SkyBird

Just wondering if there's anyone at ALL out there who used to drink heavily and now drinks normally. If so, how long were you able to keep it up before old habits took over?

Surrendered19

Hi SkyBird. Searching for such a person would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. I certainly don't know anyone who was like me but is now a moderate drinker. Just by asking the question we can conclude that you are not one of those people. People who drink normally would never contemplate any such question.

I think our collective experience shows us again and again that moderation is a pipedream that simply doesn't exist in any measurable way for us addicts. I think thoughts about moderation are our AV's at their most cunning and there has been many a addict that picked up again and lost years and years after they convinced themselves they could moderate.

Thrillhou

A full-blown alcoholic can never moderate drinking. I am an alcoholic so I can never safely drink as long as I live.

BeABetterMan

Not me. Not anyone I know. It is to the point where it is almost scientific fact that this is impossible. More people win the lottery would be my guess.

Mummyto2

Once that line is crossed we can never drink moderately, believe me I've tried it many many times.

Introvrtd1

No way….Been there….crashed and burned. Moderation after heavy drinking was worse than quitting altogether. The paws, and the withdrawals came stronger and faster. I was only torturing myself.

Hopefully you have better luck than I did

doggonecarl

How many of us could drink normally?

Few to none, I'd guess.

How many thought we could drink normally?

Most of us, I'd imagine. Unsuccessfully.

Hodd

I had access to a university library website and actually spent time researching this. Academic papers are dull and hard to read, but you do get all the facts. I thought there’d be at least some success stories of moderation, but there were none out there. Every one of the former drinkers who tried so-called moderation went back to heavy drinking again.

Our brains have something called GABA receptors that tell us when to chill out. These get altered irreversibly from years of drinking, and it’s that very thing that means we can’t moderate.

I was pretty gutted to read all that. No more glass of red with my pasta, etc., but you get used to the idea. It’s the only way.

Dee74

Hi SkyBird

Many of us have tried and failed.
https://www.soberrecovery.com/forums...oderation.html (My guide to moderation)

You've been a member for over a year now - I assume you've tried to moderate - whats your experience?

D

advbike

I'll throw in a bit of a contradiction, because I'm a bit of an oddball here.

I was able to, and still can moderate. I can have two glasses of wine each night on vacation with my gf. For two weeks straight. Or right now I could go to the store and buy a six pack, drink 3 beers, and have the rest tomorrow night, then no more for a few days, then repeat.

Some might well call that a model of moderate drinking.

But it is a massive amount of work to control it. I still get the cravings, you see, I just have a massive amount of self-control.

And even that "moderate" quantity inevitably results in messed up sleep and nightime anxiety, shame, bingeing on crap food, fatigue and irritability, laziness and constant thoughts of what time I can have my first one the next day.

When we are still in the addiction - no matter the amount, even if we are seemingly managing it - in reality the addiction is managing us. The addiction is fully in control. And while it is in control, there can be no growth in other areas.

I choose sobriety instead of that nightmare now.

DriGuy

If I could have moderated, I doubt that I would be here now.

Abraham

I dont know any and I lost count of the people who drank again moderately for however long and started right back at their olds habits again. Seems like its everyone I have heard from. You probably never wanted to drink for the flavor in the first place. I know I didnt. I'd rather have a soda or something if neither one is going to give me a buzz. The stuff tastes like crap. I only stomached it for the buzz.

Anna

As with many others here, I tried and failed multiple times. When you cross the invisible line, you can't go back.

least

I tried, but failed. As Intro says, moderating is harder than quitting altogether. After being sober for a while, I'll never go back to drinking at all. My life is too peaceful and satisfying to mess it up again by drinking.

Hevyn

Tried absolutely everything, believing in the fantasy that I could be a social drinker. Almost died in the process.

LoveHateWhine

Tried many times and failed miserably. It was harder and harder to stop each time.

DriGuy

The point of recovery is to break the addiction, not to feed it, but in reality, moderation is just another way for alcoholics to feed their addiction. This is not the intention of the moderating alcoholic, but eventually, he must understand it is not the solution.

Mizz

Sure. I was able to moderate for about a week or two.
I epically failed at moderation past that point It was a lot of work to try to have some sort of control over something I cannot control at all. Way to many failed experiments.

BarbieKen

I couldn’t ……

I tried only buying ugh tasting wine, so I’d stop at only 1 bottle.Then my husband thought maybe buying only great tasting wine, so I’d stop at 1 bottle. How about NOT filling the wine rack, only buy 1 bottle at a time. Set a new later time to start that bottle of wine …. no, no, no I could not moderate any day of any year. I drank to drink. Period.



For this alcoholic , it was Soooo much easier to quit totally (honestly) than try to moderate DAILY.

That’s my experience with Moderation.

Bobbi

Free2bme888

No