When a doctor asks how much you drink, what do you say?

[Sheamie]

You know the usual questions when you’re at a medical appointment- do you smoke/if yes, how heavily, do you drink/if so to what extent etc.

If you drink alcohol, how do you answer, and what does your drinking pattern actually look like?

Zero or perhaps two spritzers at Christmas?
I have a very low tolerance for alcohol now I’m older 🤷🏼‍♀️, it doesn’t bother me one bit.

I agree, @SirChenjins - I'm not saying I am better than anyone else because I drink very infrequently - it is simply the truth. Do people like @Speccytwit think we should lie, and say we drink more than we actually do, to make people who drink more feel better?

Yes I'm not really sure what value they think they are contributing to the thread

"What do you do about x"
" I don't do x"
It's hardly a lead in to a riverting conversation or stimulating debate, is it?

Strangely enough there aren't hundreds of people who jump on a question about how to de-worm a cat with "I don't have a cat" or someone asking for mortgage advice with "I've never owned a house."

Me and DH are the same. We have young kids so drinking is very occasional at social events, less than once a month. We don't have any willing babysitters generally and don't want to pay for one so we never go out and drink together. We do occasionally have mutual friends round to our house though and have a few drinks then all together. Even then we are not heavy drinkers though. I know loads of people who are light social drinkers and/or don't drink at all though.

I told the truth to an Orthopaedic Consultant who refused me a hip replacement after waiting 2 years and 6 months to see him. I have, so far, suffered 4 years of excruciating pain and still don't have a date for an operation. I will tell them what they want to hear in future

No but they are querying why you chose to post on a topic about something you don't do?

If someone posted "how do you roll a spliff" I wouldn't feel the need to jump in to declare "I wouldn't know I've never smoked" because it would be a waste of everyone's time.

Same with "how do you improve your pb in a half marathon" it would be insanely arrogant of me to think my contribution of "I've never even done a 5k" would be of any value or interest to anyone.

@another1bitestheduck the OP didn't write the thread title as "If you drink like a fish/are borderline alcoholic then when a doctor asks how much you drink, what do you say?" The question was addressed to all, even those who only indulge in a small sherry at Christmas if it's been a leapyear.

Yes but what is the POINT of responding?
What value does it bring?

Op presumably assumed only people with a useful contribution would respond and didn't think she had to phrase her question in such a specific way to clarify this.

If I posted asking "what's the weather like in Australia in december" there's a fairly obvious assumption that I would like responses from people with relevant experience or knowledge, to expect me to phrase it "people who have actually been to Australia, what is the weather like there in december?" and if I didn't then its my fault if I get hundreds of comments saying "don't know I've never been" is incredibly pedantic.

But I DO get asked by the doctor how much I drink - and the question that the OP is asking how people answer that question, @another1bitestheduck, so @Sheamie's thread is as relevant to me as it is to any other MNer who is asked that question by the GP - not just the ones that drink!

Why would my answer be any less valuable because I only drink occasionally?

@another1bitestheduck I thought she may be having same issue I do and several other have had on this thread - not teetotal but not drinking every week or even every month and being treated as if lying or as if we aren't understood.

I wondered if she was looking for a phrase that convey that very occasional drinking and doesn't come with anger that you didn't say teetotal from start - even if not completely - or just assumed to be outright lying.

@another1bitestheduck the point is to answer the OPs question. There's value to having a range of answers from a range of people. If one could be arsed one could analyse all the answers to find out where the boundary zone is between "low enough that I don't feel I have to lie" and "embarrassing enough that I can't tell the truth" - that wouldn't be able to find out if you restricted responses to excessive drinkers only. You may not be interested in the answers from people who drink less than you but you aren't the thread police and the OP made no restrictions specifying that only heavy drinkers should answer.

This is why I answered too. The doctor always asks me if I smoke, despite a quick look through my notes, would show the answer is always no. I suppose I could have taken it up, but it seems unlikely.

Likewise they always ask how many units of alcohol I drink.

And I don't think I'm better than anyone else for hardly drinking. I'm also not boring or anything else. I'm don't consciously not drink, and I never made an actual decision not to drink. But I'm not one to drink on my own and I've been a single Mum for most of my DCs lives, so was on my own most of the time. If I fancy a drink I'd have one. I just rarely do.

I really struggle with this question. Most weeks I have one drink. But then on holiday or over Christmas it’s more like two or three a day. And then I go weeks or sometimes even months without having anything. I usually guess at around 3 a week to average it out but couldn’t tell you if it was accurate without making note of every drink I had over a year!

I found out this year that the answer I gave last year, a truthful bottle of wine a year was recorded as a bottle of wine a week.

I have told my nurse the truth- the truth about my bereavement, my stress at work, my caring for disabled child etc etc. And they essentially shrug shoulders and say there isn't anything they can do about that. So I continue to drink 1-2 bottles a wine a week.

The truth. Hardly ever. High days and holidays. I go months without alcohol as it killed my daughter's dad.

The truth, which is about the 14 units.

This week I've already have 2 cans of beer and 2 tiny cans of cocktails.

I'm surprised how abstemious everyone on MN seems to be or is it self selected by people who have nothing to hide so to speak.

I have usually lied, just because I didn't go to the GP to get a lecture on drinking, and I was already all too aware that I was drinking too much. I have cut down recently and could now say truthfully about the maximum recommended, so I've joined the. 'I don't mind posting on this thread', brigade.

I wish I wasn’t as abstemious as I unfortunately happen to be.

I quite like to drink.

Alcohol is fun. I find alcohol production and the traditions around it (be it wine, beer, whiskey, sake etc.) extremely interesting.

And there are so many lovely drink options!

But I unfortunately can’t. I just don’t have the time or mental energy for it.

I tell the truth, as they need to know. I drink maybe once every couple of weeks, just a half pint. They don't like how many espressos I drink though (about 12 a day) but I've told them

I don’t know if this helps but at med school we were always told to double what the patient told us 🤣🤣

I've never found alcohol to be something positive for me, I don't like the feeling of being out of control. Now some medication I'm on makes me feel drunk on a quarter of a pint so I just stick with other drinks. My coffee addiction is my vice though, and something I can't easily shift.

Just say I don’t drink cos I don’t.

Well I say I haven't had an alcoholic drink in over a decade - because I haven't!

But before that I'd just say I drink socially once or twice a month as that was true.

Luckily I never was in the situation a GP asked me this in my late teens and early 20's 🫣😂

I am on a drug long term, where it says on the box something to the effect of “no alcohol”. I don’t like getting paralytic and vomiting on two drinks; and getting so drunk so fast is not at all pleasant!

So, when I say one drink a month, I’m telling the truth!