A bottle of wine every day

[biscbek]

Been doing it for two years now. I don't even get drunk anymore . It's a habit . I work from home so it doesn't affect me driving or anything . No kids at home. Partner works away mostly .
Is it really bad ? Do others drink this much ? Don't really know why I'm posting . I don't even know if I want to stop

It’s a lot and I love a glass of wine. I was drinking half a bottle 5 nights a week over lock down . Things are getting a bit more back to normal so am cutting it to 2/3 nights so will work out 2 bottles per week .
You should try and cut back and if you can’t I would seriously think of giving it up.
Good luck 🍀

It’s a slippery slope OP. DP and I found ourselves drinking every night (although half a bottle each) at the beginning of lockdown. I started to feel groggy all the time.

We are now back to half a bottle each on a Friday and Saturday.

I think it’s boredom that starts it but then it becomes a difficult to break habit. Especially when you know you don’t have to drive anywhere in the morning.

Good luck OP.

If you’d like to watch an inspirational film about a woman who overcame a drink problem then I’d recommend Wild. It’s on Netflix.

@TazSyd oooh thanks , I'll give that a watch

Then, if you can have double that if you’re out then 64 units a week is a conservative estimate.

That, combined with the fact that you said you don’t think you can stop and you think about drinking from the morning suggests you’ve got a drink problem.

How early do you start? And when do you start counting down the time to wine o clock?

@PotteringAlong depending on my workload I can start anytime from around lunchtime. I have coffee and juice in between as I feel (naively) that that helps my body a bit . But I know it's a problem . And even just talking about it on here is a baby step I feel . Thanks

Would it help if I told you I have a friend in icu with cirrhosis of liver. Won't survive without transplant that they won't give as she was drinking up to the day she was admitted

I found myself doing this sometimes, I was shocked when I first realised I had pretty much drunk a whole bottle! It used to be a treat and then when I realised I was drinking most days I decided to get it back to being a treat again, so now I only allow myself a drink at the weekends. Also I was worried I might get to the point where I NEEDED a drink rather than just wanting one. Definitely feeling more clear and energetic during the week, and lost a few pounds too. Do it before you physically can't do it, and then you're in trouble...

The world and its mother is doing the same and more every day.

The real issue is if you want to continue, or stop.

It’s so easy to just slip into drinking because of boredom (especially if you’re alone most evenings), I know I’ve been there. When I was younger, before DP and DD came along, I lived by myself - if I didn’t go out, I’d drink a bottle by myself.

It’s hard to get out of the habit. What helped me was finding tv series, films and books that I could get really into. Along with planning holidays. Or find a hobby that has online chat groups. If you’re like me, then you just need to find a way of keeping yourself entertained, give yourself something else to look forward to in the evening.

You know that it far too much, the question is what are you going to do about it. It is really easy to pretend it doesn't effect you, your Doctor will tell you a different story. If i was ( i have been there) you i would face up to it tonight and sort it.

Around lunchtime? So 11am then?

I think you need to go and see your GP my lovely. If nothing else just to test your liver function.

[quote biscbek]@PotteringAlong depending on my workload I can start anytime from around lunchtime. I have coffee and juice in between as I feel (naively) that that helps my body a bit . But I know it's a problem . And even just talking about it on here is a baby step I feel . Thanks [/quote]
And even just talking about it on here is a baby step I feel

I think that you're doing yourself down here - this isn't a baby step at all, it's a huge one. You have recognised that there is an issue and are asking for advice, and that is one of the biggest hurdles of all.

Admitting to yourself that you have a problem is one thing, but admitting it to others takes courage.

OP I drink around 2-4 units a night and 6-8 on Fridays and Saturdays.

It's far too much and I've just resolved to quit the daily drinking. Weekends only.

Well done for posting here, it's an important first step

When I’ve cut down before I found it helpful to give myself a time that I wasn’t allowed a drink before (eg 9pm) then that naturally limited what I drank and I still had the promise of a drink to look forward to. Not ideal but could be a first step.

One thing that got through to me was the increased risk of breast cancer. The huge difference between moderate and heavy drinking woke me the fuck up.

Graphic from: scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2017/05/25/alcohol-and-breast-cancer-how-big-is-the-risk/

So if you are starting at say 12pm is it lasting all day are you eating? you mention your juice and coffee but no food . Tbh It sounds like you are bored and lonely at home so have a wi e to kill that boredom.

I drink a bottle a night too

Other people have talked about the units of alcohol and the long term health damage, which is the most important part but also just to add that's just an absolute staggering amount of calories.

A bottle of wine is around 600-650 calories, that's around a third of your daily recommended calorie intake going on something with zero nutritional value.

Unless you're running a 10k every day to compensate for that kind of calorie excess then you must be either badly overweight or, if you're not overweight, then you're likely swapping out proper food for booze which is going to lead to malnutrition.

I went alcohol free 3 1/2 years ago after I was very poorly with a gallbladder infection. It has been singularly the best thing I have ever done. If I’m honest I probably knew that I had an issue with alcohol in the 5 years leading up to that point. I went through periods of drinking similar amounts to you for prolonged periods to then embarking on a health drive and cutting right down to drinking just at weekends then it increasing again to just a few days off a week and then eventually back to every day again. I’d repeat this cycle incessantly. I would constantly be thinking about alcohol, was I drinking too much, did we have enough for the evening, was it too early, did I deserve it, how much did everyone else drink, was i an alcoholic. On and on and on.

Stopping drinking takes away all the thinking about it and gives you back so much headspace. And that’s without even touching on the health and financial benefits.

Recognising that you have an unhealthy relationship is the first step so well done!! 😘💐

I’m happy to give you a hand hold if you want to PM me with no judgement. If you want someone to check in with.

I’d easily drink a bottle a day. Easily. For years. But I haven’t gone sober - I have managed to cut down. I made a decision that I’d rather have the battle and still have a drink at the weekend than not at all.

It’s not boredom as such for me but monotony. I have plenty to be busy with but let’s face it; none of it is very scintillating. Work, cooking cleaning, ironing....and maybe a walk round the park? Woo-bloody-hoo. That crap still needs doing so a glass of wine cooking, plus one eating, plus one after....a bottle is easily done and makes that boring still fractionally less boring.

Now I do a couple of things. I don’t drink in January or October. That’s credit in the bank for me for Christmas and early summer holidays. Then I don’t drink for at least 3, but more likely 4 consecutive nights a week. At first it was hard but by the time I’ve done Monday, the Tuesday, that’s halfway through. And I do feel so so much clearer and cleaner. Friday night really feels like the end of the week now - it’s a treat - and I KNOW I’ve had a glass unlike before when it didn’t touch the sides. I’m going away the weekend after next. I’m saying to myself if I’m restrained between now and then I can have a bit without the guilt.

I don’t think you’re an addict. I just think you’ve got into a very bad habit.

AA meetings are all online at the moment. So if you can’t face going to one, you could just login and listen. I didn’t get to the point where I needed AA but a good friend did. She said just hearing other people’s stories, realising she wasn’t alone or a failure really helped. It’s completely anonymous.

@Pipandmum

Giving you a low ball unit count of 9 per bottle, that's 63 units a week. The recommended amount is no more than 14. So I'd say you are doing yourself some harm, which may take some time to become apparent, but by then damage is done. And do not be fooled that it doesn't affect your driving - if you were breathalysed you would be over the limit, and your reaction times and judgement are affected.

Why would she be over the limit if she stops drinking before midnight?

You're drinking over a long time period. Are you actually drinking more than that?

That’s how I started, a bottle a night. It didn’t even affect me so to get the ‘buzz’ I needed to open the 2nd bottle. 10 years later I needed to crack open a third.
By that point I was alcohol dependent.
Thankfully I realised and stopped. Have been sober for three years this October.