I really want to stop drinking i drink most days normally between 4-6 cans of cider sometimes i binge up to 12 though normally starting around 12pm . I cant ask for help as have already been warned if i admit to drinking more than 4 (from 7pm) cans i will have to have supervision whilst looking after my children
any advice on how to stop would be great
I used to drink a quart bottle of vodka in my way to work at 6AM. Shouldn't be too difficult to stop , you haven't progressed to the dark side yet (spirits)👍
yes, do think of cutting down if you can..perhaps thinking about the children and the responsibilities can reduce it?? just wondering how you can best cope with all the pressures in life and still cut down....a lot people do manage and look for advice here . Best of luck
I find it absolutely disgusting that the authorities can threaten your family without offering a medical solution to a medical problem. How would people think if people suffering from an illness like cancer or heart disease was threatened in such a way?
Having said that, you really DO need to cut down and the best way would be using Nalmefene (Selincro) which you will find widely discussed on this forum.
It IS illegal to be drunk in charge of a child under 12 so you need to be careful.
Don't encourage anybody to kid themselves that an alcohol problem isn't serious if they are not drinking spirits, Roger. I frequently detox people who are just drinking beer and one was recently in such a bad state, he spent a week in hospital having fluids drained because he was in such a bad state (before his detox, not because of it) that his liver was very close to failing.
Sounds like you have cut down, yourself, though. If I assume right, well done
I'm not encouraging anything at all. Thanks.
Part of the time I was working, soon as I got home I would drink whisky or gin, I hardly ate which made things worse. I got so Ill I was hospitalised and never went back to work. I would hide bottles as I didn't want my husband to know the extent of my problem. When seeing the liver specialist, I still drank. It was the hardest thing to give up, and because I was under the care of KCH with regular liver function test, they knew I was still drinking. You need to wake up to the fact it will kill you in the end and at one low point I told them I did not care, but I realised I had to beat it and fear of dying in pain was my trigger to quit, I saw what it done to my brother, who died at 56.
as Roger suggested your children and their care, hopefully will help you realise and beat this addition. Maybe a councillor would be beneficial!
That wasn't meant as an 'accusation' Roger, more to ensure that people don't think 'oh my problem isn't bad because I am not drinking spirits.' I'm sorry if I came across harshly.
Alls cool here👍 I've been in detox twice (Thames clinc, Kingston) cost a bomb. This time round I got hold of Librium , not from my GP......I did my rip at home. Fine now. All I was saying is that I've seen & experienced alcohol dependency in its worst and mildest forms. It's insidious, thus my comment regarding the 'dark side' with spirits. Whatever the choice of poison, I believe a natural progression from ales to spirits is inevitable due to tolerance levels being so high. I've personally turned down lager that was offered to me in my height of addiction. I went up the shop and bought vodka. Couldn't waste valuable stomach space on lager👍 But that was just me. I didn't take any offence no more than I intended offend. Cheers, Roger👍
From my perspective after over 40 years of drinking - seeing DRs, cousellors, shrinks, AA (what a waste of time), who repeatedly say JUST QUIT is enough to make you puke. I have mentioned on this site several times, THIS is the best support site you will ever find, it has helped me many times with my struggles.
Sure, there is mention of a few meds to reduce the cravings, but just reading these forums has helped me tremendously !!!
As Paul will tell you, Nelmefene (Selincro) is available to most European nations but difficult to get in North America. I can get Naltrexone here albiet a bit expensive, but it sure helps me.
Pls stay the course and your children will benefit having Mommy back.
Good luck Anna
You are right, Roger. When the fluid required to get the desired effect gets too much, people tend to move to drinks which contain more alcohol per litre but we do a LOT of detoxes with people who drink wine or beer and never moved onto spirits.
Don't tell me, for your thousands of pounds, you had your mobile phone taken from you, were not allowed visitors, were forced to participate in group therapy, had set times to go to bed and get up and had to clean the place too
Paul, your second paragraph about the restrictions, etc... has happened to me as well...don't ever want to be in that situation ever again 
I don't even know that I was detoxed in there, 30 days (and useless AA meetings) and then let loose (to my own devices)...just powered over to the extent it drove me to drink, MORE.
I can't trust the big expensive institutions that care more for the money - than for ME. What's this world coming too???
Most of the above, no cleaning & wasn't forced to go to therapy ( but went anyway due to boredom). They can't make a private patient do anything they don't wanna😄. I knew what to expect, but I wouldn't recommend wasting Al that money as a knee jerk reaction. It worked great the first time, I went 2 years and 2 months completely dry. No AA meetings as I personally don't dig being part of a cult & I certainly cannot for the life of me understand what a higher power is....LOL. Each to their own I suppose. I won't go back to a detox, home all the way with librium👍👍
Ditto. I stopped eating for about 3 weeks, think I may have had a couple of crisps in that time. That's what made it extra dangerous for me, no food, couldn't face the thought of it. Horrible times, jaundice, weight loss, short term memory loss ( still have this) long term memory fine. Wretching every morning, only thing that stopped me being sick was vodka. I still can't believe that I escaped with no permanent liver damage. 👍👍
Anna, I am sad to read your post. I am not a counsellor or 'wise woman' but I do sense that you really want to give up the drink. But I know that you will not be able to do it properly without proper help. You have to think of your children Anna they should be more important to you than the cider. Is your GP approachable or maybe the nurse at the surgery. Your GP will be able to put you in touch with professionals who understand your alcohol dependency and will support you with the children. I cant give advice on how to stop and you shouldn't just stop or you could become ill. I am having my first home detox in a few weeks - fingers crossed. Ask for help Anna. x
Please dont tell vulnerable people that seeing Drs, counsellors, 'shrinks', AA are a waste of time! They may be in your experience - perhaps you weren't ready to quit. If someone is a heay drinker and has been doing so for a long time they CANNOT just quit! Reduction is the first step which I think Selincro can do. But not all GPs are willing to prescribe this very expensive drug on the NHS. £80 per 28 tablets. For someone like me that would only last 28 days. Forums are good, but people shouldn't read and rely on what some people may say.
I think Tim was only talking from HIS perspective. He has found the people on this forum more help than he found any services he used offline.
Different things work for different people. If something works for a person, then they should do that.
You probably need to look at other posts Tim has written to see that he isn't the way you perhaps guessed he is from that one post
Hi - im sorry that you are having a tough time - ironically i am in a similar state and found myself on here looking for information and help. I have used Drinkaware etc before too but never reached out and tried to quit alone instead. The urge to stop is overwhelming and i hate myself for giving in to alcohol on an almost daily basis. I use it as a tool to cope with severe depression and i realise that im doing myself no favours, i have tried Addaction and other local services - even AA which i hated.The last drink i had was last night and i have not bought any today but i do feel bloomin awful physically. My drink is also cider or beer - never spirits, it is very hard work to stop - i wish you well and try and get some support if you can ie GP etc.
Tough to get through and the main problem is that the alcohol will make you more depressed or down. Sorry, but it is fact that it is only for a short time that you feel great when drinking and have the choice of carrying on or stopping and once you wake up?? Sorry to be negative and perhaps others have different and better advice than me?? What group or where to look?? Not certain since you have tried diffrerent avenues..people here can actually guide you better than most professionals and Paul Turn 1964 is brilliant...look him up and read some of his advice..best of luck... 
good reply Paul. I just gave the same advice to another lady = summary that some of the advice here is sometimes better than what you get from professionals...excluding yourself since you have a well balanced point of view...