kwIII

Seriously, after getting my second dui I have learned that I am. I am the type of guy who "can't just have one beer". It sucks because I do love the taste of beer but I think if I ever have another sip all my plans for the future will go down the tubes...I have already screwed them up as it is but there is still definate hope and I am going to just keep on trucking

legolas

I'm not a true alcoholic... but I love to drink. I can definetly handle it and control though. Drinking is just so much freaking fun.

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"To alcohol! The cause of, and solution to, all of life's problems."

Latch

I know this probably won't compare (I've never tried the stuff).. but can you drink near-beer (Non-alcohol) stuff?

mirevolver

Although I enjoy drinking, I am not an alcoholic. I know when it's time to cut myself off. And when I've had too much that I wouldn't trust myself to drive.

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Aside from my great plans to become the future dictator of the moon, I have little interest in political discussions.

kwIII

I have thought about it....but just water when I go out for awhile until I am comfortable not drinking

Plan9Senior

It wasn't until recently when I made a conscious decision to not drink as much when I realized that I was starting to head in that direction of an alcoholic. I found it very hard to restrict my drinking which is why I am glad I changed my habits when I did. My father is a recovering alcoholic and I have heard the many bad stories that plagued him during his times of alcoholism. Good luck to you in changing your ways kwlll.

theinfamous

i drink a lot on the weekends, but not enough to consider myself an alcoholic. if everyday was a weekend then...heh

kwIII

thanks I appreciate it. It is kinda weird because they say the majority of alcoholics are geneticaly predisposed, but no one in my family has a history, or there are just skeletons in the closet

KeyserSoze

<<<< SOBER Eight years and 10 months

I know how you feel bro, I was like that but with Jack Daniels. Once I had one shot...that was all she wrote....next thing you know "Last call"

If thats your second duece, might I suggest a TAXI. It's just a matter of time if you keep rolling the dice that you will get craps.

Been there......done that...........had it...lost it all..........but now I got it back and have no intention of losing it again

Feel free to pm if you need someonr to talk to.

Be safe

KS

__________________
THERE IS NO KEYSER SOZE!!

kwIII

thanks alot ...I have been sober for 2 months now, I guess I just need to take it day by day

KeyserSoze

Two months...CONGRATS!!

Sometimes these are the toughest. So we take it a minute at a time.

Remember it's the little things in life you need to appreciate, like waking up in the morning alive.

Be safe and call on me ANYTIME I don't care what time it is if you need help.

Sending you my number

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THERE IS NO KEYSER SOZE!!

spectre

I don't drink any alcohol, so no.

__________________
"Fuck these chains
No goddamn slave
I will be different" ~ Machine Head

YourNeverThere

I'm sort of an alcoholic, Meaning i get drunk everytime the situation will allow. Thing with me is this: if I have one drink, I have to drink more, I really can't control it, BUT I can control having one drink for some reason. If I don't start then I'm fine. I have been tested on this fact more times that I can count. I'm the DD every single time I go anywhere, I am the only one that drives anywhere in my circle of friend except for the rare occations. Many of my friends are raging alcoholics restrained only by lack of money, so manly all we ever do is go to people houses and drink, and I never do, becuase I have to drive. Sometimes though, I won't have to drive, but I just don't really like the situation, strange vibes, might have to drive at short notice, things like that, and I can not drink if I need, so basicly, I am an alchoholic, and also not.
P.S. Jack Daniels is also my bane, and favorite. If I have one sip its over. Also the drunk I get from it is very violent, bad bad bad many bad choices I have mad under the influence of this drunk.
P.S.S Drunk right now, I hit quote three times to edit in that first P.S

__________________
The Above post is a direct quote from Shakespeare

World's King

I'm an Alcoholic.


I've been working on my drinking for almost 5 years now. I'll quit someday. As for right now... It's one of the only things in my life I still enjoy.

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heavy is the head that wears the crown

IC3

I have the occasional drink..So no I am not an Alcoholic, I just don't like the buzz you get from Liqour...Now if this were a thread about Smoking Pot....But it's not so.....

The Answer is no.

jimk

just over 5 months clean & sober here.......i quit drinking a few years back, but kept on doin' drugs until march of this year.

the only way i was able to finally make a real go at being sober was being confronted with losing everything that means anything to me in life. i knew that if i picked up again, i wouldn't come back for a while, and it'd all be gone.

it sounds like you're running into that wall with some things you value - your plans, driving. if you think you REALLY ARE alcoholic, believe me, at some point, if you let it run its course, you WILL lose everything. it's just the way we drunks & junkies are - really have to get hit with a 2x4 to comprehend what is obvious to others.

i wish you the best, drop me a pm if you're feelin' tested.......

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raw power is a guaranteed o.d.

raw power is a laughin' at you & me

-iggy

A. Rothschild

I was an alcoholic... I got kicked out of school and realized, that I was screwing my life very seriously up. It ended with three months wihtout alcohol and now I only drink in weekends and not very often. It was a tough time getting through, those three months.

