Does any-one else drink about a bottle of wine every night?

[justwhen]

Ok I do and am starting to think I may have a problem as all I seem to think about during the day is when I can pour my 1st glass in the evening. I lead a very stressful life with 3 children (10, 7 & 4), have 3 jobs and a dh who works mega long hours so is hardly there. Thing is I can go for a week with no wine in a bid ti try & lose weight but then I just as easily slip back into it. Do I have a problem?

It does sound excessive to be honest, i'm afraid, but it's good that you are conscious of it and being honest with yourself.

Could this have become a crutch to help you deal with your stressful day - the promise of a glass of wine in the evening? Have you tried anything else to help you unwind?

I would call that a problem, definitely

amazed you can keep it all going drinking that much, tbh, and that you can afford it: what would you do if you saved the money you spend on wine for 2 weeks/2/months/6 months/1 year?

If you think about the average number of units in a bottle of wine being 10 ish (depending on what sort it is) and the recommended upper limit intake of units for women being 14 a week then in that context you are drinking far too much. The level at which you are drinking could cause damage to your health and at the very least will be giving you a lot of unecessary calories.
It might be helpful to think about cutting down the amount you have each day,having a spritzer instead, having some alcohol free days, speaking to your GP, find another way to treat yourself at the end of a hard day. If you google know your limits then that will have some helpful advice on.

A bottle a night is too much. You know that, or you wouldn't be posting.

I just checked it, and a bottle of wine = 9 units of alcohol; 9 X 7 = 63.
You probably know that the recommended limit is 14 units per week, you are exceeding that by more than 4 times.

Sorry if I'm sounding sanctimonious/preachy...I do know what it's like and have found myself on the slippery slope a few times. You just need to pull back now and not slip down it.
Things that helped me were having 4 alcohol-free nights per week (build up to this gradually if it seems too drastic), drinking less on the nights I do drink, and just going to bed earlier with a book.

Thanks guys you have just confirmed what deep down I really knew but was just too scared to admit. It really has shocked me and I need to somehow get a grip on this.

I think that many, many people are in your situation. I have gone done that road before and I find it very easy to slip into a glass, 2 glasses a night etc
Being pregnant and or breastfeeding for the last 3 ish years has made it easy for me to avoid alcohol pretty much completely but that's pretty drastic and not a solution for everyone
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Thanks sazlocks I've just bought a book called Beat the Booze. I don't want to have to stop completely but just need some serious control!

I got to a similiar state - couldn't seem to get through a night without at least 2 large glasses, often more.

I found I was just in the habit of sipping constantly from a nearby glass, but didn't actually care too much what was in it. So now I have a glass of wine and then lemonade - and feel a lot better for it.

That's a good tip, Hassled- I have found the same.

justwhen - I could be where you are very easily. But I always have at least 3 nights with no booze, usually 4. I feel much better for it. The older I get the more aware I am of how bad wine makes me feel.

Maybe one day I'll pluck up the courage to knock it on the head once for all....

Justwhen - I could have written your op. I was drinking 1+ bottles per night. Job related stress/depression was the cause and the wine bottle was my reward simply for surviving yet another day in a job I hated. I have now given up alcohol completely and feel better than ever. I didnt realise that it actually caused depression too. It was also mich easier to give up than I thought too.

I could quite easily drink that much a night
But I know it would be bad for me
I try not to drink at all Mon -THurs - which is OK to maintain as htese are days where I wrok/ go to the gym so prefer to have a clear head
But FRi and Sat night usually have a bottle per night.
Still not great but almost within the safe limits
Dont beat yourself up tho, and make a mental note of how much better you feel after a booze free night.
MAybe join a gym/ start running - then you will really notice how much alchol drains you of energy!!

Maybe you need to take drastic action with your lifestyle - do you really need 3 jobs? can you not do 1 or 2 jobs?! If you can afford 7 bottles of wine a week, that at least £35 ish x 4 = £140- you could drop a job and save money by not drinking!

