Scott Harrison to make a comeback

[Coco]

Running is great for the mind, prob even better than it is for the body

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

What a glib comment.

There's no such thing as an 'evening alcoholic.' You're an alchie or you ain't mate. There's alcoholics and chronic alcoholics, and judging by the state of Harrison in some of those pictures he is a chronic alcoholic.

There are plenty of alchies who have been warned they are drinking themselves do death, and yet still cannot do anything to help themselves. Alcoholism is unfortunately a genetic disposition some of us have, hell, even bloody monkeys have it.

My father and several of my uncles were alcoholics, only one of them managed to crack it, and it took him a bloody long time and several relapses, and he went on to become an Sponsor with the AA. You know what, after 20 years of not drinking, when his niece died, he hit the bottle and went on the rampage for a week.

I love hearing people opining about how easy it is for people to do this, and for people to do that, my feelings on the matter are simply, never judge a man until you walk a mile in his moccasins. What might be easy for one man, can be the hardest thing in the world for another. It's like someone who isn't scared of heights telling someone else 'stop being stupid, there's no way you can fall,' and dragging them to the edge of the cliff, expecting them not to be scared, and then calling them a pussy when they aren't.

OK, well I was an alcoholic because I couldnt stop I need it every night, I just didnt drink during the day. I've been trying to stop on and off for a while. I've gone a few weeks clean before but depression typically starts me again. Then again I don't think I've ever quite got to chronic alcoholism that my friend had.

I never said it was easy to kick the bottle, its bloody hard, coming off for 1-2 days for me used to be a nightmare and I sued to eb desperate for a drink. For some reason - possibly that I didnt want to be dead like my friend it was really easy to stay off the past 2 weeks. And I've tried to reform myself so many times without being able to. And as any alcoholic will tell you the first 2 weeks are the hardest.

In some ways I'll miss drinking, I'm at my hapiest with a drink in my hand but I don't need my liver packing in a few years like my good friend.

There is supposedly new drugs that help reduce peoples addiction to alcohol and nicoteen and other substances.

Anyone who has had counselling for alcohol problems will tell you that you never really get over being an alcoholic, you just have to make the decision, every single day, that you are not going to drink.

So many alcoholics think they've cracked it, and so they start drinking again, and for a time they are fine, having the odd drink here and there, but before they know it, they're right back where they started, and they have to start the horrific process all over again.

My dad is still a bloody piss head, 45 years and counting, he knows he's pissed his life away, and he's said as much, but he just cannot face life without a drink. It chases all the other demons away, which are many in his case, and with fairly good reason.

TBH mate maybe its wishful thinking me saying I've kicked the habit after 10 days. I'd like to think I have and I'd prefer to say to myself I'll never drink again full stop rather than I may drink again. If my brain contemplates the fact I may drink again I am much more likely to. I simply cant drink the 1 drink and leave it at that and I know I cant. And if I drink 1 drink I need to drink for the night. If I know I'm going to drink once this week it may aswell be tongiht and before I know it I'll be drinking every night.

If I completetely rule out the possibility of drinking again in my mind thats half the battle. Its like a fighter saying I might win instead of I WILL WIN. Its about self belief for me.

Sorry to hear about your old man, at least it hasnt completely destroyed his liver yet on the bright side.

[chesh]

PN, if you can still run 12 miles, you've stopped in good time, before any permanent physical damage is done. Drinking too much for too long is a bit like continuing to box for too long. You end up punch-drunk with neurological problems (balance etc.), confused thinking and slurred speech which can remain even after you quit.

[chesh]

Yeah, my Uncle Patsy became an AA addict, or 'bore' as most other people would have it. He was constantly telling people they had a drink problem, probably because he secretly envied the fact that they could get pissed without turning into a raving lunatic.

He was rather like your bro, he would get annihilated on massive benders, and wreck everything in sight, he was absolutely terrified when he was drunk. He now smokes about 60 fags a day and has had two strokes, and will probably die soon, but at least he stopped ruining the lives of everyone around him.

