Is 5 weeks abstinence enough?

Convicted Driver Insurance
Looks like the only date for my medical will be 5 weeks from my last drink, is this enough??

Previously was drinking approx. 60 units a week over 3 days for 7 weeks, then before that 12 weeks of nothing as I was working away.
 
Looks like the only date for my medical will be 5 weeks from my last drink, is this enough??

Previously was drinking approx. 60 units a week over 3 days for 7 weeks, then before that 12 weeks of nothing as I was working away.

I had 23 days abstinence, previously drinking 8-10 units a day just about every day. I got 1.0%. Another poster here had just under 4 weeks abstinence and got 0.9%. You'll probably be fine. Not much you can do about it now. Just make sure that you stay off the drink in meantime!

Good luck.
 
hi iam in a similar boat was trying to message should have known better as have had previous contact, but doesnt look like you can retreive old posts i did two weeks of the drink and had another lft test original tests on the main two factors was 193 apparrently should be between 10-40 the other was 891 and should be between 30-70 after the two weeks they came down to 90 and 670 which as you can see are still very high!! i had a relationship break up and went back drinking for two weeks so will prob be back at square one like a fool i have now done a week with only a couple of cans. my ban finishs on the 10/09/16 which is only 4 weeks away i have not sent of my letter /cheque for the test yet how long can i leave it and how long have you got to book once they receive it? i know ive been a fool but cant change it now but will be gutted if i dont get my licence back!! i have been doing as you said (shouldhaveknownbetter) in regards to the supps and healthy eating i ordered a cdt test and will send it of this week. would appreciate any advise as you can prob tell i was quite a heavy drinker as had a bad accident at work no licence and very little to do but drink not trying to make excuses or give a sob story but want to change my life round and my licence would be a great start!!
 
You can leave it as long as you like to re apply, some people have left it 5 years or more but however long it is, you still have to do the medical.
once you send in the application, DVLA will take a week or 2 before they send you the details of the doctor in your area who carries out medicals on their behalf. You have 6 weeks from the date on the letter to have the test done.
the results you quoted are for the old LFT that GP's still use but DVLA use the CDT test, so you are right to get one of those done. That will give you a clearer picture of where you stand.
 
but theres no time limit from when you receive there letter or before your ban is up it says on the letter if you dont book you will have to do a re test as well ?
 
The earliest you can apply is 3 months before the end of your ba. Ere is no latest date to apply, but it obviously delays you getting your licence back.
Once they send you the letter with the doctors details, you must do the medical within 6 weeks or it times out and you have to reapply and start again, unless it is the doctors fault because they cannot fit you in, in which case DVLA will extend the 6 weeks.
 
whats your background ? do you think with the lft ressults i mentioned earlier my cdt could still be ok ? obviously once ive obstained for a while! i appreciate your advice thankyou
 
whats your background ? do you think with the lft ressults i mentioned earlier my cdt could still be ok ? obviously once ive obstained for a while! i appreciate your advice thankyou

LFTs are quite different to the CDT reading that DVLA are looking for. LFTs are liver function tests and look at various indicators of liver health. CDT is carbohydrate deficient transferrin which is found in the everyone's blood. Elevated levels of CDT can indicate however that high quantities of alcohol, generally more than 50-60g of alcohol a day, are being consumed consistently (there are some who drink and never produce an elevated CDT). The majority of us here have found that even 3 weeks abstinence has been enough to reduce CDT to within the 'green' range. I had 23 days off and got a result of 1.0%. However, I would recommend everyone to give themselves more time than this to be on the safe side. Four to six weeks and you should be fine.
 
Shouldaknownbetter has summarised the situation well.
it is all very well taking supplements, but that is only about liver recovery if you are not hurting it by passing loads of alcohol through it as well.
you need to think about it this way:
You LIKE a drink..... you NEED your licence back. Which is the priority?
You have clearly been drinking way too much for those LFT results to have been produced, and still turn to alcohol when your relationship broke up. Getting your licence back could well put you back to square 1 but with a longer ban if you are caught again over the limit.
There are always questions in life..... Alcohol is seldom the answer. That sounds like I am anti alcohol but I am not, I drink but not to relieve stress because it doesn't and for many people it causes more stress through what happens to them after drinking.

you asked about my background. I was a police officer for 30 years, 14 of which I was a custody Sgt. dealing with breath testing in the police station. Latterly for 13 years I have been involved in the running of drink drive rehabilitation courses for convicted drink drivers, helping them to get their licences back early, so I am in regular contact with drink driving issues, including health. I am just off now to spend the day with 12 of them.
 
Thankyou both for your help.
Price you are right i have used drink as a crutch in hard situations but have put mself into aquarius and had couselling to deal with my demons so its about the future now ill keep you posted
thanks again
 
Mickey,
you are doing the right thing. Good luck and do keep us up to date.
 
Hi there,

ive just come across this thread. Just wanted to share some of my experience surrounding the medical.

Im 30yrs old and male. Relatively average weight wise. I have always drank moderately/occasionally heavy throughout my life. I would regularly drink 3-4 pints daily (sometimes more depending on my social group)

I abstained from drinking for 24 days prior to my medical, just before I started this had a a weekend where I practically binged. I couldn't even tell you how much I drank but it was certainly a very high quantity.

i was very nervous that this was going to either A) put me in the red category or at the very least B) put me in Amber triggering further enquiries. However, I am pleased to say that having requested my medical reports from DVLA, my blood CDT reading was 0.9% and I now have my unrestricted 10yr licence back.

My personal opionion on it is that 3-4 weeks abstinence will see you pass with flying colours.

Please let me know how you get on.

Alex
 
Hi there,

ive just come across this thread. Just wanted to share some of my experience surrounding the medical.

Im 30yrs old and male. Relatively average weight wise. I have always drank moderately/occasionally heavy throughout my life. I would regularly drink 3-4 pints daily (sometimes more depending on my social group)

I abstained from drinking for 24 days prior to my medical, just before I started this had a a weekend where I practically binged. I couldn't even tell you how much I drank but it was certainly a very high quantity.

i was very nervous that this was going to either A) put me in the red category or at the very least B) put me in Amber triggering further enquiries. However, I am pleased to say that having requested my medical reports from DVLA, my blood CDT reading was 0.9% and I now have my unrestricted 10yr licence back.

My personal opionion on it is that 3-4 weeks abstinence will see you pass with flying colours.

Please let me know how you get on.

Alex

Great news! Glad to hear you've received a full 10 year license back. Your story is almost identical to mine. I had 23 days dry and scored 1.0% CDT on the blood test.

Although it's quite clearly achievable to score a "good" CDT % after around 23/25 days abstinence I would probably advise people to go for at least 4 weeks abstinence, if not a couple of weeks more, just to be on the safe side. Everyone is different and it's not an exact science or readily calculable thing to try and predict a CDT score.

Congratulations again and happy driving!!
 
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