Alcohol dependence?

Just cut down and drink sensibly. You're getting to the age now where the body can't cope as well with excessive drinking

Take up a hobby that doesn't revolve around drinking. Make new friends.

you have answered it yourself,you are bored

"Any suggestions to ease boredom/anxiety without drinking?"

Have you considered getting a dog mate? I take my Muttley out about 4 times a day and depending on the weather (he doesn't like rain too much) we do between 35-45 miles a week and you get to chat to other dog owners and we invariably stop off for a pint on the way home. I'd be lost without the little fella and he's a really social dog, he loves playing with other dogs in the park and it's a lot of fun being a dog owner.

A good indicator is whether you can have just one drink without any compulsion to have another.

If you find difficulty doing this you might have a problem.

dr yes im either no drink or loads, cant just do one.
slippy would love a dog but could it be alone for 9 hours at a time?
gazo i just have an active brain and boredom comes easily for me
nick that might be the way to go but starting the think the drink is taking a hold on me now
thanks for replies

I packed in regular drinking friends over 20 years ago. It's likely they make you drink more- unless you have no discipline either way.

If you think its taking a hold on you then I would suggest you need to act now.

You might need professional help but I'm no expert.

I packed in regular drinking friends over 20 years ago. It's likely they make you drink more- unless you have no discipline either way.


Same here but about 18 years ago. I never really had a drink problem but like a lot of young men, I probably drank more than I should when I was in my 20s.

I was drinking heavily a few years back, which led to a TIA. Blood pressure was 230/110 when I was admitted but try as they might, I just couldn't get it down as the Dr kept increasing my medication, whilst I continued to drink. Finally managed to quit drinking and everything returned to normal. Now I'm no longer sick from withdrawals, I sleep better, don't suffer anxiety, no longer slur when I speak, I no longer bump into walls and the hallucinations have stopped... yes, it got that bad!

I doubt you're anywhere near that prepared but it doesn't take long to get there. Be aware!

YOU WILL STOP DRINKING ONLY WHEN YOUVE HAD ENOUGH PAIN WITH IT OR DIE FROM IT

prepared83    booloxs to the alcohol


we only want to know how its going with that bird 2nd time round

tar

"slippy would love a dog but could it be alone for 9 hours at a time?"

No mate, that's definitely a non runner then, you can't leave a dog alone all day. I'm lucky in so far as if I go away there are always several people around to take my Muttley out, it wouldn't be fair on him otherwise.

PREPARE 83 I WILL NOT COMMENT ON THIS THREAD AGAIN I PROMISE YOU . BELIEVE ME PLEASE BELIEVE ME YOUVE GOT A BIG PROBLEM GO TO YOUR DOCTOR IF YOU DONT BELIEVE ME .BUT YOU MUST TELL HIM THE WHOLE TRUTH YES THE WHOLE TRUTH ABOUT WHAT AND WHEN YOU DRNK .HE CANT HELP.IF YOU DONT TELL THE TRUTH AND CUT THE CORRECT NUMBERS DOWN OF WHAT YO DRINK AND WHEN .IF YOU WANT TO SOEAK TO ME PRIVATLY YOU CAN MESSAGE ME OR START A THREAD DO WAH DIDDY I NED T KNOW MORE.    I WILL NOT ANSWER ON THIS THREAD AS I DONT WANT TO MESS THIS IMPORTANT THREAD UP .BUT PLEASE PLEASE TRUST ME YOU HAV A BIG PROBLEM

If alcohol is your predominant thought, then you have a problem. Take DWD's advice and get some help. Liver disease is an awful illness with mostly bad outcomes, I have just witnessed my best friend die from it and it was distressing. Good luck.

a good thread with well meaning thoughts ,,,but here is my problem; i dont drink unhappy, sad, lonely . i really like good wine with my mrs , pints in the pub with mates , reading the paper in a pub on my own with a pint . the problem is people start drinking unhappy .

I start drinking unhappy, but that soon changes

People are different with adictions.
Some people can take it or leave it, others can't stop once they start.

Both my mate and I smoked and drank. He packed in smoking easily. He started smoking again some years later and easily quit again. He could start and stop as he pleased without getting hooked.
While I had enormous difficulties quitting smoking, failing time after time.

Yet with the booze I could cut right down and go weeks without a drink, have one drink and go weeks without a drink again and never think about it.

He can't, he'll regularly drink three bottles of wine a night.
He's put in over 40 years of non-stop heavy drinking.
He gets depressed when he doesn't drink and now has given up trying to quit. 
He reckons he enjoys ever drop, and if kills that's too bad.

Delta we met up but looks like being just friends.
Thanks for everyone's replies and sharing stories.
Not had a beer today but day off work tomorrow and feels rude not to have a beer this evening?

I was looking forward to a wedding invite




Cheers for tonite!

