I grew up with parents that didn’t drink more than a couple times a year. There was never booze in the house. I’m now married to a highly functioning alcoholic and I used to try to keep up with him, and I just cannot. I was a binge drinker as a youngster (weren’t we all fellow Americans??). I was never a wine with dinner person. I’d rather have a Coke. My observations as a now 53 year old teetotaler are as follows. 1. If you drink every day, unless you have only one drink, you’ve got a problem. 2. If you drink a lot every day, you have a problem. 3. If you have to drink in social settings, you have a problem. 4. If you drink more than two drinks at a time, you have a problem. 5. If the highlight of your day is drinking, you have a problem.
I know this, because I have had problems with drinking in the past. I drink maybe once or twice a year now. I always feel very anxious and physically bad the next day. I just don’t want to feel that way. Sadly, the absolute best I ever feel is when I’m kind of drunk. Therein lies the problem.
I’d say Fanny, PhiPhi, auntie and uncle, Anne Marie, Michael Potts, are all heavy drinkers. It does eventually sap energy from anyone who does it, highly functional or not. My hubs drinks 10-12 beers every night. He’s not the same guy he was when he was 30. I think he’s developing gait and neurological issues. I feel very badly for him, but I’m not going to nag him. I know for sure he has horrible anxiety from it. That’s why he starts over again every day. He’s a nice fella and a happy drunk. You can’t tell he’s drunk until he tries to walk. He’s a stellar employee, very responsible, and up and at it every day. I know I couldn’t do it, and I no longer choose to.