How do I know if a person is alcoholic

[Mick005]

Hello,

Unfortunately I dont drink at all - Not eve a sip - I have been married fo 7 years now and lately my wife has started drinking heavly due to the fact that she started a new job and has been putting long hours - she used to drink a couple of drinks over the weekend and that is about it but now she does not drink until she gets completely trashed - is 2 bottles of wine Ok?? she started drinking during the week - I would say that she drinks 4 days a week. she started neglecting me ( her husband ) , her family and she is blaming all this on the stress level.

When I ask her about her excessive drinking she justifies it as I am no a drinker and I really dont know what heavy drinkers do ?

so my question s ! what are the factors in determining if the person is alcoholics ? is it the dependancy on substance ? she als takes antidepressant meds ? does that have effect on alcholisiom ?



Thank you
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dui-dui

[boogieman]

hi. sounds like potential alcoholism. the best way to define it is a condition where one continues to use alcohol or other chemical, despite negative repercussions. from you're description, there may well be a developing problem. eventually an alcoholic will reach a point at which they can not stop drinking once they start, and will not be able to predict with any certainty what will happen when they do drink. you might want to check out al-anon at al-anon.alateen dot org and/or find a local group near you. also, most all antidepressants carry warnings about alcohol consumption because of potential cross-reactions. alcohol is a sedative and depressant, and will make an existing depressive diagnosis even worse. please ask if you have other concerns and take care,   gm

[ibizan]

all i can add to boogies good advice is drinking til one is trashed is a flashing red light.....two bottles of wine is over the top!

[kimpton]

hi.  from the female perspective.... i would have her cortisol checked.  because prolonged stress can alter your adrenal system and you end up having lots of excess energy at the end of the day.  i used to try to slow myself down with alcohol.  cortisol is supposed to wake you in the am and taper off in the afternoon and more so in the evening for sleep.  but, if you're hitting the wall at 90mph everyday you can really throw things off.  there's a product that i take called adreset & it makes me feel alot better.  & alcohol is a depressant.  depressed people are indecisive.  so alcohol isn't going to help her work performance. i've seen it over & over again.  i watched people second guess themselves for 8 hrs over a basic task.  that might be a way to convince your wife that drinking is destructive by taking it out of the context of 'your an alcoholic'.  if she's ignoring her family i would say- she's depressed.  & if she stopped exercising to work a longer days than she's not getting the good brain chemicals.  i refer to your wife's situation as 'going off the rails'. just have to get back on track.   :-)  kimpton