Alcohol_Knowledge_Base_Case

home : pleasure : pain : solutions : newsletter : about : contact

Intensive emergency care nurse on alcohol
The worst fear for an intensive emergency care nurse regarding alcohol is not the physical injuries… it is the verbal abuse that we take every single time every single day… It is the time when you won’t let us help… It is the time when you will use your hands to talk… It is the time when we have to inform the parents that their only child died because of someone who did drink too much was driving… It is the time where we have to inform a twelve years old boy that we have to amputate his leg because we can not save it… It is the time that we have to inform the driver that he will be ok but five others died… It is all that, and more.
Injuries we will deal with it, a broken leg, a few bruises, a transplant, a bit of advice to help you to go through, you name it we will try to fix it.. We do care, this is our job… But we do not deserve the verbal abuse of drunken people (men, women, teenagers.) … every single day, we have admissions of people with drinking problem; it can be from an accident or just an normal admission for help…
People are dying from that drug.. And more will die because of it…

Environmental Health Officer:
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
Early on, I just enjoyed a drink and took pride in the fact that I could do it well. Everything I did revolved around drinking, birthdays, holidays, nights out, relaxing, sport, everything had a drink attached to it. I didn’t think there was anything wrong. I certainly didn’t think I had a problem, after all I was a double graduate of the University of Wales and had an important responsible job. I wasn’t a down and out or a yob! It’s strange really how I ended up without a job, wife, mortgage, friends, money, respect, health, or prospects. I don’t understand why I just couldn’t see what alcohol was doing to me, I didn’t take it seriously until it was too late! It really was a viscous spiral and the spiral took me down and down. I wouldn’t have all that back for anything!
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I had to concede that I couldn’t control how much I drank once I started drinking. I had to admit that I was addicted to the stuff and accept that alcohol and me didn’t mix!. Once I did that and got help and support things started getting better straight away. I made the decision that I had to leave it alone completely, that was 5 years ago, and well, my life just keeps on getting better and better. It was hard for me to stop especially in the first year but the benefits have been indescribable.

N.H.S. Nurse
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
Very quickly my drinking progressed from binge drinking to every day drinking. I used to try and control my drinking around my hours of work but in the end I was drinking before, during and after work. I lost my job and was out of work for a whole year before I was well enough to go back. I lost my husband and son, well they disowned me. I had to be separated from them, it affected them terribly. I inflicted years of torture and torment on all my family including my mother. She even had the telephone taken out because she couldn’t cope with me even though she loved me.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
My family could see that I was really trying to deal with my alcohol problem and took me back in. My life has turned around 180 degrees and I am back working full-time. I am 98% on top of the world. I am constantly grateful I’m alive although I wished I had addressed it sooner. I would say to anyone, if alcohol is costing you more than money talk to somebody about it!

Bank Manager
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
I was never in a steady relationship. I wasn’t very popular with my family either, they didn’t want anything to do with me. I seemed to get into fights a lot and often woke up in police cells. I was eventually banned from driving twice because of the drinking. I used to suffer with anxiety, never knowing what I had done when I had been drinking. I had excessive night sweating, was always hung-over, over weight and smelly. I used to wet the bed on a regular basis and get warnings about my work. I was lucky not to get sacked.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I don’t fight or argue anymore. I have found a long-term girlfriend and have settled down. We are both very happy. I don’t have road rage anymore and always know what has happened the night before. I am involved in all family activities and am always on time for work, and never in trouble. I love waking up sober with clean sheets. I do more sport now and am a lot healthier and fitter than I ever was when I drank a lot.

