Every fifth German has a drinking problem

Every fifth German has a drinking problem - The Local

Most drinkers have a problem but just won't admit it. I told myself that I went out drinking to be sociable and make new friends. As a self employed person a lot of new work was gained over boozy lunches and dinners, which made me just want more booze. I had one golden rule never to work on stuff when under the influence of booze. You can guess how that turned out! i did very little work which piled up.

I caught a grip and employed people to do the general donkey work on a self employed basis and ended up making even more money for doing even less work. I paid them per hour worked at a third of my hourly charging rate.Not slave labour, higher than minimum rate. So I made 66% profit from their labours !! In addition, their payment was a tax deductible expense for me as they were sub contractors. I could take on more and more work and make more and money!

I whizzed round collecting and dropping off work to be done every morning. Finished off and finalised stuff and was out for lunch most days. The answer machine took messages which I could phone in and get, when I remembered or could be bothered. Nothing was ever urgent.

This went on until eventually I started to make errors. I was drinking over a bottle of vodka per day, more at weekends and I started to clear my head with cocaine and speed. To come down I used hash. I ended up a wreck but was still making loads of money. I was on the bumpy gravy train.

I became ill with kidney problems going in and out of hospitals while still keeping on going until I reached a turning point due to a bereavement. The next day, after the funeral, I stopped drinking for six months. I had already reduced my workload due to illness and I then reduced it further to one providing an income, only.

After six months I wanted to go out and about again. I found that I could go out for a couple of hours and drank sensibly with no spirits being touched. I had made it by will power alone.

You are not born with a glass in your hand. You put it there and can take it away. There is nothing wrong with altering your state of being with alcohol and/or drugs, in my opinion, as long as you go into these altered states occasionally, perhaps as a reward system. They should not be used as an escape mechanism. Now I have a couple of cans of lager as and when I choose, not as a need. I like wine with food or when chilling out talking with friends. I can take it or leave it as I please, now.