Quote from danthebangerboy :

I think stopping straight away would be a bit of a shock to the system for me, so i am going to try to cut down over the course of a week, one night have 5, then the next night 4, next night 3, etc.. until i get to 0.

I think you'd be better off having nights off completely. And starting to string them together, so you have one night off, two, three, etc.

Your system wouldn't work for me. If I drank five pints I would not only forget that I was cutting down and drink #6, I would also have forgotten what number the next one was.

Maybe it is a bit more serious than your friends seem to think, however I still think you're a daft old pisshead.

You don't have to cut down to 0. There is nothing wrong with having the odd drink, but you don't need to drink every single day. Perhaps there is a soft drink that you really like that could substitute?

Quote from Gills4life :

Perhaps there is a soft drink that you really like that could substitute?

Now that's a dangerous road to go. If you want substitutes then pick up fruit juices.

Quote from thisnameistaken :

I think you'd be better off having nights off completely. And starting to string them together, so you have one night off, two, three, etc.

I too agree with that method more. Just say "I won't drink for a week" and stick to it - you owe it to yourself to prove you're stronger than a can of fermented grains. Fading it out don't work. If you drink one beer someone will buy you another one and so on and so forth. Plus you'll give your pals a chance to tease you and crack some jokes while trying to entice you to have a beer, it'll be a blast, you'll be the heart of the party. Oh, the fun times ahead.

I do have one, Cider... Oh wait.... Thats not apple juice is it.

seriously though, i do like coke (the drink, before ya start! :tilt but that has so much crap in it these days it's not exactly healthy.

As strange as it sounds, i do like to drink plain water. I think that comes from when i worked on building sites a few years back in the summer as a labourer, tough work! i used to get through a good 2 litres+ in a day if it was really hot.

I very rarely actually go to the pub really. The last time i went was on christmas day, and that was only for 1 quick pint. I just sit at home and drink, so i won't have the added peer pressure and p155taking to deal with.

Good luck, Dan! Come back here now and then to tell us how you fared.

I will do! (saying that, im permanantly on the forum anyway :nod

Thanks again for the advice people, and yes gills4life, luv u 2 mate!

Do you not like tea?

Tea's pretty safe, tasty, warming, relaxing. Give tea a go.

This message was funded by the Tea Marketing Executive.

Quote :

You don't have to cut down to 0. There is nothing wrong with having the odd drink, but you don't need to drink every single day. Perhaps there is a soft drink that you really like that could substitute?

When you are dealing with an addiction you really can't apply the "odd drink" principle anymore. For any reasonable person then reasonable use of a 'vice' is perfectly ... 'reasonable'.

However for those who have become addicted to something the only 'reasonable' way to handle it is to walk away and operate a zero tolerance personal approach. For an alchoholic 1 drink is too many, for an ex junkie like me being in the same room as somebody smoking a spliff is the beginning of 2 weeks of shirking responsibilities and months of therapy.

I am not saying to him just to have the odd drink. I am saying that there is nothing wrong with it. Once he cuts out the habit then there should be no harm in drinking occasionally.

Quote from Gills4life :

I am not saying to him just to have the odd drink. I am saying that there is nothing wrong with it. Once he cuts out the habit then there should be no harm in drinking occasionally.

Well maybe you are too young to understand properly what a harmful addiction is...I hope you never do!

Yes because of course, at a youthful age it is not possible to witness someone else trying to cut out a very strong and harmful addiction. =/

Quote from Paranoid Android :

Well maybe you are too young to understand properly what a harmful addiction is...I hope you never do!

To be fair I think there's a gulf of difference between being dependent on alcohol and being in the habit of drinking too much. Certainly there's a gulf of difference between my friend Dave and my friend Matt, and how they use (or used to use) alcohol.

That's not to say one state can't lead to the other though.

Indeed, none of us really know whether the OP is in the habbit of drinking, or is dependent upon it. Neither do I think there are many amongst us qualified to diagnose this.

Quote from Becky Rose :

Indeed, none of us really know whether the OP is in the habbit of drinking, or is dependent upon it. Neither do I think there are many amongst us qualified to diagnose this.

Yes, that is a bit of a toughy!

I feel that i have kind of drifted into it over time, as it has become a habit.

It all stems from back in '03 when i lost my driving license and was therefore stuck at home in the evenings. Endless evenings sat at home meant that i started having a beer while watching tv, or playing the PS2, and i just carried on from that.

The main thing that i think proves to myself that i am not fully addicted is that i will NEVER drink and drive like some people who will spend all night in a pub and then drive home.

If i have got the car then you'll be hard pushed to get me to half even 1 pint, i will usually just have a half, and then drink coke or red bull.

Quote from Becky Rose :

Indeed, none of us really know whether the OP is in the habbit of drinking, or is dependent upon it.

