Alcoholism

At what point is one considered an alcoholic? How much alcohol/week would you consider alcoholism? or what amount might lead to alcoholism?

Many definitions state that alcoholism constitutes that one continues to use alcohol despite it causing problems and etc, and compulsive use. But just because it doesnt necessarily cause problems, i would think you could still be an alcoholic.

basically I'm just worried I'll become an alcoholic at some point, because i usually have a couple shots of vodka after work and most nights, except days when i work out for the most part. I think last week i went through a 1.75 L bottle over the course of the week. My mother was an alcoholic, which is maybe the reason I'm worried at all.

On the lighter side of things, the extra alcohol is helping my bulk, as I've usually had trouble getting enough calories. I don't think it affects protein synthesis as much as some people would have you believe, in reasonable quantities

The fact that you're making this thread might help answer your question, but I cannot say if you are or aren't.

Maybe I'm paranoid, that's what sucks about psychology and all it's nuances. I used to just smoke weed a lot, but it started making me paranoid, so i went with the legal alternative. But I know this comes with higher risk, and damage for that matter

Protip: this is your last chance to pull out
>Tfw your brother wasted half his life on that shit
Just smoke weed instead, better for gains

I'll try it again, I was doing some shit I shouldn't have that gave me the anxiety, so hopefully Ill be all good. Before that, the only time I had anxiety was being caught by my parents when I lived with them. and I live in the weed capital of the world, so statistically its weird for me to not smoke

Don't go back to weed you'll just end up repeating yourself. Your only safe bet is to just drink coffee or some shit. It sounds bad and it probably won't satisfy your craving but its better than second guessing yourself.

Drinking a handle of vodka a week will eventually cause health problems. You might want to reconsider your drinking habits. Everyone decides for themselves when the cons of drinking outweighs the benefits. In my opinion, alcoholic is a pretty shit term. Many therapists and cognitive behavioral psychologists reject the label of alcoholic. Trust me, when the negative reprecussions of drinking start outweighing the positives, you'll know.

if I drink coffee past 2 pm , I'm up until 11 or 12, which generally is past when i should sleep for work. I kind of agree about not going back to weed, except that being sober would probably leave me suicidal. I need something to alleviate the bullshit of everyday life. I'm taking st johns wort, which is pretty decent, but very mild

Join the military, alcoholism is expected and sweet gains...

You drink a handle of vodka in a week, just because? You need something just to get you through the bullshit of daily life? You are textbook alcoholic, sorry.

I know the government doesnt give a shit about my life, so selling my life to the government is literally the last thing I'm prepared to do. The fact that alcoholism is expected tells you the condition your life is going to be in.

I hope so. One of the problems is literally all of my friends I know from the bar I regular in my town. I buy vodka so I maybe have to buy a beer or two at the bar, which is way less cost effective, but the vodka I have during the week is always there and a welcome sight from the work week. I recently found out about a drug called kanna that supposedly has no dependance or side-effects, but I imagine that's because of the few studies on it.

I've had depressive tendencies since a young age, so I'm sure I have some kind of hormonal or other imbalance, and I'm not gonna go towards SSRIs and other antidepressant kind of shit, other than st johns wort, so if you can direct me towards something else I could self-medicate with, I'd appreciate it

>be me 19-22 heavy, heavy drinker
>drink fifth of whiskey a day or more and at least a few beers
>basically where I get most of my calories from
>eventually enter psychosis state from this and a few other situations and drugs
>still putting life together

Fast forward

>be 24 and still drink
>down to a few beers and some wine
>about 4 drinks a night
>makes me feel like shit that I feel like I can't actually stop
>pissed for days if I stop completely

My suggestion is completely stop occasionally so that you aren't consumed or base your behavior around alcohol. It's like basing your actions of how much ice cream you're going to consume. It's not actually helping but if you enjoy it, do so appropriately. If you feel obligated to drink, you're doing it wrong and might need to address the issue before it gets out of hand. Speaking of getting out of hand I need a new beer this can is empty

just for the sake of a semi-intersting story, or maybe just a relevant one. last weekend I drank a bunch of vodka, as I usually do before going to the bars for the sake of cost-effectiveness, and skateboarded there, and sprained my middle, ring, and pinky finger eating shit on a curb transition. it still hurts, but Im thinking of skating to the bars tonight because thats not a regular occurence, and based on the amount of chaser I have on hand, I am probably not as drunk as then,

A handle a week really isn't much. Many alcoholics go through that in a day.