There's a lot of chain-smoking and tea drinking at AA meetings and getting to know fellow addicts and kindred spirits is very addictive. The success of AA is, though, not as great as you would expect. Many return to the booze and in a bigger way as they feel a greater sense of failure after going through the 12 step program.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

PN, if you can still run 12 miles, you've stopped in good time, before any permanent physical damage is done. Drinking too much for too long is a bit like continuing to box for too long. You end up punch-drunk with neurological problems (balance etc.), confused thinking and slurred speech which can remain even after you quit.

I'm only 27 Chesh so I hope I havent done too much damage. And I stopped drinking from 15-21 for religous reasons.

Over the last year I started feeling pain in my right side, which I suspect was liver pain so it became a serious concern. The liver is an organ that regenerates itself completely unless there is scar tissue (scirossis (sp))

I think the 12miles was a bad idea. I can't run now because I'm suffering and my knees are in agony. I run a supplement company so I'm using loads of glucoasmine/msm/cod liver oil to try and help them recover.

[chesh]

I'm only 27 Chesh so I hope I havent done too much damage. And I stopped drinking from 15-21 for religous reasons.

Over the last year I started feeling pain in my right side, which I suspect was liver pain so it became a serious concern. The liver is an organ that regenerates itself completely unless there is scar tissue (scirossis (sp))

I think the 12miles was a bad idea. I can't run now because I'm suffering and my knees are in agony. I run a supplement company so I'm using loads of glucoasmine/msm/cod liver oil to try and help them recover.

PN, all heavy drinkers get some liver enlargement and resultant discomfort in the right side. You will know more about supplements than I do, but I believe Milk Thistle is a good one for liver regeneration.

[bobcat]

just to weigh in with my opinion here cause this subject concerns me and i feel i have something to contribute(i have never posted on the british forum before) i have had a massive drinking problem for almost half my life now....i'm 29 and i had enlarged liver(or alcoholic hepatitus) when i was 23.i have made many attempts,and have been sober for a little over 2 months now.but i think as many people pointed out before me,it's a day by day,and support thing.different methods work for different people,but i think one truth is that it's dangerous to fall into that "i'm not drinking anymore,im an ex-alcoholic" kind of thinking ,because life is unpredictable,everything can be going great one day,and youve let your guard down and the next day something hits you and your right back where you started,or worse.....so i'm not drinking today,because my life will be better on all levels if i dont,and that's it.

also,i'd like to remind people that alcohol is a depressant......there are no"happy alcoholics" especially once you get past a certain point,your brain says"you wanna be depressed?fine,we'll be depressed" one needs only to go to a bar at closing time,and see the amount of ppl getting in fights,arguing,frowning,crying and so forth to see this.people who can drink moderately can be happy,but chronic alcoholics cannot,its simply not possible.and if one THINKS they are happier when they are drinking,they may be after the first few,but id suggest they write how they feel or videotape themselves after theyve gotten to the point where they are truely pissed.not to mention the next day,and how they feel then.you cannot be happy or "up" abusing of a depressant,anymore then you can be calm abusing a stimulant.......if you try to be a more relaxed person by drinking 10 cups of coffee a day,you can try till you are 80,it will never work.

i've kept a diary since ive been sober, as i did the last few months i was drinking.....im a MUCH happier person now,its not even close,my life is many,many times better on every level.....chemically,my brain isnt swimming in this crap 24/7 so im happier,not to mention i make good choices and act better with others,have more money,feel better physically etc etc etc....

sorry if any of this sounded condescending or preachy,that really wasnt my intention.as i said,just wanted to give my point of view,as its something i have alot of experience with.best of luck to any of you who may be struggling with this affliction.and as to the case of harrison,i guess we'll see how it unfolds......hopefully he stays clean and focused,and has some more success he can enjoy.i dont know him personally,obviously,but he was(possibly still may be) one hell of a fighter.

[Old bones Ian]

Sorry to ask again, but is Scott Harrison under suspension from boxing?

[DavidPayne]

Blimey.

Scot Harrison brings you lot out of the closest doesn't he?

