are you an alcoholic?

[Marvin]

Be honest - do you drink too much?

[hpulley]

I don't think I drink too much. Average 2 a day which is about what's recommended for a man of my weight.

Harry

[Paul A Jellis]

To quote a well know 'drinker' - 'I don't drink too much, I drink enough'

Cheers, Paul

[Mr Fjeld]

The obvious answer would be no I guess since alcoholism involves denial. I drink every other weekend so the answer is no. To ask if someone is an alcoholic is funny and almost if you were to ask if someone is too fat. The obvious answer is that I'm not really fat - I'm just not tall enough .......

[Drrich1965]

One can only judge addiction by the biological, psychological, and social consequences of the behavior. With alcoholism, one would also have to have tolerance (needing more and more over time to achieve the same effect), and have withdrawal symptoms. Not a concept to be taken lightly.

Also, one can drink too much, but not be an alcoholic.

[Ardbeg311]

I agree with Drrich1965. We all know college students who can certainly pack it away on a college weekend (i.e, Thu-Sun), but who would not necessarily be classified as alcoholics. On the flip side there are those who would be considered alcoholics even though they don't drink at all -- recovering alcoholics. So much depends, as Drrich1965 said, on what that drink means for the individual and its social-biological consequences.

[Mr Fjeld]

To be fair there really is no obvious answer as to how to define "alcoholism" ? Sure, some sort of dependency or addiction is needed but there are certainly differences - and some of them cultural. A glass or two of wine every day as is usual in the latin countries in Europe would for sure be thought of as mild alchololism by many people in Norway. I don't agree with that myself but one can argue that if you need a cigarette or two a day then you are addicted to nicotin.

[Marvin]

I find I binge drink and then have a few days where I cant go near alcohol.

[Di Blasi]

Do you drink for the taste or for the high is another question. If you drink, then lose control, not knowing when to stop, and not able to control your behavior, this too is a sign. Yes, it seems here in Norway alcoholism is having a whisky everyday, but drinking 7, or 10 or 20 on a Friday night is a-ok! Do you have to drink? Can you not cope without it? Do you know your limit?

[Thesh]

I've had months where I hadn't gone a day without a drink.

The answer is no.

[Badmonkey]

No

[Whiskana]

I could go a couple of weeks without drinking any alcohol. Then again I could taste whisky every day of the week a dram or two if I feel like it. I never get drunk ( much ) drinking whisky and I rarely drink the other stuff (rum, beer, cider, wine...)

So...no.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

In Ireland we have a culture of high alcohol intake. It usually is a very social event, however you do see a lot of people drinking to get legless which is a bit cracked if you ask me.

I probably do drink too much. For example on Satuday I was at a Wedding. Had 4 pints of Guinness, 3 Glasses of wine, 4 bottles of beer and 7 whiskies. This was over a 10hour period and we have big meal and sandwiches later on in the night so I was not drunk after ... just tired Woke up the next morning clear as a whistle. However I've had 3-4 pint on nights and woke up with hang overs

Sometimes I can drink 2-3 drams a night for a couple of weeks but I find I get tired of drinking constsantly and take a break and may not drink for a couple of weeks. But an average is 2 drinks 3-4 times a week.

[Dubois]

One , maximum two (small) drams a day , so:NO!

[TheLaddie]

No I don't. I drink about 7 to 10 units a week, but that does include a small dram most nights. I rarely drink more than that unless there is a tasting on. Honest.

I am a doctor however so I don't expect anyone to seriously belive that...

My tip. Keep your liver in good condition and you'll still be enjoying your dram in many years time.

[bamber]

I drink too much. Probably around 30 - 35 units a week. Do I have a problem ? Maybe. Is it too much ? Probably. Am I worried ? Moderately.

I like IWC wedding stats. Man after my own heart:

Litres pure EtOH:

(4 * 0.568 * 0.042) + (3 * 0.175 * 0.11) + (4 * 0.33 * 0.05) + (7 * 0.025 * 0.4) = 0.2892.

That's 29 units or a bottle of whiskey, with a whiskey chaser

[maverick]

For me it depends on the occasion. If I'm out with friends it's more likely to happen than in any other case. In all other scenarios I don't get drunk. For example I've yet to be drunk on whiskey. I won't allow myself because whiskey for me = pleasure which means I take my time with it and so I can easily sense when I should stop.

Also I'm a small guy so my liquid intake isn't high, this means I've never really been drunk on beer because for that to happen I need to drink more beer than my stomach will allow. I guess I'm made so that I can only get drunk on shots.
My answer is definitely no(in general).

[Scotty Mc]

Monday to Thursday I don't drink at all.

Friday I'll maybe have 3-4 pints, Saturday I'll have the same and a few drams and Sunday again, 3-4 pints.

Even though I consider it a lot to drink, it is far less than I used to drink. I found that I was wanting a drink every night instead of feeling like one

[irishwhiskeychaser]

I drink too much. Probably around 30 - 35 units a week. Do I have a problem ? Maybe. Is it too much ? Probably. Am I worried ? Moderately.

I like IWC wedding stats. Man after my own heart:

Litres pure EtOH:

(4 * 0.568 * 0.042) + (3 * 0.175 * 0.11) + (4 * 0.33 * 0.05) + (7 * 0.025 * 0.4) = 0.2892.

That's 29 units or a bottle of whiskey, with a whiskey chaser

So your telling me I exceeded my weekly allowance in one night .... oh well .... I'll have to ban myself from weddings in the future ....

[TheLaddie]

For the record. UK recommended safe levels of alcohol consumption are 21 units per week for a man, 14 units per week for a female.

