Are you an alcoholic? It usually takes a long time someone involved in alcohol abuse to realize they have crossed the line into alcoholism, and usually the alcoholic is the last one to know. It is a startling revelation.
The only one who can make that determination is the person in question. If someone tells you you're an alcoholic, it's fairly meaningless, but honesty with yourself on the issue is paramount.
Ask yourself these questions: 1. Are people close to me complaining about my drinking? 2. Am I drinking before I go out to social events to get a "head start"? 3. How much time am I spending drinking alone? 4. How often am I nursing a hangover? 5. Is the time I spend drinking interfering with more important things I should be taking care of? There is a big misconception out there about holding a job. Many think that since they are holding down a job they don't have a drinking problem. The truth is the job is the last thing to go, which has been proven time and time again. If you are in the beginning or intermediate stages of alcoholism you of course will not want to stop drinking because you have developed an addiction to alcohol, and you will find yourself going to great lengths to protect your drinking, and to stop others from running any interference with your drinking.
Some drinkers have higher bottoms than others. Some will go on to lose their jobs and take up drinking full time and some alcoholics are very functional. The functional alcoholic is the one who has the tendancy to run into health problems, because on the surface things are going fairly well so there is really no reason to stop drinking. But when you don't stop, your body won't be able to take the battering forever.
When you are evaluating the extent of your drinking problem, the most important aspect is being honest with yourself. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what other people think. It's your life, and you are the one who will endure the consequences.
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