A theory I hold is, everyone who drinks is an alcoholic to different degrees.

We all crave a cold beer, we all get fidgity on a Friday night if we're couped up in the house and the missus hasn't done the big shop and there is no ale in.

Some of us can go days and weeks without a drink and not really even notice, in the summer we can all slip into having a drink every night, even just one. Thats a habit.

Its a sliding scale, invariably some people slide off.

But yep, drink masks problems and the causes them.

And I don't know any alchies. Well not knowingly.

Anyway. Scott Harrison. An arsehole. But a decent fighter and a welcome figure on the scene.

Harrison v Johannson/Mitchell?

[chris s]

Yeah, my Uncle Patsy became an AA addict, or 'bore' as most other people would have it. He was constantly telling people they had a drink problem, probably because he secretly envied the fact that they could get pissed without turning into a raving lunatic.

He was rather like your bro, he would get annihilated on massive benders, and wreck everything in sight, he was absolutely terrified when he was drunk. He now smokes about 60 fags a day and has had two strokes, and will probably die soon, but at least he stopped ruining the lives of everyone around him.

There's a lot of chain-smoking and tea drinking at AA meetings and getting to know fellow addicts and kindred spirits is very addictive. The success of AA is, though, not as great as you would expect. Many return to the booze and in a bigger way as they feel a greater sense of failure after going through the 12 step program.

AA does work, but plenty people don't get it despite the rooms. But if it wasn't for AA nobody would get it.

It is all about saying 'no' to the first drink one day at a time. If you do that you have a good chance.

Being an alcoholic isn't about being a down and out or having to get smashed every night.

To join AA all you need is a desire to stop drinking

Good luck to Scott Harrison I hope he is getting the message.

[Captain Hook]

It's not bullshit for Silkov to say that seven weeks is early days, and not everyone deals with it alcoholism the same way, as you of course can testify.

But for a professional sportsman it's too quick IMO as he needs to get back to fighting fitness, get over this mess he's been in, stay clean and prove himself.

[E]

Sorry to ask again, but is Scott Harrison under suspension from boxing?

Also what is the latest on his court cases? Assaulting a police, stealing cars in two different countries makes a prison sentence likely, no?

[WildWaylon]

Seems like he's still in denial, blaming weight problems rather than his drinking, ...he needs to admit that hes an alcoholic... seven weeks without a drink is just early days... but good luck to him, getting back into the ring is probably the best thing for him....

You are of course absolutely right - Apart from the booze itself, denial is an alcoholics worst enemy.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

I'm only 27 Chesh so I hope I havent done too much damage. And I stopped drinking from 15-21 for religous reasons.

Over the last year I started feeling pain in my right side, which I suspect was liver pain so it became a serious concern. The liver is an organ that regenerates itself completely unless there is scar tissue (scirossis (sp))

I think the 12miles was a bad idea. I can't run now because I'm suffering and my knees are in agony. I run a supplement company so I'm using loads of glucoasmine/msm/cod liver oil to try and help them recover.

PN, all heavy drinkers get some liver enlargement and resultant discomfort in the right side. You will know more about supplements than I do, but I believe Milk Thistle is a good one for liver regeneration.

Yes theoretically milk thistle protects the liver although no research has been carried out on milk thistle to confirm this. I use milk thistle sporadically as its not an item we don't produce. Anti-Oxidants also help regenerate the liver. So heavy drinkers or steroid users would be advised to supplement with Milk Thistle, Vit C, Vit E, Beta Carotene.

Certain steroids can ruin the liver much quicker than alcohol, and plenty of big name bodybuilders die in their 30s/40s through liver/renal failure. Any boxer thinking about steroids should thoroughly reasearch what they're taking. The none liver toxic steroids (Deca) are great but will make you fail a drugs test long after consuming them. The deadly liver toxic steroids will clear your system quick time so you'll pass a drugs test but ruin your liver

If there are heavy drinkers that can't/won't quit, caffiene (coffee) offsets liver damage a little.

