How much do you think you drink?

Focus: How much do you think you drink? The Priory is targeting high-fliers who resort to desperate measures to cope with stress. Could you be one of them? By Katy Guest

Independent News & Media ( UK ) Ltd - 10 April 2005

Are you an alcoholic? That may depend on whom you ask. Do you feel more at ease with other people when drinking and sometimes forget what you did after a few too many? If so, the Priory thinks you could have the making of a problem. If you tried to stop drinking, would you get the shakes? Psychiatrists would call you "alcohol-dependent". Do you find it hard to stop drinking for a week or so, occasionally call in sick with a hangover and sneak an extra drink or two at parties? Alcoholics Anonymous would like to see you at one of their meetings. And if you have ever had a drink first thing in the morning to steady your nerves, the NHS might be able to treat you - if it can find a bed.

Four million people in the UK are dependent on alcohol, according to Dr Neil Brener, a consultant psychiatrist and medical director at the Priory clinic in north London . He means that if those people tried to stop they would experience physical symptoms. The research charity Action on Addiction believes one in three of us is an addict - to alcohol, cigarettes or prescription or illegal drugs. Alcoholics Anonymous holds 600 meetings a week in London alone. Demand for its services on the Isle of Dogs rocketed after major banks moved to Canary Wharf . Agencies agree that a serious problem has grown up among achievers in highly pressurised jobs. Far too many drink far too much, using alcohol to get by. You won't necessarily see them rolling back from the pub at lunchtime, however (many firms are cracking down on drinking in working hours, some even using random testing). Their problem tends to be a secret. That is why the Priory group has launched a £60,000 advertising campaign aimed at professional high-flyers. Adverts in newspaper business and City pages offer a free assessment with an addictions therapist at one of its 15 hospitals throughout the UK for anyone brave enough to admit the need.

"There's a culture of youth and machismo in the City," says Karen Croft, a spokeswoman. "But recognising you've got a problem takes much more guts than self-medicating with alcohol or drugs."

The Priory has opened a clinic in Bishopsgate, next to Tesco. Inside, Dr Brener tends to the casualties of the one-upmanship war. "Some say, 'I have a drink problem'. Others say, 'Drink problem? No, not me!' They have been sent by work, perhaps; they've been missing work, or people have been smelling alcohol on their breath."

Dr Brener helps his clients to accept the truth about how much they drink and why, and what it might be doing to them. "'Alcohol problems' is a spectrum," he says. "Assessing the problem is like peeling away the layers of an onion. At the centre is the individual, and what effect drink is having on him or her. The second layer is the effect on the people around them. The third is the effect on their work. And the fourth is the effect on society."

The Priory says 40 per cent of its patients are funded by the NHS, but it has a reputation for treating celebrities who can afford big bills. That is one reason for the new campaign's mixed reception. A manager at Alcoholics Anonymous's London telephone line said AA did not target City workers, but hoped the adverts would tackle the "culture of denial" among professionals. But another expert, who did not want to be named, was more cautious. "My anxiety about private treatment is that it sometimes skews the assessment process," he said.

"As far as encouraging people to get help, the Priory's campaign has got to be a good thing. On the other hand this is a private clinic targeting people who can pay. There is an enormous gap between the people who can afford it and the people who have to stand in line."

Richard Phillips, director of policy and services at Alcohol Concern, understands this anxiety but says: "The NHS's national assessment will show that the need massively outstrips the availability of treatment, in a way that with any other condition would be seen as a scandal."

In the City, drunken youths fight in the street as a woman in a suit pushes cautiously through the doors of Dr Brener's clinic. "Alcohol is no respecter of social class," the doctor stresses. "It's not like cocaine or crack - take a small amount and in a few months you're hooked. It's pervasive and slow. And in our society, it's absolutely everywhere."

DO YOU HAVE A DRINK PROBLEM?

Answer these questions yes or no to find out...

Do you use alcohol to boost your self-confidence?

Do you drink to help you cope with problems?

Have you ever missed school or work due to alcohol?

Has anyone else commented on your drinking?

Do you feel guilty after drinking?

Has your drinking caused trouble for you at home, work or school?

Do you feel more at ease around other people when drinking?

Do you think you have a problem with alcohol?

Have you lost friends since you started drinking?

Do you ever have trouble remembering what happened the night before?

Have you been in trouble with the police because of drinking?

Do you borrow money or steal in order to buy drink?

Do you need to drink more than you used to in order to get the effect you want?

Has anyone in your family had a drink problem?

If you answered yes only once, you probably don't have a problem. Two or three times means you might be advised to start monitoring your alcohol intake, thinking about when you drink and why. If you answered yes four or more times, you may have (or may be beginning to develop) a problem with excessive drinking and alcohol dependency.

Questions from www.prioryhealthcare.com