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I agree. And I will also add that I think many of us are either born with or develop tendencies toward addictions of many types, (foods especially sugary foods, gambling, drugs, exercise, sex, alcohol, etc) Sometimes people trade one addiction for another. I had a friend who switched from cocaine to wine. She has been in recovery for many years now, however.
My father was a chronic alcoholic. He finally gave up in his fifties after he hit the bottom. I drank during my teenage years; but I never really liked drinking and it was very easy to give up. Part of the reason I gave up is because I hated the drunk my father had turned into. For the last forty years I have had jobs that required drug and alcohol testing and I have no problems complying.
My feeling is that people use excuses to explain their weaknesses. I could have said: My father was an alcoholic; it runs in the blood. That way I could have blamed my problems, if I had chosen to drink, on my father and heredity. I do not like the commercials on TV for alcohol; I wish that we could return to the days before those commercials were allowed. I view them as simply one more excuse for those searching for an excuse.
Nobody is enrolled into A.A. Some people think that they were sentenced to A.A., but in reality, it was a compassionate judge, PO, public defender, etc. that decided to offer the perpetrator of the law an opportunity to reform their behavior to one that is more socially acceptable by inducing the opportunity to at least get and stay sober along the way. Said perpetrator could have refused and said, "No. I will not go to A.A. Send me to jail please."
Being as you folks keep bringing up A.A., let me tell you what A.A. is; it's two alcoholics drinking a cup of coffee trying to find a way to get through the day sober... eventually finding a path to a useful and fullfilling life to the point that they no longer even want to drink booze to achieve a higher state of consciousness. It's a beggar showing another beggar where there's bread.
Sounds to me like you are describing the social drinker; He's having another drink. Social I. Perhaps a hard drinker has the capacity to let their environment control their drinking habits. Not so with the real alcoholic. The real alcoholic has two distinct symptoms; they can't control the stop once they start and they can't control the start once they're stopped. It's quite that simple.
wow a 5 year old thread brought back to life and the third one today relating to problem drinking. This is just my feeling on the subject: i believe, like cancer, heart problems and many other illnesses alcoholism is related to genes we inherit. The tendency to become one for sure runs in families. But there are a lot of people who come from alcoholic backgrounds that never develop the disease.
There was a short story years ago in Readers digest about an Alcoholic and his 2 sons. One son was a Tea totaler and the other son was a raging alcoholic.
When asked why they ended up as they did each son said "What do you expect, I'm the son of an alcoholic."
There was a short story years ago in Readers digest about an Alcoholic and his 2 sons. One son was a Tea totaler and the other son was a raging alcoholic.
When asked why they ended up as they did each son said "What do you expect, I'm the son of an alcoholic."
Probably most of the men on every side of my grandparents (save one side - whose only male relative died before I was born) were heavy drinkers to alcoholics. A great uncle and another relative died in a DUI related crash in the 70s. Another uncle (by marriage) died in a DUI related crash. One grandfather was a lifelong alcoholic until he quit at 75 due to a heart attack. Numerous DUIs, PIs, and felonies that usually had some connection with booze. His father was also an alcoholic and committed suicide. The other family members did their share of drinking - some racked up DUIs and PIs - but none were anywhere as bad as my grandfather. The other grandfather never drank.
One of my uncles has struggled with drinking and drug use from time to time in the past. It really seems to flow with whatever is happening with his business and personal life. If things are going good, he's fine with a few Michelob Ultras. If things are worse, he'll tear up most of a case. My dad drinks the very occasional beer - probably less than one a day over a month's course, and almost never through the week. He prefers pot. The remaining uncle on that side of the family also smoked and drank, but has become religious over the past ten years or so and gave it all up.
I drink fairly heavily. I'm nothing like my grandfather, but I probably drink too much overall. Interestingly, none of the women were ever problem drinkers.
