Alcohol Scare

[ticknaylor]

Well today was the anniversary with the missus and I spent it in the emergency department. Been having sharp pains and feeling nausea for a couple of weeks so I went to the G.P. got it check last week tests come back fine anyway today the pain became excruciating I tried to go to the after hours G.P. and went fuck it in the waiting room i'm gunna croak it if I don't get into hospital soon. I'd been drinking piss more and more regualary and you find your self drinking most nights and drinking a few. Anyway turns out gastritis caused by drinking to much piss. Most embarrassing thing is how the doctors look at you like your a f#$king alcoholic. I mean by there standards I probably am but when there like your well over the recommended amount its pretty embarrassing. So I though I'd let everyone know im having a month off and gunna try to have bit more moderation when I start having a few again. I thought my liver had shit itself at 27 :laughing-rolling: Anyway I spose my point here is having a cheap constant supply of piss means sometimes you forget that piss still f@#ks you up when you have to much for a long time and you gotta moderate your drinking a little.

[kiwikeg]

Sorry to hear that Tick.
There is a mostly good thread here viewtopic.php?f=20&t=1403&hilit=moderation
my frieds and I who brew and still agree that the fact money has been removed as a control to drinking is a bit of a trap.And thats where we need to find other natural controls to moderate consumption.
thats where the pursuit of quality handcrafted spirits/liquers becomes the focus of our hobby
I hope you wouldnt wander down the bottler every few days for a 40oz if you were paying for it. so why would you drink to excess just coz its in the cupboard.

take a break :handgestures-thumbupleft:( Yur 27 man! you still have unlimited potentual not like the rest of us sour old c###s)
keep track of how much you are drinking- i do this by keeping my ready to drink separate from my bulk stocks
measure your drinks when pouring them!
Go for a walk/exercise in the evenings before you have a drink.

really hope your guts are better soon- but dont be afraid to seek a second opinion from another doctor i had crippling pain from "stomach ulcers" for years till my normal GP was away and I got seen by another docter- I was in surgery 2 hours later getting my grumbly appendix removed -problem solved instantly..

Good luck and be good to that woman of yours.

Regards
kk

[Boomgate]

As I was going to sleep last night I pondered the same thing.... I also need to take a long hard look at this..

The fact that my stuff gives me no noticeable hangover, added as the previous poster mentioned to the fact that there is no financial outlay makes it very tempting to drink too much, too often.

[JayD]

I found when I was a drinker and made my beer the temptation to sneak out into my garage and grab a couple more longnecks was irresistible...I set myself a three longneck limit but once the yum factor set in would stretch to six if I could, but in saying this I found it easy as to put it down and walk away..smokes well that another thing and I wont go there in this thread.

I think we need to drink in moderation, drink only when you would like a drink....not when you need a drink ! as I feel this is the pathway to alcoholism, for me it was when my Wife called me a alcoholic, if she called me a piss head it wouldn't have bothered me, I gave her the bird put down the piss and havent had a drink since. You might be thinking she played that well, but when I really think about it, I was the one that won as it's one less Monkey on my back. I do not look down my nose at a drinker and think have a ball but when he or she gets violent well thats when I think what a yobbo. One thing I have noticed though is how people handle themselves under the influence...some funny, some disgusting and a few handle it pretty well.

Remember if you have less drinks you will have better product in the long run as more of your hooch ages. Take care all and remember only you can moderate how much you drink, listen to your body it will guide you. Good luck.
J

[Lupus]

Others have already chimed in about the need for moderation. I am sure there a number who enter the hobby with the financial incentive in mind. Make your own product and save!

As you have found, unfortunately, this also removes one of the controls that prevents us from over indulging too often, and soon, excessive consumption becomes an issue. While regular consumption builds up a degree of tolerance and improves the livers function, excessive consumption can still mess it up.

While cheap grog may have been the motivation to get people into the hobby, there needs to be a moderating factor that inhibits over consumption. And one of those is the development of a discerning palate. In the time I have spent in the forums. I have noticed how particular most experienced stillers are with their palate, very aggressive with their cuts and picky about their choice of raw materials in the quest for a better product. All these reintroduce a quality control to their product and works to minimise yield and modify drinking behaviour. Trick is not just to enjoy the product but the journey to the end product.

