Is drinking a bottle of wine four nights a week a problem?

I didn't once mention the word dependency. I mentioned not being able to stop drinking easily. It should be easy. That is, if you're not an alcoholic.

As well as the more well known risks, alcohol is a carcinogen, on a level with smoking. I’m at an age now where some of my friends are getting cancer, and they’re all the big drinkers. None of them smoke.

Being in the medical field my biggest worry for you isn't only the increased risk of cancer and cardiac issues but you are also putting yourself at high risk of premature dementia, which i see a lot of in women who have been heavy drinkers

Anyone drinking 4 x bottles of wine per week is an alcoholic. I dont care what the reason is for it. Not healthy and an addiction

I think I definitely drink more than most Mumsnetters, but even I think a bottle of wine four nights a week is a lot.

Whether it's a problem...well that's all relative. Questions that occur to me: a problem for who - just you, or others around you? And what kind of problem? Health, financial, social, familial, using it as a crutch to avoid tackling underlying issues...all are possible but not all necessarily apply.

If you want to cut down, I'd start by reducing to three nights a week, or diluting a bit with sparkling water to make spritzers (presuming you drink white wine, doesn't work so well with red obviously).

It’s a big problem for your liver & brain, even if it’s not a problem, per se, in terms of the effect on how you function in life day to day.
I’m afraid organs can hide the damage caused by alcohol very well until it’s too late. Your liver & brain won’t care that you managed to perform fine at your job, cook the family dinner, etc.
You’ve taken the first step of acknowledging you might be drinking too much by posting here. Now it’s time to work on a plan to reduce the volume of alcohol you’re consuming. Good luck OP!

Hell yeah!!

Well it sounded sarcastic, so I suppose I missed the tone.

Wine is often seen as a safe option, soft alcohol units perhaps but a unit is still a unit.
Do a conversion.
How would you feel about drinking a litre bottle of brandy a week because that contains 40 units, pretty much the same as your 4 bottles of wine.
Said kindly, catch it whilst you can...

Habitual behaviour doesn’t equal dependency. Is op drinking too much? Yes from a health perspective. Is she addicted to the point that she needs alcohol/is dependent on it? I don’t think that’s as clear cut.

I am a habitual drinker in the sense that I will have a drink at the same time when the dc are in bed but I can just as easily go without it.

Exactly
It Just indicates to me that @Taladh ’s well in to that 2.5/3 wine bottles a week quota

It was a genuine question - and one you felt appropriate to ask somebody else?

It can easily become a bigger problem. Like with most things that put bad for us, the more we consume the more we need. It’s a vicious cycle.

Yes, I would 100% consider them an alcoholic. Alcoholism isn't just about how you function, it's the habit of drinking too much, too often, and not being able to break that habit easily. The functioning part also suggests that the person has drunk so much for so long that their body is now desensitised to it, so they now need even more alcohol to reach that typical drunken state of messy behaviour.

You have started early @Taladh

Yes darling girl, that’s too much. I love a drink but more than half a bottle, in fact half a bottle, would floor me. I’d be hung over and over the limit next day I’m sure. I would be going through motions not enjoying life. I’m on holiday now but planning on a health kick and restart my running on return. Easy said but I’m determined. My problem is that I feel I need a relax and a reward at the end of stressful days. I need to find some other lovely reward. Can you do the same. No judgement from me but you are putting away too much.

@ReconciliationsMayVaryindeed I could. And maybe you could halve your sanctimoniousness

Of course!

We avoid using the word ‘alcoholic’ these days and instead use ‘alcohol use disorder’ to reflect the fact that problem drinking is a spectrum.

A useful question to ask is ‘Are you, or someone who know you, worried about your drinking?’.

40 units a week is more than twice the NHS guidelines’ upper limit - this leek is ‘hazardous’. But no amount of alcohol is known to be ‘safe’.

Try to limit yourself to 14 units max per week. If that is difficult then quit completely. Many people find they prefer having no alcohol at all - and all the many benefits of sobriety - rather than have to limit themselves to an amount that feels ‘short’ for them.

could you aim to halve it?

Tell that to your liver, your cancer cells, your blood pressure, your friends and family - don’t be so delusional - of course 40 units a week is a biological and relational problem.

No doubt @dogsaremybusiness is in the grip of a hellish hangover atm

dogsaremybusiness · Yesterday 22:19
Posted too soon! Bugger can’t remember my question now as I’m drunk!!

Well, there’s a surprise @dogsaremybusiness

NHS guidelines for adult females is maximum of 14 alcohol units a week. 4 bottles of wine contain 40 units. So you are consuming nearly 4 times the recommended maximum and therefore there is a risk to overall health.

Excess alcohol is linked to higher risk of some cancera, and can contribute to being overweight.

If you can't control it then it is an unhealthy dependency even if you are not an actual alcoholic. The only saving grace is that you are not drinking everyday, unless you have failed to mention other alcohol intake on the other days if the week.

Yes that is an alcohol problem. Try to cut down and maybe try some AA meetings if you find it a struggle. Good luck.