[jamesmcdonnell]

I'm only 27 Chesh so I hope I havent done too much damage. And I stopped drinking from 15-21 for religous reasons.

Over the last year I started feeling pain in my right side, which I suspect was liver pain so it became a serious concern. The liver is an organ that regenerates itself completely unless there is scar tissue (scirossis (sp))

I think the 12miles was a bad idea. I can't run now because I'm suffering and my knees are in agony. I run a supplement company so I'm using loads of glucoasmine/msm/cod liver oil to try and help them recover.

PN, all heavy drinkers get some liver enlargement and resultant discomfort in the right side. You will know more about supplements than I do, but I believe Milk Thistle is a good one for liver regeneration.

Milk thistle protects the liver, it doesn't regenerate it. If you take Milk Thistle every day, it lessens the damage done to the liver in the first place, but taking it in order to 'repair' the liver is useless.

[WildWaylon]

Seems like he's still in denial, blaming weight problems rather than his drinking, ...he needs to admit that hes an alcoholic... seven weeks without a drink is just early days... but good luck to him, getting back into the ring is probably the best thing for him....

BULLSHIT, if you can get off the liquor for a week you can get off it for good, if your an alco its a battle to get off the first day, the first week can be hell. After the first week its progressively easier and 7 weeks off..

Now he may be in denial about being 7 weeks off and he may be in denial abotu being an alco in the first place.

I have just come back from seeing a good friend who has 2-3 days to live because of alcohol induced liver failure. I'm an evening alcoholic myself and after hearing of his condition a week ago have stopped drinking forever - 10 days and counting. Usually its hell to stay off but this time its been pretty easy.

Harrison was a massive featherweight, ripped to the bone at 147lbs, ofcourse he was too big for 126lbs

I hope Harrison doesnt end up like my friend

DOUBLE BULLSHIT Every alcoholic is different - Some dont drink for days and sometimes a week and then go on a binge while others drink daily - They go into hospital or clinics to be detoxed and come out determined they will never go back but weeks or even months later they start drinking all over again - Once an alcoholic always an alcoholic - If you do get off it you must never have even one drink or you will be back on the slippery slope - I have 4 cans of lager every night and at weekends it may be 6 but never more - This has been my routine for the past 20 years but if I had to, no doubt I could give up - I have never craved a drink only water or cold orange when I am hot and thirsty - A true alcoholic will lie, steal fall out with family and friends just to carry on drinking - Many, even knowing it is killing them wont stop - It really is a terrible problem, not just for the alcohlic but for those whos lives they affect - Really sorry to hear about your friend, liver failure is usually a slow and painful end, like lung cancer and you have my sympathy.

[silkov]

I can't see the big fuss about drinking beer. I went out on the lash from 15-18 and it became boring, so I moved onto psychedelics and they were awesome for a while. I'll now drink 3-4 times a year and stick to straight brandy. It can make you a bit happy and gregarious but you really do feel poisoned for days afterwards. You've also got the pain from the migraines that come when you go onto water in order to flush yourself out.

Occasionally I may feel a cold coming on and knock back a brandy to kill it but I can take or leave it.

Around 8/10 times drinking will turn you into a prick or a boor so why bother? I'm also always amazed by the fact heavy drinking friends often say: "How can you smoke that weed stuff you druggie? You should stick to the beer like we do before your brain rots". Yet I'm not the one throwing up on market street at 3am. Plus when I do drink I generally have a better time as I'm not arseholed as badly, which is odd considering how little I drink usually.

As for Harrison. Good luck to him if he has knocked drinking on its head. His main strength as a fighter was his strength at featherweight so coming back at a higher weight will only mean he fails before he gets to the level he can expect to get to.

I dont want to sound like an old woman but I would watch the weed too if I was you, I've seen people ruin their mental health over the years with that stuff....

[silkov]

I'm only 27 Chesh so I hope I havent done too much damage. And I stopped drinking from 15-21 for religous reasons.