Could also be that his addiction is receiving attention from people he don't know online by starting threads like this. Or even having people point it out. Or even passively coercing people into thinking that his addiction is receiving attention from people he don't know online by starting threads like this and then having them point it out.

Someone contact the RDS Recursive Disorder Society.

Quote from Becky Rose :

However for those who have become addicted to something the only 'reasonable' way to handle it is to walk away and operate a zero tolerance personal approach. For an alchoholic 1 drink is too many, for an ex junkie like me being in the same room as somebody smoking a spliff is the beginning of 2 weeks of shirking responsibilities and months of therapy.

I know this is probably beyond the level of alcoholism we're talking about here, but stopping an alcohol addiction cold turkey is not healthy at all:

"Alcohol's primary effect is the increase in stimulation of the GABAA receptor, promoting central nervous system depression. With repeated heavy consumption of alcohol, these receptors are desensitized and reduced in number, resulting in tolerance and physical dependence. Thus when alcohol is stopped, especially abruptly, the person's nervous system suffers from uncontrolled synapse firing. This can result in symptoms that include anxiety, life threatening seizures, delirium tremens and hallucinations, shakes and possible heart failure."


So I'd say its probably best to reduce consumption for a few weeks before stopping altogether.

your not an alcoholic.

you just cant handle your drink...


i drink quite a bit ( 6-8 pints most nights im out, not counting cocktails or shots. ) but i get up for work regardless, only missed one day of work in 8 and a half months because of that night ( birthday party, champagne isn't my friend. )

learn to manage your drink ( get the drunk feeling thne keep it going, dont drink too fast and you'll enjoy your self more so then fallign around the placel ike a fool.

Simple answer to your question is: Yes you have a drink problem.

From what you've said, you are showing clear signs of alcohol dependency.

Do yourself a favour and seek help before it get's out of hand. You've made the first step, you've acknowleged to yourself that your behaviour isn't quite right, now take the second and crucially important step and see your GP about it. They should be able to point you in the direction of specialist help.

Quote from theirishnoob :

your not an alcoholic.

you just cant handle your drink...


i drink quite a bit ( 6-8 pints most nights im out, not counting cocktails or shots. ) but i get up for work regardless, only missed one day of work in 8 and a half months because of that night ( birthday party, champagne isn't my friend. )

learn to manage your drink ( get the drunk feeling thne keep it going, dont drink too fast and you'll enjoy your self more so then fallign around the placel ike a fool.

Thats not how i get though, never really get that drunk at all, i just get chilled out. I don't think i have been anywhere near falling down spewing up drunk since my 21st birthday 4 years ago.

If i am out down the pub or clubbing, and putting more away to keep up, when i realise that i am actually getting fairly wrecked i will go onto soft drinks or get some food from somewhere, as i don't like feeling like that.

I'm not a binge drinker, just a consistant one.

theres your problem.


Just leave the drink and give your body time to recover, worst comes to worst... non alcoholic beer is good for quiting...


tastes nice too.

ive been having a bit of a read through hear and i think there is one thing nobody has suggested, that is the use of non alchoholic beer, some is awful some is actually quite good. i say this because i know someone who was heading into being a serious alcoholic but he managed to get himself back, and one of his methods was to use non alcoholic beer so it tasted right etc but just slowly got him off the beers basicly

I have had some alcohol free beer before, and it was absolutely foul. The one i had was kaliber, i seriously would rather drink from a toilet than drink that particular brand again. I have seen becks alcohol free, and i am told it is fairly nice in comparison.

Quote from danthebangerboy :

I have had some alcohol free beer before, and it was absolutely foul. The one i had was kaliber, i seriously would rather drink from a toilet than drink that particular brand again. I have seen becks alcohol free, and i am told it is fairly nice in comparison.

I kid you not, I drank about 3 bottles of that becks non alcoholic before I realised it had no alcohol in, (from the obvious lack of effect ). I'm not a regular Becks drinker, but it tasted ok to me.

Well, i have only had 2 cans tonight, bearing in mind i had 6 last night, which is an improvement if anything.

I am now drinking tea, which was highly recommended by thisnameistaken, a lifelong member of the Tea Marketing Executives Trust, so i hear.

Quote from theirishnoob :

your not an alcoholic.

you just cant handle your drink...


i drink quite a bit ( 6-8 pints most nights im out, not counting cocktails or shots. ) but i get up for work regardless, only missed one day of work in 8 and a half months because of that night ( birthday party, champagne isn't my friend. )

learn to manage your drink ( get the drunk feeling thne keep it going, dont drink too fast and you'll enjoy your self more so then fallign around the placel ike a fool.

Whoahoho steady on there, 6-8 pints? Killer.

Worst.advice.ever. (for an alcoholic)