Aspies and Alcohol

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s**t! Don't sound good. I did not concider myself an alcholic, since I limit my use to a certain degree, but sometimes I wonder. Tobacco and beer seems to be on a different budget from the rest. It kindof in the leage with my bank loans.

Alcohol has been pretty good to me. I'm from Ireland so drinking is a big part of the culture. So is social anxiety. I imagine it would be a much worse experience been socially anxious in a place like america where people are very extroverted, than here where they're not.

People drink to stop being shy here, and drinkinng has helped me to deal with a lot of my social issues. It calms my anxiety and has helped me to prove to myself that I'm an interesting person who can have interesting conversations. If I do anything aspie when I'm drunk I can just blame it on the alcohol and people are much more receptive to aspie behaviour when they're drunk themselves.

The trick is not to be fooled into believing that this is a tool you can use for a long time without some very negative consequences.

I do, however, think that I need to make some changes in my life. It is unfortunate that alcohol and tobacco are such good crutches. I'm getting older, and I think it is time to start taking better care of my body. Also, I'm beginning to find that I like a drink a bit too much - not an alcoholic, per se, but I feel that I have to be more conscientious about it.

I do have sympathy/compassion for those who have addictive disorders. I do not have but being HFA might be why I feel for those who struggle within themselves due to 'Pervasive Problem X'. rb: I've always always liked your personality and sense of humor! I cannot 'read' humans but I do look at what they write. I've read your posts for quite some time, of course, and you're a regular on this Planet. I can tell when you're not you're not in that true richardbenson mode, which means you're drinking. This is so sad.....I know you can stop!

I saw a t-shirt that read, "Autism. It isn't for sissies." Well, yes. We are strong from necessity. But I hope you can feel better and stop so the consumation doesn't consume you. You have much to offer and in some ways I think you then have an obligtion to give of your mind. Alcohol seems to cheat you. And your bank account!

About alcohol itself, and how it acts: Duality; at once a depressant but shuts off inhibitions, which might be why some Aspies feel it makes their AS less apparent. Those on the spectrum have a different circadian cycle with notable sleep differences. Those who drink alcohol sometimes say it helps them fall asleep more easily. It does.....except it erodes the quality of sleep and our kind, more than any NT, need this quality sleep. The deficit effects every other realm of functioning.

So whilst alcohol is a depressant it also acts to increase anxiety. Hence problems.

I don't have addictive disorder but I do obsess over certain things and this can consume me. I have to be careful in this, and I'm lousy at doing it! But I hope you can feel better, rb. I feel....loss (?) when I read your posts aren't you, but the alcohol. You're so much better than the alcohol!


In Alaska and extreme northern regions, such as Siberia, etc. alcoholism is rampant. Alaska has become more conscientious of this since we have a miserable track record as far as alcohol-related problem. Many in villages will become intoxicated to oblivion, then freeze to death! This happens in Fairbanks too. Scary! Some have suffered severe frostbite from being drunk - disaster. And homelessness, poverty cycle. Alcohol is literally destroying their beautiful Native culture! I hope Aspies don't fall into this for these reasons.

I used to drink wine at communion at church (I have not attended services in almost 3 years).

I had a beer on a camping trip this past spring. It tasted terrible, and I have vowed to never drink anything alcoholic again.

Too much alcohol impairs the abilities that help me concentrate on communicating.As it
takes me a great deal of effort to listen and follow conversations even when I'm sober,too
much drink in a social setting can put me in a 'zombie-like' state !

I used to drink at least once a week, but as I got older I lost most of the motivation for haivng a drink. I never tried to give up drinking it just happened that I had less and less of an urge to have a glass of wine or something else. Then in my mid 20s I discovered that I could get a hangover from only a small amount of drink (3 units worth). So I stopped almost totally. I normally have a drink now less than 10 times a year.

Also when in a crowded booze party I oftein felt very alone, so I did not normally see the point of going drinking. I thought that I might as well do something else.

When I do have a drink it then tends to be just one of two glasses of wine or cider. So I am not a great drinker.

I am not a big drinker and I only drink for the taste. I usually like the occasional good beer of good quality wine. I would not touch that rubbishy wine in casks with a barge pole. This swill is not even good for cooking.

Reading all this has been quite helpful for me.
It gives me some motivation to.... hmmm.... perhaps NOT drink all the time?

Last night I realized viscerally what I had previously only thought about abstractly: that the ONLY reason that I drink now is to soften or escape my own thoughts.
My life is rather unhappy right now, and I can't do anything immediate to change that.
I'm not even drinking to be social anymore, because I'm never really social now anyways.
I get home in the evenings, and I just want to sit and drink and turn off.
On top of this I live with another person who drinks every day, and we end up enabling each other.
This is terrible.

Talking about this and listening to you guys kind of woke me up a bit to this fact.
Not only can I not afford to drink every day, but I'm well on my way to being a miserable alcoholic.
I need to stop, because I don't seem to be able to drink in moderation.

Maybe I'll get hooked on coffee, instead. It's cheaper. Plus maybe I won't fall asleep sitting at the computer anymore.

I think I react more strongly to alcohol than most people. Ater one glass of normal, average wine I already notice differences, I feel a bit sleepy, or hyperactive, and I have slight difficulties walking properly.

I admire the discipline you all have ! !

I enjoy drinking (too much) and will have a drink during the day just to get that feeling of relaxation. Now I work second shift and come home late and very wound up, so I drink to stop my mind from racing. Perhaps next year I'll make the decision to cut back on the intake.

I suspect that if a scientist invented the first easy way to make alcohol next week and also discovered that it was a drug of abuse. Then within about five or ten years it would be BANNED in much of the world.

Alcohol isn't hard to make, and the amount of money that governments make off of it precludes any decision to prohibit it (same with Tobacco). Why do you think a drug like Marijuana became illegal after prohibition in the 20's? Everyone used it because it wasn't controlled like Alcohol. The instant Alcohol was un-prohibited the government started a smear campaign in order to profit from the alcohol companies, which are easier to monitor since all one has to do to smoke pot is grow it themselves (a very easy task).

A little bit of alcohol makes me less overwhelmed by all the sensory overload in noisy crowded places. I can socialize more easily because I’m more relaxed and my thoughts aren’t racing so fast. Slow my brain down a little and it becomes easier to talk without shutting down or drawing a blank.

The downside is it sometimes makes me feel depressed when I’m alone and/or not feeling talkative. Usually the first beer makes me feel a little depressed and then when I have more my mood lifts back up and I feel slightly hyper. Alcohol is weird like that.

Ditto.

I went thru a stage where I would go out about 4 times a week to drink with friends. I thought (and still think) that the only reason to drink is to get drunk. I have always felt like I have to maintain an extreme self control of myself at all times, although I never really knew why, and people looked at me like I was nuts when I would talk about self control (like, what does a college drop out who cant hold on to a min. wage job at a fast food know about self-control), but I started drinking when I was about 22 thanks to a friend of mine and I found that when drunk (or "drinking", not necesarily actually drinking but having a drink in hand) that it felt almost like, freedom or excusable to do all the things I stop myself from doing on a regular basis (staring, walking in circle, repetition, etc.) and people thought it was ok, becuz I was "drunk"! Alchohol felt very liberating for a while...

Anyway, as for effects... when I do drink it's usually liquor (vodka, rum, tequila, etc.) I've found that if I drink beer/ale it effects me within minutes of my first drink, but this may be a subconcious reaction. I dont get hang overs & I get pretty catatonic with a relatively small amount of alchohol. Light bothers me more the next day, tho. & I seem to metabolise it either, much faster or much slower than everyone else, depending on the drink.