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If you use alcohol and you're a social drinker or know someone who drinks "every once in a while," it's important to make sure alcohol isn't becoming the most important priority. Alcohol can change every area of your life: your performance at work will suffer, you will not want to spend as much time with family and friends and you may even experience signs of anger or depression that could hurt everyone around you. If you're not exactly sure how alcohol can change your life for the worst, here are some warning signs to look out for.

1. You are unable to concentrate without the use of alcohol.

If you feel that you function best when you have alcohol in your system, this is definitely a problem. You will find any reason to have a drink in your hand. It also means that you're lacking overall confidence or believe that you need extra substances to make you more likeable. If you find that you are irritable or withdrawn when you don't have a drink, you should get help immediately!

2. You are constantly finding excuses or reasons to drink.

There probably isn't a problem with most people having a drink every week or two at a business meeting or dinner party, but if you find yourself going out to parties every weekend or hosting dinner parties as often as you can so that alcohol can be served, it's definitely time to take an honest look at your alcohol consumption and make some different choices. Pay close attention to your drinking habits: do you consume one drink at a time or does one glass of champagne immediately cause you to want another one? Can you have one glass of wine to compliment your dinner or do you start to have a strong craving for more wine after the first sip? If you know that you cannot socially drink in a modest and conservative fashion, then you need to team up with friends who will help you to stay away from drinks no matter where you go.

3. You are drinking several times a day -- even when you're alone.

When you start drinking in the morning before getting ready for work or school, during your lunch break, and before you go to bed at night, you are definitely drinking too much! Alcohol should not be consumed the way that water or juice is consumed with a meal, so you should definitely not make drinking alcohol a daily part of your routine. Not only is it physically unhealthy, but alcohol starts to negatively affect your emotions as well. You should pay special attention to how alcohol makes you feel: do you drink in order to feel "dead to the world", so that you will not have to face the stresses of the day, or do you drink to feel more outgoing? Whatever your reasoning, drinking alone signals your withdrawal from family and friends, which is always a cause for concern. The sooner you're honest with yourself about your use of alcohol, the sooner you can get the help from physicians, counselors, and friends that can change your life for the better.