May
20
2010
Alcoholism sometimes talks about “dry drunks”, I always believed this to be periods of drunkenen even
Posted by: Alan in alcoholism treatment, tags: About, Alcoholism, always, believed, drunkenen, Drunks, Even, periods, sometimes, talks, This
THIS TO BE PERIODS OF DRUNKENESS IN LONG TERM ALCOHOLICS EVEN WHEN THEY HAD NOT BEEN DRINKING AT ALL THAT DAY. iS THIS RIGHT OR WRONG?
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May 20th, 2010 at 7:36 pm
Well not really. A dry drunk is an alcoholic, who has in fact not been drinking for a certain period of time, therefore they are “dry” aka abstinent from alcohol, but not actually sober. They are unable to accept sobriety, and even though they don’t actually have alcohol in their system, they tend to continue to think/act the same as they did when they drank. Basically their mind continues to be messed up by the thought patterns of addiction, hence why they are not actually considered sober. Dry drunk is really a term that AA uses, and they pretty much consider any alcoholic who hasn’t been part of AA, followed the 12 steps, etc, a dry drunk, even if they are truly sober.
Mona Lisa is right about the whole AA thing. My boyfriend has struggled with alcoholism for probably half his life. He is sober, a recovering alcoholic now, thankfully. He tried AA, but hated it for the simple fact that they basically said, “AA is the only way you’ll get sober”, their way or no way at all. It is almost cult like in a way. He did better on his own, but there are many AA members who have been coming up to me(not so anonymous in our town) saying he isn’t sober, that he is just a dry drunk right now, and that he should be in AA. Kind of sickening in a way.
May 20th, 2010 at 8:11 pm
I could be wrong, but I have always interpreted this to mean that once you are an alcoholic, you are always an alcoholic, even if you abstain. It’s a lifelong battle and the addiction potential will always be with you.
May 20th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
No. Not quite true. A dry drunk is someone that no longer drinks, yet may have the attitude, outlook, or personality of someone (perhaps themselves when they did drink) who is a drunk.
In another words, they are still their old miserable self.
No change in attitude or personality.
May 20th, 2010 at 8:45 pm
Former AA member here. Sober 9+ years.
The term “dry drunk” as used in AA is meant to refer to someone who is abstinent from alcohol (that’s what “dry” means) but who continues to have the attitudes and behaviors of a person who is still drinking.
Unfortunately, there are many instances in which a person who has quit drinking without AA’s “help” is accused of being a “dry drunk” simply because they have not quit drinking the “AA way”. This is unfair and stupid, but it’s necessary because so many AA members believe that AA is the only way to quit drinking. When confronted with a person (and there are many) who quit without AA, this obviously flies in the face of their belief so they belittle the person with the term “dry drunk”, suggesting that the abstinent person is not “really sober” but just “dry”.
Fun, eh? It’s one reason I left. One among many.
May 20th, 2010 at 9:37 pm
Dry drunk, is more about behavior and tendencies… high risk behaviors, etc… it’s a mental state of being, psychologically speaking.