FEAR OF ALCOHOL

[Monik09]

I am very scared of alcohol..I cant be around anyone that is drinking..I feel like im the one drinking and gonna make a fool out of myself I feel like im not going to be okay.I only drank one time and felt like I was going to die my heart was pounding fast,paranoid, shaky and I started freaking out I dont know wat happen to me, I felt everyone laughing I thought i needed to go to the hospital.I Dont know if I got anxious or it was cuz i was drinkin then i had smoked and suffered the effect..I was with my friends and thought this was cool 3 yrs ago..now in a couple of months I will b 21 and everyone is looking forward to it cuz the illegal age but i dont want to tell them y im not drinking cuz i feel like there going to laugh at me and think im crazy. .Is this weird how I feel PLz help..I just want to know if this is normal?

[perspectivegirl]

Hey Monik09, I totally feel the same way, and I'm 20 too! I used to be able to drink a fair amount and have a really good time. Since my anxiety has grown I've barely been able to drink half a beer. I was actually at a party last night and there was smoking and drinking and I just decided to go out onto the balcony and stay there and breathe the fresh air.
Also, just because you're around people that are drinking doesn't mean that you're drinking too. Just make sure you keep an eye on your cup. You'll be okay. :]

[ladyjeweler]

Hi! I too have a fear of alcohol but not in the same way. I don't drink because I fear I will become an alcoholic. My uncle is an alcoholic and both grandfathers too and just seeing how they acted has made me not want to drink. My uncle drank himself into liver failure and survived but seeing what my family went through was rough.
People tried to pressure me to drink on my 21st birthday but I didn't. I'm 23 now and most people WILL respect your choice not to drink.

[Monik09]

Thanks ladies I'm so relieved that I'm not the only feeling like this.I thought that I was being weird.

@Perspectivegirl: Wow! We must have a lot in common. .Im glad someone my age knows what Im going through cuz it seems like most people our age dont know and are not going through this as we are. I dont like like to be around all that (Smokein and drinking) But when I am I always feel the need to go outside too and just get a breath of fresh air.Thanks I just hope my friends dont think Im boring cuz I dont drink like them but theres other ways u can have fun like..movies.going bowling.hanging with friends etc.


@Ladyjeweler: Thats also crosses my mind of why I dont want to drink cuz My dad was an alcholic and I also think of all the stuff he did and what I saw as a child,I saw my mom go through so much and it affected me in so many ways and I dont want to fall in his footsteps..Now he has scerosis of the liver and is in Prison due to his 3rd DWI..He asked me to forgive him but its been really hard for me to do that at this point.

[ladyjeweler]

I'm sorry that you and your mom went through all of that. My uncle hasn't asked us for forgiveness, not to my knowledge anyway. I'm not sure I ever could fully forgive him. I think he would benefit from this program. If people haven't been around alcoholics it's hard for them to understand the fear of becoming an alcoholic. My friends respect my choice not to drink even if they don't understand and I hope yours will too if you do choose not to drink. I'm not saying that you shouldn't drink it's just that people with alocoholism in families should be careful, like anxiety it can run in families.