Public service announcement ends

[Deactivated Member]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

[Marvin]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

Nope.

[Deactivated Member]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

Nope.

What about 35 and 28?

[TheLaddie]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

Sorry but no. This was the case briefly in the late 90s but the recommendations were soon pegged back again.

As for drinking patterns. It is not recommended that you have all your units in one or two hits and drink nothing for the rest of the week. You are supposed to spread it out through the week and have one or two alcohol free days a week.

Drink quality, not quantity is my mantra.

[Marvin]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

Nope.

What about 35 and 28?

Who are you, George Best's ghost?

[TheLaddie]

I though it had been revised to 28 and 21?? Hope so

Nope.

What about 35 and 28?

Who are you, George Best's ghost?

I think there would be a zero at the end of each number if that were the case

[Muskrat Portage]

Personally, no, I do not consider that I am an "alky" nor do I come close to the proposed limits found in both Canada or the UK. I generally have maybe three units in a week. During a tasting I intake 6 - 8 units of single malt in a single sitting, which occurs twice a year.

A CTV article submits that alcohol consumption in Canada has increased by 13% since 1997, with nearly 5000 dying each year prematurely from the effects of alcohol, being 5 times that of illicit drug deaths. It is further proposed in the article that no more than two standard drinks a day (a bottle of beer or a medium glass of wine being one standard drink). The limits per week being 9 for women and 14 for men. This is opposed to 14 units for women and 21 units per man described by Laddie.
Canadian stats derived from CTV website:
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/s ... /20051216/

... With alcoholism, one would also have to have tolerance (needing more and more over time to achieve the same effect), and have withdrawal symptoms...

This is substantiated by the impact of alcohol I've personally seen in persons incarcerated for public enebriation in my past employment in Correctional Services during the 1980's. It is amazing how much alcohol can be ingested as the tolerance levels rise over the years and the sad effects, including Korsakoff's syndrome (alcohol-related dementia) in severe alcohol abusers. The impact of FAS (Fetal alcohol syndrome) on unborn foetuses is another result of high alcohol intake which has a big impact on both the future of the child and health care and is completely preventable by the mother. Withdrawal symptoms are not a pretty sight either.

With this in mind, one can't take the impact of alcohol abuse on society (including the cost in both human terms and to the medical support system) in our respective countries, too lightly.

My personal perspective being that moderation will extend the enjoyment of Single malts well into my mature years. (Damn! I may already be there!)
Muskrat Portage

[Deactivated Member]

My personal perspective being that moderation will extend the enjoyment of Single malts well into my mature years. (Damn! I may already be there!)

You wish....

[TheLaddie]

My personal perspective being that moderation will extend the enjoyment of Single malts well into my mature years. (Damn! I may already be there!)

You wish....

Actually the good news is that a study about ten years ago showed that people who drank around 3-12 units a week had a better life expectancy than teetotallers.

[Deactivated Member]

I meant he wishes he was mature!

[TheLaddie]

I meant he wishes he was mature!

I thought so but I couldn't think of anything to say about that and thought it was a point well worth making so just did it anyway...

[Muskrat Portage]

My personal perspective being that moderation will extend the enjoyment of Single malts well into my mature years. (Damn! I may already be there!)

You wish....

Actually the good news is that a study about ten years ago showed that people who drank around 3-12 units a week had a better life expectancy than teetotallers.

The Laddie: I like the sound of your study better.
(Bruce, the Peter Pan syndrome affects all of us, does it not?)
Peter

[EdipisReks]

i usually have a dram or two in the evening. on Mondays and Tuesdays, which are 14 hour days for me right now, between work and classes, i'll sometimes get a little tipsy, but rarely more. i don't really get drunk more than 3 or 4 times a year at parties.

[Elagabalus]

I met my girlfriend at a party. She was the life of the party and not bad looking either. We started seeing each other and whenever we went out she would always drink alot.

I drank daily then as I do now. After a year we moved in together and that is when I realised that my girlfriend doesnt just go out and have a few too many. She drank alot and all the time, but her high tolerance made it possible for her to do this.

After 8 months of HELL I moved out. We stayed together though but couldnt live together. In July 2006 she told me she wanted to quit drinking. I had told her I would leave her if she didnt. So she was given some pills that were supposed to reduce her alcohol cravings. Librium were the name of the pills. She ended up taking those and drinking at the same time. By the end of August she was in a rehab facility. She was kicked out of the detox part before she was accepted into the actual rehab.

They gave her more drugs. Clonidine, Valium, and Trazedone and told her to take these for anxiety, to help her sleep, and to reduce the effects of alcohol withdrawl. She ended up taking these pills and drinking. She would be going to a new rehab Oct 2nd 2006.

On Friday Sept 15th 2006 I called her house to talk to her. Her dad picked up. I asked how he was doing, and he replied "Not good"
He told me Janice (my gf) was in a coma in the hospital.

My gf died Sept 17th 2006. Her nervous system shut down. Some guy she had met at the old rehab had come over and had given her some percocet pills. (oxycodone)

She died a month shy of her 21st birthday.

It's been a little over 2 months now. I still miss her. We had been going out for 2.5 years.

I drink daily. I can't sleep otherwise.

A therapist told me that you know you are not addicted to something if you can go without it for 1 full month. She said there is no possible excuse that anyone can give. Even if someone says oh I could go a full month but why should I, I like alcohol and dont have a problem.

Thus, test yourselves if you would like. If you are truly not an alcoholic you can easily do one month without booze. If not......

[Deactivated Member]

That's a terribly sad story, E. You have my sympathy.