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Alcoholics.

ICUP

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Yes, I think you truly understand where I'm coming from with this, our drinking seems very similar. Yes, I can stop for a month, I can probably stop for a few months. I can control my cravings, I can control my behavior, I can say no... (Proven so.) But, bottom line is, it shouldn't be an issue to begin with. I'm not like one of these stereotypical alcoholics- drinking every night, always drunk, can't say no. But when I start it's difficult to stop. It's difficult to think about never drinking again. Not a "take or leave it" situation. A conscious decision to make rules about it and a purposeful willful decision to not drink when I don't want to, though my body wants otherwise. It shouldn't be a big deal, like you said. I think if I need to call myself an alcoholic to stop my drinking, then I should do that. If I need to call myself a problem drinker, then okay. Or if I just need to be more aware of my drinking to help me, without wanting to have the label, I need to do that. It's about being healthy and doing what's the best.

It's pretty much the same for smokers.... they get cravings for cigarettes. I smoked for a few months, put down the cigarettes, and was happy they were gone. Never any cravings at all.
If I drink beer, I get minute cravings. If I drink liquor, I get much bigger cravings that last longer. That's why I stick to beer.

Someone who isn't addicted will probably not have cravings. So I suppose if you get cravings, well, things aren't looking so good :) Then again, being a possible alcoholic isn't so bad, either, in your shoes, because you already have control over it, to a certain degree. (I'm NOT saying you are an alcoholic, only you can decide that. Nor do I consider myself any kind of authority or professional. I am clearly NOT, and it's just my little opinion lol. I just tend to be very open about my opinions.....)
 

Randomnity

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Off-topic nonsense moved to the usual place (if you want any back, I can do that).

Carry on. :)
 

Randomnity

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I personally consider someone an alcoholic if they can't control how much they are drinking when they start. The people that I know that aren't alcoholics never seem to consider drinking more than they intended to, while the ones I know who I consider alcoholics have problems with it.
Aren't most people like this, though? I mean, every drink makes it easier to grab the next, since your inhibitions are lowered a bit more. I'm not even close to alcoholic by any definition, although I'll overdo it (let's define it by getting sick) every once in a long while (maybe every 6 months-few years), never intentionally. I mean, I don't think anyone intends to get puking drunk, and I'm not sure everyone who ever does is alcoholic. Unless you mean people who do that every weekend, or every time they drink, or something.
 

ICUP

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Aren't most people like this, though? I mean, every drink makes it easier to grab the next, since your inhibitions are lowered a bit more. I'm not even close to alcoholic by any definition, although I'll overdo it (let's define it by getting sick) every once in a long while (maybe every 6 months-few years), never intentionally. I mean, I don't think anyone intends to get puking drunk, and I'm not sure everyone who ever does is alcoholic. Unless you mean people who do that every weekend, or every time they drink, or something.

No, I don't think that every person who has ever gotten drunker than they meant to is an alcoholic (especially college-aged people lolol)......
Just like I smoked for 3 months and then quit and never wanted to smoke again, people tend to experiment with drinking when they are younger especially, and go out to drink heavily. I don't think that makes an alcoholic. For alot of people who are choosing to drink heavily, they don't seem to have the cravings, or the problems with control that alcoholics do. That doesn't mean they never drink more than they intended to. I think that can happen, but I do think it's unusual/not common for non-alcoholics. In other words, it's a problem for alcoholics, not-so-much a problem for non-alcoholics, although it can happen.

I think I was speaking from my own circles, of people that generally know how much they can consume without getting drunk. And they never, not once, get puking drunk, while I have numerous times. Mine has to do with not being able to stop drinking, with being out-of-control when I start. After the college years were over, and people had gone through the party-til-you-puke stage, I was different in that I didn't quit. There's honestly a fine line between people-drinking-for-fun and alcoholics. I think that's part of the reason why I didn't realize I was an alcoholic, because I defined an alcoholic as drinking much more in volume, failing at life, much more unhealthy, etc. Alcoholics come in many forms. Some of them never even get puking drunk....and that's why I think it's up to the person to decide if they are alcoholics and suffer from cravings, or not.
I think when I got into my current circle that I realized just out-of-control I was, that even one time was not acceptable, and that also helped me to see that I was drinking way too much and couldn't control it, whereas before, it was acceptable.

I think that someone who gets drunk and keeps drinking until they puke without meaning to..... could be a possible alcoholic, regardless. It's definitely a warning sign. It's easy to do as I did, and take it lightly (and end up wasting your life as a result). :) Getting drunk until you puke, I suppose can have one of three possible scenarios (and more but this is all I can come up with right now lol ): 1) You meant to, because you are young and having fun; 2) You didn't mean to, but your inhibitions lowered, and you just kept drinking (having fun); 3) You didn't mean to, but you didn't realize how drunk you were getting. 2 and 3 could be warning signs, because they do mean lack of control. They could also mean inexperience with knowing how much your body could handle. My mother got really drunk until she was puking and she certainly isn't an alcoholic lol.... she never drank again.

It can sneak up on you. And that's the scary part..... it's fun and accepted in certain circles.
 

King sns

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Aren't most people like this, though? I mean, every drink makes it easier to grab the next, since your inhibitions are lowered a bit more. I'm not even close to alcoholic by any definition, although I'll overdo it (let's define it by getting sick) every once in a long while (maybe every 6 months-few years), never intentionally. I mean, I don't think anyone intends to get puking drunk, and I'm not sure everyone who ever does is alcoholic. Unless you mean people who do that every weekend, or every time they drink, or something.

Yeah, everybody does that once in a while. I certainly always did. Never considered myself an alcoholic, never thought it had any control over me. Lately I've been havingTh actual cravings. Intense level cravings. "I need alcohol now." (No triggers. Mid day, mid work.) And the craving is not for a beer. "Boy I need a drink I'm stressed" type of cravings. It's like a switch. I would like to drink 6 shots of vodka within a half an hour, or however much it takes to get the feeling that I'm looking for. It's coming more and more frequently. When that started coming more and more frequently, (more than once a week, and lately, since I haven't been giving in, every day-) that's when I said... "ohhhhhh, that's what the alcoholics might be talking about." Physical craving without being coupled with usual reasons, (like a party is happening.)

Edit: Thanks for moving the posts, didn't seem to apply.
 

ICUP

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Yeah, everybody does that once in a while.

My S.O. has never in 8 years, and neither has his best friend, and his best friend has a fully-stocked bar. I think I am using them as an example of how I would like to be.....
My mother has not touched alcohol in 60 years lol!
So there are those that drink but never do it, then there are those who completely abstain by choice.
And that's what I meant by it not being an issue at all for some people..... I suppose I should've clarified that it can happen without the person being an alcoholic, although I wouldn't recommend it. It might be a trigger.... although I know people are going to do it anyways.... lol.

With drinking being as accepted as it is, it's no wonder that people don't realize they are alcoholics lol.....
I would like to get to the point where it never happens for me, either. I hate the guilt the next day, and wondering if I did anything horrible the night before.
Thus far, I don't think I have puked this year, and that's awesome. I've been drunk maybe 12 or so times...... I think at this point, I would be considered "normal", although it's not where I want to be. I wish it wasn't an issue at all.....
I know I am an alcoholic regardless of how much I drink.

I don't think I have puked since Halloween night 2010...... I'm not even going to go there lol..... but it was BAD.
In my 20's, I was drinking every single night, six or so a night, and had a bottle of Absolut by my bedside. I would start drinking around 3 pm and keep drinking until 2 am (I worked in a bar, and they didn't care how soused you got, as long as you could still function).
 

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I know I am an alcoholic regardless of how much I drink.

I think that's a really important realization, and a big part of going in the right direction (as it seems you have).