On the plus side, liver function does recover. I had two mates at uni, who partied extremely hard while living in college. By the start if their third year, they started suffering ill health and tenderness in their lower chest/stomach region. Cut a long story short, they had liver issues from excessive drinking and were told to lay off or die. They moderated their behaviour and many years later, life continues as per normal, with less excessive drinking, but not total cessation of drinking.

[crow]

I have not drank so little as I do now for a great many yrs for the reasons mentioned above. I guess if I wanted I could bang out a UJSM or TPW every week if I chose but that's not my style . I like most of what I make and enjoy tasting the improvements as it ages ,plus I get a kick out of sharing it

[Aussiedownunder01]

I have not drank so little as I do now for a great many yrs for the reasons mentioned above. I guess if I wanted I could bang out a UJSM or TPW every week if I chose but that's not my style . I like most of what I make and enjoy tasting the improvements as it ages ,plus I get a kick out of sharing it

Good i will have a couple of bottles of uncle Jessie :)) :)) :)) 8-)

[BackyardBrewer]

I think we need to drink in moderation, drink only when you would like a drink....not when you need a drink ! as I feel this is the pathway to alcoholism,

Truer words have never been spoken. When I have a high pressure stressful day and think "Jesus I could murder a few shots of my hooch and a homebrew or two" that's probably when I shouldn't drink.

I try and have at least four AFD's (alcohol free days) every week. Don't always manage it but the goal is to not drink every day.

I'm really impressed to see the level of analysis and discourse here which has made the link that cost-wise we have reduced a big barrier to drinking. When the cost of a bottle of 40% booze is now a few bucks instead of $40-50 it's easy to over indulge.

Interestingly this comes up in the home brew forums again and again. Access to delish high quality beer or spirits inevitably means you over indulge unless you're aware of your consumption.

Good to see a mature level headed discussion here about this.

[Kimbo]

I drink just about every night. I usually have 2-3 glasses(which isnt a great deal), more if friends come over.
I always have something fermenting, i usually do a 25L wash rather than big batches only because i like running the bubbler.
There for, I have lots of small amounts ageing.
I too gift a fair bit of by grog, this also makes the missus think i drink more than I actually do.
I will admit that although its only 2-3 glasses, it is still more than i used to drink when i had to buy it. ;-)
But on the flip side, i dont smoke anymore, i exercise more, i eat healthier than i ever did. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Andy]

There is just something so satisfying about coming home, kicking the shoes off, and having a glass. Nice bourbon with a juicy steak. Simple pleasures in life.

Im finding with the home brew I am more satisfied with a glass or 2 then i would be with a store bought bottle. When I have wine or cider I get a different kind of drunk. I just start pouring
whatever i can down my neck.

[MacStill]

Got an update Tick?

Hope you're well mate, health scares are pretty stressful :sad:

[bt1]

Just a few comments,

pre distilling, I used to belt down the JD's and Jim Beam blacks after a few pints of coppers regularly and never give it a second thought really.

Despite the fact that I share a lot with mates or suppliers/plumbers etc :D I currently do a good 2 - 3 washes a week some experimentals mostly for longer term aging.

Found that as you get to appreciate the tastes of good gear the commercial stuff doesn't hold the appeal it used to and rarely drink it these days.

The other thing is cos you know what good/aged stuff tastes like seem less prone to drinking immediately...rather wait for a good drop. Could also be a case of over kill cos when you have plenty your over it well and truly. Got a point that even doing the tastings becomes a hassle... there a pt where having too much is hard to keep tabs on for taste, aging etc.

Hope and trust the health improves!

bt1

[ticknaylor]

Doing really well mac :handgestures-thumbupleft: gave up piss for a couple of weeks now I don't drink during the week just on weekends. Had to cut out a lot of sugar and give up my other favourite drink coffee :scared-eek: I tell ya giving up coffee was a lot harder than giving up the drink. Feel a lot better for it. After going to the docs we kinda sussed out that I always had a crook guts for acidic foods and increasing my drinking just triggered what was already there. So he gave me some pills for flare ups. Now i know not to eat certain food i been a shitload better than i was. Totally agree with bt and the other comments above now I got a bubbler its going to be all about quality and sorting out mates with good drink :handgestures-thumbupleft: Anyway seeing its sunday and I got a bit of time for once im off to the the shed to put some sight glasses on :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Valoren]

Hey Tick, Glad to hear you're doing okay, You guys have all raised a really good point, In my case the risk isn't with me, it's with my parents, It's kind of ironic that both my parents are bad alcoholics, and I'm the only one who brews and distills and has pretty much unlimited access to alcohol and I'm not much of a drinker at all.
My problem was when I was living in Adelaide and living with my father, I first started distilling there and my dad being curious got involved, Soon I had three cupboards filled to the brim with spirit (This was when I was still on the turbo yeast bandwagon, thankfully never got on the "Turbo Sugar" one!)

