Tracked my alcohol usage for a while. Want to stop completely except for special occasions

[Woodlandwalkss]

Averaging 6-10 units a week
The problem is I like enough to feel a little bit loose and tipsy
So this last week on Wednesday I had a double gin. I do measure properly and it's 50ml and half a bottle of 8 per cent wine
Friday I had the same again
.
Sometimes I go a whole week without
Do I have a problem? I wouldn't be happy with just a glass. Im drinking to feel drunk but not drunk enough to have a hang over because that's not worth it

Don't know why I bother. None of my threads ever get a single reply. When I posted on the bereaved forum under a different name once I never got a single reply whilst everyone else talked around each other as well. FFS

Don't flounce it doesn't become you!

there used to be an unanswered threads section on here and there were loads! So it's nothing personal.

you aren't drinking a over unsafe limits which is I think 14 a week? So yours is a bit of a non issue really - but there's nothing wrong with a reset so maybe go without and see how you go?

If you feel inclined to cut your alcohol consumption, go for it. I've lots of friends who have quit drinking altogether, and have never looked back. I don't drink and don't feel this choice negatively impacts my life.
There are lots of threads about reducing alcohol, perhaps run a search and find advice and inspiration there?
Best of luck!

I don't think you have anything close to an alcohol problem, given what you have described. 6-10 units a week is actually quite low compared to average alcohol consumption in the UK. I was drinking over 100 units a week when I quit.

But if you don't want to continue drinking, you can quit. You don't have to have a 'problem' to stop. Since you aren't drinking much at all, just swap out your alcoholic drinks for something AF or a tea and see how you get on. If you are finding that hard to do in social situations, it might be that you need to be more assertive about it or you need to take a few weeks off from a night out just til you get into the new habit.

I don't think you have a problem, especially if you can go a week without. But if you want to stop or cut back, why not mix in non alcoholic drinks, like I'll have a G&T but then switch to non alcoholic beer or soft drinks.

Hi OP,
I have talked about my experience with cutting out alcohol before. I always maintain that if you ask yourself 'Have I got a problem with alcohol' then you probably do. How your drinking looks or compares to other people isn't the question you need to be asking, but how does it impact you, the person who has to live with the consequences of said drinking? That's what you need to explore.

There is an entire world of feeling fresh, free, clear headed and alive when you cut alcohol out that feels better than being drunk or tipsy does. It's a whole new life. Alcohol is deeply ingrained in the culture and many, many people have a very complicated, unhealthy relationship with it but it kind of gets absorbed into the 'wine o'clock!' rhetoric that is pervasive today. Lots of people have a totally healthy, moderate relationship with alcohol but not everyone does. In fact, lots of people end up drinking too much and not even knowing why. It has just become a part of their life, like an unstable roommate that they have just learned to get along with because she can be fun on a night out.

If you think you drink too much, try cutting it out and think about what a relief it is to never feel hungover, fuzzy headed or ashamed ever again.

I keep taking a month off, here and there. I can't seem to cut it put completely!

Like you, OP, I like the warm, loose feeling provided by a couple of glasses. I do struggle to stop at a couple, however, so know I really ought to stop for good.

If you can control your drinking then I wouldn't say you have a problem. If you are not happy about how much you drink then why not set yourself a challenge in the new year and see how that makes you feel? Start Dry Jan and carry it on for a few months? (I'm abstaining in the new year for a while so shall be right there with you, if you need support!)

A great piece of advice that I received is that if you give something up then you need to replace it with something else. What void are you trying to fill with your quadruple G&T of an evening? How else can you relax? I believe that is the key to success!

Good luck and keep on posting... we're here.