(really, I think the same could be said of almost addictive thing. For me, video games. I realize it's not quite the same, lol, but similar general idea)
 

ICUP

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I think that's a really important realization, and a big part of going in the right direction (as it seems you have).

(really, I think the same could be said of almost addictive thing. For me, video games. I realize it's not quite the same, lol, but similar general idea)

Video games can be addictive, that's for sure. There are people who have died because they didn't eat for 3 days.......
 

Patches

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There are people who have died because they didn't eat for 3 days.......

:huh: Not sure if serious, or I'm missing a really obvious joke.... but three days without food won't kill you...
 

King sns

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:huh: Not sure if serious, or I'm missing a really obvious joke.... but three days without food won't kill you...

I think she just meant died from playing video games and not taking care of other needs for three days. (water, bathroom, sleep, food, whatever.)
 

Lady_X

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I don't think so, I don't know. It's just random. It's an impulse. Doesn't seem to have a trigger.

i think you just crave fun...the social happy times you have with your friends when you're all out drinking....maybe you just get bored.
 

InvisibleJim

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Yeah I think it happened in Korea actually.

What happens in Korea stays in Korea.

North-Korea-is-Best-Korea-Kim-Jong-il.jpg
 

ICUP

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I think she just meant died from playing video games and not taking care of other needs for three days. (water, bathroom, sleep, food, whatever.)

Yes. :) That shortcut was a little too big lolol...... You can only go for about 3 days without water so I'm assuming they might've done that, didn't sleep or go to the bathroom, etc.......

Put it this way: they played their way to exhaustion and death, through not taking care of their needs. IDK if it has happened in America or not....I would think it would be easier to die where the people were less healthy lol...

"In 2005, Seungseob Lee (Hangul: 이승섭) visited an Internet cafe in the city of Taegu and played StarCraft almost continuously for fifty hours. He went into cardiac arrest, and died at a local hospital.

In 2007, it was reported that Xu Yan died in Jinzhou after playing online games persistently for over 15 days during the Lunar New Year holiday.[66] Later 2007 reports indicated that a 30-year-old male died in Guangzhou after playing video games continuously for three days.[67][68]"

I know I've read more than these three.....

Anyways, I do think that playing video games can be addictive just like shopping can, and many other activities. It can get out-of-control....
I played wow for awhile so I tend to lie on the side of believing these stories, after seeing how often these people play, and how it seems to consume their lives......:D
Some gamers take craps and pee in cups because they won't stop to get up and go to the bathroom....:)
 

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Yeah, I think plain old restraint is a good thing. It's hard in this bountiful culture to say "no" to things that you like that make you feel good. I tend to get cravings in a moment that I need relaxation. Either I am in high stress or am very relaxed and want to intensify the feeling. Plain old relaxation isn't good enough. I want to be really really relaxed. I'm reminding myself about how I don't like to be sick in the morning, don't think I can stop at one or two at this level of craving, and about how I went to an interesting conference the other day, surgeons talking, and was too tired to care becasue of drinking the night before. I'm going to pick up my roommates guitar and try to learn a few chords instead.

yes...find a new hobby to nourish.:)
 

Simi

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Meh, I'm not an alcoholic, but my parents met each other in AA so I was raised to believe that if I ever DO drink, I will certainly be an addict ._.
 

ICUP

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Meh, I'm not an alcoholic, but my parents met each other in AA so I was raised to believe that if I ever DO drink, I will certainly be an addict ._.

Heh, yea, people tend to get much more serious about it after it sneaks up on them and they are forced to seek recovery.
 

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Some gamers take craps and pee in cups because they won't stop to get up and go to the bathroom....:)

Oh god. I'm glad to say I'm not quite on that level yet. :nice:
 

Thalassa

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I believe it was this story people are referring to: Chinese Man Drops Dead After 3 Day Gaming Binge

I'm not sure the exact cause of death was ever clear.

How does this happen? Do you have to be uber-N? How do you forget to sleep and drink water, even if you're one of those people who can go without eating? I can't do any of the above. It sounds absolutely bizarre to me.
 
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