Drinking Problems

[Zurg]

right, i kinda missed that part. ignore my suggestion if thats the case

[Bobby Peru]

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Someone I know has confessed to me about a drinking problem. Dependency is serious and I know how it can fuck with someone's life but honestly have no clue what to say or do about this. Drinking can be fun but when you start having the delerium tremens and are puking blood then maybe it really is a problem.

[close]

I think it is pretty clear in this case of what to do. Rehab and sobriety. People that get to this point should not drink anymore as they will never again be able to control the amount they drink.

[close]

 this is a scary way to come at them.

if he seems to be doing really bad, then id say thats the proper course of action. If you feel like he's slipping into it gradually, thats pretty intimidating. i know it all depends on someone's personality, but if you say im never drinking again, it can seem more overwhelming and youre more likely to give up. If you set a goal, like not drinking on weekdays and achieve it, you gain confidence in your self control.

i guess it all really depends on your friends personality, but i find reducing habits way easier than quitting them cold turkey

As a guy who doesn't drink, I feel a little out of place, but I think the fact that he told you that he has a problem is a sign that he wants to ease up. AA doesn't work for everybody, and it's really all up to them. I have a few good friends that have gone through it at the request of somebody else and got back on the horse pretty quickly after they finished it, but went through a second or third time later at their own will and have been sober since.

[BuddyPal]

the only problem is when i run out of beer

[jackherer]

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drinking is the most over rated shit ever. if you get drunk more than twice a week, you seriously need to get a life. like why not spend the night reading a good book or something instead of wasting a bunch of money and feeling like shit all the time. i find that most people that drink all the time just have no game and feel like they cant get girls without it. or are just pussies about life in general.

[close]

well, my job is being a DJ, so free drinks and a club atmosphere are usually part of it.

as for having no game? dont generalize everyone that drinks, boss. just cause the people in your life that drink cant get laid, doesnt mean everyone that drinks has no game. matter fact i hardly ever hit on girls drunk but have no trouble getting laid when i'm sober.

why the fuck do you think i said MOST people, and not ALL people, boss? anyways, you're a "dj" so you're clearly a fucking douche bag, and THAT is a generalization i'm very comfortable making.

[Patey]

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drinking is the most over rated shit ever. if you get drunk more than twice a week, you seriously need to get a life. like why not spend the night reading a good book or something instead of wasting a bunch of money and feeling like shit all the time. i find that most people that drink all the time just have no game and feel like they cant get girls without it. or are just pussies about life in general.

[close]

well, my job is being a DJ, so free drinks and a club atmosphere are usually part of it.

as for having no game? dont generalize everyone that drinks, boss. just cause the people in your life that drink cant get laid, doesnt mean everyone that drinks has no game. matter fact i hardly ever hit on girls drunk but have no trouble getting laid when i'm sober.

[close]

why the fuck do you think i said MOST people, and not ALL people, boss? anyways, you're a "dj" so you're clearly a fucking douche bag, and THAT is a generalization i'm very comfortable making.

haha, sounds like you need to have a drink, asshole.

[skate_bored]

i havent gone a day without a beer in a long time, probably just when ive been sick in the past year. i always walk in and crack a beer after work, even if i plan on having nothing else to drink.

lately i have been drinking/going up to the bar 3-5 nights a week. im 25, single, and live in a pretty lively neighborhood with tons of skater friends who want to go out and have a good time. i make it to work on time every day and 99% of the time im not hungover, i also skate every chance i get still, at least 2-5 times a week depending on the time of year. i dont really feel guilty about drinking at all, other than when i black out, then ill get the occasional party guilt.

i think the problem comes when you are wrecking your body to a noticeable point, when you are fucking up relationships, and when you are fucking up at work/school. maybe talk to your friend and try to "do it together". ask him if he wants to join you in a quest to drink less, or something along those lines. its worked for me with some friends and it doesnt seem like you are attacking him.

[jackherer]

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drinking is the most over rated shit ever. if you get drunk more than twice a week, you seriously need to get a life. like why not spend the night reading a good book or something instead of wasting a bunch of money and feeling like shit all the time. i find that most people that drink all the time just have no game and feel like they cant get girls without it. or are just pussies about life in general.