If i ever find one you'll be there delta

I did 6 months off it with the Allen Carr book, never felt better and dropped 6 stone.
Back to where I was which is 10 cans of Stella, starting at about 5:30.

Need to get back off it.

Keep at it creature. I did 8 months (no book or help) and then got back on it for another 6 months, but the second time around I wasn't enjoying it so I quit again. Now I can enjoy a can of beer whenever I feel like it, which (I swear) is less than one can a week. I even went to a wedding in May, downed 4 pints and again didn't touch a drop for at least a month after this and again, it was just a solitary can cos I felt like a beer one night.

What done it for me was the sleeping. When that got back to normal I did not want to risk waking 4/5/6 times a night and struggling to get back off. Sleep like a baby now and feel much better for it.

Cheers Aspro, funny thing is that I quit smoking about 12 years ago with Carr's book for about 2 months then started again,
I quit again after a month or so and this time it stuck.
I can pinch the odd ciggy off a mate if I'm out, but never feel like getting locked in again.

Would love to get to the same point with the booze.

Now there's irony... I have just purchased Allen Carr's 'Easy Way to Stop Smoking' for £3.10 (second-hand), but I'm yet to start reading it; it came with 2 CD's inside the front and back cover. Now if I could quit smoking (as I did the drink), then that would be something too. Never really tried to quit before but when I saw it at such a low price I thought the least I could do was try it.

I did the whole read the book and quit after the last page thing, but lapsed.
The whole philosophy was in my head though, and a few weeks later I just stopped.

The thought that the reasons smokers are stressed is because they smoke just resonated.
Eg if 0 is non stressed, then smoke for a while and suddenly take away the nicotine and you're -3 stressed for no reason, so you need a smoke to get yourself back to 0 - he puts it better than me !

No, I get your point creature. Will read with interest and see if it works for me. Been smoking for 40 years now so not going to be easy

4th day now without a drink, doesnt sound long but is for someone who drinks every day.
Anyway here are my findings so far.
Pros being im starting to get my energy back and have a better appetite and a clearer head.
Cons being i now find it almost impossible to get to sleep and the evenings are so boring now without a few beers.
Going to a friends tonight to watch football get a pizza etc and would normally take a few beers(8)
So my question is would u have a drink tonight with a friend or continue to not drink?
Problem is i really dont think i could live a life without drink(socialising) but i also dont think i'll ever just be able to have
2/3 drinks and stop. Thoughts?

Have also realised im not dependent as well as not craving a drink or shaking etc which is a good thing

Four days isn't long.

I'd have a drink with the football and pizza, probably take some nice 330ml cans or bottles hoppy craft beers from the supermarket.

Its the non-drinking days you have to worry about.  Make sure the days are full.  Make sure you are exercised - you will sleep better than with alcohol.
Treat yourself to something other than alcohol.

prepared - it seems you only drink in the evenings?

I think it's about changing routine. Your body will react when you're at home, possibly alone at a certain time when you normally drink. It will tell you to drink.

Try to change that routine. So the time you normally drink, go out. Drive somewhere, get a hobby, join a gym or go to the cinema. Anything to make sure you're doing something different at the time you would normally drink.

You're using alcohol to comatose yourself from the boredom. The anxiety comes from the boredom. Address the boredom (not easy I know) and you'll be fine.

For someone who drinks each day, 4 days is a TOP effort.

Stop worrying about it. Just get it down your neck. Your body will know if you've had enough and you haven't by a long way.

What done it for me was the sleeping. When that got back to normal I did not want to risk waking 4/5/6 times a night and struggling to get back off

Waking up during the night is when you haven't had enough.

It aint easy just having a night off or 5....

Be true to yourself. Do not binge when after a few off the booze as well done. You have to find something to take your mind off...a routine...like for me, drink a cup of tea, then for some reason that's it. Body does not want booze. That's just my thing, then plug into a movie on Netflix. It's a snap thing, either I say fook it and have a cuppa or the booze goes down large... I am a nightmare to myself but am doing well. Habits take repetition x alot!! I plam my week and stick to it.
I have had bad sleeps, good sleeps but when I do not drink, I feel on top of the world. Probs is, I love my days off and glug!

Just be honest with yourself.

Thing is for most a life on the bottle is not bad at all.

It's only when it gives you something boring that it starts to matter.

Oct 24, 2018 -- 4:11PM, prepared83 wrote:

Have also realised im not dependent as well as not craving a drink or shaking etc which is a good thing

Not being able to sleep without drinking means you are dependent in some way as is not being able to live a life without drink/only having 2 or 3,granted aint easy in your position where a social life is important.

"Stop worrying about it. Just get it down your neck. Your body will know if you've had enough and you haven't by a long way. "

What a stupid thing to say, when you start showing symptoms of liver damage it's often far gone and permanently damaged.

