toilet drunk' 3 nights ago and you are already questioning why it seems "so easy" now then you might want to look at that. I see this pattern a lot here on the forum. As soon as someone gets past the awful feeling of their last drunk, spree, binge, and start to feel better, they kind of forget why they came here in the first place.

Like others have said, go a few months without taking a drink and then re-evaluate. I remember stopping for a couple of weeks and once drank 1 beer a night for an entire month to "prove" to my fiance that I didn't have a problem. I usually celebrated my success by getting drunk the next day. After all I had just proved that I could quit or control my drinking right? The truth was that I was miserable the whole time and I was doing it to get my fiance off of my back. I couldn't wait to get hammered again.

GracieLou

I don't know. Only you can answer that.

For me, there was more going on than than just laying down the bottle.

I am sure if I really tried, which I didn't and didn't want to, I may have been able to not drink for a couple days, but I would have ran to it as soon a tiny amount of stress showed up. "I need a drink" would have escaped my lips and liquor would have agreed.

When I did lay it down, I did not have major physical withdrawals. That was one thing that really surprised me. I drank for 26 years and at the end I was drinking a 1/2 gallon of whiskey every two days and I drank everyday.

I used to ask why did I not go through all the physical stuff that many go through. Why was I not having the major cravings and obsessing like I had in the past. I stopped asking.

I feel it was a gift. It was my time and I hung on to it and got help. The door to sobriety had opened and instead of looking through it, I walked through it.

Maybe it is your time, don't waste the gift. Run to recovery while it is still open.

least

I agree with the others above. Give yourself three to six months sober and see how you feel then.

Clarajune

Here are some questions you may want to ask yourself. The question that wasn't asked is, "Do you feel you need to cut down on drinking?" and I feel that is one of the most important question.




One of the oldest and most time tested dependency evaluation tools for chemical dependency has its origins from the Johnson Institute of Minneapolis. Many variations exist, but the basic questions are as follows:



Has anyone ever suggested you quit or cut back on your drug/alcohol use?
Yes___ No___



Has drinking or using affected your reputation?
Yes___ No___



Have you made promises to control your drinking or using and then broken them?
Yes___ No___



Have you ever switched to different drinks or drugs or changed your using pattern in an effort to control or reduce your consumption?
Yes___ No___



Have you ever gotten into financial, legal, or marital difficulties due to using?
Yes___ No___



Have you ever lost time from work because of using or drinking?
Yes___ No___



Have you ever sneaked or hidden your use?
Yes___ No___



On occasion, do you feel uncomfortable if alcohol or your drug is not available?
Yes___ No___



Do you continue drinking or using when friends or family suggest you have had enough?
Yes___ No___



Have you ever felt guilty or ashamed about your drinking or using or what you did while under the influence?
Yes___ No___



Has your efficiency decreased as a result of your drinking or using?
Yes___ No___



When using or drinking, do you neglect to eat properly?
Yes___ No___



Do you use or drink alone?
Yes___ No___



Do you use or drink more than usual when under pressure, angry, or depressed?
Yes___ No___



Are you able to drink or use more now without feeling it, compared to when you first started using?
Yes___ No___



Have you lost interest in other activities or noticed a decrease in your ambition as a result of your drinking or using?
Yes___ No___



Have you had the shakes or tremors following heavy drinking or using or not using for a period of time?
Yes___ No___



Do you want to drink or use at a particular time each day?
Yes___ No___



Do you go on and off the wagon?
Yes___ No___



Is drinking or using jeopardizing your job?
Yes___ No___

I can answer yes to a lot of these questions.

too.tall

The question is whether or not the poster is addicted to alcohol based on the lack of withdrawal symptoms. If one does not have withdrawal symptoms within 3 days does that mean one is not addicted? I think this is a good question for newcomers since many may be afraid to stop out of fear that they will have a seizure or other serious medical problems.

pinkdog

Hi smadams, it sounds like you tapered and then quit. Good job. Right now you are still withdrawing. It's hard to say if you were abusing alcohol or an alcoholic. Either way, the alcohol is bad for you. Great job so far. Keep going friend.