Do I need to go to a meeting?

[Bertha Venation]

I think I'm drinking too much beer. I opined several weeks ago about my concern that having 1-2 beers a day was making me an alcoholic. Well, I'm drinking more than that now.

I wasn't sure why until I talked to my shrink a couple of weeks ago. I told her that I liked the buzz it gave me and it helped me to relax during a week when I have only 1-2 leisure hours per day.

Many, many years ago I went to meetings for about a year because I knew I had a problem. I don't know if this is a problem now, but --

Should I go to a meeting? What do you think?

[Shell Beau]

1. I don't know. If you feel like you have a problem, maybe

you do. What I hear doesn't sound like you have a problem, but really it is hard for me to tell based on the info you have given. Either way, I hope you feel better! :hug:

[Dogtown]

2. Slippery

It doesn't sound like you have a problem with alcohol, but it does sound like you may be thrashing about looking for an answer to something troubling.

You could talk to a substance abuse counselor, but I have to warn you they are really just sales staff, sort of like the 18 YO skinny "instructor" at the neighborhood fitness center.

Here's my diagnostic rule: If alcohol use has caused a problem (DUI/domestic disturbance/employment issues) and you continue to drink, then you belong in a program.

Hope that helps some.

:hug:

[Tuesday Afternoon]

3. Go. Can't hurt, might help.

:hug:

[Deep13]

4. A meeting? If you think you are drinking to much then stop doing it.

If you need help with that, as the shrink for advice.

I respectfully disagree that it "can't hurt." I think the whole perspective of AA as "I'm a miserable stupid drunk that only divine intervention can save" is very damaging. There's also no evidence that it helps at all anymore than say a non-12 step group therapy would.

[Richardo]

5. If it works for the person involved, what's the problem?

If someone WANTS to go, they should go.

It might not work for you or me, it might not work for the general population any better than other approaches, but my Dad's been sober for 35 years because of that program so 'to each his or her own' as far as I'm concerned.

[no name no slogan]

6. Right on. Don't need a meeting? Then don't go.

But don't tear somebody else apart because meetings help them.

Quitting drinking is not as easy as it sounds for some people. Certain people are predisposed to react to alcohol differently from the general population. To them, it's not as easy to "just quit". It never ceases to amaze me that some people still don't get that in this day and age.

[Deep13]

11. IF it works, then I agree.

As a preliminary matter, your Dad deserves a lot of credit for beating alcohol addiction. I'm sure the comradery of an AA meeting was a helpful moral support. I'm not talking about that since that comraderie would exist in any group therapy setting. I'm talking about the actual program.

Just because improvement follows a specific treatment does not mean that treatment was the cause of the improvement. I was once fooled into thinking those zinc cough drops actually help shorten a head cold. I had a cold, used the zinc and got better. Of course that would have happened anyway. Yes I know an addiction does not just go away like a head cold. I am merely explaining that correlation does not mean causation despite our predisposition to assume it does. That is why anecdotal evidence means nothing. What limited evidence has been gleened about participation in NA and AA suggests that its failure rate is astronomical. It is a program written by theologians, unimproved since the 1930s, was not subject to scientific peer review, has no theoretical basis in fact, is not governed for competence or ethics like other medical treatments are and specifically rely on divine intervention for success.

[Bertha Venation]

8. As I wrote, I went to meetings for about a year, a very long time ago

It helped to talk with people who also had a problem. I never had a sponsor nor did I get into the twelve steps. I did appreciate the examples of sobriety, and being in a room with people with the same problem made me feel like I wasn't alone.

So if I decide to go, I know it will help. Not everyone who goes to meetings marches in lockstep with the twelve steps. And if they do, so what? It's for them to decide. As Richardo said, if it helps, why not go?

[qb]

7. I think you should find a list of meetings in your area.

They are probably mostly AA. If there are any non-12-step meetings in your area that may be more to your liking. In AA you are expected to label yourself an alcoholic and quit drinking completely. That is difficult to maintain if you're not really committed to quitting alcohol for life. There are other groups that help you maintain healthy drinking habits. Here's a comparison I found online:
http://www.addictionalternatives.com/philosophy/groupcomparison.html

[JVS]

9. Aren't you supposed to "hit bottom" or something first?

[Bossy Monkey]

10. Try to quit. If you can't, then you need to think about whether you need help

Though I'm not as jaundiced as Deep13 above towards AA, I must note that my late friend the hopeless alcoholic never got a lot of help there. In his case, there was an underlying cause that he was never addressing; that may be the case with you as well, in which case AA is unlikely to help much or for long.

I recall that you work in an office. If this involves using a PC all day, at the very least you should try to get more negative ions into the air around you. WebMD's slightly less crazy than most websites on this topic: http://www.webmd.com/balance/features/negative-ions-create-positive-vibes

Also, if you're experiencing anxiety, I can say from experience with no disrespect meant towards either you or DU that taking a break from DU, even just the Lounge, is an outstanding idea. We're lovely people, by and large, but very little of "Your favorite band sucks, you loser" goes a very, very, very long way, and being without the perpetual conflict... you start noticing the sun shining outside. Just a thought.

[tigereye]

12. maybe finding a way to relax, such as walks, reading, doing things with Mrs.

V, gardening, etc, instead of alcohol.

WIsh you well, Bertha. :hug: