alcohol damage

Hey all. Well basically i've been drinking for only about 3 years now, i look around on other sites about what damage it can do, etc, but come up with nothing useful. I thought here would be a good place to ask questions. Basically i want to know how much damage can 3 years of drink do to an average person. It started off as an occasional few cans here and there, and basically got to the point where i'm now bored everynight, nothing to do in the evening and i get drunk to pass the time and get a good nights sleep. It works but i've heard that it can damage this and that, apart from my wallet. I been keeping off the **** stuff, alcopops and that. When i can afford it, i'm on good vodka or scotch, or when i'm broke its lager or cider. My favourite lager is definitely Carlsberg Special Brew or Tennents Super, cider wise, it's got to be Merrydown Vintage or K. So its a mix of all of them over about 3 years. What could i be looking at in terms of health damage and that? Not really bothered much, just wanted to know. Thanks.

[boogieman]

hi. as far as health problems, which account for the 3rd leading cause of preventable death in the u.s., alcohol use causes brain damage, organ failure, and cancer among other conditions. alcohol users are also 3 times more likely to become seriously injured. then there are the social costs of loss of productivity, abusive behavior, loss of inhibitions leading to injury, disease or death, broken families, legal problems, loss of respect or position and what is known as incomprehensible demoralization. if you want to see hell on earth, drink heavily and often, i guarantee you will find it in due time. best wishes,  gm

[Delusion]

Put it this way my friend i drank a 350ml bottle of vodka everyday for 6 months at university, i had been an alcohol for years but this was my first phase because i was a suicidal mess. I had internal bleeding in the toilet 'ones and twos' lots and lots of blood really not very good. I was being sick all the time... coughing blood. I was blacking out constantly for hours and my vision kept disapearing from time to time. I developed partial amnesia as well.

In its intensity alcoholism can kill you quicker than heroin or cocaine addiction. Yes its very damaging and i suggest if your concerned you approach a doctor.

[MGM155]

Good morning, all.

Cavalier, I drank off and on, sometimes going for years without drinking, until I had 3 really devastating personal losses.  I never had a problem with it at all until those events happened, which was appx. 2 years ago.  I began drinking heavily to help with sleep and just to help block it all out until I was up to 1 fifth/daily for a few months just recently.  

Just listen up, my friend.  Now I'm going through a living hell.  I really never imagined I would get to this place in my life.  

You're going down a dangerous path.  

I didn't listen to one who was trying to save me from myself, and now I'm paying the price.  Don't do that to yourself.  

[MGM155]

Sorry about that.....you wanted to know about damage, and I was more concerned with trying to get you to stop.

The damage to your personal health and psyche damage is different for everyone.  Rest assured, though, that there will be some, especially if you keep on.  Don't assume you're different or that alcohol won't affect you, that you have it under control.  Wishful thinking, my friend.

[Cavalier342]

Cheers on the info guys.
To be honest i'm quite happy having a few cans in the evening, just got used to it i guess, not too fussed about what it does to me, but the only annoying thing is its not the cheapest way to enjoy myself lol. I'm not drinking as much nowadays because of the long summer evenings, and i reckon i will stop soon enough, my problem is i'm a bit lazy in some respects and cant be bothered giving it up yet i think. If i didnt need to have a car, i'd probably be drinking more but i need money for the car, so i guess thats one good thing.

MGM155, sorry to hear about the losses and that. Alcohol would definitely take control after something like that.
As for me, it started out drinking socially or by myself and kind of got used to the routine, u know.
Anywho, thanks for the replies guys.

[ibizan]

i see that u live in the UK.Have u ever seen the movie classic big here in USA made in 1936 The Wizard of Oz?At the end Dorothy who was lost in another land is going back home after an arduous journey.She xclaims to Glenda the good witch"U knew i knew how to get back home the whole time.Why didn't u tell me?Glenda smiles and replies" Because u never would've believed me!u had to find out for urself!Such is the case with alcoholism drug addiction and life experiences in general!best of luck to u young man!:)

[MGM155]

Cavalier, just please be careful, and I wish you the best of luck, also!

[Cavalier342]

Well i only drink because i'm bored in the evening and it helps me sleep better. If i'm broke, i dont drink. But i do spend a bit too much on booze and thats only the most annoying thing. Apart from that its just a bit of fun really.

[ibizan]

u have an awesome husband who doesn't drink and is willing to help u?DO U KNOW WHAT A RARE FIND THAT IS?u r one lucky woman!if u keep up the drinking he will tire of it and leave some day...and u will regret not making changes!

[SoccerBoy83]

I agree that, stop it rather than only knowing the damage

[PinPinPatrick]

There is definite damage done to the body, mind, and life of the person who drinks.

I know of a researcher who conducted some research... he took 2 groups of mice, one group of mice were given water, the other group was given water mixed with ethanol.  After a few months they took out the liver and made a comparison.

The mice who drank the water had a normal liver, like cheddar cheese... the mice who were alcoholics, had a liver like swiss cheese and marble.... holes in the liver here and there, as well as fat deposits in the liver.

The same happens in humans.  I heard that even 1 night of binge drinkin can result in a fatty liver.  What happens is that the liver can't break down excessive amounts of alcohol at once and has to use several different methods to break down the alcohol, one of the methods is to turn the alcohol into fat, creating a fatty liver.  When the body breaks down the fat, there is a hole there, and eventually the body fills that hole with scar tissue...

A damage liver.

There is also damage done to the brain.  Each time you binge drink you dehydrate the body.  The brain is like a sponge, and when water is drained, the size of the brain will actually shrink.  

There have been studies looking at the brains of people who don't drink and people who do drink, in their 30's.  The people who binge drink had about a 1% smaller brain volume than those that didn't drink.  

Alcohol also dehydrates as I mentioned before, and because of the reduction in ADH hormone, you lose water and pee more often... with this you also lose your water soluble vitamins, and potassium and salt imbalance.  So your body needs to rebalance your potassium and sodium, as well as replenish the B-vitamins.  

[KjFlicka]

Just wanted to add that regular/daily drinking does more damage than the occasional binge. I drank red wine for about 4 years (pretty much daily) and that was enough to get all the way to cirrhosis for me.... but, alas, of the tens of millions of alcoholics in the US, only about 10% end up with liver problems. Apparently, it's all genetic, but who the heck knows who is what? Be on the safe side!