Binging

I’ve been a psychiatrist for a long time, and my patients say: “I don’t have a problem. I don’t use drugs (alcohol) every day.”

Then they tell me some version of the “binge” story, and I’ve seen some pretty severe ones.

They might start out by saying: “You know, every two weeks, I just have to go out and binge drink.”

And then they say, “I’ll have 12 drinks.” Or. “I’ll have a bottle of wine.”  Or. “I’ll drink vodka and shots.”

Just yesterday, a patient told me: “Every week, just to relax, I’ll take some Xanax with some alcohol and maybe mix it with a 30 mg Roxicodone.”

Still others tell me they never use drugs or alcohol, but once a month, they’ll smoke marijuana with their friends. (more…)