[close]

well, my job is being a DJ, so free drinks and a club atmosphere are usually part of it.

as for having no game? dont generalize everyone that drinks, boss. just cause the people in your life that drink cant get laid, doesnt mean everyone that drinks has no game. matter fact i hardly ever hit on girls drunk but have no trouble getting laid when i'm sober.

[close]

why the fuck do you think i said MOST people, and not ALL people, boss? anyways, you're a "dj" so you're clearly a fucking douche bag, and THAT is a generalization i'm very comfortable making.

[close]

haha, sounds like you need to have a drink, asshole.

whatever you say, dj.

[Tale Crab]

And weren't you the one hoping there would be no cure for AIDS?

[spool of cord]

being a real friend is tough, and telling sombody they have a problem is even tougher, imagine your friend told you that you ahve a problem and you need to change your life?would you be insulted or defensive?

I recently asked an old friend to get in on my living situation..dude is a known alcoholic but he holds down a job and I wanted to give him a chance and help him get himself up. huge mistake on my part, all it brought into my life was his sad drama, every night just coming home with a bunch of 99 cent 24oz cans, getting hammered and the dude would turn super mopey and depressed. he'd basically cry about problems in his life ie the girl he loved and wanted to marry broke up with him and wants nothing to do with him. the guy was so repetitive and tried fighting me and other roommates so many times that we had to kick him out after a month.

long story short, myself and a few other of his close friends tried having discussions with him about his problem. dude threatened suicide, threatened to shoot his puppy....the last night he was here I talked to him one-on-one about how directly alcohol fucks up his life and all he had to say was 'alcohol is the best crutch in life'. i guess its cool to be a 'real friend', but sometimes people can be so ignorant that you have to cut off ties and leave the real tough work for him and his family.

[Beeda Weeda]

i helped a friend through rehab last year, dude was at a really low point, or at least i though, he got out of rehab, starting using agian, and used the angle that i am trying to feel better about myself by pointing out his problems. 
i basically, just let him go last summer, and was hoping he'd just hit rock botom on his own, hes still using righ tnow, still in denial,. shits tough.
too all the young heads on slap, who think they can do blow E and other chem drugs, and just walk away one day, your are in for a long ride.

[oneshovel]

My drinking's been getting worse ever since I moved out and turned legal.  First couple years would be a couple tallboys a day.  Nice little buzz, makes everything funner.. Next couple years, start blasting through 6'ers daily, I mean I'm a working man who stays active.. I can handle it.. Next couple years, beer or rum for breakfast just to get through my min wage job.. feel super guilty and worthless, drink a bunch and go to bed feeling awful.  Same thing next day..

It's really hard to pick yourself up and just stop drinking, when the reasons you drink are still prevalent.  It's like you have HAVE to hit a bottom before finding the will to change.  It's happened a few times, where I'll just have such gnarly hangovers from drinking alone that I keep away for a week or so.. But as soon as you crack one by yourself, the downward spiral begins again.  Yesterday I had one of those brutal hangovers and have stayed dry up to now, but I know a beer would taste amazing right now.  Gonna hold off longer though, just get blazed instead.. crazy to think that I smoke weed and feel "energetic" just because I'm not drunk.

I don't really feel suited for AA, seems too depressing, and my goal isn't to fully quit.. but to be able to just drink socially, and in reasonable quantity.  I really would like to talk to a professional, just get shit off my chest and hear an educated opinion.. But last I checked, that kind of care wasn't cheap.  I guess I'll just try and live as well as I can, stress less and accomplish more.

[chockfullofthat]

I'm trying not to drink and smoke anyting for this entire month actually.  Should be hard.

[ROCKxADIO420]

[Chavo]

how much drinking does it take for you guys to consider it a problem?

i drink like 4/7 days of the week... if not more.

Not necessarily volume. You know you have a problem when you start drinking Steel Reserve 24 oz. cans and/or carry around plastic bottle vodkas in your back pocket.

[Patey]

I'm trying not to drink and smoke anyting for this entire week actually.  Should be hard.

fix'd

[David]

Isnt finding some kind of religion part of rehab? If so I'm buying this guy a copy of Dianetics if he decides to go to AA.

