Signs you may have a drinking problem

It’s okay to be honest with yourself about how you approach alcohol. Becoming aware of your habits and triggers is healthy and helps you learn to make better decisions in your life.

Here are some signs that you may have a problem and you should consult with an addiction expert

Consistently choosing alcohol over other activities

It’s important to note the activities you enjoy that don’t involve alcohol. If you enjoy activities more when they include alcohol, this could be an early warning sign for alcohol abuse. It could even be just that you always choose to participate in activities that include alcohol rather than those that don’t. You might begin to miss out on old hobbies and situations because you would rather choose something more accepting of your alcohol habits.

Alcohol is interfering with your day-to-day life

It can become an issue when alcohol starts to interfere with your daily life. This could mean you start missing out on important events. You overlook things like holidays, birthdays, or important meetings because you are hungover or would rather spend time drinking. Alcohol abuse can become invasive to your life and prevent you from meeting work expectations or duties at home.

Using alcohol as a coping mechanism

A quick way to tell if you are choosing to drink for fun, or to cope, is to ask yourself why you are drinking. Is it because you are celebrating? Or perhaps your stress isn’t properly managed, and you turn to alcohol to soothe you. Using alcohol to feel better can become a toxic coping mechanism.

A rapidly growing or high alcohol tolerance

A couple drinks are one thing. What about when you have a few drinks and notice you aren’t even feeling the effects of alcohol anymore? This can be a sign that you are drinking more frequently. It’s okay to enjoy drinking when it is managed in healthy ways. It can quickly become toxic when you drink a few drinks, but you want to really feel the alcohol. Doing this frequently can cause you to build a high alcohol tolerance. It’s a quick way to tell whether your reasons for drinking are for fun or if you are abusing your alcohol privileges.

Strong cravings for alcohol

The biggest tell of alcohol abuse is when the urge to drink becomes strong. It begins to dominate your mental well-being so much that you can’t be happy without it. If you are always thinking about your next drink and it begins to interfere with other tasks in your life, this can be a sign that it’s time to seek help.

Whether you seek professional help or you can make changes for yourself, awareness is the first step to a healthy relationship with alcohol. For more help, check out Alcoholics Anonymous