Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Online Alcohol Class Starts New Blog

A sister site of ours, Online Alcohol Class has started its own Alcohol Awareness Blog which will discuss many problems and current topics associated with drinking and alcoholism. Please take the time to check out this informative blog!

We welcome suggests for blog posts that you might be interested in!

Monday, February 7, 2011

Stop Denying Your Drinking Problem

Generally when I teach alcohol awareness classes I question my students, “Do you think you have a drinking problem?” This series of articles will discuss what constitutes a “problem” and recognize that your social drinking has turned into a problem-drinking habit. It will also talk about 3 stages of change – denial, anger, and acceptance. Finally, we will talk about strategies for stopping drinking and preventing a return to drinking patterns.

Let’s begin by stating that no person has one drink and immediately it is a problem. Heavy drinking and alcoholism are developed over long periods of time.

How people in my class answer this question may be shocking to you. But first, let’s take a look at what defines heavy drinking and briefly talk about problematic alcohol consumption patterns.

How Many Drinks Do You Consume Weekly? Daily?

As a reformed alcoholic and graduate of an online alcohol class, I first became aware that there possibly was a problem when I read an fascinating question on a new patient form at my primary care physician It read, "What quantity of alcoholic beverages do you consume every week?” The query itself seems innocent enough. The multiple-choice answer was “A. 0. B. 1-3. C. 4-6. D. More than 6." I had to read the question again to recognize if they weren’t really asking per day.

At that point in my life, still 24 months before I became sober, I was having at least 7 alcoholic beverages per day. Whether shots of hard alcohol,glasses of wine, or beer, I was most definitely in the “D” category – but every day.

That was my original lightening rod of truth, where I really figured out, for a few tiny moments, that I might very well have a drinking problem – and that I was an alcoholic.

Are You a Heavy Drinker?

Heavy drinking is a pattern of alcohol consumption found in almost all alcoholics. Heavy drinking is defined as having five or more alcoholic beverages at one time five or more times in a month period.
As a reformed alcoholic, I can tell you that almost every time I partook in the consumption of alcohol, I had at least 5 drinks – usually many more.

Recent statistics show that approximately 17 million U.S. residents are classified as heavy drinkers. That is almost 7% of the entire population 12 and older. If you only pay attention to people who can legally drink almost 12% are heavy drinkers.

If you think your are a heavy drinker, it's quite likely you are an alcoholic and should seek help from a group like Alcoholics Anonymous, or in some cases try taking an online alcohol awareness course.