On a Monday I took NyQuil and nasal spray for a bad cold. I took two more doses of NyQuil on Tuesday the last at 4:30 A.M. I drank 10 beers on that Tuesday night stopping before Midnight ,and 36 HRS later had to provide a EtG UA for work. I took a detoxifying drink Wednesday, drank 20+ bottles of water, Cranberry Juice, Coffee, Mt. Dew, tea and urinated dozens of times...my test was Thursday at Noon and I had to read below <500...will i Pass?

Thanks for your advice...

Unlikely that you will pass. First, most experts agree that the minimal cutoff is 60 hours, more agree that it's closer to 80. So you would fail at 36 hours with either criteria.

Second, there are no detox items available that work. You wasted your money.

Third, if you don't fail for alcohol detection, you'll fail for dilution because of the amount of water you drank.

It's a three time fail.

I'm with Alty... alcohol is alcohol... doesn't matter what tis source was. If you pass you better run straight out and buy a lottery ticket before your luck runs out.

I like that you mentioned Nyquill....and then 10 beers. You MIGHT pass, I have seen weirder things happen but chances are that you will fail.

Thanks odinn, I brought the NyQuil bottle in and showed them as well as all products that I use. Trying to get over a nasty cold That helped along with nasal spray, which also contained alcohol. Only today did they show me the products that I cannot use if Im going to apply and take a UA... I thought that was a bit late. Hair gel, deodorant, Lotion etc. So I told them I took this stuff and only then did they tell me that I can't if I want my UA to be <500. I think I have room to discuss taking a 2nd test... don't you?

Thanks again!

Nope... they pop these tests on people to catch them doing something they shouldn't... you rarely ever get to have a "makeup test" just because you were doing it. Or it would completely defete the purpose of testing in the first place.

I think I have room to discuss taking a 2nd test... don't you?

You might if you hadn't had the beers. One of the things we try to stress in these questions is taking responsibility for your actions. So far you appear to be trying to 'cheat'/'beat' the testing system with no thought given for staying clean for future tests.

10 beers is not an accidental ingestion like a bite of an alcohol laced dessert would be. You can add up all the other stuff you used or might have used or want them to think you used, but the beer is still in the equation. For them it is probably a daily event for someone to claim they only used medications or grooming products to explain away the EtG in their system. Alcoholics (I am not saying you are one) can come up with very interesting and amusing rationalizations and excuses. The people doing the testing have probably heard them all.

If they do give you another chance, take it as a miracle and stay stone-cold sober. They will not give you a third chance.

Please let us know your test results.

You might if you hadn't had the beers. One of the things we try to stress in these questions is taking responsibility for your actions. So far you appear to be trying to 'cheat'/'beat' the testing system with no thought given for staying clean for future tests.

I have to agree with Cat here. One of the things an addict/alcoholic does, and I am not calling you an addict/alcoholic, is makes excuses for their behavior. As an OB nurse I've heard marijuana users tell me that the doctor told them to smoke marijuana, while pregnant, to increase their appetite. Believe me, I've heard it all. Such as "I have a blood thickening condition so the doctor told me to drink wine because it thins my blood."

The issue here is that you took Nyquil, which contains alcohol, and you drank at least 10 beers. Just like the drunk driver that tells the cop that he/she's only had one. Just like the smoker who tells the doctor that they only smoke 2 cigarettes a day, when they are, in fact, a pack a day smoker.

Look, you knew you were going to get tested, but you drank anyway and now you are trying to find a way to make it excusable. If you are required to abstain from alcohol, you abstain. If you can't, you need to face the music, take the punishment, and get help for your addiction.

You all are horrible. THIS IS FOR WORK... NOT LEGAL ISSUES! There is no addiction... get it? You all just ASSume the worst... and for me to have 2-3 beers on a Friday night doesn't make me an alcoholic! I was attending a friends Birthday that I helped organize, followed by a nice cab ride home. For you all to judge me without knowing me... and BTW, I DIDN'T KNOW THE TEST WAS COMING... had I known the test was coming, I wouldn't have had a sip. They told me the day before the test!Thanks for nothing...

An employer will not test you for alcohol consumption away from the job unless you have had problems, such as addiction. Drinking away from the job is legal for all who do not have a hx of legal or alcohol/addiction issues.

We have to assume the worst since you offered no facts otherwise.

