Alcoholism

[AlP]

I second Curio's advice. I wonder if it's possible to get dopamine pills or something like that? Nah. Probably a bad idea.

You can get drugs to settle the dopamine levels back to normal. They actually work really well. I just don't want to go that route just yet because of therapy side of the treatment. It's not secular and it really pisses me off.

[karadan]

Also karadan, that sounds pretty crappy, are you all on the tenancy agreement? If he is on there it will make eviction a lot more difficult. The uncle I referred to above had to be removed from the house by police, I hope you don't end up having to go this root.

No, we are on a private tenancy agreement. I get on with the landlady so all i'd need to do is tell her the level of the issue and she'd evict Ed immediately. I'd prefer it didn't come to that, though. He's actually a really nice guy and i feel bad for him. However, i'm not responsible for him so if his alcoholism carries on impeding on mine and the rest of my housemates' lives, i'll have no option but to take action. It is worth pointing out that he is not violent in the slightest. Just incredibly opinionated and arrogant whilst drunk.

[karadan]

I second Curio's advice. I wonder if it's possible to get dopamine pills or something like that? Nah. Probably a bad idea.

You can get drugs to settle the dopamine levels back to normal. They actually work really well. I just don't want to go that route just yet because of therapy side of the treatment. It's not secular and it really pisses me off.

Do you get pains in your liver or kidneys? I've heard that alcoholics can get painful spasms after a heavy night. Is there any truth to that?

By the way, thanks for your earlier advice. I'll speak to Ed and see what he says. I've only known him the six months he's lived in the house so it should really be his family taking him to a clinic. That might actually be part of his depression... His family don't seem to give a rats ass about him.

[curiosityandthecat]

You're back! Hey. I live next to a liquor store unfortunately.

Yep, back.

[AlP]

I didn't post how much I drank last night. It was 9. I counted this morning.

You can get drugs to settle the dopamine levels back to normal. They actually work really well. I just don't want to go that route just yet because of therapy side of the treatment. It's not secular and it really pisses me off.

Do you get pains in your liver or kidneys? I've heard that alcoholics can get painful spasms after a heavy night. Is there any truth to that?

By the way, thanks for your earlier advice. I'll speak to Ed and see what he says. I've only known him the six months he's lived in the house so it should really be his family taking him to a clinic. That might actually be part of his depression... His family don't seem to give a rats ass about him. So schedule your drinking so that you'll run out after they stop selling. Would that work? Or, just walk next door and talk to the owner. Ask him/her to not sell to you after a certain time. They'll comply, I'd imagine. Or have your roommates hide your ID. I'd hope the liquor store people still ID even if they know you're a regular. (It's the law, after all.)

The scheduling idea is a good one. I think they close at 12. I've never been IDed in a liquor store! I am 32 though. I actually live within easy walking distance of 7 liquor stores. I don't know if I could convince all of them. But if I stayed at work until late then they would only be open for so long...

[curiosityandthecat]

The scheduling idea is a good one. I think they close at 12. I've never been IDed in a liquor store! I am 32 though. I actually live within easy walking distance of 7 liquor stores. I don't know if I could convince all of them. But if I stayed at work until late then they would only be open for so long...

Really? I get ID'd all the time and I certainly don't look under 21.

Anyway, try it out, let us know how it works.

[AlP]

Do you get pains in your liver or kidneys? I've heard that alcoholics can get painful spasms after a heavy night. Is there any truth to that?

By the way, thanks for your earlier advice. I'll speak to Ed and see what he says. I've only known him the six months he's lived in the house so it should really be his family taking him to a clinic. That might actually be part of his depression... His family don't seem to give a rats ass about him.

I've been thinking about this some. Two different directions...

First of all I think you're in the UK? In which case, the treatment might be different to the US and there are no issues with health insurance. Also, I suspect the treatment might be secular, if that is even an issue. I don't know if AA or the equivalent works the same way.

