Are you an alcoholic?

Ask yourself the following questions and answer them as honestly as you can.

1. Do you lose time from work due to drinking?

2. Is drinking making your home life unhappy?

3. Do you drink because you are shy with other people?

4. Is drinking affecting your reputation?

5. Have you ever felt remorse after drinking?

6. Have you got into financial diffi culties as a result of drinking?

7. Do you find yourself in bad company or in a bad environment when drinking?

8. Does your drinking make you careless of your family’s welfare?

9. Has your ambition decreased since drinking?

10. Do you crave a drink at a definite time of day?

11. Do you want a drink the next morning?

12. Does drinking cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?

13. Has your efficiency decreased since drinking?

14. Is drinking jeopardizing your job or business?

15. Do you drink to escape from worries or trouble?

16. Do you drink alone?

17. Have you ever had a complete loss of memory as a result of drinking?

18. Has your doctor ever treated you for drinking?

19. Do you drink to build up your self-confidence?

20. Have you ever been to a hospital because of drinking?

If you have answered YES to any one of the questions, it is a warning that you may be an alcoholic. If you have answered YES to any two, the chances are that you are an alcoholic. If you have answered YES to three or more, you are in all likelihood an alcoholic.

(These questions were compiled by Dr. Robert V. Seliger for use at John Hopkins University Hospital, Baltimore, in deciding whether patients are alcoholic.) Copyright © Recovered Alcoholic Clergy Association, 2000