Am I on the road to becoming an alcoholic?

[izzymarie]

I feel like the only times I can ever just stop over analyzing everything and genuinely relax and have fun are the times when I'm drunk. The thing is though, I'm starting to worry that maybe I'm depending on alcohol too much. I'm only 16, but I get drunk at least once or twice almost every weekend.. basically I just can't handle parties unless I drink alot :/

Do you guys think I need to tone it down a bit? I honestly don't even really like alcohol.. I just drink because it helps my anxiety.

 

[Richey]

stay away from spirits (vodka,wine, scotch) that contain higher percentages of alcohol. those are the beverages that can start up a lawn mower, imagine what its doign to you.
i too cant stand the flavour of alcohol and often i can barely drink more then two glasses of anything before i'm put off and i end up drinking coke instead, laughs, its just anything bitter like tomatoes or pickles, alcohol i steer clear of. light beer is the healthiest method of drinking from what i've read, because of the low percentage of alcohol and you slowly build up to being tipsy. you arnt binging on high rated drinks

alcoholics drink everyday and that leads to chronic seizures(foaming at the mouth) which then leads to liver destruction and or cancer in almost every case of extended alcoholism. pancreatic cancer too.

studies have shown the marijuana is so much healthier, its less addictive, you cant overdose on it and yet that is illegal( aka it doesnt make money), the problem is that marijuana can be more toxic to the brain, however alot of people believe that because its a natural substance of the earth that hasnt been processed or manufactured that it is much more safer and pure.

its a shame that there is no substance that can produce a forced high without health risks. i wonder whether there is something available perhaps in a more milder form. like caffiene except that its healthy and makes you lose your self consciousness..'

my suggestion is to replace the temptation of drinking with light beer or perhaps coke(cola) or chocolate until you find the self control you are looking for

 

[doesit]

well it all depends if youre drink only on weekends then i guess theres no harm,but instead when drinking try to have as less drinks as possible and be happy,instead of drinking to the point where you barely walk.

 

[Richey]

yeh that too, remember that light beer is really the best way to approach drinking, have a glass of wine every now and then but if you are looking for a high then try that...

 

[izzymarie]

Thanks for the responses guys. I guess my drinking isn't that bad right now since I only do it on the weekends.. I will definitely take your suggestions though. I'm gonna try to lay off the alcohol a little bit and find healthier ways to deal with my anxiety

 

[Kinetik]

Well don't give yourself too hard a time. At 16 it's very commonplace to go out, have fun on the weekends, and drink til you puke. Most people (even those not normally anxious) use alcohol as a social lubricant of sorts, so you're definitely not alone in abusing it at certain times. To my mind, it's more about your relationship with it as you grow older. Most folks will gradually ease off the binge-drinking and be able to have a little now and then, as a kind of treat or novelty, which I think is how it should be, ideally. Just watch out that you're not using it as a daily crutch for everyday type things. That's where the danger lies.

 

[FOR REAL]

i started drinking when i was 6 or 7 (who knows) . not that im recomending it to people of that age. its against the law!
i dont know how much i drink these days cause im never sober long enough to total it up!
i drink in moderation cause the docs reckon a glass of red wine is good for you! they forgot to say which size of glass though!!

 

[slapstick]

remember alcohol is a drug and so if you rely on it for social interaction.. imagine what it does to you when you're of it. You'll know if you're an alcoholic if u can't pass a weekend without it and it gets in the way of your everyday life.. But u r still young and like most of us when we were that age we did that too.. lets just hope it's the usual teenage phaze and not a slowly lingering addiction... Don't take what I say personally it's just my opinion only take what you think is useful and trash the rest.. good luck

 

[Mikefly]

Im the same way i have to drink to go to a party but that probably means i shouldn't be there if i have to do that. It's too early to tell if your on your way to being an alcoholic, but i would try and find different hobbies.

 

[klytus]

Stop drinking. Don't ever touch alcohol again. That's the best advice anyone could ever give you on this topic.

I guess my drinking isn't that bad right now since I only do it on the weekends..

That is blatantly wrong. Drinking out of a necessity to drink is "bad" per definition.

 

[Moonie]

I would be careful. I never drank until I was 21 yrs old. And when I first started, it was just awesome to me! It made me feel alive, at ease, fun, confident, and basically allowed me to experience things I could never without drinking. So, yeah, it can bring you some good memories. But on the other extreme, it has brought me some troubling times. I used (as sadly still at times) use alcohol has a crutch. It has brought me many embarrassing and frightening times. I almost died once and almost got a DUI on another occasion. I've made dumb decisions.

I don't want to you should stop completely, if you find some enjoyment in it. But, learn to not go overboard. Maybe drink one drink per hour, have water in between, etc. As you said, you should find other ways to feel at ease in certain social situations, for sure!

 

[sorrow1]

i once drank 3 bottles of wine a night for 22 days straight and in my first year of uni i got drunk 5/6 nights a week. for one of my jobs i used to lash a juice bottle with vodka and drink it at work to help cope with the stress. it all started because of my sa and then seemed to worsen the more i drank.

This was until a few months ago when i one day said enough is enough and stopped altogether for a whole month. i ate healthier, exercised loads, lost some weight and i felt so much better. my anxiety levels really plummeted. now I drink in moderaton.

guess what im trying to say is that alcohol might help in the short term but it makes you develop a need for it and it actually makes anxiety worse in the long run.

 

[Remus]

good to hear that sorrow1

yeah alchohol works pretty much like benzos, only any good for short term

 

[Weirdo]

i started drinking when i was 6 or 7 (who knows) . not that im recomending it to people of that age. its against the law!
i dont know how much i drink these days cause im never sober long enough to total it up!
i drink in moderation cause the docs reckon a glass of red wine is good for you! they forgot to say which size of glass though!!

when you were 6 or 7? dude...