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.