Libby06

After many attempts to quit drinking, it only stuck the day I told my doctor. I felt accountable. I was scared that I had done real damage to myself, and if I wanted an honest assessment I had to give honest answers on the questionnaire.

I understand not wanting to tell on yourself. I didn't either. The courage that day changed the trajectory of my life. I had no idea then, but will never forget it or regret it now.

Good luck on your decision. Our secrets keep us sick.

KingEric

I can only speak as someone from the UK but there should be better channels of help for people worried about the impact of revealing you have problem. Maybe an online Doctor who you can book a slot to talk to via a live chat feature, that would take the worry and the stigma away from having to sit down with someone you've known for a number of years.

It's hard, I can't even bring myself to admit it to my best mate and we've known each other since we were children. If I told him I was drinking what I am drinking I know he'd be gobsmacked and want to help but then I'd feel the shame of allowing myself to get myself into the situation in the first place.

This online forum is fantastic and I wish I'd found this a long time before now but the reality is any of us could drink at any point and lie on here, seeking professional help is surely the best possible solution to the problem but it should be made easier.

Aellyce

That does not exist in the UK? Here in the US telehealth/telemedicine is very abundant now, you can see someone within a couple hours even if you don't have health insurance and are willing to pay the fee. Can talk about your concerns online/via phone and go into an office only if you need something that cannot be managed virtually. Many GPs here also see patients for general physicals online - you have a discussion and they give you the info where to go for tests (e.g. to have blood drawn for a blood test), then the result goes back to them and they will tell you if anything is off/send you the result. This can be completely independent of the doctor(s) you normally see. Most doctors offer telehealth these days and there are online clinics specializing in it. I used these types of services twice last year. Of course it all depends on what kinds of insurance you have in this country, but if you are willing to pay privately out of pocket, you can access anything. It would be hard to imagine if something like that was not available in the UK now, after the pandemic...?

CincyFin

My doctor actually helped me get sober. Be honest with them, they will appreciate it and it will help them help you.

KingEric

No I don't believe that's a service provided in the UK but then again our health service is a lot different to yours in the U.S. The NHS is free to anyone whether your unemployed or working, they do take a percentage of our salaries towards it each month but it's minimal.

Any private health care is very expensive and I would imagine any online platform would be privatised as I doubt the government see the need for an online platform.

GerandTwine

KE,
You make it sound like you are powerless over that first drink. You continually put your drinking into the PRESENT tense as if IT IS STILL GOING ON.

If you simply stop and put all your thoughts about drinking INTO THE PAST TENSE, THEN you will be able to deal with HOW TO STAY STOPPED.

Don’t worry about lying to us. This is just an internet forum with membership anonymity. It doesn’t make any sene to lie to us about drinking.

Also don’t worry about lying to yourself either - it cannot be done. I have tried to figure out how to lie to myself for many years, but cannot do it because every time I try, I know what I’m doing and it just turns into meaningless drivel.

If you decide for yourself “I will never drink again” you WILL KNOW whether you mean it or not. Adults are perfectly capable of making such a pledge because drinking alcohol is such a complex in-your-face activity and NOT doing that can be done PERFECTLY FOREVER.

You ONLY have to ACCEPT that you will NEVER feel that DEEP PLEASURE from drinking EVER AGAIN.

GT

Hodd

I reiterate that my GP didn’t bat an eyelid, and if anything they were pleased to see a patient being proactive.

I’m not massively tempted by alcohol anymore so shouldn’t relapse (never say never), but every time I see my GP, they ask if I’m drinking. I guess the statistics say lots of people relapse. But I’m now that bit more accountable as my GP is on my case.

I’ve heard an argument that fessing up to your GP can cause problems with insurance. I was totally upfront with a life insurance company about my drinking history. My GP had to fill in a form, but the premiums were unaffected.

I wonder if men in particular will be reluctant to go to a GP. I reckon everyone who’s fessed up to their GP was glad to have done so.

greg198499

KingEric,

I haven't read the entire thread, but I did see that you mentioned how alcohol helps with boredom...oh my goodness, that was one of my number one reasons for drinking...it made things that were otherwise boring seem interesting to me. I would sit for hours watching stuff on TV that I thought was so fascinating solely because I was drinking! When I first stopped, I was pretty bored and disinterested in many things...I'm about a month shy of 1 year sober now and I can report that for me, after about 4 to 5 months I would say of total sobriety, things became interesting again without alcohol. I was able to start watching TV without being bored, doing my hobbies without being bored, and so on. Anyhow, just thought I would mention this...there is a light at the end of the boredom tunnel and I was in it DEEP.

Scd619x

Strike whilst the iron is hot, they are back seeing people next week. Get down there or you'll do a me and end up waiting a month lol

Hodd

I’ll be honest and say I had to go for a very basic medical check up when I registered at my GP. I hadn’t seen a doctor in years, but I knew I was overweight, drank loads and my blood pressure was high (I had a home test machine). I was super nervous, but even that visit was fairly stress free.

It’s easy for me to say go to the doc to discuss drinking as I’ve been there and done it. It wasn’t so bad at all. My GP seemed genuinely pleased I’d been proactive, and it was the beginning of the end of my drinking days. I quit a matter of months later and that was two and a half years ago.

It makes no difference if you visit your GP after weeks of sobriety or days. What matters is you make the appointment.