Other direction... I think neither you nor your roommate's family has an obligation to help him; therefore neither has a greater obligation. I'm liberal. I think he is free to harm himself. Maybe his family doesn't care. However, from my liberal standpoint, though you are not obliged to help him, you are well within your rights to try and change him, specifically for example because you live with him and he is a nuisance on social occasions. I think helping him in an active way might have value for you. It could be very inconvenient, for example if you end up having to transport him to hospital once every couple of weeks (does he have it together enough to do that for himself?) But to balance that, in my opinion, there might be value in helping him. There is a kind of satisfaction in lifting someone who has reached such a low. It is value of of a very high quality. I would look at this as a potential investment in human capital, the sort that doesn't come around very often.

I personally despise the idea of trying to get a person who has reached such a low evicted. It solves the small problem but not the big one, though to be consistent with my previous statements, from my standpoint you would be within your rights to do so.

Interestingly to me, my existentialist ideas have little to say on this matter, except perhaps in creating new value.

[karadan]

Yep. I'm in the UK. Any treatment would be on the NHS and it would be secular. I asked Ed last night if he'd think about getting treatment and he flat out refused. He just does not want to be treated.

If I had a potentially fatal addiction, my family would help me regardless of any protestations I might have. In that respect I guess I'm lucky. I see what you mean about obligations but I feel that the ties a family have to each other outweigh that of the ties I have with a housemate I've only known for six months. So far we've attempted to change Ed by being really upfront (showing him the video of us lifting him 2 flights of stairs to his room) and honest with how stuff like that makes the rest of us feel. He apologised but made no effort to kerb his drinking. It pisses me off and makes me pity him in equal measure.

We had to take him to hospital the day after the poker night. At some point in the night when everyone was asleep he must have fallen down the stairs when trying to go to the loo. He'd split his chin very badly which required seven stitches.

I'd like to believe I'm compassionate and feel the rest of my housemates and I have tried rather hard to help Ed but how do you help someone who simply does not want to be helped?

As far as I'm concerned, he's starting to become a real liability. If he refuses help then the only thing which will change is the scale of the issue. What might be an occasional occurrence now could turn into a weekly ordeal for the rest of us. I'm not willing to compromise that much

[AlP]

You could suggest that he goes to a doctor about being depressed. They will surely ask him how much he drinks because that's a common cause of depression. I doubt a regular GP will prescribe anti-depressants to a person drinking that much. I think he'll get a referral =).

[AlP]

Another idea. Call NHS Direct and ask them for advice on how to deal with him. This only works for people in the UK =).

[karadan]

Thanks for the advice. I'll make some enquiries tonight.

How was last night for you, by the way? Did you drink less than nine?

[AlP]

Not less. 9. Whitney said my target for the week should be 6. Jeez I've got some not drinking to do =).

[LoneMateria]

Not less. 9. Whitney said my target for the week should be 6. Jeez I've got some not drinking to do =).

maybe when you want to drink why don't you write a program you put on the back burner.  As a programmer I know we all have them.  Keep yourself busy ^_^

[AlP]

That's a good idea. I want to do some principal component analysis of stock prices. I've always wondered if the top principal components actually match the sectors the market is typically broken down into like technology, financials, etc.

[Renegnicat]

Programming is an excellent way to get your head off of the drinking. When you're feeling the urge to drink, it's always nice to put your head into something that requires a lot of concentration.

Here's a tip: When you feel the urge to drink, hold nonsense conversations with yourself. This works great with me and my addictions. I'll be like this:

So, ohoho! Monsieur, the citty litter was too much for you, eh? Kitty LITTER? I shall demand reparation for such insult! You can not repair me, monsieur, and my accent is not french. Well, I can run up your electrical bill. No! Anything but that! Then take this potato chip, and EAT IT.

I usually end up having so much fun making these strange conversations that I forget all about my cravings.