If the OP had started with "I'm drinking two bottles of scotch a day and my skins's gone yellow" I may well have posted something different. He didn't he said he gets bored. Stop blaming drink for all the evils of the world there's much worse things out there. Pizzas for one.

If its not "where should i take my girlfriend on a date?" its "should i dump my girlfriend?", now its "im drinking too much, what should i do?" - this lad was breast-fed far too long.

Cons being i now find it almost impossible to get to sleep

You'll soon sleep, better than you ever did. In fact, I would go as far as saying that once I got my own sleep back to normal it became the incentive to continue without drink... love my sleep now and have not long woken from 9 hours solid

It should also be noted that sleeping is actually worse when drinking; it may knock you off but a good night's sleep is nigh on impossible

I've probably said it before - try to develop new interests and find new friends.

One way to cut down is to drink slowly and just have a couple instead of four or more. Not easy when you're with a group of mates who are necking pint after pint in 10 minutes.

I don't drink a drop on Mondays and Tuesdays, if you can get through 2 days without any urges to drink then you should be ok

spaff on her chebs.

I know someone who was stopped by the Police. He took the test and they did actually find some blood in his alcohol.

Did you know that 25% of road accidents are caused by drunk drivers?

Therefore 75% are caused by sober drivers.

Therefore 75% are caused by sober drivers

And a lot of the others as well. Because if someone is over the limit and they're involved in an accident it's automatically their fault.

A Rabbi and a Priest are driving one day and, by a freak accident, have a head-on collision with tremendous force.
Both cars are totally demolished, but amazingly, neither of the clerics has a scratch on him.
After they crawl out of their cars, the rabbi sees the priest's collar and says, "So you're a priest. I'm a rabbi.
Just look at our cars.
There is nothing left, yet we are here, unhurt.
This must be a sign from God!"
Pointing to the sky, he continues, "God must have meant that we should meet and share our lives in peace and friendship for the rest of our days on earth."
The priest replies, "I agree with you completely.
This must surely be a sign from God!"
The rabbi is looking at his car and exclaims, "And look at this!
Here's another miracle!
My car is completely demolished, but this bottle of Mogen David wine did not break.
Surely, God wants us to drink this wine and to celebrate our good fortune."
The priest nods in agreement.
The rabbi hands the bottle to the priest, who drinks half the bottle and hands the bottle back to the rabbi.
The rabbi takes the bottle and immediately puts the cap on, then hands it back to the priest.
The priest, baffled, asks, "Aren't you having any, Rabbi?"
The rabbi replies, "Nah... I think I'll wait for the police."

Cheers for all the replies. DIE LINKE you're a happy soul aint you ha.
Charlie that used to be my way of thinking but need to reign it in a bit now.
Thanks for all the advice and any other advice welcome

Funnily enough I have very little sympathy with people trying to cut down on anything.  I don't believe any amount of well meaning advice on here will make the slightest difference.  People know what to do or not do. 

I drink every day and have every intention of continuing that way.  I'm drinking  a nice chilled bottled of Wheat beer at the moment only £1.25 from Lidl, one of the pleasures of life.

how many units a week would you get up to TheBaron?

he cant remember delta.

i drink about 7 bottles a week

love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As Sir Winston Churchill (God rest his soul) once said.

''I've er, hic, taken more out of alcohol.

Than er, alcohol has taken out of me''

7 bottles of what a week?

Anyway even if you can "sleep" better boozed up the quality of sleep isn't so good.

I notice a huge difference the next day if I've had an alcohol free night or even just a few drinks.

I can see it in my skin if I've not drunk for a while as well, it's ... well it's radiant! 

red wine

Didn't have a drink last night and slept like a log.

Feel great this morning.

Now.....where's that whisky?

bottle of red is my usual snort,feel good drinking it,then into the blues,not a massive dip but v recognisable,fully back to norm about 36/48 hours later,if youre drinking every day,every other day then youre permanently depressed

Didn't have a drink last night and slept like a log.

Woke up in the fireplace.

circa 1922

...and the sleep disruption,lack of deep refreshing sleep that we all need is robbed off you too

I daredn't tell you how long it since I last didn't have a drink on the day. Certainly last century.

its so easy to slide into kenny

well my liver's ok rommel. It's a miracle.

I was going to say take up darts....

Seems to affect people in different ways. I drink a fair whack daily and always have a consistent eight or nine hours of good sleep.

I drink a bottle of Malt when I have a drink but I don`t drink every day. Only when I feel like it and it is very enjoyable. Can take it or leave it.

Everyone is different in how they drink.  I'd love to get pissed but I have world class hangovers and the pleasure isn't worth the pain so I stick to small amounts on a regular basis.

A couple of beers/spirits is far more enjoyable than excessive drinking.