Am I an alcoholic?

[walterppk1]

Sure I drink about the equivalent of 4 cups of hard liquor a week (say every other night) with a strong glass of REMY MARTIN or what-have-you.

Well if I am; too bad I never drink on the job (70 hrs a week) and I have been married 12 years and it really is my escape. Can anyone relate? or am I in alcoholic isolation.

I was always told that alcoholism is a for loosers but I am in a very high tax bracket (6 figures) and alcohol has not hindered it at all - in fact it relaxes me. I work out at the gym 4-5 times a week too.

thoughts?

 

[jwmorrice]

Why are you bringing the question up? Looking for permission or condemnation or what?

jwm

 

[xarir]

There`s a pretty good alcoholic thread here:

https://terb.cc/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&threadid=68126

In this thread you`ll find a link to an AA site that has a simple questionaire that probes if you are in fact alcoholic. My opinion of this questionaire is that it`s interesting but not necessarily accurate. YMMV.

IMHO if you try to go alcohol free for a few days and find that you can`t, then it`s pretty clear you`re addicted to the bottle. BTW - alcoholism isn`t only for low-income people nor are all alcoholics necessarily losers.

Lastly, how do you really know that alcohol has not hindered you at all? Can you handle stress without drinking? If you don`t have that drink will you still find a way to relax?

 

[walterppk1]

Yes, it may be. To some degree.

Can you go without it?

I stop buying it from time to time and go for a week 10 days - but then I buy again because it is part of my enjoyment.

I suppose that makes me one. Oh well only got one life to live might as well enjoy it.

1. Do you lose time from work due to drinking? - only after hours some times
2. Is drinking making your home life unhappy? - no
3. Do you drink because you are shy with other people? -no
4. Is drinking affecting your reputation? - no
5. Have you ever felt remorse after drinking? - yes
6. Have you gotten into financial difficulties as a result of drinking? - no
7. Do you turn to lower companions and an inferior environment when drinking? - no
8. Does your drinking make you careless of your family's welfare? - no
9. Has your ambition decreased since drinking? - perhaps
10. Do you crave a drink at a definite time daily? - no
11. Do you want a drink the next morning? - no
12. Does drinking cause you to have difficulty sleeping? - no
13. Has your efficiency decreased since drinking? - sometimes I think
14. Is drinking jeopardizing your job or business? - no
15. Do you drink to escape from worries or troubles?- yes in a way but I am financially independant
16. Do you drink alone? - always
17. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory as a result of drinking? - never
18. Has your physician ever treated you for drinking? - never
19. Do you drink to build up your self-confidence? - never
20. Have you ever been to a hospital or Institution on account of drinking? - never

 

[baci2004]

21. Has something happend recently to prompt the question?

 

[shack]

22. Would drinking prevent you from buying me one?

 

[canucklehead]

the fact you are asking yourself says something .... what prompted the question

 

[Willowdale]

Sure I drink about the equivalent of 4 cups of hard liquor a week (say every other night) with a strong glass of REMY MARTIN or what-have-you.

Well if I am; too bad I never drink on the job (70 hrs a week) and I have been married 12 years and it really is my escape. Can anyone relate? or am I in alcoholic isolation.

I was always told that alcoholism is a for loosers but I am in a very high tax bracket (6 figures) and alcohol has not hindered it at all - in fact it relaxes me. I work out at the gym 4-5 times a week too.

thoughts?

Non-Alcoholics do not ask themselves if they are alcoholics.

 

[Esco!]

I read somewhere that the average alcie has a higher then average IQ

 

[Esco!]

We addicts tend to be very high functioning, caring people and many of us have higher than average IQs. My opinion is that if you are using a substance as an escape, as you say you do, then you have a problem. Life is not something you should escape from, it's something you should embrace.

You may have been told or thought that addicts are losers but such is not the case. Addiction is a disease in the same way that depression or cancer are diseases - there are chemical processes at work in your body that result in you being a certain way. No one would think of calling a cancer patient a loser so why would you refer to an addict as one?

You've asked a question here about your lifestyle here at TERB. Take the next step and find out some more about yourself. What could it hurt?

I'll drink to that

 

[walterppk1]

We addicts tend to be very high functioning, caring people and many of us have higher than average IQs. My opinion is that if you are using a substance as an escape, as you say you do, then you have a problem. Life is not something you should escape from, it's something you should embrace.

You may have been told or thought that addicts are losers but such is not the case. Addiction is a disease in the same way that depression or cancer are diseases - there are chemical processes at work in your body that result in you being a certain way. No one would think of calling a cancer patient a loser so why would you refer to an addict as one?

You've asked a question here about your lifestyle here at TERB. Take the next step and find out some more about yourself. What could it hurt?

yes it is an escape or a form of leisure. I figued I was one by the strict definition but I am not sure that I am bothered by it. My step-father is 73 and he has been a drinker for over 50 years on and off. He does not drink so much any more but shows no ill effects either physically or socially.

