What IS drinking in moderation?????

[grangelady]

Hiya

I've decided that I need to cut back on my AL consumption, was drinking 1-2 bottles of wine EVERY night.

So 2 weeks ago I started taking Kudzu, Milk Thistle and L-Glutamine and have managed to control my consumption and any cravings. In 2 weeks I had 4 glasses of wine, had 2 AF weekends (Sunday was always be BAD day, as I'd start on the wine while preparing lunch & drink until I went to bed!)

This weekend was a different story, had friends over for the weekend, Saturday while they were drinking from about 6pm I abstained until 8pm but still managed to drink a bottle of wine by 1pm.... the good thing was I woke next morning with a terrible headache, haven't had a drinking headache after 1 bottle in years.

Sunday I started drinking about 4pm later than I'd normally do but again had a bottle.

Monday morning woke up confident that I can still moderate my drinking and will continue to have more AF days than AL days, this week and the following weeks.
I still feel okay about my 'binge' weekend and don't feel I've let myself down as I'm determined to not drink excessively this week.

I just wanted to know what type of moderators are out there...what is moderation for others?... 1-2 glasses each night, the occasional slurge?

Have I failed as a moderator to drink as some would determine as excessive in 1 weekend only to then be stricter the following days/weeks?

I'd appreciate some feedback in living life in moderation :thanks:

[gyco]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

hi G Lady,moderation is what it says,not as much ?. until this time ive always fallin back to my old ways,xcessive drinking,i dont drink b4 noon,and even then i try to wait for my wife to get home from work,at my age ive found i cant pound them back as i use to,i dont get a hangover,just violently sick ? why would anyone want to drink to get sick,but we have an addiction,thats the difference between us,and as many call normal drinkers,i dont really like beer,it bloats me,whiskey and seven up or coke no longer impress me,i have to say like you,i like white wine and italian red,home made,,but like you it can get out of control,we have 750 milgram bottles here,its 2 glasses of wine,depending on the glass you use,scotch and draboie is my choice of drinks,1 or 2 is nice,but very xpensive,ive done this for many years,and i beleive ive got the mod thing under control,you seem to realise what you have to do, my wife says,it is easier to enjoy a few,then not have any at all,for an addicted minded person,it is hard work,im gonna stik to your thread andd see how your doin,if you were a slosh head,if you change,people and yourself will see the difference good luck to you gyco

[rebirth]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Hi grangelady,
Thats a good question. I use to drink a bottle a night during the week and weekends I binged. I was always hungover on a sunday and drank first thing in the morning to ease the pain. I tried moderating which meant no alcohol from monday to thursday and then the usual comsumption on the weekend.
My opinion is that I was still drinking way too much as I still suffered from hungovers.Still had the occassional blackouts etc.

I guess drinking in moderation is to stay within the healthy units per week( 14 units) and not waking up with a hangover? I just couldnt moderate.

[not tonight]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Hi Grangelady,

Drinking in moderation, the holy grail. My view on what is considered to be drinking moderately is when alcohol is simply not an issue. You may have a drink or 2 once a week, perhaps a few with friends on the weekends, or at special occasions, but almost never to excess, and never with any sort of consistency that would cause damage to your health, make you less efficient at work or impact your personal relationships. In short is should be infrequent and effortless. Not doable for me.

[rebirth]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Yes. I agree with not tonight.
I use to drink like that once but will never be able to anymore.

[havefaith]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Yeah...
I tried Moderation too. Only three drinks, no drinking before 6pm, only on the weekends.
None of that worked for me(God only knows I wish it would), abstinence is the only way for me!

[Fresh Hope]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

only want wine when I eat

Right now I have no desire to have wine, but as soon as I have dinner then I want to drink....so I postposne dinner until I am really hungry and try to moderate that way.

If I drink 8 + oz of water before I eat I feel so full I don't want to eat or drink as much....so weird. Does anyone else just do this? associate food with wine.?

Also, I could care less if I eat all day...I always eat steel cut oats for beakfast, maybe 1/2 cup cooked, then lunch canned broth and veg or fruit, anything that will keep me from feeling hungry and at dinner I still eat well, fresh low fat, enjoy the meal but that is when I drink....too much.... maybe even a bottle a few nights a week.

[Time to change]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

I always confuse hunger and thirst for AL cravings. Somewhere along the way all the signals have got muddled xx

[gyco]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

hi G Lady thot id see how your moderation is going,but someone had mentioned the water thing,ive recently added tht to my artillery,hahaha,hope thts the rt word to use,it does seem to work,ive also changed my personal drink,to scotch and dramboie,not more then 2,and not more then 1.5 oz of one and a 3|4 shot of the other,one can teach themselves to limit there intake,i beleive there are drugs that help some accomplish that,it is better to enjoy 2 then nothing at all,and that nothing at all i will work for one day,it is only a matter of weening myself off,if i can do it,anyone can,remember this is a moderation thread so if i offend anyone,trying to stop and is reading this,maybe you shouldnt be on here,gyco

[janka]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

I need to taper off too. Don't know how to start tho

[Guest]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Time to change;947816 wrote: I always confuse hunger and thirst for AL cravings. Somewhere along the way all the signals have got muddled xx

Just thought I'd contribute here as I was/still am very much the same. HALT describes danger points for addiction(which includes alcohol) and H stands for hunger. Any urges are always stronger before a meal, when I'm hungry so as result I try and make sure I eat little and often - especially before an event where I'm going to be exposed to AL. Just being aware of these trigger points can help.

[Guest]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

Shouldn't the definition of moderation be something like 'intake that doesn't have a negative affect your life, happiness and general well-being'?

[aspman]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

after 300 odd AF days, i still think of 3larg bottles of beer((std drinks) as a good start to an evening.
my head is still broked...

[rebirth]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

I knwow what you mean aspman. Been having one of those days today

[Sunbeam]

What IS drinking in moderation?????

occasional drinking

For me, moderate drinking is a glass or two of wine with dinner in a restaurant, or at a social occasion. I've also called this occasional drinking in my posts here. It does not include drinking alone at home.