[middlepath]

Does anyone think that one glass of wine a night or one beer a night is not ok? my sense of whats acceptable and whats not is not always rooted in common sense, so I thought I would ask

[Dontfeellikeme]

Sounds fair, if not causing any problems IMO.

[Confusedinomicon]

If you know you can stop at one. ;D

[Yoda]

It depends on what meds you are taking. My pdoc said I could drink but not in within a few hours of my hs meds.

[middlepath]

I am just on lithium, although i do take ativan and/or valium depending, PRN. I usually only take the latter once or twice a month.

I think one glass is OK although my psychiatrist would disagree.

[venusss]

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One glass of wine occasionally is probably not a problem, but one a night every night is probably more than advised while on meds.

[steelfang]

Originally Posted by 1914sierra

One glass of wine occasionally is probably not a problem, but one a night every night is probably more than advised while on meds.

Agreed. A little alcohol a night still screws with your meds and causes a small amount of dependency

My pdocs say it is absolutely no problem to have drinks on meds, as long as you have an alcohol free day every 10 days or so and do not go on a binge every night. But I come from a country where drinking alcohol is more acceptable than drinking soft drink. I dont see a problem with one drink, if it were 6 then yeah maybe but one is barely going to have any affect on your meds or mood unless you are really sensitive.

[Rick7892]

A caution about a glass of wine (or a beer) at night unrelated to issues of interactions with meds. I self-medicated with alcohol for many years. I looked forward to one glass of wine a night, just to take the "edge off" and to calm down. I did so at the end, even though it strongly disagreed with my stomach after I had an ulcer. I struggled greatly with how to cope because I could not live in my own skin without drinking and drinking even a half glass of wine caused medical problems. I joined AA because I was beat down to the point that I knew I could not stop drinking even a glass of wine on my own after I unsuccessfully tried many times, and I have learned there some skills to cope without having to drink for the past 21 years.

Alcohol addiction and AA membership does not depend on the amount of alcohol consumed, but the craving or obsession for it.

In AA meetings, I have met people with BP, who also had problems with alcohol. One of the AA founders, Bill. W was reportedly manic-depressive (BP).

Last week I was diagnosed with BP, and I am trying to come to acceptance of this. Today, I realized that there is some irony. In AA, it is often said that alcoholism is a disease which tells us we have no disease. That can also be true for some with BP I am learning. Looking back, I used one glass of wine to self-medicate some of my mania when it became too much for me, though I didn't know then that it was mania....

I am not saying that drinking one glass of wine a night is an issue for everybody, but in reading about BP, substance abuse sometimes co-occurs.

[luckyl3]

if it's not turning your life into a black hole - no, i don't see anything wrong with it.

and here, i think this is kind of interesting, it's from this very cool website - that i can't post.

Low-risk drinking for healthy men under age 65 is no more than 4 drinks on any day and 14 per week and for healthy women (and men over 65) is no more than 3 drinks on any day and 7 per week.

Moderate drinking, according to the U.S. dietary guidelines, is up to 2 drinks per day for men and up to 1 drink per day for women. (Per week, this corresponds to an upper limit of 14 drinks for men and 7 for women.)

In the United States, most drinkers don't have a daily, low-level pattern of 1 or 2 drinks per day. Instead, they tend to have less on weekdays and more on weekends and holidays. Some heavier drinkers may look at the weekly limits of 14 or 7 drinks and wonder if they can have them all on one or two weekend days. As shown by the daily low-risk drinking levels, however, from a health standpoint, it's risky to have more than 4 drinks on any day for men or 3 for women.

It's important to note that the low-risk drinking levels are not risk free. Light to moderate drinkers should not increase their intake beyond the moderate drinking guidelines, as this would increase their chances for alcohol-related problems.

[hamster-bamster]

I try very hard not to forget to drink one glass of wine per day. Usually it is at night, when I come back home, together with my Lithium, marijuana chocolate for sleep, Elavil for sleep, and supplements. This routine makes it a little more pleasant to be dealing with so many pills.