Unfortunately Dad developed quite a taste for it and his alcoholism got much worse, Eventually it reached the point where I shipped my gear down it NSW and eventually moved myself.

Sometimes it's the people we love that we can hurt with this hobby if we aren't careful.

[Bandicoot Wrangler]

@ Andy

Im finding with the home brew I am more satisfied with a glass or 2 then i would be with a store bought bottle. When I have wine or cider I get a different kind of drunk. I just start pouring
whatever i can down my neck.

Mate SNAP! I found that when I started on shine I was content to level off on a pleasant plateau. However as someone else mentioned use a shot measure because if the "nips get bigger" you will crash and burn.

The alcohol free days is the key for me. I used to drink after work habitually, it was my default. Now my default is not to drink and to discipline myself to a stretch of 3-4 days booze free.

Dont take this wrong Tick but in some ways you are lucky a health scare pulled you up short. For many bad drinkers it's lifestyle problems where you let your shit slip and live in denial.

It's like any high risk activity, motorbikes, aerobatics whatever. You can windup on a slab. It's good to see a grownup discussion.

Stay Safe and Happy...

:handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Dominator]

I agree mate. When I used to drink spirits I would free pour. Since I started distilling my own I have got in the habit of using a nip pourer, otherwise they do just keep getting bigger.

[dogbreath vodka]

I tend not to have a drink before 9pm
That way I have about an hour .... still have a few in that time.
But can safely say I haven't been pissed in 30yrs... tipsy yes ... pissed no.

Had a check up with my doc about a month or two ago and everything is fine.
So yes moderation is the key.
Also cutting down on sugar in general is a good idea.

If I drank a can of coke it would have more sugar in it than I put in tea in a couple of months.

Stay healthy and moderation is the key.

This hobby isn't about cheap booze for me.
It's about learning a new skill and exercising the brain rather than pickling it.
:handgestures-thumbupleft: :handgestures-thumbupleft:

DBV

[Bushy]

My Doc pointed to a number on a sheet and said that I have an inflamed liver. His advice was to have two health days a week. Spaced apart, like monday and thursday. Said if i did that I would increase my drinking career immeasurably. His words. Easier to do than I thought it would be. The australian way I suppose, have to make a conscious decision not to have a drink. It should probably be the other way around.

[Summie]

Hi there people,
This is a ridiculous concept that just cause its there you have to drink it, sorry boys but I have done alot and I mean alot of drinking more than most people; kinda comes with my job but that's another story. But since I've started making it I drink much less; zero though the week and usually a couple Friday and Saturday if at all, cause I like to drink with someone else listen to music, talk shit, work on cars or run the still; if someone here like last week end over two days between three we drank 9 bottles (700ml bottles) of piss and got up to work each day pulling my mates kitchen out, and that doesn't include the beers that where drank. So my problem is different only if there is someone to drink with than the it rises its head.... Lol! But to have a few to many every day is a completely different thing but each to there own; everyone has different self control... some have none. The main thing I wanted to say is now that I make it all my energy goes into making it not drinking it!

Cheers guys hope no one takes what I say the wrong way.

[Kimbo]

Hi there people,
This is a ridiculous concept that just cause its there you have to drink it,

Crap, Before i started Stilling I drank Jim Beam. Now, if i had a bottle in the house i would have 4/5 drinks per night.
If there was no bottle, I thought "Meh!" it didnt bother me. But coz there was booze in the house, I had to drink it.

Now that I make my own, I find that I only drink 1-2 per night and slightly more on weekends.
The difference is, that I now drink every single night, but hardly ever enough to get drunk. ;-)
My point is..... everyone is different and to say that a certain concept is ridiculous.......is ridiculous :handgestures-thumbupleft: