Posted by Cindylou on April 30, 2002, at 11:59:00
In reply to Questions about *Alcoholism*, posted by JonW on April 25, 2002, at 22:30:51
Hi Jon,
I used to love alcohol. It also energized me to no end -- made me an extrovert (when I'm really an introvert), made me everybody's best friend, the life of the party, etc. (It's interesting to me that bipolars react to alcohol that way -- I didn't know that. I have just been diagnosed as BP II.)A good rule of thumb to verify if you're an alcoholic is: do you ever have black-outs? Where you wake up in the morning and don't remember portions of the night before? That's a true sign of alcoholism -- I was told by a substance abuse specialist.
I always thought EVERYONE had blackouts! I had them all the time! But this expert told me that most people will pass out before they get to the point of still functioning but not remembering the next day.
I thought I didn't have a problem because I COULD stop drinking after a beer or two if I really wanted to (I just usually didn't want to), and I didn't drink every night or every day. But this expert said there was an "invisible line" that alcoholics cross -- when they are truly physically addicted and need detox, etc. I just hadn't crossed that invisible line yet, but it was only a matter of time, she said.
I stopped drinking before I crossed that line, and I do believe I am an alcoholic, even though I never ended up in a drunk tank.
Like Kat said, medication helped me to curb my appetite for alcohol -- I was definitely self-medicating on alcohol because it made me feel so AWESOME. I do miss it sometimes (just not the horrendous hangovers.)
Congrats for not drinking for 6 months -- it's not easy. I think you are making the right decision to look into this alcoholism issue. I believe that staying away from alcohol is the best thing to do for me and my family.
Good luck and take care!
cindy> Hello all,
>
> I haven't had a drink in 6 months or more because I decided it was a bad idea because I'm bipolar II and it rocks the boat too much. Anyway, at my last hospital stay the doctor said to me that "normal" people just get relaxed by alcohol but don't really get any major mood elevation. Well, alcohol definitely elevates my mood. I mean, I really really like alcohol, but does this make me an alcoholic? I would drink until I passed out most of the time but a lot of people do. Since I've stopped I definitely crave beer - even 6 months later my mouth waters and something perks up inside me when I think of drinking. However, drinking never got in the way of my life and I didn't have any trouble stopping. Does this mean I'm not an alcoholic? The doctor at the hospital told me that it takes time to develop a problem. Is this possible... I'm confused?
>
> Thanks,
> Jon
poster:Cindylou
thread:104162
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20020425/msgs/104510.html