If You Sneak a Drink, You Need an Alcohol Awareness Class

Have you ever hidden the fact that you were drinking alcohol? I am not talking about hiding it while you and your friends drank a beer in your basement in high school. It is common for adolescents to hide their drinking when they are first experimenting with alcohol. What I am referring to is known as the “closet drinker.”

What exactly is a closet drinker? A closet drinker is anyone who as a young adult or adult hidden their drinking behavior because they thought they would be criticized or chastised for drinking or drinking too much.

• If you sit at your desk and take a few belts out of a bottle of booze, you are a closet drinker.
• If you pound a beer quickly and then grab another to make it seem like you only have one beer, you are a closet drinker.
• If you drink vodka because you think it will not be detectable on your breath, you are a closet drinker.
• If you hide alcohol anywhere (other than from your kids because you don’t want them drinking), you are a closet drinker.
• If you drink while you drive, hiding the booze in a brown paper bag, you are a closet drinker.
• If you mix your alcohol in a Gatorade bottle and drink while driving, you are a very dangerous closet drinker!

While one or all of the above-mentioned “closet drinking” activities may seem ludicrous, believe me when I tell you, they are all very common.

As a counselor for both in-class and online alcohol classes I always discuss the nature of hiding drinking behavior with my students. Given that virtually all of my students have been charged with an alcohol-related offense, many have personal experiences with “closet drinking.”

This will be the first in a series of articles dealing with the problem of “closet drinking.” We will use real-life experiences and discuss what to do if you, or someone you care about is a “closet drinker.”

Mabry’s Story 

Mabry is a 45-year-old geologist. She is married and has three children between the ages of 4 and 12. In a private counseling session after her alcohol class she disclosed to me that she and her husband are “closet” drinkers. You see, she knows her husband hides his alcoholism from her. He drinks in the garage while he works and gets rid of the recyclables away from home. Rooting through his trunk she found numerous empty vodka bottles.

Despite her being aware of his problem, she truly believes he is unaware that she too is suffering. She hides her drinks. They drink together, but she has hidden locations for extra “pops.” They do not discuss their relative problems.

Mabry was shocked when her husband asked her if she had a drinking problem after her arrest for driving under the influence (DUI). She admitted that she drinks and drives all the time, as does her husband.

It seems like her DUI conviction turned on the light. She wants to stop drinking, but knows that she must also address and confront her husband. I am hopeful that together they might be able to support each other and quit their destructive, addictive behavior.

If you or someone you care about has a drinking problem, I urge you to seek help immediately. An alcohol class is a good place to start. If you prefer to maintain total anonymity there are online alcohol classes too.