How elated is drunk?

[consumedconvert]

Okay, quick relatively-newbie Catholic question.

I went to a great party last night. Everyone there was, to my knowledge, a serious practising Catholic. Party lasted about five hours. Naturally I drank, but I drank more than I usually do, and I not only drank beer but also a little hard licker–two mixed drinks, a shot or two of wiskey, a shot of very tasty cordial, and three beers.

I remember everything I did, and except for perhaps being a bit loud (but I’m always a bit loud at parties), I don’t regret anything I did. I remember at one point, after I had finished my last drink and “cut myself off”, “Wow, I think THIS must be the point of hilarity St. Thomas wrote of.”

But not being duly experienced in drinking–I was raised a teetotaler and had my first beer just a couple years ago, and don’t drink that much–I feel a bit uneasy. I mean, ,surprisingly enough for a former Evangelical, I have no guilt about it. In fact, I feel great this morning, better than usual!

But I keep wondering, “should I feel bad about this?” Or, more precisely, did I sin in any way? So how drunk is drunk? I don’t know that I should bring this up in confession tomorrow–I at least don’t feel like I should–but should I just in case?

Thanks, CC

 

[KingAlfred]

I once partied hardy, on a regular basis. Now, at 51, I hardly ever drink, and even then never more than two beers. I look back on my drinking days with regret. A lot of life was wasted therein. You had a pleasant experience. Nonetheless, I’d try to minimize my alcoholic consumption if I were you. You have a strong foundation as a non-drinker. Keep it.

 

[coda]

Okay, quick relatively-newbie Catholic question.

I went to a great party last night. Everyone there was, to my knowledge, a serious practising Catholic. Party lasted about five hours. Naturally I drank, but I drank more than I usually do, and I not only drank beer but also a little hard licker–two mixed drinks, a shot or two of wiskey, a shot of very tasty cordial, and three beers.

I remember everything I did, and except for perhaps being a bit loud (but I’m always a bit loud at parties), I don’t regret anything I did. I remember at one point, after I had finished my last drink and “cut myself off”, “Wow, I think THIS must be the point of hilarity St. Thomas wrote of.”

But not being duly experienced in drinking–I was raised a teetotaler and had my first beer just a couple years ago, and don’t drink that much–I feel a bit uneasy. I mean, ,surprisingly enough for a former Evangelical, I have no guilt about it. In fact, I feel great this morning, better than usual!

But I keep wondering, “should I feel bad about this?” Or, more precisely, did I sin in any way? So how drunk is drunk? I don’t know that I should bring this up in confession tomorrow–I at least don’t feel like I should–but should I just in case?

Thanks, CC

A highly regarded priest told me that to drink to lose oneself is sinful. If by one’s drinking that person or other persons are endangered or actually harmed in some way, it becomes mortally sinful… The catechism is vague when it comes to actually defining “drunk” The lines can be blurry going from no sin at all, to sinful, to mortally sinful.I feel that one would know if one had mortally sinned because of alcohol… Maybe someone can offer more tangible advice

 

[Newbie2]

Drinking, in my experience with friends, family and self, is like anything else…moderation is the key. The fact that you “cut yourself off” is significant, methinks…did you do it because you felt you had enough or did you feel on that edge of losing a measure of self-control? (Admittedly, perhaps the same thing)

I recall the last time I was drunk…in college. Sick drunk, feeling- like-I-was-going-to-die hungover the next day for a good 24 hours. I vowed never to even get close to that again and never have.

Now I find that one or two drinks in an evening, with a water or soda inbetween is sufficient. But enough about me…

Obviously, slobbering drunk is not acceptable. The warm, unhibited feeling is getting there…and this is perhaps the time to be the most cautious…when you lose the ability to accurately determine (and this is the problem) if you’ve had one too many, then it’s too late, and you’ve had one too many!

Frequency is also the factor. We know adults with families in their late 40s who sit around and drink all weekend, every weekend. Personally, methinks this is way excessive, even they don’t appear to be stinking drunk. The problem is that their lives appear to revolve around parties and drink.

So how elated is drunk? There are degrees, I guess. Just some random thoughts…

 

[Navarricano]

I went to a great party last night. Everyone there was, to my knowledge, a serious practising Catholic. Party lasted about five hours. Naturally I drank, but I drank more than I usually do, and I not only drank beer but also a little hard licker–two mixed drinks, a shot or two of wiskey, a shot of very tasty cordial, and three beers …

… But I keep wondering, “should I feel bad about this?” Or, more precisely, did I sin in any way? So how drunk is drunk? I don’t know that I should bring this up in confession tomorrow–I at least don’t feel like I should–but should I just in case?