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Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for company.

smoothcap

Sober for over 15 years now...

Cynthetiq

i love to drink.. but have not been drinking for several months now due to medical reasons.

day to day... take it slow.

__________________
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Randerolf

My father is an alcoholic. He's sober now, but I never wanted to be like him so I never touched the stuff until last year.

From what I hear, when people are first getting clean, they avoid ALL alcohol. No cooking with the stuff (despite it burning out) etc etc.

This is not advice, its just what I've seen.

Good luck amigo.

kwIII

yeah this what I am faced with, everything in my life has been put on hold which sucks because I am already behinf as it is( 25 and still havn't graduated from college). I didn't learn my lesson the first time, friends and family had confronted me about it but I didn't want to listen. Unfortunitly it took this as a swift kick in the ass to get me to realize my situation, I am very thankfull I never hurt anybody but myself, things could have been much worse.....


also, to the person who said they can't stop once he/she starts..that is my same problem, I didn't HAVE to always have a drink, I didn't wake up in the morning and drank to get started, for me it was the times when I DID drink I COULDN'T CONTROL IT, but I also drank to drown away any problems I was having...this is what makes me an alcoholic

sexymama

Not an alcoholic -- but was married to one. Believe me, it can ruin a relationship! On top of that we watched his mother die of alcoholism. Believe me that is not a pretty picture!

CONGRATULATIONS for taking the steps to take care of yourself. You are worth it!

__________________
If you can go deeply into lovemaking, the ego disappears. That is the beauty of lovemaking, that it is another source of a glimpse of god

It's not about being perfect; it's about developing some skill at managing imperfection.

KeyserSoze

The STUFF you lose you can always get back......it's the life you take or your own that you can't.


I was one step from the gutter nine years ago, I lost a business, friends, family, house, car and most of all ME.

Now I have a nice place to live, pain in the ass job that pays me really well, friends that appreciate me and trust me, I help others less fortunate then myself, people that come to me for help and advice and tomorrow night I have a thousand dollar call girl coming to pay me a visit

Sobriety is something to be proud of and appreciated if you are one that can't handle the drink.

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THERE IS NO KEYSER SOZE!!

Lebell

I've seen too many alcoholics to want to get caught in that trap.

I hope not too many TFP'ers will end up in the gutter with a bottle or drugs, but I know some will.

__________________
"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." – C. S. Lewis

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MSD

A word of warning. If you drink to get drunk, you are a step away from becoming an alcoholic, and your foot is on the way down. You can catch yourself at this point and pull back to having a drink or two, or you can fall off the fence and become a full-blown alcoholic. If you can't have one drink without another, and another, and another, following the first, you're not on any line, you're an alcoholic. You've become psychologically if not chemically dependant on alcohol, and you need to pull yourself back before you're too far gone to recover.


A really basic, oversimplified way to classify drinking habits:

Social drinker - has a drink or two at parties, family events, etc. Doesn't have a problem stopping after one or two drinks if they have to drive. Enjoys drinking, but rarely gets drunk, and that probably isn't intentional.

Danger zone - Drinks regularly, even if only on weekends, and drinks to get drunk almost every time. Cannot stay here long, will eventually fall to one side of the fence or the other.

Alcoholic - Chemically dependant on alcohol, must drink frequently to avoid withdrawal symptoms.

yoshi

My dad is an alcoholic. He quit cold turkey for years and has recently started back. His drink of choice is beer. It's really scary seeing your dad drunk to the point of puking and not being able to stand or talk. And although no matter what we said to him, he had to want to stop before he could make any changes.

You have to want this--you can't do it for anyone else but yourself. It's one day at a time. And I'm heartbroken that he has started again. Also, keep in mind, alcoholics cannot just have "one" drink.

Good luck and stay strong. Have a mentor or someone you can talk to at anytime--seek therapy, don't let it ruin your life.

Double D

I commend you for posing this question and being honest with yourself about the answers.

Please do not substitute *near beer,* though.
It contains alcohol (and tastes like piss).

I don't drink--just have counseled some who do, was a barmaid, and most importantly, was married to an abusive drunk.
Believe it or not, I have a great deal of sympathy for anyone who struggles with any kind of substance abuse.

QuasiMojo

Hey~
you will never EVER get the same buzz from alchohol that you did when you first drank.

Its a chase.

and you (hopefully) will get tired.

I don't drink often
but i drink a lot.
and the chase is so ingrained that it unfortunately has become part of who I am. I had a DUI in 89.
I have been fortunate
a fortunate fool.
I stay at home when I decide to drink heavily.
and with a few years under my belt I've learned to realize when I should be leaving- if I go out.

you only get so many close calls.


NOW***********
with that said and done
quote by MrSelfDestruct


if this is so....my fucking crotch is HURTIN'
I thing that a genetic predisposition may come into play here at this point.