Someone talked about drinking a sixer everyday. That's pretty much what this guy is doing. At least a six pack, if not a twelve pack everyday. He admits that he does this because of other problems that he doesnt know how to handle. He started noticing that he gets the shakes at work. I've seen him throw up blood and he's gotten black-out drunk every weekend for the last few months.

He managed to go without drinking during the weekdays, saving it for the weekend, but I think that was only one time. I ask him how he's doing and just try to show support anyway I can. Maybe he needs a therapist to talk to but perhaps he can find a way to cope with his problems with some encouragement and support.

[layzieyez]

I've been alcohol-free since I had surgery on my knee last month on Jan 6th. I don't really miss it and it's probably why I've healed up pretty quick.

[Patey]

haha i had some beer about a week after my knee surgery.

i dont think i was over doing it at the time though. i healed up real well.

[Beeda Weeda]

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=jp-passan_josh_hamilton_suffers_relapse_020212

[David]

So I was reading William S. Burroughs' wiki and came across this part about his son, Billy...

" In 1976, during a dinner with [Allen] Ginsberg and his father, Billy began vomiting blood. When the heaving would not stop, he was admitted to Colorado General Hospital, where it was discovered that he was suffering from cirrhosis of the liver."

He later on had to have a liver transplant but stopped taking his anti-rejection drugs and died after being found in a ditch on the side of the road drunk.

[landCow]

Isnt finding some kind of religion part of rehab? If so I'm buying this guy a copy of Dianetics if he decides to go to AA.

AA is basically a religion. to some people a court ordered religion. look up the twelve steps its all about admitting there is a higher power and turning yourself over to god and that you are powerless without god. in my opinion its a bunch of crap. there are other options out there.

[oyolar]

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Isnt finding some kind of religion part of rehab? If so I'm buying this guy a copy of Dianetics if he decides to go to AA.

[close]

AA is basically a religion. to some people a court ordered religion. look up the twelve steps its all about admitting there is a higher power and turning yourself over to god and that you are powerless without god. in my opinion its a bunch of crap. there are other options out there.

Watch Penn & Teller: Bullshit! on 12 stepping.

[Nosferatu]

Alot of people write off AA because of its religious connection. The religion part is helpful to understand that there is a higher power or just some place outside of your addiction. And from what I hear, it works if you follow the steps and get a sponsor. It's better than blacking out at home every night.

Also, if you want professional help outside of AA, like a psychiatrist, then look into your local university maybe?

I listen to alot of old Loveline episodes.

[Cthulhu!]

Or talk about it with your bartender.

[oyolar]

Alot of people write off AA because of its religious connection. The religion part is helpful to understand that there is a higher power or just some place outside of your addiction. And from what I hear, it works if you follow the steps and get a sponsor. It's better than blacking out at home every night.

Also, if you want professional help outside of AA, like a psychiatrist, then look into your local university maybe?

I listen to alot of old Loveline episodes.

My opinion is why do you need to understand there is a higher power or "some place outside of your addiction" (whatever that means)? Why can't you just understand it as your body and mind grew addicted to something chemically and now you personally are taking the steps to stop it and better yourself? Why is a "higher power" seen as necessary for that?

I've heard a good amount of research shows there's no significant difference between people who quit for an extended period of time through AA or by themselves.

[Omamori]

Success rate is very low for AA (not saying he shouldn't try it). In my opinion it's probably better to seek a real alcohol treatment plan. Find a therapist that specializes in drug and alcohol dependence/addiction. Not sure if it was stated in this thread, but realize the person with problem wont quit unless they want to.

[David]

Alot of people write off AA because of its religious connection. The religion part is helpful to understand that there is a higher power or just some place outside of your addiction. And from what I hear, it works if you follow the steps and get a sponsor. It's better than blacking out at home every night.
.

As it turns out, " Higher Power is a term coined in the 1930s in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and is used in other twelve-step programs. It is also sometimes referred to as a power greater than ourselves".  

[jack burton]

I don't drink as much as I used to but definitely drink for usually all the wrong reasons. I get super stressed and just get this urge to fix myself with a 40. Also since I don't drink much anymore I get some wicked hang overs and am useless the next day. However I watched a friend drink a six pack of pounders after drinking a twelve pack. Definitely not at that point.