[peteretep]

    > Do one-time alcoholics - functional or otherwise - who
    > have sought treatment and then completely quit drinking
    > for a fair number of years, ever manage to go back to
    > moderate & responsible alcohol consumption?

There's just not a single answer to this, so here are some thoughts:

* Been a long time since I gave up smoking. I think I could smoke every day for a month, and then stop again with it only being a medium-sized deal. Smoked for 7 years, ending up about 30 a day by the end.

* I gave up drinking just a few years ago. I have been given alcoholic drinks without knowing it on three occasions (and found out later), and it just wasn't a big deal at all. If I chose to have a drink, I think it'd take me many years to stop again. I am unsure if I will be able to sensibly drink again - I have a vague goal that I'll attempt it again in 10 years' time. I LOVE non-alcoholic beer

[3pt14159]

Watch it with the smoking one. I smoked for about 8 years (ages 19 to 27, minimum 12 cigs a day) then quit for a year and a half. Quitting was so easy. Then something bad happened in my life and I started smoking while stressed. I was only smoking for about a week and it took me months of repeated effort to quit the second time.

Part of the problem was that the first time I quit I was mentally happy, part of the problem was I knew "how easy" it was to quit the first time and this excuse makes it easier to spark up while you drink.

Now that I'm off them for good again I'm much more scared of them than I was before.