I've got a bit of a bee in my bonnet over this, but I think it's crazy to get yourself into a situation where your health i s under threat in order to earn £xxx. Okay, you might say you have to, but if that means cutting back on hols, and non essentials, then you should cut back.

Alternatively you need to find other ways to relax- but TBH I'd suggest that you contact ALanon- for advice. Your drinking is a problem when you can't get through a day without a drink, or if you think about drink a lot, or if you plan your life around the next drink.

You can do online quizzes to tell youhow much of a problem you have- so I'd suggest you get some help.

I read an article recently re: liver transplants, and apparently something like 70% of people with end stage liver disease are 'only' drinking between half and a bottle of wine per evening and did not realise they were harming their health. Be warned!

no way
2 glasses top of hangover city

I've been where you are....made myself stick to the rule that i wouldn't drink at all during the week unless it was a special occasion...feel so much better since makin that decision..i still drink at the weekend (too much at times) but def fel in control now

i know i drink too much but enjoy it.I hate the come down effects sweating .shaking. etc also the effects it makes me feel.Trying so hard for it not to make me loose my job.It an addiction but trying so hard for it not to be.My doc is not helping much i feel like she is looking down on me.I am prob looking down on my self??

I could, but I don't. It's too much and I think you know it. Good luck!

Mother3, are you ok? Are you getting help? If your dr isn't helping, find someone who will.

I hope you have good luck with beating this. If your dh isn't there it's not right to be in charge of three children with a bottle of wine inside you. It's not just that it's bad for you. I feel very sorry for your situation, three children, three jobs, no support. I don't know how you manage it and I'm not surprised you open a bottle.

Can you give yourself a boost in other ways? I will sound boring but why don't you go to bed instead of having the third glass? Or second glass, whatever, but things would seem more manageable. And sazlocks said about spritzers which also sounds good. Or alternating water with water, like on a night out.

Your situation sounds so tough it could lead to depression. Good luck.

Mother3 if your doctor isn't taking you seriously then you should change your doctor. That's not right and it's not respectful.

I was drinking far too much this time last year. And had been for a long time. Our routine was that DH would come home from work and I would be cooking and we would have a drink - I would have a couple of glasses of white wine. Then we would have a bottle of red with dinner. Sometimes then DH would have a whiskey or something and me being the greedy cow I am would open another bottle of red and have a glass.

So in January I decided I needed to do something about it but didn't want to miss the social aspect of chatting to DH while cooking etc. So I decided to stick to white wine and soda. I have a long glass with about an inch of wine in the bottom, top up with soda water and a few ice cubes. I have about 3 of those in an evening now maybe. A bottle of wine lasts me 4 or 5 nights. And a bottle of red lasts DH about 2 or 3 nights.

Doing it this way has hugely helped me to cut down. I drink more if I go out but still try to dilute my wine with soda water.

I do think sometimes it is habit to drink so much and you need to ask yourself are you drinking out of habit (which I was) or a definite need for oblivion.

I now HATE having a hangover. If i drink too much I end up waking up around 4 unable to get back to sleep and just lying there thinking about what I am doing to my health. So I very rarely do that anymore.

my doc is trying to help have to see a alchol counseller but doc would not give me any meds as she just strugged it off as one addiction is enough.I have a trapped nerve in my arm and was taking pain killers but doc said with raised eyebrows dont take them they are addictive not took them since..Been signned off work. Feel my work wont have me off 4 ever so its risking my job.Not sleeping much just anxious all the time cant relax feel like i am being backed in to a corner.At this momennt i think i need obbivilon.wot started me off on this spiral was finding my uncle dead last year.We had to break in his house cause he didnt anwser the door .He was old(87)but he had no signes of illnes.He had to have a post mortem and it was a heart attack.He lived alone and we saw him every week.Lucky or unlucky for us he was only dead 1 day.

Sh*t am now on glass 2 of red. I have no willpower. I had a bottle left open from friends round last night. I also drink to escape reality and a stressful life, I know it's counter productive.
mother3 I really feel for you - please stay and chat on this thread