Do You Have a Habit of Drinking or Using Alone? Part 6 of 7

by Heartland HouseSep 24, 2018SUD Resources0 comments

At Heartland House, we have learned a lot about substance abuse disorder over our many years of serving men in recovery. Throughout our history, we have utilized an array of recovery tools that have their roots in 12-step programs, government initiatives, and studies and surveys.

We want to reach the still suffering alcoholic or drug addict. If you are questioning whether you might need help with addiction, we are developing a series of blogs on the subject that will be of interest to you. This one poses one of the key questions that we ask our clients:

Do you have a habit of drinking or using alone?

Plenty of people who live alone or go out alone may enjoy a glass of wine or beer. What we’re looking for is the shameful behavior referenced in our previous blog, “Have you ever felt defensive, guilty, or ashamed about your drinking or using?”. Do you drink or use alone because you are worried what people will think or say? Or are you drinking or using alone to avoid the questions and comments from friends or family that they’ve made in the past about your habits? In summary, what are the true reasons for your behavior?

Most people who are not alcoholics are able to enjoy a drink or two to wind down after a long work day, or just to enjoy a glass of wine or beer with their meal. Drinking alone in these cases isn’t necessarily behavior that points to alcoholism. And alcohol continues to be commonly used to cope with life’s troubles such as depression, stress, anxiety, sleep deprivation, and other ailments. While excessive use of alcohol to treat any of these problems is probably not healthy in the long run, doing so still may not mean that one is an alcoholic.

Does Drinking Alone Make Me An Alcoholic?

If, however, you are drinking alone to hide your habit from your friends, family, or coworkers, because you are either ashamed of your drinking or you have exhibited destructive behavior in the past and you are trying to control and manage it, these might be signs of alcoholism.

Those who are not alcoholic can almost always moderate or quit drinking if they encounter problems resulting from over-consumption of alcohol. They don’t need to consume alcohol to cope with life, and so they don’t need to hide and drink alone.

If you are restless, irritable, discontented, and hiding your drinking habit, you might be an alcoholic.

In case you missed the other blogs in this series:

Part 1 – How do I know if I’m an alcoholic?

Part 2 – Is it hard for you to imagine life without drugs or alcohol?

Part 3 – Has your substance use caused problems in your personal or professional life?

Part 4 – Do you need to use drugs or alcohol to feel “normal”?

Part 5 – Have you ever felt defensive, guilty, or ashamed about your drinking or using?

Part 6 – Do you have a habit of drinking or using alone?

Part 7 – Have you tried to stop drinking or using on your own and found that you couldn’t do it?