To ask how many nights a week you drink alcohol?

[BlondeOnATreadmill]

I have cut down, but I'm not sure it's enough? I think my thinking may be skewed?

I was drinking wine every night. For quite some time! And not just a glass either. Generally a bottle, or even more, every night.

For the past few months, I have cut my drinking back to 3 nights a week only.

The other 4 nights a week, I have no alcohol at all. I have lemonade with dinner and a few decaff coffees later on.

Is this ok? Is 3 nights of drinking still too many? Or do you think this seems ok?

I have lost all perspective.

[FreckledLeopard]

I probably drink at least five nights per week. Not usually more than a glass or two of wine, maybe more if out to dinner. I've been on holiday this week and have shared a bottle of wine each evening with two others (though one would have a tiny glass and leave us two to polish off the bottle). So about two to three glasses each evening this week. No ill effects at all.

I have friends coming for dinner tomorrow and I imagine we'll polish off a fair few bottles of wine between us.

I haven't really thought about my drinking as being an issue. It's certainly something I've done more and more since my late twenties. Lots of alcoholics on both sides of the family. Not sure if I should consciously try to cut down or not - at the moment it doesn't seem to have any negative effects that I'm aware of, and it's something to look forward to after work. Plus have been through three months of hell with relationship breakdown, so wine has been something I've had most evenings.

I honestly don't know how much my friends drink or how common it is amongst other parents with teenage children.

Maybe I'll download the app and go from there.

[StrumpersPlunkett]

Until I first fell pregnant with Ds1 12 years ago dh and I were sharing a bottle of wine every night.
Now I am a social binge drinker. About once a month I have 2-3 glasses of white wine or 2 pints of bitter shandy and I am pissed and the room spins.
Most evenings after the kids are in bed I indulge in a cup of tea and a digestive biscuit and feel v content no yearning for alcohol.

Although most of my friends talk of drinking several glasses of wine each night starting as they prepare the evening meal.

[kawliga]

I'm sorry strumpers but two pints of bitter shandy once a month is not binge drinking. In fact where I come from a shandy is classified as a non-alcoholic drink. So is white wine, for that matter.

[TheCatsFlaps]

I don't drink at all. Sadly, I have been addicted to various prescription drugs for years, often in increasing quantities and stronger classifications as the hit lessens over time.

[AliceScarlett]

None. Can't just have a glass, it always turns into a bottle or more. Been 1.5 years now, one of the best things I ever did.

[MrsMook]

There's no regular pattern to my drinking. I can quite happily go a month without any, with no concious thought. My tipple for in the house is pre-mixed cans of gin and tonic. I like the taste, I don't really want to feel much effect.

I've got a young family so don't go out much, and have no time to be hungover in peace. I drink when I go out, and a big night out might be about 3 drinks. Last night was a gin and tonic (single), cider and medium glass of wine.

I began to reduce how much I drank in a session prior to having children because it disagrees with my digestive system which is more annoying than a fuzzy head. We had begun to go down the bottle of wine 2 or 3 times a month route. That also coincided with us gaining weight subtly. Since I've had several years of pregnancy/ breastfeeding and not picked the drinking at home back up, my weight has stayed below my pre-pregnancy level. When I wasn't sharing with DH, he naturally cut back too.

[OohMavis]

Wine is disgusting. Beer is only nice ice cold and at a barbecue in the summer. Spirits are only nice heavily disguised in fruity cocktails.

So that's why I generally drink a few units a year!

[QueenofLouisiana]

I've drunk 3 times since New Year- each time only about 4 units or less. I'm currently dieting and would prefer to use the syns on chocolate.

However, I don't drink more than 4 drinks a week usually. Mainly because DS has a demanding sports training routine and needs to be driven around 4 nights a week and 2 early mornings!

On holiday I probably drink almost every day. My parents both drank daily and I could mix basic alcoholic drinks from the age of 9.

[NotNob]

I haven't had a drink for 10 years as I'm an alcoholic.

[HermioneJeanGranger]

I had a chocolate baileys and cherry vodka cocktail last night. Before that, I hadn't had a drink since mid-January. I don't sleep well after alcohol so I don't really drink all that often. I like alcohol but I like sleep more!

[MrsJayy]

3 bottles of wine over 3 days is a lot of alcohol but you have cut down so you could cut down some more maybe a bottle over 2 nights. On average I drink a bottle of wine or a few vodkas over the weekend with a binge now and again.

[miserablesod]

None at all. I have one or two drinks about once a year, usually Christmas.

[Petal02]

I used to drink wine every night. But now it's Thurs, Fri and Sat. I look and feel better for the reduction, and don't actually miss wine on my alcohol-free days. Which is quite amazing!

[cozietoesie]

People can often manage an alcohol free day or three if they can anticipate drinks at some point close by in the future. I suspect that if you find yourself thinking pleasurable thoughts about eg 'the next night' just because it will be a drinking night, then you may have something to think about.

[ImogenTubbs]

I drink 4 or 5 nights a week. Usually a glass or two, but on one or sometimes two of those nights I might have a bottle. I am feeling like it is too much at the moment as I'm not sleeping well, very stressed at work and it gives me a slight tummy upset the morning after. I have toyed with giving up and did about three weeks of dry January but it didn't make much difference (apart from the tummy).

[MrsJayy]

Also if you are driving the next morning you are likely be over the limit.

[Katenka]

I generally don't drink at all. Only if I go out, then have a couple.

I am usually doing the school run at 7.30am so don't want to be over the limit or feel like shit.

[OlympicBonfire]

I don't drink any alcohol these days. I have to drive every morning to go and sort out my horses (so could never have loads the night before and risk being over the limit next morning). I also have an elderly mother who I have had to do an emergency dash to on a number of occasions so don't want the risk of having had a drink that evening and not being able to drive, and I don't believe in having any alcohol if you're going to drive.

Plus there is always the risk of emergency vets for dogs/horses so don't want to take the risk. I have no DP living with me so no back up in these situations, and live quite rurally so public transport just doesn't happen. Just practicalities really.

[RubyRoseViolet]

Probably a glass with dinner once or twice a week.

[Lweji]

In terms of health implications one entire bottle in one go affects your system, particularly your liver, more than a glass every day.
It could be the same amount of alcohol, but one makes the cells go on overdrive to process the alcohol and the other doesn't.

[Theendispie]

I have A couple of units of alcohol about twice a month.

[marghini]

Since moving to the UK my alcohol intake has been much higher than before. There is something about this country and its people that just encourages you to drink more and more often!

That being said, I now probably have a couple of (small) wine glasses two or three times a week, while previously I used to have one (small) glass of wine a week or so.

A big difference though! I wonder if I should be worried about it...

[IWantedThatBiscuit]

Most weeks, I share a bottle of wine with my DH on Fri and Sat night, and often another bottle over Sunday lunch.

Thats probably too much, isn't it? But I enjoy it and am happy with that, to be honest.

[ThroughThickAndThin01]

I didn't think that was right about the liver Lweji. I read quite a while ago that the liver copes better with a binge than the drip-drip effect of daily drinking when it doesn't have time to recover. That was written by a liver specialist, but maybe his wasn't a mainstream view.

[MrsJayy]

A bottle has 4 glasses in it so sharing 2 bottles over the weekend isnt loads imo