Am I An Alcoholic?

[Dusty Bin]

I'm drinking 2-3 vodkas at home most nights of the week, but I want to stop.

How can I?

Who can help me to stop?

[Ethel]

Speak to your GP, get blood tests to make sure your liver is ok, and try alcoholics anonymous.

[fine,thanks]

do you mean 2. 3 glasses a night ? ill bet a lot of people on site drink more than that.

[Ethel]

It makes no difference how much a person drinks - but if the drinking is a compulsion and it is difficult not to have that drink, there is a problem that needs dealing with.

[bensmum]

I agree with ethel here - if you feel that you need to drink and need help to stop then you could have a problem. Alcoholics Anonymous could help or you could try your GP. Ultimately though you have to want to stop and the only person who can do it is you.

[Dusty Bin]

It is usually only 2 or 3, but sometimes 5 or 6.

I am afraid to go to my doctor as I get on really well with him. I had a medical recently and told him I don't drink that much that often, but I do. I'm afraid to go back to him now and tell him the truth, and even then I don't think I would be able to tell him the truth when it came to the time.

[Ethel]

Your doctor won't be surprised - he has heard this many many times before.

It is important that you have blood tests to see how your liver is working - if it is fine, there are drugs that he could prescribe to help get over your drinking.

If it isn't fine, you need help.

But as I said - he will not be in the least bit surprised to hear you have been drinking more than you have told him previously. And he won't think any less of you for telling the truth now.

[dot.hawkes]

Don't buy it in, that is the best way

[Panic Button]

Don't have any alcohol available in the house at all. If it is there it calls out to you.
It is easier to stick to your guns when temptation is removed.

[jake-the-peg]

I used to drink - quite a lot. I suppose in an average week I got through maybe a litre of sprits, a few bottles of wine and some beers.

Not exactly waking up in the gutter every morning but quite a lot.

I realised I had a problem when I realised that I couldn't remember the last time I'd gone 24 hours without a drink - it'd certainly been over 2 years.

I decided to stop as cutting down hadn't worked. First time was 10 months and I thought I could handle just social drinking - I couldn't.

I tried again a year or two later. This time with more sucess - so far it's been over 6 years.

For me the key was realising that
a) There was a problem
b) the only solution was to admit (and tell other people) that I'd had my last drink - ever, not Christmas, not Birthdays not ever.

Whether you're an alcoholic depends less on how much you drink but more on your pattern of drinking - sounds like you might have a problem if you're asking the question.

GP's probably not a bad idea AA tend to have a rather religious perspective that you might find unhelpful.

I found the biggest handicap was people around me - If you tell people you've given up smoking they don't tend to say "Go on a little one won't hurt" and try to push you into it - they do with drink.

I was lucky that most people around me were supportive - I think that's quite important

Good luck

[jake-the-peg]

Just saw what you wrote about your GP.

If you're going to stop drinking you're going to have to tell your friends why.

If you can't start by telling one who's also your GP you're lost before you start.

I do understand that it can be hard telling people that you've got an alcohol problem - they'll tend to say "no you don't, maybe you drink too much but don't we all" because they picture an alcoholic as a drunk in the gutter and it's uncomfortable as it makes them consider their own drinking, whether you're being neurotic or superior or something.

But trust me it gets easier with time, I tend to say these days if people ask "I've drunk my share and now I'm passing the batton to a younger generation" and smile and that's normally it.

There are compensationsthough , not least the money you save and I'm probably 3 stone lighter now - mind you the price of soft drinks in pubs is outrageous!