| Who Can I Contact For Support? | The James Kingham Project in Luton and Bedford Here, you can spend time talking to one of the workers on a regular basis or just drop-in during ‘open-house’ to have a cup of tea and a chat. You are free to discuss your own drinking or receive support if you’re worried about someone close to you. This is all free and confidential.
Just ring 01582 723434 (Luton jkp) or 01234 344133
(Bedford jkp) for more information.
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How often do you have a drink containing alcohol?
A- Never
B- monthly or less
C- Two to four times a month
D- Two to three times a week
E- Four or more times a week How many alcohol drinks do you have on a typical day when you are drinking?
A- 1 or 2
B- 3 or 4
C- 5 or 6
D- 7 or 8
E- 10 or more How often in the past year have you found that you were unable to stop drinking once you had started?
A- Never
B- Monthly or less
C- Two to four times a month
D- Two to three times a week
E- Four or more times a week How often during the last year have you failed to do what was expected of you because of drinking, such as failing to turn up for work after a heavy drinking session?
A- Never
B- Monthly or less
C- Two to four times a month
D- Two to three times a week
E- Four or more times a week
Has a friend or relative or health worker been concerned about your drinking and suggested you cut back?
A- no
B- Yes, but not in the last year
C- Yes, during the last year
How did you score? Scoring is as follows for questions 1 to 4
a:0
b:1
c:2
d:3
e:4 Question 5
a:0
b:2
c:4 Add up your score for questions 1 to 5. If the total score is 5 or above this may be the time to review your drinking and look into ways of cutting down. You might find it useful to discuss your drinking with your doctor or practice nurse or even a close relative or friend. Although you may not be dependent on alcohol, this score suggests that you are drinking more than is advisable.
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Higher scores indicate more serious problems. If you find that drinking is a major part of your life and that you really miss not having a drink to hand, you may find that you are a dependent drinker. Being dependent on alcohol means that you need to carry on drinking to avoid unpleasant emotional or physical effects. In this case you probably will need support and advice to help get you through withdrawal. What is a unit? Alcohol is best measured in units. 1 unit of alcohol =
• ½ a pint of 3.5%ABV (Alcohol By Volume – you can find this figure on the bottle or can) lager, beer or cider
• a single (25 ml) shot of 40% ABV spirits
• a small (125 ml) glass of 9% wine
• a pub (50 ml) measure of sherry or port 1 unit of alcohol simply means that the drink contains 10ml of ethanol, or pure alcohol. This is why a small measure of a strong drink such as whisky is the same as ½ a pint of a weaker drink like lager. Strengths of drinks, however, vary widely. The mathematical way to work out the units in your favourite drink is: % ABV (this will be on the bottle) x volume of drink (in millilitres) ÷ 1000 If this seems like too much hard work, here’s a list of the unit value of some popular drinks! • large (250 ml) glass of 12% ABV wine: 3 units
• bottle of 12% ABV wine: 9 units
• pint of export (5% ABV) lager, e.g. Stella Artois: 3 units
• bottle of export (5% ABV) lager, e.g. Budweiser: 1½ units
• bottle of Bacardi Breezer, Smirnoff Ice, etc: 1½ units
• can of strong (9% ABV) lager, e.g. Special Brew: 4 units If you tend to drink spirits at home, it’s best to guess around 2-3 units per glass – we tend to be quite generous and rarely pour pub measures at home!
How much should I drink?
The recommended safe guidelines for adults are: Women: up to 2 or 3 units a day
Men: up to 3 or 4 units a day with at least two alcohol-free days each week for both sexes. This is low-risk drinking. There are, however, exceptions to these guidelines. These include: • if driving or operating machinery
• if pregnant or breast feeding
• if taking medication that reacts with alcohol
• if suffering a medical condition that is worsened by alcohol In these instances it is best to abstain from alcohol completely or get specific guidance from your GP.
I am worried about someone else’s drinking….
Do you find this person: • always has alcohol handy and that all situations seem to revolve around drink?
• argues with you and becomes defensive if you try to bring up the subject?
• has the shakes, sweats and is sick during the night or in the morning?
• is failing to do what is normally expected of them (like going to work)?
• is having accidents and injuring themselves?
• is argumentative, abusive or even violent? (If you feel at risk then do not be afraid to seek help). If so, they may have an alcohol related problem. In this situation you must: • Take care of yourself
• Find someone to talk to and confide in
• Decide what behaviour you will and what you will not accept from this person and to what extent you will support them through the situation
• Focus on their behaviour and try to keep discussions calm and honest
• Seek support for yourself
• If the person is interested in getting support this too is available
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