Married to a Functioning Alcoholic? Getting Help

Dr. Neill Neill

asleep from drinking too muchMary (alias) recently took the Alcoholism Test and then emailed me. (She didn't leave a public comment because she wanted her communication to be confidential.)

Although a few details are changed or omitted to protect Mary's privacy, she began with

"I was researching functional alcoholism and came across your site. I took the Alcoholism Test to determine if my husband would be considered a functioning alcoholic. I have not yet spoken with anyone about this, but just researched Al-Anon and plan on attending a meeting…"

Mary goes on to make the following points:

  • Married for 19 years.
  • Husband a drinker, mostly drinking alone.
  • He has been drinking more during the last 5-6 years (now more than two liters/week of hard liquor.)
  • He is not abusive and does not miss work.
  • He seems to have trouble remembering.
  • He just seems out of it at night…

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The Functioning Alcoholic and Memory Loss

Dr. Neill Neill

functioning alcoholicAnyone who abuses alcohol long enough or heavily enough eventually will have problems with memory. The functioning alcoholic will have memory problems. His memory problems are simply less severe than those of the skid-row alcoholic.

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Filed under Symptoms of Alcoholism by Dr. Neill Neill

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