dollyhaze

I think many people have drinking problems that aren't full-blown alcoholics. I don't know the numbers, but many heavy drinkers go on to moderation (with or without programs.) You have to do what works for you-- and for some people, moderation won't work. In my family, we learned that you dealt with your feelings by drinking or taking a pill (my dad was a doctor) I think it's possible that the problem for someone like me is learning some healthier coping skills, instead of trying to cure sadness with alcohol. That's not a physical disease, but an emotional problem. Once it is dealt with, alcohol loses its power. For some people, though (maybe me, I don't know yet) the answer is only abstinence. I think there are many different solutions. Everyone is different.

dryjuliet

Hey

thanks for the input. I recognize my way of thinking is messed up. Im just frustrated. Why cant i be like everyone else and just have fun without making it a mess!! I have not been able to stop drinking for a month....i get so depressed on the weekend if i dont go out--since thats what my friends do ---so i end up going out. Its ridiculous. I stayed home last night instead of going out---laid on the sofa and then went to bed. I dont want to spend every weekend like this--i just have to figure out what the alternative is. My friend became angry with me when i said i was not meeting her (at a bar). She doesnt understand that i cant help having more than one drink...if im going to drink at all!!!!! (can you tell i need to vent here!)

NoelleR

"Why can't I be like everyone else?..."

Boy, do I remember that conversation [with my best (sober) friend].....it went kinda like this.............:

I said, "Why can't I be like everyone else and just have fun without making it a mess???..."

She said, "Well, dahling, it's because you're an alcoholic."

To which I said, "But, I doan wanna be a alcoholic."

To which she replied (in her best Bettye Davis voice). "Butcha are, Blanche, butcha are." ................... lol

Just a li'll levity here.... (o:


NoelleR

MrRommel

You hit how I used to drink right on the head.

For me, personally, moderation isn't something that I'm able to do easily. I'd buy a case, then be happy with one or two...until I finished them. Then I'd drink some more, then *boom!* Case is gone, and I'm staggering to the store to buy some more!

I wouldn't like the idea of MM. For me, it'd be playing russian roulette. I have a hard enough time turning down alcohol when I'm sober. Getting a slight buzz and staring at 23 cold ones in the fridge isn't a good combination. Too tempting.

MrRommel

Yeah, I have days like that as well. They suck, but what makes it better is having alternative plans that don't involve being bored out of my mind. For quite a while I felt sooo bored, I didn't have a clue what to do, until I decided that if I was going to stay sober I was going to have to think of something better to do than staring at a wall all day!

Basically, to me it sounds like you'd do well with something else fun to do that doesn't require drinking. Maybe you and your friends could go out someplace besides places that serve alcohol?

dancinggirl

dryjuliet: i'm exactly in the same position! I don't drink every day...I never wake up in the morning and want to drink....and yeeettttttt...whenever I go out on weekends, I drink a LOT! I regularly "forget" what happened for huge portions of the night. But I don't throw up. So in my head, I couldn't be an alcoholic 'cause I don't drink in the morning and I don't get sick. And yeettttttt....I found social outings a way to drink. I can easily not drink for the week....but then come the weekend and I KNOW I'll have "fun" (even if I don't remember it) on the weekend going out with my friends. Who wants to sit at home? There couldn't possibly be anything more fun than clubbing, right!? And yetttttttt.....I drink.
Guess what kiddo? I'm totally an alcoholic! lol! I just binge instead of daily drink. But the numbers still add up.....

ExxWino

I stopped drinking for about six months and thought I could handle just having one or two drinks. It started at a neighbor's barbecue. I had one glass of wine. OK, that's it. A few days later I was in a restaurant and had a glass of wine with dinner. Within two weeks I was back drinking just as much as I had before I quit. So much for MM. It took a few more months of that before I got disgusted and had to quit all over again. Now I have been alcohol free for thirteen months and I know I can't ever even have one glass. I've had enough!

mjs

there is a book titled over the influence that details harm reduction techniques and hrt has shown promise in certain situations that alera referred too (hiv prevention/drunk driving/od prevention). I was not able to apply it and had gotten to the point where I was having my wife handcuff/chain my one hand to a lolly column(the steel posts that hold up your house if it has a basement)where I could still reach the bathroom b4 i started drinking. When I broke my hand trying to get out one night that was that. My next plan found me designing a 4 point restraint system combined with a delivery system for booze. When she discovered my latest harm reduction technique she said thats it...no more alcoholic engineering for you...either get help or get out...I got help but I was so trapped in my addiction I still had to think about it...jeesh

shockozulu

Great post! It shows the plus and minus of hrt.

hrt works best for certain populations.

Its more for those who are going to use anyway to reduce the risks such as HIV with those who shoot up drugs or those who will drink and drive. For example, I know an recovering alcoholic who simply gave the keys to her roommate when she got up to go to the fridge to get her first beer. In my home, we participate in HRT. You enter my house with alcohol on your breath and I'll let you have a couple hours of free reign with my DVD collection.

There is a program in New York that participates in needle exchange but also encourages IV drug users to place others who have OD'd in a certain physical position to keep the airway open and then call EMS. They even explain how you can call 911 without being caught. This is very sad, but the truth is many drug users will abuse no matter what, and they will not take care of their friends if they think they risk going to jail. In many cases, they won't know the difference between a life threatening OD, so this program addresses this as well.

A great project by D.O.P.E (Drug Overdose Prevention Education project) is a simple double sided one page handout based on the Monopoly "CHANCE" card. It reminds the recipient that their body is free of dope and they are taking a big chance if they take the same amount of drugs they were ingesting prior to incarceration. Why? Because the body has a much lower resistance. *1

Many don't like this type of leaflet, and I can totally see their reasons but the fact is a lot of people leave prison/jail and go back to shoot up the same dosage only to die (Sid Vicious anyone?)

In other cases, there are times when it is clear the person is going to use no matter what. So there will be a friend who watches to make sure the person doesn't forget and take a double dose, or keep an eye to make sure they do not suffer an unintentional overdose (the second leading cause of accidental death in the United States after car crashes)*2.

HRT is close to my heart after taking a course on severe and persistent mental illness. The teacher had led the course with a lot of experience (worked with a state mental health hospital prior to the closing to give those leaving tools to function in the real world). He explained the course in depth and discussed the HRT options.

1 Harm Reduction Coalition - OD Prevention
Harm Reduction Coalition : HRC Resources: OD Prevention

2 Center of Disease Control Unintentional Poisoning Deaths --- United States, 1999--2004
"Effective response to increasing fatal drug overdoses requires strengthening regulatory measures to reduce unsafe use of drugs"

Ananda

Thanks Alera....I always remember that the first step to getting sober is staying alive long enough to get there. My brother probably helped to save my life by getting me to drink ensure when I couldn't hold down any food for months. Eventually I did get sober!

shockozulu

Anytime Ananda. Its not the most popular among those in recovery, for reason, but it does have its place. It can take time to be ready for recovery and HRT saves lives.

I recently read a book on the model Gia who died of HIV from shooting up and sharing a needle. Why should someone have to pay with their life down the road when they hit recovery like Gia did?

I know this firsthand as I had a dear friend Chris who died from an accidental overdose. His friend was scared of getting busted (from what we have been able to make out) so he left Chris alone unconscious inside their apartment. Chris died that night. Simply putting Chris in the correct position and sneaking his body out to the curb would most likely saved his life.

Mithra2012

I don't think moderation works for booze. I do however think it works for weed and cigarettes.

Bamboozle

I swear one of my friends is addicted to pot...she couldn't moderate if she tried...