Thanks, CC

I wouldn’t worry about it CC. If there is a doubt in your mind as to the sinfulness of your behavior, then you are probably just being scrupulous. Don’t start feeling bad about not feeling bad, just work on forming your conscience correctly with the help of a good spiritual director and growing in virtue.

As for the alcohol itself, since you admit that you are not an “experienced drinker” and you want to avoid the vice of drunkenness, let me give you a bit of advice there. Disclaimer time: (I presume you are legally allowed to drink, or you wouldn’t be asking for this kind of advice) If you’re not, knock it off now.

First off, as a general rule it’s always wise to avoid mixing drinks. If you’re at a party and you’re drinking beer, stick with beer. If you’re drinking wine, stick with wine. If you mix different grades of alcohol, you’ll get drunk much more quickly and get a really nasty headache to boot.

Likewise, avoid mixing really sweet things like Coca Cola with spirits (whiskey, rum, vodka etc.) for the same reason as above. I know there are lots of fashionable mixed drinks that involve soft drinks and alcohol, but it’s a bad idea in my experience. The sugar masks the flavour of the alcohol and you’ll down the drink faster and, again, get drunk much more quickly.

And you really ought to eat something before going out for a few drinks with your friends, be it beer, wine or spirits of any kind. It’s better for your stomach, and it helps to slow down the absorption of the alcohol into your bloodstream, so you don’t get to the point of … ahem … “hilarity” as quickly if you’ve had something to eat or if you eat something while you are having a drink.

Finally, drink some water every couple of beers to keep yourself from getting dehydrated. A lot of the headaches folks suffer the morning after are a result of dehydration, so push the water. That will also help you to drink less, because your stomach can only hold so much liquid at a time!

Of course, you should limit the number of drinks you have at a party in order to set a good example. It’s part of your public witness to Christ that others see you behaving responsibly. Practice the virtue of temperance always. If you want three, limit yourself to two and offer the sacrifice to God.

 

[Verisimilitude]

I once partied hardy, on a regular basis.

Shush. You’re going to blow our collective cover. We were all good Catholic boys and girls…at least that is what we need to tell all the converts.

But I keep wondering, “should I feel bad about this?” Or, more precisely, did I sin in any way? So how drunk is drunk? I don’t know that I should bring this up in confession tomorrow–I at least don’t feel like I should–but should I just in case?

Thanks, CC

Yes, you should feel bad for at least 3…maybe 4 years. It’s not that you did anything wrong it’s just that you think you may have and that is enough for the guilt so yea, bring it up in confession and tell him all of the table dancing, and lamp-shade-on-the-head things you did or thought of doing. “How drunk is drunk?” As soon as you start having a good time at the party is too drunk. Welcome to Catholicism.

 

[Caesar517]

I think I would define drunk as “significantly diminished use of the faculties of reason”. There is no exact way to calculate this because all people are different, but you shouldn’t make yourself more vulnerable to sin by drinking.

As Newbie2 said, I think the fact that you cut yourself off shows that you were still in control.

Go ahead and bring this up the next time you go to confession. Confession is a great time to ask for help in determining whether something was sinful or not. It’s better to mention something that wasn’t a sin than it is to leave out something that was a sin.

 

[JMBNH]

Yes, you should feel bad for at least 3…maybe 4 years. It’s not that you did anything wrong it’s just that you think you may have and that is enough for the guilt so yea, bring it up in confession and tell him all of the table dancing, and lamp-shade-on-the-head things you did or thought of doing. “How drunk is drunk?” As soon as you start having a good time at the party is too drunk. Welcome to Catholicism.

Most of the Catholics I know drink a lot, some have even downed a bottle of wine before (not that I encourage that, someone planned it at our Church summer dinner and I told him not to, though he was still going to and the priest told him not to so he didn’t and was glad he hadn’t in the morning). Though we have a bar at Church, which is probably unusual, it’s actually where I drink more than anywhere else

Though seriously I think it’s a tough balance as Jesus and the apostles drank wine when together and Jesus turned water to wine, but also drunkenness is a sin. I’d say think about what you can drink without it being sinful and knock one or two drinks off that as your aim for a night, that way if you end up having an extra drink it’s no problem. I usually aim for 2 drinks or 3 if I’m with either Catholics or my family, and then if I have up to 4 (or 5 if eating) with water between them it’s not really a problem. Though note these numbers are for me only not everyone, some could drink more, some less. And also a big word of advice: reduce the number of drinks you have if you’re drinking pints of cider! I once had 4 pints of cider at a Church barbeque one afternoon without thinking that I’d had the equivalent of 6 or 7 drinks and I was still a little drunk at bedtime that night, though to be fair my body burns off alcohol slow even though it doesn’t affect me loads at the time

Also I’d never drink if I had to work in the morning or if it got in the way of something else I had to do

 

[CB_Catholic]

Okay, quick relatively-newbie Catholic question.

