I would expect “I’m on the wagon”, with any further questioning deflected by “I’d rather not talk about it” would be enough explanation for any but the most impolite people, with “Medical reasons, I’d rather not go into detail” as the last-resort deflector.
Which is, in fact, absolutely true. You’re not drinking (you’re on the wagon), you don’t want to talk about it, and ultimately it’s the pharmacological effects of alcohol that are why you don’t want to drink and you don’t want to go into detail.
I like this, although there may eventually be consequences to it. (Also, if the implication is taken at face value that I AM a recovering alcoholic, might there be stigma attached to that?)
If a person jumps to the assumption that you’re a recovering alcoholic (and not, say, on a medication that reacts badly with alcohol), he might keep slightly closer eye on you for a little while. But since you’re not drinking and not an alcoholic, you’re not going to show any signs of “relapsing”, and the vigilance will be relaxed.
Granted, it’s possible that someone might actually obsess over why you don’t drink, but my experience is that it’s highly unlikely. People just don’t care that much about trivia about other people, in general.
People just don’t care that much about trivia about other people, in general.
Have to disagree with this pretty strongly. If Raemon indicates in a work setting that he’s a recovering alcoholic, he should expect his coworkers to be gossiping about that for months. Depending on his job it could even have a negative impact on his career.
Alcoholism carries a stigma. That’s why AA is anonymous.
I would expect “I’m on the wagon”, with any further questioning deflected by “I’d rather not talk about it” would be enough explanation for any but the most impolite people, with “Medical reasons, I’d rather not go into detail” as the last-resort deflector.
Which is, in fact, absolutely true. You’re not drinking (you’re on the wagon), you don’t want to talk about it, and ultimately it’s the pharmacological effects of alcohol that are why you don’t want to drink and you don’t want to go into detail.
I like this, although there may eventually be consequences to it. (Also, if the implication is taken at face value that I AM a recovering alcoholic, might there be stigma attached to that?)
If a person jumps to the assumption that you’re a recovering alcoholic (and not, say, on a medication that reacts badly with alcohol), he might keep slightly closer eye on you for a little while. But since you’re not drinking and not an alcoholic, you’re not going to show any signs of “relapsing”, and the vigilance will be relaxed.
Granted, it’s possible that someone might actually obsess over why you don’t drink, but my experience is that it’s highly unlikely. People just don’t care that much about trivia about other people, in general.
Have to disagree with this pretty strongly. If Raemon indicates in a work setting that he’s a recovering alcoholic, he should expect his coworkers to be gossiping about that for months. Depending on his job it could even have a negative impact on his career.
Alcoholism carries a stigma. That’s why AA is anonymous.