Who…Me?

In order, to determine whether you have drifted from “social drinking” into alcoholic drinking it is good to ask yourself a few questions. It is possible – but not probable – that you may fool somebody else but you must be honest with yourself. If you want the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, you must want to become and remain sober because alcohol has you, “beat.”

An alcoholic? Well, here are some questions, to ask yourself.

1. Do you require a drink the next morning?

2. Do you prefer to drink alone?

3. Do you lose time from work due to drinking?

4. Is drinking harming your family in any way?

5. Do you crave a drink at a definite time daily?

6. Do you get the inner shakes unless you continue drinking?

7. Has drinking made you irritable?

8. Does drinking make you careless of your family’s welfare?

9. Have you thought less of your husband or wife since drinking?

10. Has drinking changed your personality?

11. Does drinking cause you bodily complaints?

12. Does drinking make you restless?

13. Does drinking cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?

14. Has drinking made you more impulsive?

15. Have you less self-control since drinking?

16. Has your initiative decreased since drinking?

17. Has your ambition decreased since drinking?

18. Do you lack perseverance in pursuing a goal since drinking?

19. Do you drink to obtain social ease? (In shy, timid, self-conscious individuals)

20. Do you drink for self-encouragement? (In persons with feelings of inferiority)

21. Do you drink to relieve marked feeling of inadequacy?

22. Has your sexual potency suffered since drinking?

23. Do you show marked dislikes and hatreds since drinking?

24. Has your jealousy, in general, increased since drinking?

25. Do you show marked moodiness as a result of drinking?

26. Has your efficiency decreased since drinking?

27. Has drinking made you more sensitive?

28. Are you harder to get along with since drinking?

29. Do you turn to an inferior environment since drinking?

30. Is drinking endangering your health?

31. Is drinking affecting your peace of mind?

32. Is drinking making your home life unhappy?

33. Is drinking jeopardizing your business – your job?

34. Is drinking clouding your reputation?

35. Is drinking disturbing the harmony of your life?

Note: These questions are not AA questions but are the guide used by JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL in deciding whether a patient is alcoholic or not. In addition we in AA would ask even more. Here are a few:

36. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory (blackout) while, or after drinking?

37. Have you ever felt, when or after drinking, an inability to concentrate?

38. Have you ever felt “remorse” after drinking?

39. Has a physician ever treated you for drinking?

40. Have you ever been hospitalized for drinking?

ACCORDING TO THE HOPKINS STUDY if you answered YES to any one of these Questions, there is a definite warning that you may be an alcoholic.

If you have answered YES to any two of these Questions, chances are, you are an alcoholic.

If you answer YES to three or more of these Questions, you are definitely an alcoholic.

No one in AA can tell you whether you are an alcoholic. This you must decide for yourself. Once you have made that decision then you are ready to take the FIRST STEP:

“We admitted we were powerless over alcohol –that our lives had become unmanageable.”

AA Preamble 

Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. There are no dues or fees for AA membership; we are self-supporting through our own contributions. AA is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution; does not wish to engage in any controversy, neither endorses nor opposes any causes. Our primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety.