Comments on: I’m like a chocoholic, except with alcohol

By: well-intentioned heartbreaker

well-intentioned heartbreaker — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 20:56:11 +0000

for a good part of my incredibly long and delayed flight back from toronto, i thought about drinking.
and the fact that it is more socially acceptable to order a beer with friends than water, or soda.
i’m 21, i still want to go out with my friends and get ‘happy-buzzed’, but seriously? i way prefer the taste of pepsi to the taste of beer. i’ve never drank alone, and rarely have drank on a night where i have work the next morning.
so i’ve made a decision that i’m happy with, for the time being, which is to drink when i want to, when i’m with people i am comfortable drinking with. never because it is the socially acceptable thing to do.

By: Princess Pointful

Princess Pointful — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 18:40:56 +0000

I find it curious how we all know all the cliches about alcoholism, yet it isn’t something we worry about until it smacks us in the face. There is this odd continuum in which we accept some pretty appalling behaviour as normal– like you said, it makes for good stories, and that seems to be reason enough to do such ridiculous things. However, it is an odd smack in the face when you truly see it for what it is when it was in front of you all along– what weird cultural lenses we have on.

By: s'mat

s'mat — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 21:13:29 +0000

Well done Sheila!! It seems not to be just a paradigm shift, but an entire radicalization of one’s lifestyle, and a new way to celebrate it! Like a phoenix, there’s many lives to lead.
And thank you, there are things in here that I couldn’t bare at my blog. It feels a bit exploitative to speak of my Uncle’s passing, for example, and for that reason, none in our family have ever spoken about it. I’m still gathering the gumption to speak of it at length, and not just make what might pass as a somewhat glib or staccato reference to his story while speaking of alcohol.
Recognizing alcohol’s full but silent presence during the tough times is like hearing your own voice on tape… It’s been there how long? I use this voice to express my everything?
It sounds as if you have many challenging stories, do you write them down?

By: Sheila Joyce Gibbs

Sheila Joyce Gibbs — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 06:12:52 +0000

Whoo……. Have you seriously thought (and I’m not kidding here),
of writing a book ?
This is quite interesting, and you should be very proud of yourself for sharing so much !
I’m a recovering alcoholic now 19 months, and only because of my late husbands severe health affliction, which I have the same, both caused from 30 yrs of social drinking, and nothing else. Since then I’ve met many individuals with the same affliction and many with different ones, none of which is there a cure for. So basically, you finish school, work hard and your first job, where all your new work mates drink, so to be one of the team, you start to drink too. Then from there, you have 2 bad marriages, where good old Alcohol is your Saviour to get you through. After finally being sober long enough to realize, you better run, then you meet the man of your dreams who you’d met 35 yrs before, marry, happy as you’ve dreamt of being, then bang, you’re both hit with a severe permanent illness, and everything you’ve known career wise is flushed down the freaking toilet………….!!!
And our youth are getting into it already………………………..!
God help us all…………………..
Thankyou for your extremely well written, interesting & obviously from your heart, article !!!!
But don’t worry, you’re not alone………………..
May God Bless and Keep you healthy !
/sjg