Alcohol in moderation, and what moderate, optimum level of consumption is depends on whom you ask - the health authorities in the US say that it is one glass of wine per day for a woman and 2 for a man, but health authorities of Quebec, France, and the Netherlands (these are examples I have) advise more. So, we can conclude that if you can and like it, you should drink at least one glass per day on most days of the week, which is what I am doing. It confers protection against dementia, and I care about since both my grandmothers (both were non-drinkers) had dementia later in life. It also confers cardiovascular benefits.

Opinions differ, so my close friend who is a psychiatrist advocates against combining benzos with alcohol, but is OK with taking alcohol with lithium, and I can say that in my experience, there is no interaction between Lithium and wine.

Since you have been combining Lithium with wine without issues, and since you talk about one glass of wine, which answers Confused's question (meaning - yes, you CAN stop after one) unless your glass is the size shown in the comic Venus posted, I do not see any problem - you have already proven that you can handle moderate drinking to your benefit.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by Rick7892

A caution about a glass of wine (or a beer) at night unrelated to issues of interactions with meds. I self-medicated with alcohol for many years. I looked forward to one glass of wine a night, just to take the "edge off" and to calm down. I did so at the end, even though it strongly disagreed with my stomach after I had an ulcer.

Did you eat a complete meal with your one glass of wine? Did you drink one glass of something non-alcoholic together with one glass of wine?

These are sort of first questions that jumped at me in your story.

[cool09]

I wouldn't get into a long habit especially if you are taking an AD. I would do it (or beer) for several weeks at a time then get tired of it. It would just make things harder for me (getting up, exercising, etc.).

IMO, alcohol should be banned or stricter laws put into place. It certainly shouldn't be served on planes, for God's sake! Any numbnut can figure that out. Why not hand out coke or valium or quaaludes or heroin on airlines? We'll never be a civilized Society if we keep alcohol legal.

Like George Carlin said: "There are so many double standards in our Society. Time magazine will put a Cocaine story on the cover and slip the liquor ads inside the magazine...".

[x_BabyG_x]

I was blogging about this just the other day.

I think getting in to the habit of it makes it seem acceptable if your only having one, but ask yourself if you need it. Would you be able to stop? Or are you subconciously dependant on it? I believe if you struggle with stopping and it becomes more of a need than just part of your nightly routine then the issue is more serious than you probably realise. X

[venusss]

Originally Posted by cool09

I wouldn't get into a long habit especially if you are taking an AD. I would do it (or beer) for several weeks at a time then get tired of it. It would just make things harder for me (getting up, exercising, etc.).

IMO, alcohol should be banned or stricter laws put into place. It certainly shouldn't be served on planes, for God's sake! Any numbnut can figure that out. Why not hand out coke or valium or quaaludes or heroin on airlines? We'll never be a civilized Society if we keep alcohol legal.

Like George Carlin said: "There are so many double standards in our Society. Time magazine will put a Cocaine story on the cover and slip the liquor ads inside the magazine...".

If you try to ban alcohol, I am afraid the Cold war is on again. And the eastern bloc will take it much much much more seriously this time around.

(and seriously, keep your hands and taxes off my booze. They drank back in ancient Egypt... so I would say alcohol has been well tested on humans).

[middlepath]

<<IMO, alcohol should be banned or stricter laws put into place. It certainly shouldn't be served on planes, for God's sake! Any numbnut can figure that out. Why not hand out coke or valium or quaaludes or heroin on airlines? We'll never be a civilized Society if we keep alcohol legal.>>>

I don't mean to sound like a wise-*** but a plane that hands out valium sounds like an airline I would love to be a frequent flyer!!!

Seriously though, I have continued on drinking my one glass...enjoying each sip and still feel relatively stable. I thank all of you for your imput and I will continue to ponder whether it is a need or a want that drives me.

Honestly, i think i just like the routine, it tastes so nice, it makes me feel like i can still partake in some of the things i have enjoyed from my past (before i knew i was bipolar and would party like a rock star). If there were other health concerns I could flip a switch and be done although I would miss it.

Thanks to all of you for helping me. And Hamster, thanks for letting me know there is no risk of interaction w/ lithium. most appreciated!!!

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by middlepath

Honestly, i think i just like the routine, it tastes so nice, it makes me feel like i can still partake in some of the things i have enjoyed from my past (before i knew i was bipolar and would party like a rock star). If there were other health concerns I could flip a switch and be done although I would miss it.