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AzAbOv ZoBeLoE

jbrooks544

I joke that "I've been meaning to take up drinking for a long time" but I'm lucky that I'm not Al Coholic. My dad was raging and my brother is too. I'm the lucky 50% of sons of male alchoholics that are NOT alky's. It is a very hard thing to deal with and I wish anyone with a drinking problem all the strength to say no. Admit you have a problem and stick with A.A. and you can turn almost anything around and be successful. I've seen it first hand - so don't give up hope - one day at a time...

Dano069

I'm a binge drinker. Always have been, probably always will be. I haven't done it in years (yes, I still drink) but I'm sure it's screwed up my liver pretty well. I can't have more than one or two drinks. If I do, the next morning, I feel like shit. Headaches, nausea, being tired are all part of it. I really don't miss it as much as I thought I would. Still, I wish I could get blasted from time to time, but, with impressionable kids around, NO WAY.

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I may look attentive, but I'm taking peeks down your blouse faster than the human eye can follow.

alkaloid

Sometimes (usually when I'm out having dinner or cocktails) I can have just couple of drinks and have a good buzz going. But when I'm home I don't seem to be able to get that pleasant buzz. I feel pretty much nothing even after I drink half liter of vodka. It's weird.

Thagrastay

I am a recovering alcoholic. Sober for 13+ years by the Grace of God and the fellowship of A.A.

__________________
"That's it! They've got the cuffs on him, he's IN the car!"

bermuDa

um... i'm drinking a beer right now... should that worry me?

__________________
I am the very model of a moderator gentleman.

wry1

Nah. My parents never raised their children to be quitters....

Just kidding. In truth, I am not a big drinker - although I've been known to go all-out from time to time at special occasions. However, I have a few hard-and-fast rules that I have never broken:

I don't drive if I'm averaging anything over 1 beer every 90 minutes.

If I know I'm going to be drinking over that limit, I arrange to either stay there overnight or else have a sober means of transportation back to my apartment.

Or I just don't drink when I'm out. Many times I'm the one being the designated driver for my friends.

I have had two alcoholics in my family - my Paternal Grandfather and an Uncle on my Mother's side - and I've seen the mess that alcohol has made of their lives. On the plus-side, I've seen how drinking in moderation - coupled with a healthy respect for the possibility of becoming an alcoholic - has worked well for my parents and their siblings.

So no. I'm not an alcoholic. Although I could easily become one if I fail to be vigilant in my life.

skippy

Wow Man, Good questions and storyies.

The long and short of it is that you should (Kwill I mean You) get hooked up with an Addiction agency. (now you're thinking Nahhh...) But please listen . There is a lot to know about how addiction affects you...chemically and socially and intellectualy and in your relationships.

We all study to learn a trade or get a doctorate but fear learning about addiction because we might be labelled... well it's worth learning about.

I learned about it and it helped a lot... My father took the courses on a wednesday night (right on campus) and it helped him. THE TRUTH...IS THAT ONCE YOU SEE THE PATTERNS OF ADDICTIVE BEHAVIOUR IN YOUR OWN LIFE YOU WILL BEGIN TO CHANGE. It's a good change in so many ways. You know what to watch for on the inside, you can be free to live again wih new boundaries.

I used to think that I could only have fun with alcohol involved.. now I have fun all the time without it. And It's actually more fun than I ever imagined. Relationships are better too. And I can drive!

All the best to you.. I hope you succeed like my family has!!!

djm

I fucking hate alcohol.

__________________
Don't call my name out your window; I'm leaving.

Stare At The Sun

Kinda sucks, i think im headed down that path, i've been in the bottle a lot lately, on the surface, its to party, but deep down, i do it to escape from my deeper inner emotional problems. *sigh* Somtimes i really hate life.

djm

Then quit fucking drinking and face your demons.

__________________
Don't call my name out your window; I'm leaving.

cowlick

I quit drinking almost a year ago. I used to drink to be drunk. I missed so much of 4 years of top quality education in NYC because I was sitting alone in my apartment getting wasted. I gained 80 pounds and changed my whole life. When I graduated college, I drank over 12 gallons of tequilla in the first year. My marriage was going nowhere.

In the year since I stopped drinking I lost 80 pounds. I started new avenues of art and action. I bought a home. It's been the best year of my marriage. My career is moving along quickly.

I loved to drink. I really did. I just don't know if it ever helped me. I never used a 12 step program to quit, I just plain stopped. I still have the desire to drink, but I hope to one day quash it.

I recently read 'Following the Equator' by Twain and he has some to say on temperance in that text. Basically, he suggests you don't just stop drinking, you learn to stop desiring the drink. I have no idea how to do that...

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"It's a long story," says I, and let him up.

meff

My wife's been sober for a long time now, as for me, I just drink moderately here and there. Alcohol doesn't do much for me, and can really cause havoc with the kind of meds I take for being schiz.

I much rather prefer candy

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Toy-like people make me boy-like.