Bus Driver
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
My drinking would get progressively worse over a few months and then it would start all over again. I used to worry about people being able to smell the alcohol on me at work. I sometimes missed work because of hangovers and was told I would be laid off if I didn’t sort it out. My liver started showing signs of damage, I was told I was heading for cirrhosis. I used to get night sweats and leg cramps, diarrhoea, nightmares and blackouts. I used to feel guilty about what I did in drink but just drank more to forget. The booze was just too powerful for me, in the end I just didn’t care, it became more important to drink than to do anything else. I was on the borderline of losing my wife and kids. I never seemed to have enough money, but I could always find it for drink.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I don’t have to worry about going in to work. I get breathalysed and it’s not a problem. I have far better relationships with the people I work with and have more time for my passengers. My confidence is much better. My family life is 1000 times better, it’s like being re-married. My wife tells me I am a much better person. My health is a lot better, my liver has settled down and overall I’m pretty good. More important is my mental health. It’s far better than it ever was when I was drinking. If I knew 20 years ago what I know now I don’t think I would have ever started drinking.

Postman
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
As my drinking got worse I lost work time. In the end I had no desire for work, it just became a necessity to fund my drinking. It became a problem for my employer as I went off sick quite a lot. I lost a lot of weight and my general health suffered. My drinking nearly ended my marriage as we used to argue a lot when I drank. I used to have erratic behaviour. I would be fine one minute and not the next. I also lost my concentration levels and just cut myself off from people so I could get on with my drinking.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
My relationships with people at work now are marvellous. I understand I was unapproachable when I drank. That’s all in the past now. My family relationships are improving steadily. I have a desire for work not drink. I don’t have depression any more, my health overall is much better and I don’t have the weight loss problem. I like to think if I had known what I know now about alcohol, I would have taken it more seriously much earlier on.

Police Officer
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
At first I just thought I was a bit of a heavy drinker, but I had to have it to function “normally”, if I didn’t have it I couldn’t function properly. Eventually, it was interfering with my work and my employer basically told me I had to finish. I couldn’t face the reality of loosing my job and drank even more to run away. I would rather drink than deal with work or relationships; it was easier than facing up to my responsibilities. I became so physically ill I couldn’t hold down anymore drink and it was at that point that I was forced to deal with my drinking.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I now realise who I am, life has become a reality and I accept everybody for who they are and that we all have problems in life, not just me. I am now able to deal with them rather than running away into the bottle.

Head Teacher
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
I didn’t keep relationships very long because of my drinking. It didn’t do my mental health any good either. I used to get into dreadful debt and gamble. I got that I couldn’t cope and lost jobs. When I drank, I was imprudent and did a lot of irrational things. Eventually, I became down and out living on the streets.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I now have my own home. I can save money and have holidays. I still have a fairly low esteem but my relationships with my family is wonderful. I no longer hurt people and make ends meet with some private teaching.

Refractory Supervisor
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
Over time I lost my health and my job. I developed cirrhosis of the liver and I was told I would die if I kept drinking. It caused a lot of worry to my family. I only have 40% liver function so I had to give up alcohol and work. Had I addressed it earlier, I would still have been able to work today but it’s too late for that now.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
My family are much happier, I have changed my approach to life and attitude for the better and I am much happier without alcohol. I have more time for my grandchildren and spend it with them not with the bottle!

Club Owner (Recreational)
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
My work suffered, I often went off sick and ended up selling my business because of booze. I became depressed with drink and it led me to take illegal drugs. In the end I couldn’t manage people, I wanted to be alone but I just couldn’t cope. I thought selling my business would sort my drinking problems but it didn’t I just drank more.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
Life has got a lot easier, and I no longer need the anti-depressants. I don’t get the paranoia and my self-esteem has returned. I have restructured my life and now have a bigger capacity for living. I am doing things I certainly wouldn’t have done i.e. I am half way through a degree course which would have been impossible if I hadn’t addressed my drinking!

Senior Sales Executive
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
It put an enormous strain on my marriage and nearly destroyed it. It alienated me from my kids and made me negative towards my work colleagues and bosses. It ruined my work effectiveness and contributed to my eventual demise especially latterly. I didn’t loose jobs but it was heading that way. It also took a big strain on my finances.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
“ It has had a reversal effect on my relationships. The less I drink the better my relationships. Everyone around me is more relaxed and more trusting towards me. My confidence has returned and my self-esteem has got much better. I just wish I had understood about alcohol earlier on and addressed my drinking many years sooner. My finances are much healthier too!”