Over the last year I started feeling pain in my right side, which I suspect was liver pain so it became a serious concern. The liver is an organ that regenerates itself completely unless there is scar tissue (scirossis (sp))

I think the 12miles was a bad idea. I can't run now because I'm suffering and my knees are in agony. I run a supplement company so I'm using loads of glucoasmine/msm/cod liver oil to try and help them recover.

PN, all heavy drinkers get some liver enlargement and resultant discomfort in the right side. You will know more about supplements than I do, but I believe Milk Thistle is a good one for liver regeneration.

Yes theoretically milk thistle protects the liver although no research has been carried out on milk thistle to confirm this. I use milk thistle sporadically as its not an item we don't produce. Anti-Oxidants also help regenerate the liver. So heavy drinkers or steroid users would be advised to supplement with Milk Thistle, Vit C, Vit E, Beta Carotene.

Certain steroids can ruin the liver much quicker than alcohol, and plenty of big name bodybuilders die in their 30s/40s through liver/renal failure. Any boxer thinking about steroids should thoroughly reasearch what they're taking. The none liver toxic steroids (Deca) are great but will make you fail a drugs test long after consuming them. The deadly liver toxic steroids will clear your system quick time so you'll pass a drugs test but ruin your liver

If there are heavy drinkers that can't/won't quit, caffiene (coffee) offsets liver damage a little.

The fact that youre still young and otherwise fit is all in your favour, as for how long you've been without a drink as I said its early days but then you have to start somewhere and if you are really as determined as you sound then theres no reason why you cant kick it, all the better to do it now rather than 5 or ten years down the line when the damage is worse and its got a stronger grip on you.
One thing that I think is important that I dont think has been mentioned though is finding out why you drank in the first place, most problem drinkers have some other issues which lead them to drink either directly or indirectly and sometimes getting rid of the drink doesnt solve the underlying problem and thats why some alchies move on to become obsessive/addicted with something else. This is where some form of therepy can be helpful, not just to help you stay off the drink but to deal with thing that might have made you use drink in the first place......

[Captain Hook]

I've turned to drink on several awful occasions in my life, that I won't go into here, and my health suffered as a result. Thankfully I managed to hold it together at work, if I'd lost that I'd have been finished.

Back on the straight and narrow now, but I still like a drink I must admit.

Not easy is it? It becomes a habit, like smoking, you feel like you're doing something when you're having a drink. I know that sounds daft but having a beer in front of you, it's like a pastime, like a hobby.

Sad but true, can ruin lives. Has ruined many lives.

[Captain Hook]

And some of the text messages I've had off TerryD after he's been smoking weed would make you fall off your chair laughing!

[MightyWarrior]

Early days of course, but I'd love to see Scott make another run at the title before it's too late. He'll always have that monkey on his back, though he seems more of a binge drinker than a full blown alkie.

Seems we all know someone like that. My father in law has been a binge drinker for 40 odd years: he'll stay sober for months at a time, then something will set him off, and it's adios for a 4 day blow out.

His wife will go to visit the relatives for a few days, he'll see her off bright eyed and bushy tailed, sober as a judge for the last three months.

She'll get back, and find a mountain of empty bottles and he's bollock naked and trying to teach the dogs to swim in the neighbours pool

[Captain Hook]

Yes, of course you will Cheech :)

The Paris texts were the best, or possible Dove soap....

[Captain Hook]

....and you proved it at the Brodie fight, and Brodie was fighting Harrison, and now we're back on topic.

If I were him I'd take six months to get in shape, get off the beer and away from the so called "mates" who made him look a fool and sold his autographs and aim for a title shot, maybe Brit or Euro. Time is running out.....

[twenty six]

He's going nowhere without a Manger, Trainer or Promotor.
That regardless of whether he has a licence, and the chances of the BBB of C sanctioning any fight.
Then there's the little matter of his outstanding criminal proceedings.
This comeback sounds more far fetched than anything Naz ever spouted.

[Captain Hook]

looking at Naz now he could probably fight at cruiserweight. It astounds me how such a vain man could let himself go so much at such a young age.

But you're probably right, at least Naz's problems were around food, not alcohol or drugs.