Probably most of the men on every side of my grandparents (save one side - whose only male relative died before I was born) were heavy drinkers to alcoholics. A great uncle and another relative died in a DUI related crash in the 70s. Another uncle (by marriage) died in a DUI related crash. One grandfather was a lifelong alcoholic until he quit at 75 due to a heart attack. Numerous DUIs, PIs, and felonies that usually had some connection with booze. His father was also an alcoholic and committed suicide. The other family members did their share of drinking - some racked up DUIs and PIs - but none were anywhere as bad as my grandfather. The other grandfather never drank.
One of my uncles has struggled with drinking and drug use from time to time in the past. It really seems to flow with whatever is happening with his business and personal life. If things are going good, he's fine with a few Michelob Ultras. If things are worse, he'll tear up most of a case. My dad drinks the very occasional beer - probably less than one a day over a month's course, and almost never through the week. He prefers pot. The remaining uncle on that side of the family also smoked and drank, but has become religious over the past ten years or so and gave it all up.
I drink fairly heavily. I'm nothing like my grandfather, but I probably drink too much overall. Interestingly, none of the women were ever problem drinkers.
But the question is if it runs in the family or does the family create the environment that fosters more alcoholics? If nothing else; it creates the excuse for the alcoholic. At worst; it is an enabler that not only turns a blind eye but can even promote alcoholism or drug addiction. How many people love the family get together not because of the food; but because of alcohol? How many people cannot spend time with the relatives unless they are drinking?
I just think there are too many variables to say with authority: Genetics!
My father served on a ship in WWII. Of course, at that time, you were not a 'man' unless you could drink like a fish. He came home from the service after the war and started a family while he talked his parents into opening a bar in their hotel - which he immediately started bartending and sampling the product. Is that enabling or what? Of course the word 'enabling' was not even invented back then. Instead of genetics; I would blame 'circumstance', enablers or historical era. But is all of this simply and excuse for those that are looking for excuses? In 99.99% of the time we are the masters of our own ships. We can make good calls and bad calls and we can turn the wheel when it looks like we are headed for the rocks or steer for them!
But the question is if it runs in the family or does the family create the environment that fosters more alcoholics? If nothing else; it creates the excuse for the alcoholic. At worst; it is an enabler that not only turns a blind eye but can even promote alcoholism or drug addiction. How many people love the family get together not because of the food; but because of alcohol? How many people cannot spend time with the relatives unless they are drinking?
I just think there are too many variables to say with authority: Genetics!
My father served on a ship in WWII. Of course, at that time, you were not a 'man' unless you could drink like a fish. He came home from the service after the war and started a family while he talked his parents into opening a bar in their hotel - which he immediately started bartending and sampling the product. Is that enabling or what? Of course the word 'enabling' was not even invented back then. Instead of genetics; I would blame 'circumstance', enablers or historical era. But is all of this simply and excuse for those that are looking for excuses? In 99.99% of the time we are the masters of our own ships. We can make good calls and bad calls and we can turn the wheel when it looks like we are headed for the rocks or steer for them!
It's probably one feeding off the other.
My dad rarely drank around me when I was growing up. We never drank wine around the dinner table. He'd go over to my uncle's business to drink and might drink a beer while mowing or something. My mother and the people I interacted with on her side of the family were teetotalers. Some of my great uncles on that side drank a lot, but I wasn't close to them. There was certainly no "alcoholic" environment around me growing up. I never spent much time with the alcoholic grandfather, and we never developed much of a relationship. He's still alive and will be 83 this year. I'm cordial and on good terms with them, but you can't just get back the 25 years from where he was drunk and she was always fighting with him.
I drank liquor in college, but it's been years since I bought a bottle of liquor for the house. You might see me a drink a frozen strawberry margarita or Long Island tea a couple of times a summer. I might drink a bottle of wine a month at home. I'll get I keep a couple of bottles in my condo in case I have company or something, and I'll occasionally drink it at home.
