What is Gray Area Drinking

What is Gray Area Drinking?

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After a tough day, you may think that your drinking doesn’t pose a problem if you have a drink or two. But what you may consider moderate drinking may really be putting you in risky territory for an alcohol use disorder. Gray area drinking is that cloudy space between drinking socially and problem drinking.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines heavy drinking for men as four drinks daily or more than 14 drinks a week. For women, it’s three drinks a day on any day or seven or more drinks a week. 1. Many people don’t realize that their drinking behaviors may put them in the heavy drinking category.

As we take a closer look at gray area drinking, we’re also going to take a closer look at signs you may be a grey area drinker and how you can get help at Desert Cove Recovery.

What is Gray Area Drinking?

Gray area drinkers may classify themselves as social drinkers but may find themselves drinking when they’re home alone or not in social settings. While they may not be physically dependent on alcohol, the amount they drink and their drinking behaviors may put them in the category of heavy drinkers.

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If someone is a gray area drinker, they may have a drinking problem but not a severe alcohol use disorder. Those in the gray area may find themselves using alcohol too much or as a way to manage their emotions.

Gray Area Drinking and the Pandemic

Many people have said they started drinking more since the pandemic started in 2019. Statistics from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism show that adults bought more alcohol during most months of 2020 compared to the past three years. 2 Another survey published in September 2020 found that the frequency of alcohol consumption by adults in the U.S. rose by 14% compared with before the pandemic. 3

Many people cite the stress of the pandemic and the fact that they couldn’t be as social as reasons for their increased drinking. Combining multiple stressors since the pandemic started has propelled many people into the “gray area drinker” category.

4 Signs You May be a Gray Area Drinker

While it may be easy to detect when someone has an alcohol use disorder, the negative impact of gray area drinking may be a little harder to detect. This is why it can go undetected for some time.

Here are four signs that you or someone you know may be a gray area drinker:

1. You Drink Between Two Extremes

While you drink more frequently than just on special occasions, you don’t drink enough to hit rock bottom. When you drink between these two extremes regularly, you may be classified as a gray area drinker.

2. People Around Often Don’t Notice How Much You’re Drinking

When you’re out drinking, people may not notice that you’ve had more than you should because you don’t act like it. You continue to act normally because your drinking doesn’t call attention to yourself. In reality, you’ve drank more than you should and enough to be considered a heavy drinker.

3. You Can Stop Drinking for Periods of Time, but It’s Hard to Stay Away from Alcohol for Good

You may have stopped drinking for weeks or even months, but you find it difficult to stay away completely. Eventually, you get back on the drinking train and pick up right where you left off.

4. You Silently Worry or Regret Your Drinking

What may start off as meeting a friend for a drink after work quickly turns into a “what did I do last night” kind of morning. Although you haven’t hit rock bottom, this type of regret may indicate that you have a drinking problem and might be a gray area drinker.  You may worry about your drinking, but others never notice it because you are functioning just fine.

If you see yourself fitting any of these scenarios, you may be a gray area drinker who can benefit from an alcohol treatment program. 

Getting Help for a Substance Abuse Disorder at Desert Cove Recovery

At Desert Cove Recovery, you don’t have to hit rock bottom for us to help you with a substance abuse disorder. We have a variety of treatment programs to help you battle any type of drinking problem you may be facing. Our team of professionals has the experience needed to help you get your life on track.

Our programs are customized, so each patient gets the type of help that fits their addiction, not someone else’s. This type of treatment can be more successful and help people to remain sober. For more information on our programs, call Desert Cove Recovery or reach out to us online for more information.

 

Sources:

[1] https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohol-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/moderate-binge-drinking

[2] https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/surveillance-covid-19/COVSALES.htm#fig21

[3] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2770975