3 days no alcohol. So I have never been told im an alcoholic, or been diagnosed with alcoholism…but I think I just hide it well. I usually drink about 3x a week. About 8 beers each time or about 7 whiskeys and sprites. I feel that may be excessive but i always get everything i need done, done. It hasnt effected my relationship with my husband, friends, or family. It has effected my health i think but not quite sure. I do have high blood pressure but that runs in my family…so does heavy drinking. Every family event my whole family drinks well besides my husband he never touches the stuff cause he says he doesnt like how it makes him feel. So how do i know if i really have a problem…and how bad it is? After about 3 days its hard not to drink im a stay at home dog mom and get bored what can I do to stay strong?
Occupy your time with something physical. A run, yoga, meditation, anything that will get your body moving and your mind focused.
Keep it simple .
I am also a stay-at-home puppy mama so I feel ya there with the boredom aspect. I have tried to kind of get myself into a routine and regimen to focus on my health. I have been doing yoga, stationary bike, and a little light lifting weights. That seems to help me a lot for the boredom. Instead of just sitting in front of the tv, I try to keep as active as I can. I also read at night and use this app. Hope this helps a bit!
Usually I say if you have to ask, then you have a problem. You’re finding it hard to not drink, and drinking is not healthy, that sounds like a problem. 
Good news is there’s a ton of support and resources here to help you through. I’ve been sober for 186 days now by asking for help and acting on that help.
If you have free time, pick up a hobby instead of the bottle. That was one thing that helped me through the early days.
Thanks you guys for your suggestions and input. I do zumba a few times a week and I usually spend my days painting, jewelry making, tie dying, or hiking. Maybe I just need to admit to myself it really is a problem and just follow through. Its hard but I know you all know that already 
This is the bargaining phase. I’ve been here many times. Alcohol is an addictive carcinogenic drug. That fact never changes. You would be living a better life without it. That also never changes.
You may not realize but alcohol and its pull on your dopamine system is causing you to think this. Your conscious brain is trying to make sense of the chemical signals it’s receiving, that it’s missing this drug it’s used to.
If you go back, it’s not because you want to, it’s because you’re compelled to.
Its like my brain is telling me just drink damn its not a big deal your fine your bills are paid, your house is clean, everything is fine theres nothing wrong with you…but the fact that im having this constant battle proves to me I have a problem…and I think im just realizing that…because if i didnt i wouldnt need to drink it would just be a fleeting thought. I hope one day thats all it is.
Only you can answer the question you ask.
I can say that I once asked quite the same question. I got a little help and got a little better then thought I had it handled only to find it got much, much worse.
Now I’m just done with it, get proper help, and find life is simpler and clearer sober. There’s nothing in my life alcohol made better, even if I weren’t an alcoholic.
For others the mileage may vary. But I’d prefer go through life sober asking if I’m alcoholic, instead of drunk wondering if i can get sober.
I once asked my doctor “how much is too much?”. She said " seven drinks a week, no more than 2 in a sitting, for a male. Anything more than that is considered heavy drinking and puts your health at risk". Yeah…I drank 3-5 times that much, and so do you…and you are a female.
Also, here you are at day 3, obsessing over taking a drink, worrying over whether or not if you take one, does this mean you have a problem. Maybe this answers your question.
I am married to a very light drinker. My wife might have a glass of wine a week, and some weeks none at all.
Just some things to think on, rather than drink on
Alcoholism (as I’ve read) is self-diagnosed. Personally, I see no difference between heavy-drinking, binge-drinking, alcohol-abuser, etc. To me they’re all describing a type of alcohol addiction. Alcohol is one of the most addictive substances available. The longer and more you drink, the more addicting it becomes. I was listening to a podcast the other day, and the host couldn’t have said it better when he said “Alcohol is shit!” If you think it’s becoming a problem, and want to quit but just need some support, we’re all here for you 
Alcoholism is a self diagnosed disease. The only person that can say you’re an alcoholic is you. I mean, of course your doctor can SAY it but you have to believe it for it to be true. There is no x-ray or MRI that will show you definitively “here is your alcoholism, you need treatment”.
So my belief is…if you’re asking the question you already know the answer. At a minimum you believe you are drinking more than you should and it could be a problem.
I too think the alcoholic diagnosis is one that has to be self diagnosed. For a few years I drank everyday didn’t think anything of it until my wife accused me of being an alcoholic. I decided to prove to her I could take it or leave it and that’s when I realized I had been in denial. Initially I had anxiety I couldn’t sleep well I was irritable it was very difficult. I did string together a few good runs of sobriety over 30 days. I’ve been with this internal conflict going on several years now the battle between the drinker and the sober person inside of me. I fell victim to binge drinking after the sobriety bouts. Moderation is a slippery slope you will always have that internal conflict. The drinker inside of me is always piecing together new ways to allow drinking to survive in my life and as I follow each one of those rabbit trails they only lead to another dead end, so after several years of this the drinker in me is running out of options. I know I will be permanently sober someday, and if I can’t pull that off then I will wear the label of alcoholic as the disease will have consumed me. I wish you the best, and hope you save yourself years of disappointment and just quit now. All roads will lead to that conclusion. Try books from Allen Carr, Craig Beck, and Dave Andrews. I listen to their audiobooks on sobriety. Its eye opening and will give you some answers to your questions.
When I first started considering cutting down on my drinking I came across a blog on the internet called “Tired of thinking about drinking” .
I realized most of my day was consumed by thinking about when I was going to drink. How I was going to get it. What event I was going to plan so I could drink with my friends.
If I had overdone the drinking I started to think do I have a problem. Maybe I should cut it down a bit and make some rules. Then I broke all those rules.
Once I decided I was not going to drink again I no longer had to think about drinking. My life has been so much better since then. It took a month or so to realize how much alcohol really was affecting my life. Once sober I was able to see it clearly and I dont plan on going back.
I have a similar drinking regimen. Usually confined to weekends. What i have found is my depression deepens during the week. Alcohol being a depressent is the fuel for that depression. Latley it has kept me from doing many things and directly caused my break up. I am 10 days sober, i know around day 20 it will get hard, that’s usually when i cave. I have been to AA meetings everyday since Sunday, and i hope to have a sponsor by day 19.
I found there are a lot of “yets” with being an alcoholic. I havent lost a job yet, no problems with my marriage yet, I didnt lose my house yet…
All those yets happened to me. Either directly or indirectly because of alcohol.
Im not an alcoholic because I drank. I am an alcoholic because I couldnt not drink. One of the sayings i like (although im going to mess it up) is when you find that drinking interferes with your life its time to cut back. When you find that life is interfereing with your drinking there is a problem.
Hope it helps.
I am full of “yets”! That is why I’m here. The last thing I want in my life is to lose that “yet” in my vocabulary.
Im on day 4 we can do this!
This is still my favorite blog and I think that Belle’s book of the same name and podcasts are also super helpful.
I used to ask myself “do I have a drinking problem?” And would answer myself maybe, probably. Then one day and every day since i ask myself “does drinking create problems in my life?” And the answer is absolutely, every time.
Think of it another way.
Your drinking has led to a lot of shit happening in your life and to sign up to a sobriety forum to seek help.
If youre not an alcoholic you have serious issues with alcohol so you probably should stay away from it.
“Normal” people dont have these problems. They drink have a terrible hangover, deal with it, then dont drink for a week, fortnight, month. And during the times they dont drink they do t even think about it nevermind obsess over it