Although if you're in your early 20's and have a family history of alcoholism, its highly likely that amount will begin to creep up, and before you know it you're doing shots with your morning coffee just to stop your hands from shaking for a few hours.

how do you define a drink? since I'm drinking straight out of the bottle of vodka, I dont have much in the way of regulating my nightly intake. I also feel like a shot glass is much worse/harsher than taking what I want/can from a bottle with a chaser. also, is a fifth a pint or flask-sized bottle, essentially? goddamn imperial system has me confused even though Im american. I should try a week off, hiking and skateboarding instead since I've got a good location for such to measure my dependance. but as many of you, I'm basically a shut-in during the week and on weekends I'll meet up with my friends at the bar when I've got time off

My wife is a therapist and so I know enough to say you can't diagnose from a few Veeky Forums posts. Lots of cities have free psyches/therapists to help your situation, maybe your health covers it, or if you call around and explain you might be able to get somebody out of pocket for like $50.

to me, alcoholism is when you feel like you need alcohol to enjoy yourself

You have a drinking problem when you feel like you have a drinking problem. Think you're drinking too much and need to cut back? Then you have an issue to fix.

Oddly, when I get the shakes it's *just* for alcoholic beverages and only when I'm not drinking alone (I can pick up a bottle at home without a problem). It's like it's psychological because cups of tea, coffee, water - and even bottles of water shaped like beer aren't at all a concern. It should be a warning call to me to not, but instead it just means I drink slower and fewer units.

I also recognize weeks of overdoing it and so go for the few days' sleeping discomfort (bad dreams etc) for a week or three of sobriety.

I haven't gone through a 1.75L bottle of vodka in a week before, but. Still if I think *I* have issues with drinking and don't drink as much as OP, maybe OP has drinking issues.

A fifth is a fifth of a gallon, about a normal bottle, they did it that way until the 70s. Poor people still say it

Dude I was the same way, going through about 2 L of hard liquor per week with nearing suicidal depression. Just quit drinking lad. I know it feels like the drink is all you have to keep the demons away, but what you don't realize is the drinking is amplifying your depression. I was not able to make any progress in my depression therapy until I quit. About 2 months sober I felt like the weight lifted and things started to become meaningful again. It messes with your brain even when you aren't drunk.

a drink is one standard drink

a fifth is 750ml

750ml of 40% spirits generally contains ~21 standard drinks

what about people that are deep into a drinking problem and dont realize it? theres also an opposite end of the spectrum to this.

okay, so I sometimes Ill drink about 1/2 a fifth of vodka. others Ill drink a little less, and most lifting days 2-3/week I wont drink. this is OP. Im probably a little deeper than Id like to be

I'm not saying it is the only criterion. I'm saying people that have a beer or two per week never think "wow, I need to cut back!" I'm saying that if you are having those thoughts, you are drinking too much.

and just to add to this, I get a decent amount of free coke from my friends, even to save for my own use, and I've never felt the need to do it, I'll save it for weeks at a time, but i guess alcohol is way more available

i guess I'll acknowledge my own devil trips, but basically I feel like I dont have an addictive personality partially because of this fact, but since alcohol is legal, readily available, and socially acceptable, I might be more susceptible to addiction

I think there are two requirements for my personal definition of alcoholism: eight or more American "standard" drinks a night, AND the need to drink that every night. If you can go cold turkey for months without cravings/withdrawal symptoms then I wouldn't call you alcoholic, just a habitual drinker.

you are alcoholic OP.


i drink 1 beer occasionally. 3 is already a boozing party for me

Turbo manlet or woman?