That something tastes nice is a completely normal motivation for doing something, as is the motivation to keep your life as intact (compared to pre-DX) as possible.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by x_BabyG_x

I think getting in to the habit of it makes it seem acceptable if your only having one, but ask yourself if you need it.

What is OP simply wants it? What is wrong with having something one wants - why does it have to rise to the level of need? I mean, you can say that one needs alcohol to prevent dementia and heart disease, plus, wine is full of anti-oxidants, but even if that weren't the case, i.e. if alcohol were neutral health-wise, as long as OP does not see untoward interactions with her medications, it is perfectly OK to drink wine simply because it tastes nice.

I mean - I do not NEED milk in my tea, but I like it better that way, both because of taste and because I do not need to wait for tea to cool off, so I drink tea with milk. You see nothing wrong with this, right? Why it is different if we are talking not milk but wine? Both milk and wine are age old drinks, after all... and I like both milk and wine, and that ALONE is sufficient for me to enjoy both milk and wine, forget about calcium and anti-oxidants.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by cool09

I wouldn't get into a long habit especially if you are taking an AD. I would do it (or beer) for several weeks at a time then get tired of it. It would just make things harder for me (getting up, exercising, etc.).

IMO, alcohol should be banned or stricter laws put into place. It certainly shouldn't be served on planes, for God's sake! Any numbnut can figure that out. Why not hand out coke or valium or quaaludes or heroin on airlines? We'll never be a civilized Society if we keep alcohol legal.

Like George Carlin said: "There are so many double standards in our Society. Time magazine will put a Cocaine story on the cover and slip the liquor ads inside the magazine...".

cool09, this is a very strange message. You should inform yourself of the efforts of prohibitionists and what those efforts resulted in. Read up on history. You write as if the brilliant idea to ban alcohol had just occurred to you.

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by VenusHalley

If you try to ban alcohol, I am afraid the Cold war is on again. And the eastern bloc will take it much much much more seriously this time around.

(and seriously, keep your hands and taxes off my booze. They drank back in ancient Egypt... so I would say alcohol has been well tested on humans).

no, I do not think so. No. I think it will be a different war - US versus most of the world. Because you cannot imagine the French without wine, can you? Or the Belgians without beer, right? So it is not JUST the Eastern bloc - the western europe, or at least big chunks of it, would go on strike.

[Alokin]

Originally Posted by VenusHalley

If you try to ban alcohol, I am afraid the Cold war is on again. And the eastern bloc will take it much much much more seriously this time around.

(and seriously, keep your hands and taxes off my booze. They drank back in ancient Egypt... so I would say alcohol has been well tested on humans).

There are a lot of Americans that could learn a lot by talking to people like you that have lived it, not just about this particular issue either. I did not know, growing up in California, how much "history" is either left out or not fully presented to persuade us that things are different than reality to push certain beliefs that will be left un-named. I did not learn ANYTHING about the eastern bloc (which really upset me because my paternal heritage is Yugoslavian, you bet I learned A LOT about Mexico though, which is ok, I love Mexico, but still).

[hamster-bamster]

Originally Posted by middlepath

<<IMO, alcohol should be banned or stricter laws put into place. It certainly shouldn't be served on planes, for God's sake! Any numbnut can figure that out. Why not hand out coke or valium or quaaludes or heroin on airlines? We'll never be a civilized Society if we keep alcohol legal.>>>

I don't mean to sound like a wise-*** but a plane that hands out valium sounds like an airline I would love to be a frequent flyer!!!

What is so special about airplanes that the prohibitionist efforts should somehow start with them?

People become dehydrated on board of planes. That means that if they want to drink alcohol, they need more non-alcoholic drinks to accompany alcoholic drinks than they would have needed on the ground. That is all. There is no other "magic" that makes plane rides special, with respect to alcohol consumption. Unless I am missing something...

The poster said that every numbnut can figure out that alcohol should not be served on planes, but I, a couple of Master's degrees notwithstanding, fail to figure it out.

[venusss]

Eh, planes should come with lots of wine and valium.

(now of course alcohol on bus is kinda dumb, because it often makes you wanna urinate and it can be a problem. But so can coffee.)

Alcohol and trains is the dream combination.