Casual Drinkers and Casual Drinking

Something to think about - If you consider yourself to be a casual drinker you might want to read on. Since you consider yourself to be a casual drinker it might be hard for you to see that there is a thin line between casual drinking and over doing limits. You may consider going out with friends and having a drink or two drinking casually. Then again, you might consider going out and drinking three or four alcoholic drinks casual. Often times the amount of drinks a person has in a casual setting is influenced by who is joining you. [FIND STAT about drinking socially] People tend to drink alcohol to find their inner conversationalist. By that I mean they feel more comfortable meeting people and holding conversations are easier to hold when they are 'buzzing' or have a nice buzz [maybe a different term here]. Actually, that's the lovely ingredient in alcohol called ethanol at work. Not only does ethanol influence the stomach, heart, gallbladder and liver it also influences the brain.

Casual drinking can turn into getting drunk based on many factors including:

-who you go out with,

-how your day went,

-your mood when you go out,

-even what's on your schedule for the next day.

Sometimes keeping track of how many drinks you have as a social drinker depends on a few factors as well. It could depend on

-what time you went out,

-where you go,

-the cost of each beverage.

Depending on your circumstances it can get easier and easier to loose count of how many drinks you've had the more alcohol you have in your system. If you are not careful you could over do how much you drink casually and the evening may turn into a disaster. Although there is no set standard for what's considered one serving of alcohol, health professionals suggest a 12 ounce glass of beer, a 5 ounce glass of wine and one and a half ounces of spirits as one serving of alcohol. This may be one of the reasons it can be so easy for a person to overdo there alcohol in-take since there is really no set understanding of what's considered one serving of alcohol.

Alcohol, like many things, in general can be a tonic or poison. There have been many incidents where overdrinking has lead to accidental deaths, from drunk driving, binge drinking and many other mishaps. Many of the deaths resulting from the abuse or miss use of alcohol are completely avoidable. That's on the extreme end of the spectrum; but there are many things people who start out drinking casually have done that they regret. Here are a few things people have regrettably done after drinking alcohol casually:

-Completely disrespect a date by suggesting the wrong things and touching inappropriately,

-Had unprotected sex with strangers putting themselves and possibly a mutual partner at risk, or

-Make shrewd comments about people or a group of people (Mel Gibson).

The list could go on since even casual drinking makes it hard for a reasonable person to make smart choices and decisions on what they do and/or say.

A personal note

Although this article is not to preach to you about the effects of drinking alcohol its purpose is to get you to think about your casual drinking habit. I have drank alcoholic beverages before but I am not a drinker nor casual drinker. When or if I drink it's in the privacy of my home or the home of a responsible friend. My pet peeve is going out with casual drinkers and having to be asked constantly, "you sure you don't want a drink?" Then in the same situation for that person, in their own guilt trip and without realizing it, to apologize for drinking while I don't. Examples of this are:

-constantly asking me if I am sure I don't want a drink,

-constantly offering to buy me a drink,

-constantly offering me a taste of their drink,

-telling me they feel bad about drinking while I am not.

The list could go on including body language and the things they may say to others about me drinking. One year, on a birthday, I went out with friends who all drank. They offered to buy me a drink and the bar tender (who also was a friend) offered me a drink on the house. When I declined their offers the bartender brought me some water in a martini glass, complete with the martini salt and said, "there, now you can pretend you're drinking so you can fit in." So I guess it is protocol in going out to clubs to have an alcoholic beverage, but I digress.

The latest situation that prompted me to write this article involved meeting new people. This summer I start law school at an institution that has been considered easy to get in and hard to stay in. I moved to the city about three weeks before classes start and have began to meet upper classmen. This is also the time during the term where final exams are taken so within a week everyone started winding down and getting ready for the two week break. Alcohol has played a major part in this break since there are tons of professional students who consider themselves to be 'casual drinkers.' I was invited out with a guy who wanted to offer me some advice on school and my new city. He is also a 'casual drinker.' This guy started his 'casual drinking' at noon. Later that evening, after taking a break from casual drinking he decided to go out to a local club. He sent me a text message asking me to join him at the bar. After informing him I don't drink casually I decided to join him later in the evening. By the end of the night he'd compromised our lives drinking then driving, denied being drunk and continued to drink. He also offered me many very uncomfortable propositions and proceeded to touch me in an unfriendly manner. Unfortunately, by then I was stuck with him since he earlier in the evening drove me to the next location in his vehicle. I offered to drive, he continued to insist that he was not drunk. The next morning I'd already decided he was not a person I would consider a friend when he called to apologize. Unfortunately for him, I am not able to forget the first impression.

Reading this experience, maybe casual drinkers can honestly think about how casual drinking can lead to over drinking and embarrassment.