Craft beer is my problem. I've probably been to well over a hundred breweries around the country, from Maine to the Dakotas to Alabama to Florida. I like the variety and meeting people. I have tons of brewery swag. I'll pick up a mixed six when I see things I've never had before just to sample and review them. I've reviewed hundreds of beers on Untappd and Beer Advocate. I drink a couple of beers most nights. Maybe a six-er a night or two during the week, and sometimes more or less on the weekends. Last weekend, I drank more because I was at home and the weather was bad. The weekend prior, I drank less due to being on the road. This weekend, I'll probably drink less because I'd like to go out of town.
I have an addictive personality. I've played some computer games for well over ten years. I'll buy new video games, then those sit on the shelf and I'll replay something I finished as a kid. I also like variety. If there's a new restaurant in town, I'll check it out. That kind of thing bleeds over into my drinking habits.
My dad rarely drank around me when I was growing up. We never drank wine around the dinner table. He'd go over to my uncle's business to drink and might drink a beer while mowing or something. My mother and the people I interacted with on her side of the family were teetotalers. Some of my great uncles on that side drank a lot, but I wasn't close to them. There was certainly no "alcoholic" environment around me growing up. I never spent much time with the alcoholic grandfather, and we never developed much of a relationship. He's still alive and will be 83 this year. I'm cordial and on good terms with them, but you can't just get back the 25 years from where he was drunk and she was always fighting with him.
I drank liquor in college, but it's been years since I bought a bottle of liquor for the house. You might see me a drink a frozen strawberry margarita or Long Island tea a couple of times a summer. I might drink a bottle of wine a month at home. I'll get I keep a couple of bottles in my condo in case I have company or something, and I'll occasionally drink it at home.
Craft beer is my problem. I've probably been to well over a hundred breweries around the country, from Maine to the Dakotas to Alabama to Florida. I like the variety and meeting people. I have tons of brewery swag. I'll pick up a mixed six when I see things I've never had before just to sample and review them. I've reviewed hundreds of beers on Untappd and Beer Advocate. I drink a couple of beers most nights. Maybe a six-er a night or two during the week, and sometimes more or less on the weekends. Last weekend, I drank more because I was at home and the weather was bad. The weekend prior, I drank less due to being on the road. This weekend, I'll probably drink less because I'd like to go out of town.
I have an addictive personality. I've played some computer games for well over ten years. I'll buy new video games, then those sit on the shelf and I'll replay something I finished as a kid. I also like variety. If there's a new restaurant in town, I'll check it out. That kind of thing bleeds over into my drinking habits.
I have been married for 49 years and that probably helped save me. When I was young my wife would enjoy a beer or two n hot days; I never liked the taste of beer. I preferred a Coke or Pepsi to a beer. Before going into the military I was drinking heavy (blended whisky); a fifth a day. Fortunately I had some bad experiences like waking up in a pile of puke and I came to my senses. After the military I took jobs that had random drug testing and it was easy for me to stay away from alcohol.
I gave up smoking 20 years ago and that was hard to do. We gave up friends when we gave up smoking - we had to. They were not giving up and they kept offering us cigarettes. Plus, after months went by and we cleaned our vehicles, clothes, and house; they smelled bad! Apparently we had smelled bad when we were heavy smokers! We always wrote off those that were offended by our smell as having a sensitive nose - little did we know! It is terrible when our best friends got in 'our space' and they smelled like they had casket breath! It does not go over big telling your best friends that they smell like a cesspool!
But I also like video games and, yes, I like many of the old ones better. Sometimes the new ones get so complicated that it takes the fun out of playing. As long as I have an easy playing game I do not have to have great graphics.
I can drink or not drink . I can drink everyday for a week or party on the weekend and cold
Turkey I don’t drink don’t crave it or think about it , I don’t have an addictive personality I think could be a factor . Caffeine and excercise is my dependency . Although again with caffein it’s nice to have but don’t need
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