Fire Service Station Officer
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
Over time I got that I didn’t want to live. It affected my work and I took lots of days off sick. When I picked up a drink I couldn’t stop until I blacked out. I used to cause all sorts of problems at functions, I just didn’t know when to stop. My marriages ended and I wrecked my car but I just couldn’t see that it was all due to the drink. I eventually was admitted to psychiatric hospital, even woke up in police stations on more occasions than I care to remember.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
I was able to work better and more conscientiously. I actually enjoyed my work. My quality of life is much better than it ever was. I am more content and feel better about myself. I am much fitter, when I drank I was over weight but I now run half marathons. I am financially much better off and I wish I had addressed my drinking way back in my early teens.

Factory Worker - Manufacturing
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
I had loads of time off from work. In the end they had to let me go. Mental health suffered, I had anxiety, depression and sleep loss. I had operations on my leg from falling over drunk. I got loads of cuts and bruises from being drunk. My relationships suffered. I smashed the house up on more than one occasion and walking out on my wife many times in drink. The job I was doing was very stressful I had to have a drink to do it and after the shift I had to have a drink to get over it.
How has your life changed since addressing your alcohol use?
My life is 10x better. I am calmer and people don’t wind me up as much. Relationships at home have improved. My finances are a bit bleak since I lost my job but now I’ve addressed my drinking I will do a lot better in my next job. I didn’t realise how much alcohol was affecting my life but things are much better now.

Marketing Strategy Manager (Multi-National Company)
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
I was quite lucky with my health but my work suffered. I didn’t loose my job but I certainly under performed and my colleagues often covered up for me. I also used to travel to work and must have done many times over the limit. It put a massive strain on my wife and children which resulted in guilt being always there. People at work knew there was something wrong but they didn’t know it was alcohol. I guess I lost their respect, being in a senior position this had major implications. I spent quite a lot on drink but looking back, it was such a waste of money. It could have been better used.
How has your life changed since you addressed your alcohol use?
It has improved out of all recognition. I enjoy getting up in the morning. I see each day as a new opportunity whereas before I couldn’t wait for the day to end. I have lost the guilt and have more contentment. I used alcohol to dull the pain but it caused only more. Relationships all round are immeasurably better.

In-Flight Purser (International Airline)
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
My health suffered. My liver was affected and I got jaundice, I also had blackouts and memory loss. It didn’t affect me going to work but it did affect my performance. My tolerance levels were shot and I didn’t cope with work issues very well. I was quite hot headed. To be honest I wouldn’t have got married if it hadn’t been for the drink, anyway it eventually led to our divorce. I used to like clubbing and partying and everyone did it at work. I didn’t realise that I couldn’t leave it alone until it was affecting my life quite badly. Flying internationally, the different time zones made it acceptable to drink at all hours. Eventually, I lost my self respect and stopped taking pride in myself.
How has your life changed since you addressed your alcohol use?
I am now well enough to return to my regular work. I can deal with situations a lot better and I am able to take control. I can be a leader again instead of following others after all, that’s what I get paid for. My family life is more stable and I have really good relationships with all the family. I can stand up for myself and assert myself a lot more. I am now a role model for my 2 year old son, he wouldn’t go near me when I was drunk”

Area Manager - Retail Fashion
What sort of problems did you have with alcohol?
I never had any long-term health problems apart from the hellish feeling of drinking too much. But I did start my working day with a visit to a nearby food department for a bottle of alcohol for breakfast and then another one for lunch. I suppose I was just going through the motions of working as I was unable to do my job at all well, I kept hiding mistakes. This continued until I was eventually escorted from work by a senior member of staff. I then had 25 years looking at my family growing up through the bottom of a glass. The pain I inflicted on my adolescent children was unbearable.
How has your life changed since you addressed your alcohol use?
I now have a trust I have never known before. I am a responsible mother and grandmother still working full-time and nearing completion of a degree course. I wish I had addressed my drinking earlier in life. If I had of done, then I could have had my life for all of my life instead of sacrificing much of it to the bottle.