Also, tell your GP you want to quit. They of all people know that moderation won’t work, so saying you want to “cut down” will be a sign you’re not that that keen to stop. A GP will definitely ask how much you drink, so have a definite and honest figure ready. We have this unit system in the U.K. so quite a figure in units. GPs are always getting vague and underestimated figures of alcohol intake, and a definite figure will show your GP you mean business. Good luck, don’t stress it and make that appointment.

Hodd

And I seem to have become the forum narcissist which is laughable as I’m pretty unnoticeable and self effacing in person, but when I went to see my GP a year or so later on an unrelated manner, she looked me up and down and said my not drinking and lifestyle changes seem to have done the trick.

Compliments from a GP are great for the ego I’m sure if I drank again, she’d be very disappointed, but I wouldn’t be the first. Having your GP ask about your drinking every time is another reason to stay quit

OverthePanic

Hi just wondering if your doctor is the only doctor at that surgery? Could u ask to see one of the other doctors or are u assigned to just him? There is two at mine and three at my old surgery so I could ask to see a different one but I'm in Ireland so maybe different

Hodd

Unless a patient is in a rural location, there’ll be a few GPs at a surgery. You can request a specific doctor, but it takes a long time to get a GP appointment so this might add to the wait. I would just make the appointment. I’ve seen other GPs since, and they’ve asked about my drinking,

I had to see a GP for a life insurance company - I felt bad for wasting the GP’s time but they were OK with it. I wanted the GP to confirm I’d stopped drinking. I felt this was unfair to as how can anyone really know? Anyway, I had a private liver fibroscan report which showed all was normal and fat free, and that helped convince them. I really think GPs have been let down by so many patients. That’s why it’s important to tell your doc you want to quit and ideally within a defined timescale. They’ll be more willing to help a patient who means business.

Scd619x

GPs don't deal with addiction issues anymore including alcohol and drugs in England, you would be referred to STAR which is the government body that deals with this stuff now. You could get some help for the physical issues from alcohol if you have any, like high blood pressure, diabetes etc from the GP but for anything else they will refer. It's been like this for a couple of years now. STAR is made up of volunteers so you are likely to get a fair few AA members working there so be very clear about what you want from the service before you go. Also STAR will inform social services if anyone under the age of 18 lives with you so do expect that.

Hodd

True, but the referral would come from your GP plus they’d test your liver function to check all’s OK.

If people are unsure what to do, I’d still urge a visit to the GP.

Gaz7

I’m also from the UK.

I spoke to my doctor and said I’d definitely been drinking too much over the last year (even though it was 12 years) and I was worried about my liver. She instantly said no problem we’ll get you a blood test.

She asked if I wanted put onto a councillor and I said no, it’s not that bad a problem. I was lying to her, as I knew it was a huge problem.

My point is, you don’t need to admit you’ve a problem just say you’ve been drinking too much and are getting anxious in case your liver has been damaged. Blood tests are cheap, so the doctor won’t hesitate in my opinion.

When I was told my liver was fine, I was actually happy as I knew I could keep drinking, which is idiotic but that’s how the alcoholic brain works at times.

Scd619x

The weird thing about people who have drinking issues is they think it is the liver that will kill them??? It is the only organ that can regenerate. Far more likely is heart disease/attack or high blood pressure or diabetes or cholesterol or stroke etc etc. Why the obsession with the liver? I think it's because of films and the media.

Hodd

Yes, cancer is a bigger risk. The U.K. has guidelines for safe drinking (none of us here) based on rates of bowel, throat and a couple of other cancers.

The liver certainly gets a bashing from daily drinking. I think the problem is liver disease has no symptoms until it’s too late.

Scd619x

That's not how they worked out the amount of units in the UK, it was political. The surgeon general says that any level of drinking is risky now so? There are tenuous links to certain cancers that are caused by drinking, e.g. 4400 people get breast cancer via drinking alcohol each year in the UK out of the 55000 new cases a year. There have been many articles questioning suppositions like this one as to how they know it was alcohol that caused the cancer. Most cancers associated with drinking are quite obvious though, as lung cancer is to smoking.

Take Spain at 35 units a week, compared to our 14 in the UK. There are roughly 5000 deaths attributed to alcohol in the UK each year out of 66 million people, whereas in Spain there are 300 deaths per year out of 47 million people. You could lower the amount of units to 0 a week and there would still be 5000 deaths a year in the UK. The reason, they have worked out, is that the kind of person who is drinking at a high enough level for long enough is drinking nowhere near14 units nor is ever likely to so the only people the 14 units has any effect on is the people who would have been around that amount anyway. But we like to keep pretending in the UK that we are doing something lol

Hodd

Spain’s got a massive alcohol problem and is the liver transplant capital of the world, which may also be down to an efficient donor system.

I can’t claim to have critically analysed research on links between cancers and alcohol, but it is reasonable to say the link is there. This article is quite good as it links to official sources.

https://alcoholchange.org.uk/alcohol-facts/fact-sheets/alcohol-and-cancer

Again, we can pick holes in any research. The point was made above that it’s not only liver disease that results from excessive alcohol consumption. OK, when a patient is diagnosed with throat cancer, how can the medical staff assess how many weekly units that person has drunk over the previous decades. They can’t rely on the patient’s figures and will have to estimate.