There's no hard line rate of alcohol consumption that defines alcoholism. A rule of thumb I've heard is that at an average of 5 drinks a day you should really consider talking to a professional. A 1.75l bottle of 40% alcohol has about 40 standard drinks worth of booze in it, so polishing one off in a week puts you over that line at least.

My dad was a heavy alcoholic , got off it and came back years later. He drinks every night. He takes a cooler and 4-6 bottles of beer to work. Drinks a couple on the job and finishes the rest on the drive home. Hes self employed so he works around his drinking. Comes late bc there's less traffic thus less surveillance. When he gets home it's another 3-4 beers before he takes a shower and has dinner around midnight. Considering I come from a long line of alcoholics. Should I keep playing it safe and not touch the stuff? I feel like he's gotten the best of me bc I'm damned if I do and he somehow has forced my behaviour by not dabbling in it and being the weirdo at get together that won't drink.

You have a drinking problem if you want to stop but can't.

So you went full Lemmy for a while basically.

Don't do alcohol. I've had a drinking problem and it's not cool.

Don't do it user, my dad is an alcoholic, and I was in your boat, now I drink and haven't stopped since I started. Two people justifying it is easier than looking in the mirror.

Do not fault yourself, you are gonna make it.
Many in this thread (me included) may not.

Be strong. That is what being Veeky Forums is all about.

>i usually have a couple shots of vodka after work and most nights, except days when i work out for the most part.

Yep. You are an alcoholic. It's not about the quantity of alcohol or the frequency, it's about the mindset. You are using it to relax in your regular life. Also bad genes (the same happened to me with my father).

Try to quit cold turkey right now. I can guarantee your mood will go bananas and you'll crave alcohol like a fucker. In any case, that's the way to go. Don't have any alcohol in your house and get your groceries where they don't sell alcohol.

Stop it, seriously. It leads to depression faster than anything else.

Stop for 2 weeks. Eat super clean, train really hard (and do some fucking cardio), sleep 8 hours minimum, drink a fuck ton of water, and come back.

If you still want a drink, have one. But ask yourself what got you through it - the desire to get more Veeky Forums or the desire to prove you weren't an alcoholic and thus justify your drinking.

>Falling for the green jew
>Any year

I mean, people who drink every weekend could be considered alcoholics. I have a friend who drinks two bottles of captain morgan every weekend, and one every time he gets a day off or it's a weekend or something.

He himself even said he was going to cut down on it as a new year resolution. Guess how that went? You can really tell how his behavior has changed over the years.

Now 45 years old. Routine for over 10 years
> drink 8 pints of Stella every evening
> I haven't got a problem! I can afford it and it doesn't affect my work.webmd
> sit in office every evening away from family drinking. Don't even get that drunk or so I think
> have massive argument with wife about neglecting family for drink and computer games
> I walk out
> what in the actual fuck have I done! >Massive regret kicks in. Promise self to stop drinking
27 days without a drink. Feeling way better. Back at the gym. Life feels good. Speaking to wife again. She still loves me and wants me back. I could cry with happiness. Going to finish counselling in 2 months and want to be sure I've got this shit sorted before I go home.

Drink is shitty when it sneaks up and takes over your life. It can be so subtle you don't notice the changes.

>counseling

hahahahahahhaahahahaha

The reason I started posting in Veeky Forums is that I've started running. Consciously it's been about losing weight and getting fitter, but what I've found is that it's totally broken up my routine of drinking on the commute home, then continuing when I get home. I wonder if subconsciously that was what I really wanted out of it.

Anyway, my point is that I've tried to stop drinking hundreds of times. This time it's actually working because I've disrupted the cycle.

bump

It seems to work for me. Not with the drinking, that's a personal battle to alter bad habits and fill it with new positive ones. Thinking and talking about why I'm such a shit with an outsider who can listen and ask questions without feeling judged I find incredibly liberating. I can be totally honest and never feel judged and I know I don't have to defend myself.
I can't talk to my wife or family without feeling like I need to defend myself. I can't talk to friends because I'll never be totally honest, I'll always give them my side of events and not a true picture.