How to Spot an Alcohol Problem
Alcohol problems are a lot more common than meets the eye, probably because not all alcohol problems are easy to spot. Some alcohol problems are actually masked artfully and easily. A problem drinker sometimes isn’t recognized by their family or friends until the issue has gotten pretty out of hand and more obvious. You might suspect that someone has a drinking problem that only gets out of hand once in a while. Your suspicions might seem valid one minute and ridiculous the next, depending on what you observe in relation to the feedback from the person you suspect. This is why it’s vital that you are able to detect the issue from your own observation beforehand. There are several ways to know how to spot an alcohol problem if you suspect somebody is struggling with one.
During The Day
Sure, the occasional mimosa with brunch isn’t unheard of, and sure, a beer or two might be a nice treat every once in awhile when watching sports on a Sunday afternoon, but there’s a fine line between drinking moderately and a drinking problem. When confronted with day drinking, the problem drinker is likely to cover up their issue with the excuse that day drinking is very common. And they aren’t wrong in this assessment, because day drinking is everywhere. There are a myriad of occasions, casual or fancy and everywhere in between, to enjoy an alcoholic beverage while the sun’s still up. However, how much is the problem drinker precisely consuming versus someone who is just enjoying a moderate amount of alcohol? This is the type of detail that can make all the difference standing between someone with a problem, and everybody else.
The problem drinker will often find excuses to drink during the day, yet overdo it and continue into the night. This makes this particular excuse suspicious. Therefore, that is one way to spot an alcohol problem. They are often finding chances to abuse alcohol during the day. So if you catch your friend kicking back five bloody marys within the one hour at brunch it took everyone else to have only two mimosas each you most likely have a problem drinker on your hands.
Breaking Promises
Another way to spot an alcohol problem in someone is when this person seems to constantly break promises to themselves in regards to how much they’re going to drink. If this is an ongoing battle you see them struggling with, then it’s definitely reflecting a bigger issue (drinking problem issue). Because, if they aren’t able to stand by their personal decision when it comes to their alcohol intake then this means they are generally not in control. So you can be sure that if this person can’t control their own drinking habits over a period of time, then they are struggling with a legitimate problem.
This could show up in different ways. They keep breaking plans of being the designated driver within their group of friends because they end up drinking. They tell themselves they have an early meeting in the morning so they only plan on having two drinks, which then turns into a lot more. What it comes down to is that, despite attempts at not drinking or cutting back for even one night, they break these promises to themselves or sometimes others because they aren’t able to manage their own habits and patterns.
Relationship Problems
A telltale sign of an alcohol problem with somebody is that they have relationship problems which stem from their drinking. Sometimes you have to do a little digging because the fights or problems that are coming up in their relationships don’t always seem like they are coming from this person’s drinking pattern off the bat. An example of this could be that the person’s spouse is angry with them because they were flirting with a member of the opposite sex. But a closer examination reveals that they were really drunk when they did so. Another example of this could be that somebody’s daughter has resentment towards them for not spending enough time with them and missing important events at their school, etc. But when you look at why this is happening, they are missing out on these family obligations because they’re either constantly hungover or too drunk to drive there.
The person who has an alcohol problem will be driving a wedge between them and their friends or the people that they’re close with. And, again, you can thank their drinking habits for this one.
Grumpy Sober
Another way to tell if somebody has an alcohol problem is if they act a lot different sober. While they might seem relaxed, easy going and happy when intoxicated, their sober side might reveal a whole other story. Maybe they’ve developed an alcohol problem due to a divorce or some equally stressful situation they started coping with by drinking a lot. Whatever the reason may be, they are most likely going to be a grumpy sober. They will no longer act like themselves when sober, and instead will sometimes be withdrawn or not want to socialize unless there’s going to be alcohol involved.
The Problem Drinker’s Relationship to Alcohol
The main way to spot that somebody has an alcohol problem is if they’re drinking heavily and/or drinking often. This doesn’t mean that the person drinks each and every single day, nor does this mean that they’re constantly binge drinking every time they go out. This only means that they don’t have control over their own drinking habits. They might drink more often than they want to. Or they might drink more in one sitting than they want to. The common denominator is that they aren’t able to stop either the level or the frequency of their alcohol intake. This has everything to do with the person’s relationship to alcohol, it says it all. How they handle alcohol tells you everything you need to know about their relationship with it. If you’re observant, you can find signs in even the smallest actions. For instance, if they fill up their glass with more alcohol than everybody else’s at the party or dinner table. Or let’s say they feel the need to drink at home each time before they go out for the night.
Obviously, an alcohol problem manifests itself in the ways already mentioned. However if you notice the person not being in control over their drinking in any way, whether it’s because they have guilt about how much they had consumed or they have guilt about their behavior while drinking, then you are most likely dealing with somebody who has developed a problem. Don’t ignore these telltale signs, no matter how small they might seem to the person. You need to read into it because it may lead you to a problem that’s in dire need of fixing.
The bottom line is that the problem drinker ordinarily can’t recognize that they have problem. In most cases, they are in denial about the situation. When confronted on the matter the typical reaction would be to get defensive. Yet, deep down inside this person has developed a problem and probably knows you’re on to something if you mention it.
