Trouble1234

I had an interesting weekend at the beach where I told total strangers my story and how I have been a non drinker for 5 weeks. Many things came up and discussions and also some heated debates!

Basically I was told that I am not an alcoholic but a problem weekend / social drinker that could drink moderately if I wanted to since I did not drink everyday and never had anything stronger than a beer on weekends.



What is your opinion on that? Any experiences?

ACT10Npack

Yes and no. There are too many factors that come into play with that question.

Carrie36

After 2 years of sobriety I convinced myself that I could moderately drink. For the last 2 years I have only drank on weekends, binge drinking typically Fri sat and lighter on Sundays. Here I am back here having health issues directly related to my only drinking weekends, im scared and full of anxiety and know that I can never drink in moderation. I pray that I haven't caused permanent damage, I feel so foolish for believing I could control things, I have no control over alcohol. Throwing poison down my throat all weekend and staying sober for those other 4 days didn't make my alcoholism any less significant ..it was hurting me just the same. That's my experience.

bunnezjp

Agreed. And when it comes down to it, alcoholic or not, the decision to quit or not is on you.

Trouble1234

I would not mind having a glass of beer here and there but I do not NEED it.

I can be a bit of a smart a55 and it was fun debating with this man ! :O)

Thepatman

I wouldn't say it's impossible. However it would be rare to see a problematic drinker reverting to normal.

Hard for a pickle to return to a cucumber I heard a few times.

Croissant

Do you consistently have a problem controlling how much alcohol you drink?

Does it cause you distress when you think about stupid things you did drinking?

Do you blackout?

I can tell you, we mostly all probably started as weekend problem drinkers. It does not matter if all you are drinking is beer.

Unfortunately, it's the stigma of the term "alcoholic" and societies continual wish to turn a blind eye to the very real impacts of alcohol abuse that leads to lack of treatment.

Trouble1234

LOL I have never heard that one! Good one :O)

MelindaFlowers

I used to wonder about moderation all the time before the health problems and daily withdrawal started.

I used to giggle when I would read that the daily recommended amount was one to two drinks. Could they possibly be serious? If this was moderating then I wanted no part of it. Moderating to me would have been six beers. My natural consumption would be 12-14 a night. Rarely less, rarely more.

Moderate drinking had zero appeal to me because one beer didn't even come close to giving me a buzz. A six pack didn't even really give me a buzz. It was somewhere between six and eight that I started to reach my happy place. But wait, six or eight is way above moderating?

Gosh, thinking back now, moderating was much more stressful than just not drinking.

ESD907

When I was drinking, I could go 2 weeks at a time. I'd visit my parents house, not drink at all. I'd be planning a party at my home, I'd be preparing all week, and I would not even drink at the BBQ, since I wanted to be a decent host. I'd regularly go a few days, even when I was at my worst. But I'm an alcoholic and always will be. I hope to never have another drink again. I had to ask myself, if I could ever think of a life w/o booze, I said NO. Then I realized I was a down and out drunk and had to quit forever.



( & I drank nothing but wine/beer until the last 4 months of my drinking career, vodka)

SoberHoopsFan

Depends, although probably not. How much trouble was alcohol causing you in your life? It's not so much the frequency with which you drink, it's the negative effects that drinking causes in your life. I know guys who only binge drank a couple times a month who were some of the biggest trainwrecks you will ever see on the planet when they drink, landing in jail cells repeatedly. As for the type of alcohol? Beer will not probably not take you to the life-altering blackouts that hard liquor will, but if you drink enough of it, it is more than capable of destroying your life. Maybe you should quit for good before your brain starts craving the harder stuff, because many of us can tell you from years of experience, you don't want to go there.

SoberBike

It looks like one of the reasons you came here was because of the anxiety issues you were having after a night of drinking. I too had bad anxiety when hungover, that alone should be enough to stay sober.

silentrun

My experience was once it had me it had me.

SillyString

If you're here asking the question, the answer for you is probably not.

As for my personal experience, I tried, and tried and TRIED to moderate when I drank (I was a weekend only drinker too...), and yes, I COULD do it...for a time or two or three. But it was always inevitable that I would lose it at some point, and I would do it in spectacular fashion.

jdooner

I was like that too...only you can determine this - not strangers at the beach. Curious did the strangers want you to join them? Sometimes we hear what we want to hear.

Trouble1234

Thanks everyone , I love all the opinions and appreciate the response.

No They were not drinking , One of the ladies was an RN and was asking me questions about my past drinking habits etc.

I did stop drinking after really bad anxiety and wanted to get my body healed. For a while on the weekends I partied too much and I knew I needed to stop. I have learned so much these 40 days!! Primarily to take care of myself more ...I never realized the damage I was doing to myself!

SandyLovesFall

I moderated my weekend drinking 95% of the time with no horrible issues besides always having slight hangovers. It was the other 5% where moderation didn't exist that hurt me and others so bad, like barfing on my dog and not knowing until the next day when my son told me he had to clean her up, falling in a fire pit and getting 2nd and 3rd degree burns on my hand and chin, puking in my brand new purse because I didn't want to make a mess in the car and making a mess in the car anyway, saying things I never would have said sober, missing work, missing holidays, missing my dignity, headaches, stomachaches, and heartaches. Moderation for me where alcohol is concerned is a myth.

FormerDrunkGuy

Hi Trouble I can relate to your position. I went a number of years drinking only on weekends and it worked very nicely for a while. I started out filling in the gaps with Wednesday, then it was a Thursday etc, and then everyday. Does it matter if you're an alkie, or a "problem drinker" as this person was suggesting. If it's a problem, it's a problem don't you think?

MyTime86

What's the point of having one or two?? I need at least 6 to 8.. That's why I can't drink, all never be a normal drinker

Nuudawn

When it comes right down to it...my biggest problem is my absence of a reliable "off" button. My problem is not that I awake each morning and need to pour whiskey in my coffee to maintain my equilibrium. I do not suffer physical withdrawal symptoms when I quit. I have never been able to say .."no thank you, I've had enough"...if the evening is still young and the booze is flowing. Ever.

My problem has ALWAYS been my inability to moderate and drink responsibly. It simply ain't in my "skill set". I will never learn how. I finally know that.