Actually in certain job fields, medical, ones with commercial and public transport vehicles.as examples... and particularly if you hold a security clearance... failing such a test would result in the loss clearance and of your job. People under the influence are subject to being comprimised. That last category I've got a lot of years experience in and saw it happen to more than a few.

In those cases you are able to drink reasonable ammounts on your own time... but 10 beers in a night isn't a reasonable amount. Thats why they have a higher cutoff for those tests...

... and for me to have 2-3 beers on a Friday night doesn't make me an alcoholic!

But in your original question you stated:



I drank 10 beers on that Tuesday night stopping before Midnight

So, which was it?
But I have to also point out...my original response to you wasn't about patting you on the back for mentioning NyQuil to the tester...I thought it was amusing because we hear that all the time on this site...people trying to offer up an excuse, other than alcohol, to help them pass. I am sure the testers hear this 50 times a day.

The bottom line is that if your job tests you, and you are worried about failing, then you shouldn't be taking chances.

You all are horrible. THIS IS FOR WORK... NOT LEGAL ISSUES! There is no addiction... get it? You all just ASSume the worst... and for me to have 2-3 beers on a Friday night doesn't make me an alcoholic! I was attending a friends Birthday that I helped organize, followed by a nice cab ride home. For you all to judge me without knowing me... and BTW, I DIDN'T KNOW THE TEST WAS COMING... had I known the test was coming, I wouldn't have had a sip. They told me the day before the test!Thanks for nothing...

That doesn't exactly ring true if you are in a job that requires random testing. You can't indulge and later say, "I didn't know." You have to live your life as if every day you might be called in for a test. You can blame the medication and everything else including it was a friend's birthday party, but you are still responsible for the amount you drink and being ready to test.

If it wasn't random then they had to be concerned about you to request the test.


On a Monday I took NyQuil and nasal spray for a bad cold. I took two more doses of NyQuil on Tuesday the last at 4:30 A.M. I drank 10 beers on that Tuesday night stopping before Midnight ,and 36 HRS later had to provide a EtG UA for work. I took a detoxifying drink Wednesday, drank 20+ bottles of water, Cranberry Juice, Coffee, Mt. Dew, tea and urinated dozens of times...my test was Thursday at Noon and I had to read below <500...will i Pass?

Thanks for your advice...

I am not judging. I am being honest with you. I am not certain you are being honest with yourself. This wasn't 3 or 4 beers on a Friday night. It was 10 beers on top of two days of Nyquil and nasal spray on a Tuesday night which appears to have been a work night, too.

You all are horrible. THIS IS FOR WORK... NOT LEGAL ISSUES! There is no addiction... get it? You all just ASSume the worst... and for me to have 2-3 beers on a Friday night doesn't make me an alcoholic! I was attending a friends Birthday that I helped organize, followed by a nice cab ride home. For you all to judge me without knowing me... and BTW, I DIDN'T KNOW THE TEST WAS COMING... had I known the test was coming, I wouldn't have had a sip. They told me the day before the test!Thanks for nothing...

I'm curious to know how we're horrible? The truth isn't easy to take, I get that, but that doesn't mean that those telling you the truth, are horrible. It means that you're not ready to accept the truth.

Fact is, you're being tested. Fact is, you drank 10 beers. No, you won't get a second chance because you had a cold and took medication with alcohol in it. That doesn't matter, that can be explained. The 10 beers can't be explained.

You drank when you obviously weren't supposed to. That's the truth. As I said in my first reply, I don't see any way you'll pass this, and the fact that you did drink, means you shouldn't pass. Time to suck it up, and realize that you're the one in control of your life and what you do. If you do the wrong thing, you pay for it.

That's not being horrible. It's called being honest. Maybe you should try being honest with yourself.

Good luck.

Markus may be upset because all he asked was "will I pass?". This is the "Ask me help desk". I guess he wanted a yes or no answer, not a lecture on addiction and recovery.

Markus may be upset because all he asked was "will I pass?". This is the "Ask me help desk". I guess he wanted a yes or no answer, not a lecture on addiction and recovery.

If you read my post, the first post in this thread, I answered his question. I even listed why he would likely fail, point by point.

I gave him a yes or no guess. Guessing is all we can do. I've seen people that drank like a sailor on shore leave and passed an ETG 18 hours later. I've seen people that had 2 drinks and failed a test 5 days later. There's no exact formula. It's a wait and see. We can only go by what researchers have tested. We can't give a definite yes or no.