 

[n_v]

yes it is an escape or a form of leisure. I figued I was one by the strict definition but I am not sure that I am bothered by it. My father is 73 and he has been a drinker for over 50 years on and off. He does not drink so much any more but shows no ill effects either physically or socially.

Then my guess is you are. Alcoholism is a family desease, passed on to each generation. Just because one stops drinking doesn't mean they are no longer an alcoholic.

 

[BiggieE]

We addicts tend to be very high functioning, caring people and many of us have higher than average IQs. My opinion is that if you are using a substance as an escape, as you say you do, then you have a problem. Life is not something you should escape from, it's something you should embrace.

You may have been told or thought that addicts are losers but such is not the case. Addiction is a disease in the same way that depression or cancer are diseases - there are chemical processes at work in your body that result in you being a certain way. No one would think of calling a cancer patient a loser so why would you refer to an addict as one?

You've asked a question here about your lifestyle here at TERB. Take the next step and find out some more about yourself. What could it hurt?

....damn.....I need a drink....

 

[booboobear]

Then my guess is you are. Alcoholism is a family desease, passed on to each generation. Just because one stops drinking doesn't mean they are no longer an alcoholic.

We know the classic AA definition but I think the label is not so important . That amount of alcohol has an affect on the liver.
I have over indulged myself in alcohol and other things .
The question I would ask is, do I think what I am doing is good for me and if I don't think it it is do I want to stop.

 

[Dodger]

Speaking as an Alcoholic, it has been about 25 years since I had a drink. If you are questioning yourself then you may have a problem.

When I went through a program the people in my group were varied. We had a former CEO of a top 100 company (he was retired not fired) a musician (classical guiter) a shipping supervisor a grand mother etc etc etc.

The disease does not have social or economic barriers, nor is it strictly a genetic thing either, although a pattern is usually established from what we see family members doing.

The range of alcohol that is consumed for someone that is an alcoholic is also varied. In my group there was the "mickey" a month at one time, the four martini lunch, to the 26'er a night or 24 on a weekend. So the amount of the drink is not necessarily the issue. If it causes you a problem then it is a problem.

I tried AA and they were a little too religious for me, I tried ARF (Addiction Research Foundation) easy to fool and ended up at The Donwood Centre. Great people and a program that works. They have an in patient and an out patient service. It is a little pricey but worth it in the long run.

I still get the urge, usually on a hot day in the summer when a beer would go nice. But as quick as it appears it goes away now.

If you feel you have a problem talk to a professional, your doctor or a physcologist. They can usually help you with the issues and yes that is what I did with the help of my family. After my session with the shrink I asked him if I was nuts and he said no I had drinking problem. Best $200.00 for 45 minutes that I had spent at that time in my life. (I have since learned that the same amount will get me a real nice lady to take care of my stress hehehe)

 

[Bud Plug]

Yes, you are.

 

[Esco!]

We know the classic AA definition but I think the label is not so important . That amount of alcohol has an affect on the liver.
I have over indulged myself in alcohol and other things .
The question I would ask is, do I think what I am doing is good for me and if I don't think it it is do I want to stop.

Take Lecithin and Silymarin (herb), these 2 will protect your liver

 

[Esco!]

Silymarin also goes by the name of Milk Thistle

 

[DonAngelo]

22. Would drinking prevent you from buying me one?

100. Do you behave like Steve-O when you drink?
101. Buying just a 6pack seems absurd to you?

...now to be serious.

A shure sign of physical addiction are the following symptoms:

1. Shaky hands or a feelings of anxiety or restlesness in the morning or after you wake up, which will subside when you drink.

2. You can't stop after one or two drinks.

3. Frequent vomitting and the feeling of nausea.

4. Halluzinations

5. A compulsion to drink and your thinking revolves around alcohol most of the times and about securing your supply.

...living as an alcoholic is pure hell and the biggest part of the drama is hidden most of the times from the people around you. They only see the tip of the iceberg, but they do not know how you really suffer. You know that you can't live without booze and you know that if you continue you'll die. You bend over the toilet and you are relieved that you didn't puke blood yet. You made it one more time...

 

[einar]

We all find various ways to escape our lives. Art is one for me, and is socially acceptable. Seeing escorts is another, and it is socially unacceptable. Reading TERB is yet another escape, and secret.

Drinking alcohol is a tricky one in our society, because it is both socially acceptable and socially unacceptable: the line in between is thin.

We use the word "addiction" all too freely nowadays, in my opinion. But I would also agree with the sentiment that if your drinking bothers you, which it sometimes seems to, you should decide if you want to drink less, or stop.

But it also sounds as if your objective drinking habits are very modest, and are scarcely impeding the rest of your life.

Brave of you to begin such a thread, though!