I went to a great party last night. Everyone there was, to my knowledge, a serious practising Catholic. Party lasted about five hours. Naturally I drank, but I drank more than I usually do, and I not only drank beer but also a little hard licker–two mixed drinks, a shot or two of wiskey, a shot of very tasty cordial, and three beers.

I remember everything I did, and except for perhaps being a bit loud (but I’m always a bit loud at parties), I don’t regret anything I did. I remember at one point, after I had finished my last drink and “cut myself off”, “Wow, I think THIS must be the point of hilarity St. Thomas wrote of.”

But not being duly experienced in drinking–I was raised a teetotaler and had my first beer just a couple years ago, and don’t drink that much–I feel a bit uneasy. I mean, ,surprisingly enough for a former Evangelical, I have no guilt about it. In fact, I feel great this morning, better than usual!

But I keep wondering, “should I feel bad about this?” Or, more precisely, did I sin in any way? So how drunk is drunk? I don’t know that I should bring this up in confession tomorrow–I at least don’t feel like I should–but should I just in case?

Thanks, CC

This isn’t going to answer your question, but if I drank what you drank in a few hours, I’d have hit the floor

 

[rwoehmke]

A lot depends on your body weight and to some extent on your experience with alcohol. Hard drinkers usually build up some resistance to the effects on their behavior. Sounds to me like you had the equivalent of seven onces of alcohol which is just a little under half a pint of 100 proof. If thats about one once per hour I’d be darn sure not to think about driving. The fact that you felt so loose and full of fun tells me that I would not want to ride in the car you drove home. Average weight guy with more than about two drinks in the first hour is on the verge of being impaired for driving. More drinks in the second hour just seals your fate.

I once thought that a few drinks were necessary to enjoy a party and found out I had more fun drinking soft drinks. Tyhe only problem then is that the other drunks look pretty stupid to you and not quite so funny as they seemed when you too were “three sheets in the wind.”( That is a phrase used for being a little drunk.)

 

[consumedconvert]

Thank you all for your responses. In answer to some of your questions, I will say that I decided at one point to “cut myself off” because I didn’t want to get too drunk, and becuase I wanted to give myself some time to sober up before I went home. (I think it ended up being about an hours and a half to two hours. Long enough? Perhaps not, although that is a good question. I was never staggering.) I’ve resolved to speak to my confessor about it tomorrow.

 

[Ruthie]

Unless you are the size of Shaquille O’Neal, or weigh 300 lbs, yes, you were drunk.

There are two things that worry me: the elation, and the fact that you cut yourself off.

If that elation felt like magic - like everything problematic was magically smoothed out, and you were wonderful and perfect, and everyone was your friend … (I’m talking about serious “magic” here, not the normal “social lubrication” given by a couple of drinks!)

and

If you had to cut yourself off rather than getting a physical sensation of having had enough…

Together, they can be a symptom of alcoholism. *But *the second can also arise out of inexperience. I gather that this was the first time you ever drank that much.

Another thing that happens to most alcoholics (but also to some “normies”) is being able to drink that much without having a hangover. I was famous for it in my early drinking years.

I’m not saying you ARE an alcoholic. Everything you experienced has also happened to people who remain “normies” all their lives.

Just be careful, that’s all!

Ruthie, sober alcoholic

 

[consumedconvert]

I think I would define drunk as “significantly diminished use of the faculties of reason”. There is no exact way to calculate this because all people are different, but you shouldn’t make yourself more vulnerable to sin by drinking.

As Newbie2 said, I think the fact that you cut yourself off shows that you were still in control.

Go ahead and bring this up the next time you go to confession. Confession is a great time to ask for help in determining whether something was sinful or not. It’s better to mention something that wasn’t a sin than it is to leave out something that was a sin.

I agree that I will bring it up in confession. But you bring up an interesting point about the loss of reason.

After I was Baptist but before I was Catholic, I did get slobbering drunk a couple of times. I hated it, because I couldn’t think.

I think the other night was different. If, while having my last beer, I could bring up and explain Dante’s use of the medieval theory of the Antipodes so as to prove the widespread medieval belief of the spherical shape of the earth, then perhaps I wasn’t all that far gone

Did I mention that I drank the aforementioned over three and a half or four hours? And I must also mention, both of the mixed drinks were not huge 16 ouncers, but probaby more like four ounces–mixed for me by a an older Catholic friend who kind of watches out for me, so purposely not huge.

Anyway, thanks for all the responses.