In this case it's leaning way to the side of failure, not only because of the alcohol consumption, but the medication, and the excessive water intake. One way or another this poster seems determined to fail, and he would rightfully fail.

We can say that someone that knows they're being tested, and drinks 10 beers, and then tries to pass off a probable positive by saying he had nyquil, and other meds or products containing alcohol, is trying to fool a test, and that indicates a problem.

We don't help people fool their tests on this site. Read the posters replies. It's very obvious that he's not upset because we can't give him a yes or no answers. He's upset because we told him that none of his tricks to fool the test, will work.

Markus may be upset because all he asked was "will I pass?". This is the "Ask me help desk". I guess he wanted a yes or no answer, not a lecture on addiction and recovery.

Marcus and you both should know you don't get a simple yes or no answer (its right in the rules and terms of service you both agreed to when you signed up)... and people that drink 10 beers in one night are desperately in need of a lecture as well as intervention. That's a LOT of beer... and he did say 10 beers.. not 2 or 3 which is a HUGE differnce. Particularly in the middle of the week.



On a Monday I took NyQuil and nasal spray for a bad cold. I took two more doses of NyQuil on Tuesday the last at 4:30 A.M. I drank 10 beers on that Tuesday night stopping before Midnight ,and 36 HRS later had to provide a EtG UA for work. I took a detoxifying drink Wednesday, drank 20+ bottles of water, Cranberry Juice, Coffee, Mt. Dew, tea and urinated dozens of times...my test was Thursday at Noon and I had to read below <500...will i Pass?

Thanks for your advice...

If you read my post, the first post in this thread, I answered his question. I even listed why he would likely fail, point by point.

I gave him a yes or no guess. Guessing is all we can do. I've seen people that drank like a sailor on shore leave and passed an ETG 18 hours later. I've seen people that had 2 drinks and failed a test 5 days later. There's no exact formula. It's a wait and see. We can only go by what researchers have tested. We can't give a definite yes or no.

In this case it's leaning way to the side of failure, not only because of the alcohol consumption, but the medication, and the excessive water intake. One way or another this poster seems determined to fail, and he would rightfully fail.

We can say that someone that knows they're being tested, and drinks 10 beers, and then tries to pass off a probable positive by saying he had nyquil, and other meds or products containing alcohol, is trying to fool a test, and that indicates a problem.

We don't help people fool their tests on this site. Read the posters replies. It's very obvious that he's not upset because we can't give him a yes or no answers. He's upset because we told him that none of his tricks to fool the test, will work.

I do not disagree with you at all. I was also "guessing" when I suggested the reason he was upset.

I am a new subscriber to this board, but I have read it occasionally over the past 3 years. It seems to me that most of the posters asking questions want reassurance that they will pass or at least an "expert" opinion on their circumstance. Many of them seem to get irate when they are given advice on recovery.

I believe that most of this type of poster has no real interest in staying sober, just in avoiding detection.

Just my humble opinion.

I believe that most of this type of poster has no real interest in staying sober, just in avoiding detection.



I completely agree with that.

I do not disagree with you at all. I was also "guessing" when I suggested the reason he was upset.

I am a new subscriber to this board, but I have read it occasionally over the past 3 years. It seems to me that most of the posters asking questions want reassurance that they will pass or at least an "expert" opinion on their circumstance. Many of them seem to get irate when they are given advice on recovery.

I believe that most of this type of poster has no real interest in staying sober, just in avoiding detection.

Just my humble opinion.

I agree.

Here's the truth about this board. We can give advice, we can give a very educated guess on whether someone will pass or fail. We can't say for sure if they will or won't pass. That's something only the test results can tell them.

I do understand addiction. I don't understand doing something when you know it can land you in trouble. To me, the people that risk drinking, or doing drugs, when they know they're going to be tested, have a problem. Instead of sugar coating things, giving them guesses, I'd rather offer help with a very apparent issue. If you can't stop drinking or doing drugs, when you know you could lose your job, or end up in jail, that signifies a very serious addiction.

I agree that most of the people that post on this board aren't looking for help long term, they're looking for a way to fool the test, or some comfort that they won't get caught this time.

We don't do that here. We won't help you fool a test, and even if we would, there really is no way to do so. Excessive intake of water is a fail for dilution. Trying to blame it on medication you're taking for a cold, that's okay if that's all you're doing. But when you admit that you had 10 beers 36 hours before the test, I'm sorry, but I'm not going to be very sympathetic that you'll fail, because you did the crime. If you're willing to do it, be prepared to pay for it.

