Guest Posted March 20, 2007 Share Posted March 20, 2007 I am 23 and I have realized that my drinking has gotten kind of out of control. I would not say I am an alcoholic, b/c I do not drink often enough and I do not drink for any other reason to have fun or enhance my experiences. I could be wrong though. I really want to quit drinking b/c I do things I wouldn't normally do and stay up all night and morning long sometimes and I act like an idiot. All my friends say that I am being to hard on myself. I can remember when it wasn't like this. I used to just drink socially, but now it is really taking a toll on me. I don't wanna drink but, I also can't find anything to do on the weekends. it seems like that is all people my age do!! I feel like if I stop drinking I have to give up a large part of my social life. Has anyone else gone through this and if so how did you handle it? Link to post Share on other sites
tommyr Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 my 2 suggestions: 1) honestly answer these 20 questions http://www.step12.com/alcoholic-20-questions.html 2) goto one AA meeting After doing both of those, you should know either way if you are alcoholic Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Take it easy. Nobody is an alcoholic at the age of 23, and since you apparently don't drink every day, I'd take your friends advice and not be so hard on yourself. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Take it easy. Nobody is an alcoholic at the age of 23, and since you apparently don't drink every day, I'd take your friends advice and not be so hard on yourself. That is just not true... I was 23 when I quit drinking ... I was very Alcoholic.. I have been sober for 20 years this June 28th. I started drinking Alcoholically at age 19.. I never drank in the morning or at work ( unless there was a party there ) but I drank in binges... Trust me when I say that I have had enough Alcohol in me for a lifetime.. Here is a statement or phrase that I want you to remember as you and only you can tell yourself if you are an Alcoholic : If you ever ask yourself or another person if you have a drinking problem then you do.. Someone that does not have a drinking problem doesn't ask themselves that question. I went to AA.. did 90 meetings in 90 days and adopted the 12 step program as my system of stability to keep me sober. I also kept going once a week for years and I still do meetings when I need them and I do some 12th stepping.. I would suggest hitting an AA meeting and just speak up in the meeting.. you will meet enough good people there by speaking up to get your bearings on whether or not you need to quit. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Take it easy. More like " easy does it ".. that is what we say in AA Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 my 2 suggestions: 1) honestly answer these 20 questions http://www.step12.com/alcoholic-20-questions.html 2) goto one AA meeting After doing both of those, you should know either way if you are alcoholic Excellent post and advice.. great link... thanks.. Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 "I never drank in the morning or at work ( unless there was a party there ) but I drank in binges..." That's me I usually do fine until the bars close, but I always find somewhere else to go and the party goes on way tooooo long. I don't think I really care if I am an alcoholic or not. I know I want to stop doing what I am doing I just don't wanna loose my social life. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 You don't even know how much the PO drinks. Two glasses of wine a day will prolong your life. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 You don't even know how much the PO drinks. Two glasses of wine a day will prolong your life. I was posting to your post that you said that 23 is too young to be an drunk.. How much someone drinks isn't what is the deciding factor to whether or not they are an Alcoholic.. He might be a drunk.. a problem drinker .. or just a phase that a young person is going thru.. I am living proof that he is NOT too young.. Why would you also assume that he doesn't have a problem ?.. he is on a web forum asking.. that alone says he thinks he has a problem Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 You don't even know how much the PO drinks. Two glasses of wine a day will prolong your life. The jury is still out on that.. provide proof of that please.. If a person drinks 2 glasses of wine for his entire life then I would think he is an Alcoholic.. That same person could also go into the DT's if the Alcohol removed.. say if he was hospitalized.. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 All right, very, very few 23 years old are alcoholics. It takes many years. At that age, excessive drinking is a habit, not an addiction. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 All right, very, very few 23 years old are alcoholics. It takes many years. At that age, excessive drinking is a habit, not an addiction. Please provide proof...I know many.. Go to an AA meeting.. they are full of them Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 The jury is still out on that.. provide proof of that please.. If a person drinks 2 glasses of wine for his entire life then I would think he is an Alcoholic.. That same person could also go into the DT's if the Alcohol removed.. say if he was hospitalized.. Proof; this is not interesting enough for me to bother, so feel free to disbelieve me, but this is fairly well documented. Two glasses is in the lower end, some research says three or four. And no, you don't get DT by cold turkeying two glasses of wine, you'd need to drink a couple of bottles daily. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Please provide proof...I know many.. Go to an AA meeting.. they are full of them They have issues. Another cultural thing I guess, I've been living in rural France, they drink like camels, 2-3 bottles a day is not uncommon. You'd call them alcoholics I guess, they'd call you a hysteric. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 And no, you don't get DT by cold turkeying two glasses of wine, you'd need to drink a couple of bottles daily. You are flat out wrong.... My Mom who is an RN has had to many patients to count that only have a couple of beers or drinks a day and they have gone into DT's when they are put in the hospital. It isn't about the amount as much as the habit of your body relying on it.. this is not interesting enough for me to bother Please.. if this thread is of not enough interest to you to post your references then please do the OP a favor and move on to another thread.. I find your disregard for the posters well being distasteful . you also are not speaking out of experience.. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Fair. And don't assume, that's disregardful. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 I'll return with the references, if I can find them. One of them is a longitutional study where 15.000 people have been followed regularly over more than 20 years. It has been corroborated by other, very extensive studies. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 And no, you don't get DT by cold turkeying two glasses of wine, you'd need to drink a couple of bottles daily. I would like to point out that someone who does drink a couple of bottles a day would be the usual suspect for the DT's.. but I also know that someone who drinks lightly everyday their whole life is also a candidate for the DT's.. I would get the DT's when I was coming off a binge.. and I never drank 2 bottles a day Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Yes, I'd agree with you that a couple of bottles technically makes an alcoholic, and probably would make for DT in case of abstinence, but these people live normal, functional lives. Driving heavy machinery, hehe. The human body has an enormous capacity for sustaining abuse. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 I drank six glasses for a period of 12 years and cut cold when I got an off-shore job. Had the shakes for a week or so, no big deal. Drinking socially today. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 I drank six glasses for a period of 12 years and cut cold when I got an off-shore job. Had the shakes for a week or so, no big deal. Drinking socially today. I would agree that the DT's taken to the true medical definition would require a more physical addiction to alcohol.. the more known definition of the DT's is severe withdrawals.. I would consider the shakes for a week or so the DT's or at the very least severe withdrawals.. How is your liver ? have you had it tested lately ?.. I'll bet anything it is enlarged if you did drink 6 beers a day for 20 years.. Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 Probably. My liver hasn't been talking to me for a bit. I don't say six glasses a day is healthy. For 12 years, not 20. And yes, beer is more damaging than wine, but still one or two beers a day makes you live longer. Link to post Share on other sites
Art_Critic Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 For 12 years, not 20. Opps.. Sorry.. my typo Link to post Share on other sites
Erik Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 When you say DT, I'm thinking hallucinations and such. Link to post Share on other sites
Trialbyfire Posted March 21, 2007 Share Posted March 21, 2007 my 2 suggestions: 1) honestly answer these 20 questions http://www.step12.com/alcoholic-20-questions.html 2) goto one AA meeting After doing both of those, you should know either way if you are alcoholic Excellent advice. My ex has a cousin in AA. He's in his twenties too. Link to post Share on other sites
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