Well I suppose now that things are settling down a bit, I should introduce myself. We've been going back and forth so much at MYO that there wasn't really time to.

I'm a 37 year old guy from the Dallas area. I'm married (only marriage) for 4 years with a 17 month old daughter. I'm a software developer for a Fortune-500 financial services company so putting this forum together was an exercise in "stuff I like to do".

I've been what I'd consider a borderline alcoholic for about 15 years - since my college days. I've always just barely skirted on "this side" of being a full-blown alcoholic (a term with a very nebulous definition anyway). I've managed to stay out of trouble with the law - no DWIs or other legal issues. I've held my current job for 11 years. So I guess I'm your classic "functional alcoholic".

I started drinking when I was in high school but back then it was limited to occasional beers with my buddies - never a real issue. In college I had a pretty traumatic breakup with my high school sweetheart and it was downhill from there. I began drinking more often and within a few years was drinking 4-6 drinks every night, more on weekends and occasional binges. It didn't help that my boss kept Scotch in the cabinet at work and at five o'clock each day he broke out the glasses and ice. Pretty certain he was an alcoholic too...

Eventually I got over the breakup (it took a surprisingly long time) but was left with a physical addiction to booze.

I've made half-hearted attempts to cut back but never seriously considered quitting except during hangovers. After my mom died (way too young at 61 - not alcoholism) last year, my dad and I had a major blowup that was the result of drunkeness on both our parts.

We cleared that up pretty quickly but it distressed my wife to no end. She pretty much laid down the law and I began looking for a way to quit. Initially I wanted to go up to Schick-Shadel in Seattle, but the cost is enormous and my insurance won't pay for anything but counseling plus AA. Well I've never been to an AA meeting and from what I've seen, I don't want to.

Just by dumb luck I was in Border's looking at the books for drunks and saw Eskapa's book. Drink your way sober, huh? What will my wife think of this? Sure enough, that subtitle was the first thing she noticed (and didn't like).

I read the book, read the research, read reviews, read forum posts, etc... and decided this was the way for me - at least worth a shot. Drinking isn't my goal. My goal is to not crave drinking.

At this point i'm about three months in and my drinking is down to what I'd consider safe, but not ideal, levels. I'm at about 12-15 drinks per week and my cravings are a fraction of what they were before. I expect to continue to progress and can't wait until I just don't care one way or the other about booze.

That's my story. It's not interesting but if it were, I'd probably have a criminal record

Thx muh dear! Didn't mean to start a whole new thread - maybe we can delete it & send over to the introduction pages. I seriously feel like the hobo who just got hoisted aboard the train! Thx for your help - ahhhh

Hi RV,
Two new forums in a week isn't a record but should get some recognition. Thanks!

I too am a programmer. I am the director of R&D at a small company. We manufacture automation equipment for the food processing industry. I still code though. Delphi, C\C++ Embedded and whatever gets it done.

I got sober for 12 years through AA. But people like you and I generally don't do well in those programs. They are anti-intellectual by nature and I was always told "you are too smart to get sober".

So here we are. Now we need to make it work.

Yee Haw!!

The Sinclair Method is intended for those who are currently drinking and find they have lost control over their drinking. Those who have done well with an abstinence based method - like AA - should continue what they are doing if it is working for them.

I am not sure if your reply was in response to the previous post, mine. Yes, I had over 12 years sobriety but that ended the summer of 2005. That had been my pattern. I could go into AA and get sober. I was not satisfied with this way of living and have since followed teh Sinclair method. I am doing quite well now.
Thanks

I've noticed that there seems to be an unusually high level of intelligence, and open-mindedness, among this group. . .

Accidental?

I'm SO GLAD to have 'stumbled' on the book, and now, onto this site. I just now told my darling S.O. (whom you will all adore) about the Message Board, and he said he's looking forward to checking it out. He, too, is smart, open-minded - and working the Sinclair Method for a drinking problem.