acg1983

If you have a problem or just a heavy drinker?

Reading peoples posts over the last few days and I dont have it half as bad as most threads I've read. I know I drink too much, but I dont crave it. Just some days I just seem to get too drunk without even thinking about it. And if I stop and do nothing I know I will open some wine out of bordem.

I look at all the websites where you enter what you drink etc, and they all say I drink too much and im normally in the top risk section, but still I dont crave it.

Are there different levels of alcoholism?

acg1983

Its only day 3. Maybe I will crave it in a few days. I dont know, ive never gone more than 10 days without a drink

Dee74

Hi acg

Often it's not that useful to compare yourself to others, or even compare quantities.

I know guys who drank less than me who died, and guys who drank more but don't identify as alcoholic.

If alcohol is causing you problems - and you've said it is - you have trouble controlling your intake, you feel the need to drink more than anyone else you know, have hangovers several times a week, you had a head on smash, and still kept drinking, your bf is getting fed up.

If alcohol is causing you problems, acg, then it makes sense to quit.

D

Gottalife

If when you honestly want to, you find you can't quite entirely, or if, when drinking, you little control over the amount you take, you are probably alcoholic.

If you are a heavy drinker, you are still damaging your health. A heavy drinker can stop if they wish, and resume a normal life without too much drama. Try stopping for a period, or try limiting the amount you drink and see if you have control or not.

According to DSM V, it's now alcohol use disorder, and there are different levels from mild to severe, and the nature of treatment varies accordingly. Alcoholics are toward the severe end and total abstinence is the only known solution.

acg1983

Interesting thoughts people, Thank you. Lots to think about

Nuudawn

As Dee says...comparisons seem to serve the problem rather than the solution. I have drank out of boredom many times...when there are waaaay more things to do.
I am not physically dependent on alcohol...but emotionally...oh yeah. Without effective coping mechanisms and a more productive use of leisure time, it quickly becomes a big huge problem.
Getting drunk...without intending to? Been there done that... a million times.
It's a recipe for disaster.
If quitting is hard or impossible...we need a better plan.

Me telling myself I'm not that bad has gotten me embarrasingly liquored and somewhat a danger to myself and others 4 times in the past month.
That's 4 times too many.

FeelingGreat

agc, if you can't drink like a normal person, which is drinking moderately without giving it much thought between times, then you have a problem.
Try cutting down to social-only drinking at healthy, and if you're constantly wanting to open a bottle, or thinking about drinking, then maybe you should stop drinking altogether.
A lot of people picture an alcoholic as dishevelled, unemployed, sleeping rough etc. but most alcoholics are living relatively normal lives.

Jeni26

Hi. It was thinking that I wasn't as bad as other people that kept me drinking for years. I never lost a job, or a relationship. I never smashed my car up, or drank in the mornings. Nope...I told myself I was just fine.

In reality I was living half a life...and it was getting worse. I couldn't stop drinking, that was the scary thing. I lost my ability to moderate a long while back. I hated the person I became when I drank. And it was getting worse.

I have no doubt that the things I had never done through drinking were just around the corner for me.

If alcohol isn't a problem, I doubt you would be posting on this forum. There are many reasons to quit, and a million ways in which our lives get better when we do.

acg1983

thanks for all your advise. As I say, I dont really crave alcohol, but I do think about it pretty much everyday, and often try and put myself in situations where I can have a drink, for example, suggesting going for a meal.

acg1983

Thanks Jeni26, that makes a lot of sense. For me, it has affected others, I have lost a job, a relationship, smashed cars up, and drunk in the morning (this week), but I still don't see it as a full on problem. Definitely need to think about it all.

Jeni26

Well I would suggest that your addiction is lying to you...it does that. Normal drinkers don't do all those things you've done. My friends that drink normally don't think about it all the time..they can take it or leave it..sometimes they might have a glass, sometimes not. I've seen them leave a half drunk glass of wine and walk away...used to drive me nuts!

Sounds to me you're in the right place. Welcome to SR x

Gottalife

A lot of people misunderstand what is meant by craving. Thinking about alcohol everyday is part of what I would call the obsession of the mind. The craving comes after the first drink and is due to a difference in the way an alcoholics liver processes alcohol.it has been described as an allergy. It doesn't occur in normal drinkers. It's effect is that once we take that first drink, we cannot guarantee, every time, how much we will go on to drink.

Try18

If I have to ask myself if I'm an alcoholic or a heavy drinker, deep down I know the answer is the former. Doesn't matter how often someone drinks or how much ... it's what happens when they do.

I think inside all of us is our answer, if we are able to be honest with ourselves.

PurpleKnight

I wouldn't focus on quantities, that won't get you anywhere, also I tend not to try and figure out the definitions of alcoholic etc, but as you say use the term "problem drinker"!!

That's the real question, is drinking in your life creating problems? . . . heavy drinking, light drinking, moderate drinking, the bottom line is if alcohol is affecting the life you want to lead then something needs to change.

There is definitely a red flag to sit back and think about when you say "I have lost a job, a relationship, smashed cars up, and drunk in the morning"