Alcoholic?!
Alcoholic?
I drink 4-6 beers everyday Sunday through Thursday consistently. On Friday and Saturday I drink 8-12 beers. I am 27. I have been drinking like this for three years. When I stop drinking I swear I fell anxious and nervous, but sometimes I think its just mental. What should I do I feel like I drink way too much. I am responsible I think, have a good job I am a college grad, I have never gotten into trouble because of alcohol, eg. DUI, Domestic Violence, Tickets, Blackouts, Fights, etc. none of that, no problems with the law or family or friends but I still feel like I drink way too much, Any suggestions?
Answers: I don't know the answer to your question . . . but I can tell you that I am an alcoholic (recovering), and you just described MY drinking behavior to a T. Only at night, never during the day, responsible, good job (doctorate level degree), no trouble with the law, etc. . . . . . . when I was 27.
When I finally quit at 38 I still drank about the same amount, but things definitely got worse during those 11 years. I only drank at night . . . but I started having blackouts. I never got a DUI . . . because I never went anywhere anymore. I never had problems with friends . . . . because I'd slowly given them all up.
I don't know if you'll follow my same path or not. Right now I'd say it's a good bet that you will, and if you do I can tell you it will not be a lot of fun. Maybe you can forstall it by cutting down now. If you find you can't cut down, well, there's your answer . . . . you're an alcoholic. If that's the case, I can tell you, with 9 years sober, that AA worked for me. If you want to live more years, get rid of alcohol totally for the rest of your life. You won't die for that matter. Drop a beer or two per day. See if you are okay with just 2-3 a day.
Then maybe drop another one a few weeks/months later.
I'm not nagging or anything, but that is a lot of drinking. You do drink more than is recommended, but people react differently. The anxious feelings are definitely withdrawal. You are in for a rough ride if you continue drinking this amount for a long time, and then stop. You are lucky that your drinking hasn't affected your life in any way. Is it possible that people are concerned about you, but don't know what to say? You are 27 after all, and a lot of 27 year olds drink a lot. At least you are aware you should cut back. You don't want to reach 40 then realise you are an alcoholic. I went into recovery at age 30 because alcohol was affecting my life indirectly (depression, hangovers, no energy). Try to cut back a bit and if you can't stop once you crack open the bottle, don't open it. Good luck. drink 2 beers a day Just as with cigarettes, alcohol is just as bad for your body, any Dr. will tell you that. Social drinking isn't so bad, but when done daily it does. I've known people who were just like you, and they quit cold turkey. They didn't want to become so dependent on it and become a true alcoholic. I wish you luck in whatever you decide to do. I have known people who drank regular who ended up dying because of the effects on alcohol on their body. It was too far gone to help them over something that wouldn't have killed them otherwise. Never drink and drive for one. And never ever feel the urge to hit someone.
drink too be merry and not to be jerry. I would say if you yourself feel that you are drinking too much that would be a good indicator that you are probably overdoing it. We for the most part are good at telling ourselves when "some thing is not good for us" and that can fall into alot of categories however we do not always listen to that little voice inside ourselves telling us this. But you seem to have a good head on your shoulders and a good life going for your self. There is nothing wrong with having a little fun every once and awhile however if you know your over doing anything cut back. That could include food, exercise, watching too much tv, not spending enough time with your family whatever. In this case it just happens to be alchohol. You know what you need to do. Good luck. yea you are but i would suggest a drinking one or two instead of 4 or 6. try working out it works, you dont really wanna drink after you spent a few hours in the gym workin your *** off. i drink alot too. and during the summer it was even worse. i got a dui and i still drank....maybe even more. Its not to late for you to realize it and slow it down. im not even leagal to drink for another 16 days bro. so drink some water and try not to drink during the week days(mon - thurs) have fun. and remember that anything is good in moderation. its just that some things are hard to moderate. If you feel like you drink way too much you probably do. Max 2 beers a day, at least one day of NO alcohol should be the general rule. Obviously if you're going out 8-12 beers isn't excessive, though probably unhealthy. But if you wanna keep doing that of a Friday and Saturday night, I'd go for no more than 2 beers on weeknights or you're going to become an alcoholic. That is, if you're not already, because feeling anxious when you don't drink sounds a bit dodgy to me...why don't you see if you can go a week without alcohol or something. No one can tell you if you are an alcoholic....
Not even another alcoholic....
but here is a good indicator.....
If your not drinking, can you have fun and not think about drinking? or do you think "This would be better with a beer?"
If the latter is the case, you might want to check out an AA meeting - and tell them just what you said here.
Be well - Peace Take a nutrition class at your local J.C. You will learn more than you ever wanted to know about why drinking that much is terrible for your body. Or just do some research on the net. It scared me away from the booze! Listen your fine your just trying to have a good time as long as you dont chug liqueur everyday your golden Seek opinions from trusted friends that have known you before you started drinking. Ask for candid feedback. You'll never see it coming (alcoholism) yourself...but it is plain as day to others. I worried about the same thing...my parents were WAY over the edge. Stress from work will make you want to drink. Seek stress management in conjunction with abuse awareness. I changed jobs/wife/life....and don't drink any where near the amount I used to. Good luck. two summers ago, I worked house construction. On the way back from a site, my 47 year old coworker/guy driving pulls into a gas station to buy a 40 of bud to drink WHILE driving back. He was an alcoholic... I'm not going to say you're an alcoholic but the 4-6 during the week is totally expendable. yeah, 1 a day is acceptable but a sixpack after work? I feel you. I personally have cut down to 4-6 beers a day and sometimes will break for a few weeks period. I dealt with the same question you have. I have anxiety disorder and it developed early in my 20's. THere is no set amount of alcohol for a person to drink that makes them an alcoholic. Ask yourself this. Do you have anxiety because of drinking or do you drink to mask your anxiety. I self medicated with alcohol.That is a problem. If that answer is no, my best advice is to take a break. If you handle it ok and have no withdraws and you feel as if you just enjoy it, then go for it. To be honest if you are asking yourself or others, as I did, it usually means you do have a problem. Get support from friends or family. Take care of yourself and don't worry too much about what others think. You sound responsible enough to figure it out.