ElleDee

I sit at work and wonder about other people I work with and if they are alcoholics too. Nobody I work with knows that I have a drinking problem. There's 400+ people in my company. I sometimes feel like I'm the only alcoholic here. There's one person who works close to me that I know is at least a very heavy drinker if not a functioning drunk but I don't know if I'd feel better knowing someone else had the same issue? I don't know what I'm going for here... I look at people in the grocery store and at the mall and think the same thing. You know, most people I think try to keep it under wraps until they can't any longer.

Sorry I'm rambling.

huntingtontx

I have wondered a lot what others are really like at work. I never shared my private life at work, and I guess most of those I worked with did not either. Maybe that is a good thing. I guess bottom line is, we know who we are and what we do. We know we are making right choices. That is good enough for me.

~Lia~

I wonder the same thing, a lot.

Barnumb

I think there are a lot of us out there. Nobody aspires to be an Alcoholic, and even the closest people in our lives let us get away with a lot so they don't have to accept that their spouse, partner, kid, parent is a "Alcoholic." It is misunderstood as a will power problem and not a degenerative disease. Over all awareness of the problem is way overlooked across the globe. Our very own scarlet letter. "A"

Daretodream

You are not alone on that one. That has crossed my mind a few times.

aasharon90

For me, I don't mind wearing AA jewelry
like rings and pendants for my own
recovery. I even have AA recovery
tattoos as well as an AA emblem sticker
on my car and a license plate holder.

Every now and then someone will ask
what the symbol on my pendant means,
and if they have to ask then they must
not know it stands for AA. I'll give then
an answer like a friend gave it to me
as a gift or its a unity pendant. I don't
need to go into detail about recovery
if they don't know what it is.

I also wear it or have my stickers because
you never know when someone out of the
blue may need help from a member in
recovery on the spot. I just want to be
ready if it happens.

Also, we love riding our motorcycle which
also has an AA sticker on it and folks that
know what it stands for will ride by us and
blow their horn and give us a thumbs up sign
for it.

It lets me know that I am not alone in
the recovery world. Support from others
is comforting.

PolarBlue

I've had people at my former place say they're getting a beer after work and drinking it on the way home, or that they have some waiting for them in the trunk, and they wished the water cooler was filled with vodka.

I've never had anyone come out and say, "I'm an alcoholic". Not that a beer after work would make you one.

Soberpotamus

I guess this is something I rarely wonder about. I feel like there are so many challenges and concerns in my life already, lol. Don't need to add to them.

nuffsEnuff

We are like the illuminati! We hide in plain site.

AncientMariner

No. I'm too self-involved.

Wastinglife

I was always the biggest drinker around. No matter what circle of friends or company I worked for. I guess I kinda wore it like a badge and never tried to really hide my alcohol consumption. It was a part of my identity really.

That being said, I know many people who tried to downplay their drinking. I knew of two people who may have been closet alcoholics. One was my former boss. I didn't really know for sure but he would always insist on me coming out for drinks because I would distract everyone from his drinking which was very sly cuz he never acted any different, even after 5 or 6 double JD and cokes.

There are closet drinkers out there for sure.

ElleDee

It's not a "concern" like I'm thinking about other people in a negative way that maybe they use drugs or drink or whatever. I just wonder how many of "us" there are in my place of business. Yeah, could I spend my time thinking on more productive things, like getting my work done? For sure... LOL!!!

Ellay

As I am very early in recovery, my mind is going non stop with questions. I often think the same , as well as looking at people with jealousy , like how come you can stop after a glass of wine ?

Soberpotamus

I hope my response wasn't implying you did Was simply saying that it really never crosses my mind. Unless I smell alcohol on someone, then yeah... I wonder

luvmygirls

I wonder about this. I have one person who works for me who gets really nervous before presentations, and I think I've smelled alcohol coming from her purse.

CAPTAINZING2000

At an estimated 30% of the population good chance a few of your co workers abuse alcohol.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/30-of-am...ol-study-says/

Mrrryah1

Haha. Honestly? I wonder all the time.

risingup

I wonder that all of the time......I also used to wonder if anyone was as horribly hungover as I was. I never looked or acted like someone with a drinking problem. People would be shocked if they knew. I often wonder if some people I know who always seem perfect and put together on the outside are struggling on the inside. Just today I was in a large auditorium at an event for my daughter's school. I was thankful for feeling so great.....when many times I have sat in the same theatre feeling dreadful. Then I wondered if any of those parents felt dreadful. Just saying.....I think that way quite often.

Notmyrealname

I don't know about your place of employment, but as far as I have gathered, being in a neighboring state and having traveled through the area and having some friends from around there, drinking to excess is not especially rare in Wisconsin and up around Milwaukee.

Reminds me of a story I heard on the radio: They had a pay-once-for-all-you-can-drink martini party open to the public at the Milwaukee Art Museum some years back. It ended up pretty much in chaos; art was defaced, bodily substances were deposited, and I think there was public sex.

Bottomless martinis were probably a poor choice of refreshment, but you know, hindsight's 20/20 and all.

I don't think the younger folks in my department up at the evil empire are much for the tippling, but some of the older cats, well, I don't know, never really thought about it. If there were any, there weren't many. Game recognize game, as they say.

sickofthiscrap

I met my ex boyfriend at work. We were cigarette buddies and we got close because one day while we were out smoking he told me he was a recovering alcoholic. He relapsed while we were dating. After we broke up I embarked on sobriety. I see him around at work and I have no idea what is going on in his life now because he said he didn't want to be friends or have any communication other than work related after we broke up. I guess what I'm trying to say is he just seems like another employee at my workplace now, but there's a good chance he's back drowning in the sauce behind closed doors.

I also used to wonder if people could tell I was hungover. I used to hide behind my computer and hope nobody talked to me.