[madisgram]

i could soo-o relate to DENIAL when i first started abusing acohol. any one of us may "see" ourselves reading this article. perhaps the time is now to address your drinking habits. it will save a whole lot of misery and pain. hope this helps.

No one wants to admit they have a problem, especially when it could be one with alcohol. Heavy drinking, problem drinking call it what you will, when someone is accused of drinking too much it carries a stigma nobody wants to be attached to. So when accused of being an alcoholic or a problem drinker the first thing the accused does is deny they have a problem. Withdrawing, silence, defiance, rationalizing is big, changing the subject and even joking about it are some common reactions associated with denial.
The smart problem drinker will take an honest inventory of themselves and if they see they really do have a problem take corrective measures to mitigate the problem or stop drinking altogether. Unfortunately human nature being what it is and the pull of alcohol being so strong being smart isn’t always enough. When an obvious problem drinker starts denying a problem exists often it’s the first sign there really is a problem. Denial is generally the opening salvo in a battle against an absolutely cunning enemy.

http://www.freedomfromalcohol.com/bl...oblem-drinker/

[Lightrail11]

Thanks for posting. As the Big Book states it:

"Most of us have been unwilling to admit we were real alcoholics. No person likes to think he is bodily and mentally different from his fellows. Therefore it is not surprising that our drinking careers have been characterized by countless vain attempts to prove we could drink like other people. The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death."

http://www.aa.org/bigbookonline/en_bigbook_chapt3.pdf

[gma45]

Thanks for the post madisgram. Boy can I relate! I really need just to keep reading this stuff because no matter how many times I have I still see something new that will make sense to me at the time. I wish I wasn't such a slow learner.