The following blog post has been contributed by Matthew Crist who is writing on behalf of the DUI and DWI lawyers, Gerald Miller & Associates.
You love a glass of wine with your dinner. And you rarely turn down a second (or third) cocktail after a hard day at work. But that doesn’t mean you’re drinking too much.
Does it?
Having a quick one now and then may seem harmless, but overindulging in alcohol can cause misery, a troubled home life and even serious health problems.
It’s hard to define how much is too much.
But there are a few warning signs that might just suggest that you are drinking a little more than you should.
Here are just five of them to look out for.
- Getting up in the night to go to the toilet
Waking up in the night to go to the toilet could be a sign you’re drinking more alcohol than your body can handle.
Obviously there are other causes for this and it might be worth seeing a doctor. But most of us tend to produce a hormone that regulates the amount of urine in our bodies, which prevents us from needing to urinate when we are asleep. However, when we’ve been drinking alcohol the production of this hormone is decreased, causing you to produce more urine and resulting in more trips to the bathroom.
- Your teeth are in bad condition
Your teeth might look fine but that doesn’t mean alcohol isn’t having an effect. Red wine stains can appear on the inside of your teeth as well as on the surface between the teeth and gums, even if you can’t see it. While white wine and beer drinkers often tend to suffer more with tooth-enamel erosion – a result of which can be the discolouration of the teeth and an increase in sensitivity.
So if you’re finding yourself visiting the dentist a little more regularly or in need of more fillings; it may be down to the amount you are drinking.
- You’re suffering short term memory loss
Drinking can interfere with how you remember things by disrupting a key brain messenger called glutamate. So if parts of the night become hazy until your mates remind you what happened, or you have no recollection of how you got home and into bed, it’s a certain sign that you’ve had more than a few too many.
- Friends seem concerned
When friends or acquaintances start commenting on how much you’re drinking or how well you are able to handle your booze, it might be time to have a think about the amount you consume. You might like your reputation as a beer hound but just because people are talking about how much you are drinking it doesn’t necessarily mean they are impressed.
- Responsibilities become a chore
Have you noticed that you’ve started to neglect things that are important for the sake of alcohol?
Skipping your Monday morning gym session because you still feel rough from the weekend’s drinking? Or even sacrificing that bedtime story with your kids on a Saturday night in order to have another quick drink are all tell-tale signs that you are letting alcohol take over your life.
If you’re consuming more alcohol than you should be then it’s also important to consider the increased potential of committing a DUI or DWI crime. These offenses can often lead to imprisonment and ought to be taken extremely seriously.
The exclusive purpose of this article is educational and it is not intended as either legal advice or a general solution to any specific legal problem. Corporate offices for Nave DWI Defense Attorneys are located at 432 N. Franklin Street, Suite 80, Syracuse, NY 13204; Telephone No.: 1-866-792-7800. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Attorney Advertising.