All we can do on this site is give an educated guess on whether you'll pass or fail, and offer help for your addiction. A person that drinks 10 beers when they know they might be tested, very obviously has a problem. We are more than willing to help with that problem. Helping doesn't mean helping them fool a test. That's like giving a loaded gun to someone that's suicidal. Not happening on this site. It's against the rules, and against morality.

I hope you stick around. Welcome to the site. But realize that most people, especially those that post on this board, don't want the truth, they want someone to help them beat the system. That's against the law. We don't break laws here.

It's not always easy, it's often very harsh, and most times the posters don't reply well to the only help we can give them. Marcus is a prime example. I posted why he'd likely fail. Once he found out he'd likely fail, his posts focused on fooling the system. When we wouldn't help him do that, we became the bad guys. We're not the bad guys. Not at all.

A couple of things that I would like to address… Alty, with all due respect I would suggest that you not automatically think negative about somebody that is trying to simply get an answer. This is not an issue with law-enforcement this is not an issue with trying to deceive or fool the test in any way… yet your immediate reaction was negative and talking about addiction and you state how you don't understand if you do something when you know that it can land you in trouble. This wasn't going to land me in trouble and I did not know about the test ahead of time as you state. This was for my employer. And you state that I was trying to blame it on medication because of my cold, I was not trying to blame it on anything, I was merely giving all of the information so I could get a educated response. Then you go on to say that you are not going to be very sympathetic if I fail because I did the crime... Please tell me what my crime was? Being a pet expert I'm sure your vast knowledge will be greatly appreciated. You then go on to say that you given educated guess on whether you'll pass or fail and offer help for your addiction… Again, I do not have an addiction. Obviously being a first time poster I have posted this on the wrong board. And I told you all that I had 10 beers but that does not make me an addict. You don't know me, so don't be so quick to judge. So again, as a first time poster to this… And this will be my last I would offer this piece of advice. Don't be so quick to judge somebody until you ask a few more questions... That goes for you to Smoothy. If somebody truly needed help with this situation and their situation was more dire than mine, I would hate to think about how you guys would make them feel even worse by how you reacted… I think it's pathetic and awful.

Oh and by the way, being that this test was for my employer… And you guys have no idea what I do, they don't give you a heads up as to when this test might take place. So my search will continue for a website where questions can be asked and people not be judged with immediate negativity and make them feel even worse... try and be a little bit more compassionate to others next time. And by the way… I passed the test with no problems whatsoever so posting on this site was just a complete waste of time and a confirmation on how people treat other people. You can respond to this, if that makes you feel like you're contributing to something… But I will not be on this website again.

Funny how its always the NooBs with the actual problems that think they know the answers to everything... are the same ones who try to tell the rest of us how we should do everything too.

Addicts do not truly accept complete responsibility for their actions... they always blame someone or something else for them... rather than owning up to their own choices.

As far as workplace tests... I have been subjected to random drug and alcohol tests for nearly 30 years now... so have all my coworkers... How many have failed one of those tests in all that time? Across a umber of employers? Zero I have known.

The fact is we DO understand... far better than you do apparently. Based on your rant where you blame everyone here for your problem... when nobody here is responsible for your bad choices.

Also... this site doesn't exist to enable addicts to continue their abuse of choice... and most of us have had friends or family killed or injured by a drunk driver... so why do we need to show empathy for them if they are still abusiing their substance of choice... this forum exists not to tell addicts its fine to continue their abuse, or help them find a way to cheat on a test... its here to help people ABSTAIN form their substance abuse issues... abstain means stop... not cut down, not keep at it as usual.

Fact is... we all know someone like you... we may not know you personally, but people that have addictons share many traits with each other... and they are very predictible.

Sorry but personally my compassion for drunks ended back in 1988 when a second girlfriend was killed by a drunk driver... yes second... not the first that was a few years earlier.

I have compassion for recovering addicts who have been abstinant from their drug of choice, and have been staying clean... I do not have any for those who insist on continuing, and particularly those who refuse to accept they have a problem.

If you fail a workplace test... you have serious issues... because those are not zero tollerance tests. They are hard NOT to pass. If you had to worry about passing it...then you know you was doing something you shouldn't.

Sorry if you don't like it... but that's life... your post blaming everyone else for your prolems instead of owning up to the fact you shouldn't have ever put yourself in that position in the first place really, rubbed me the wrong way.

SO are you going to learn anything from this... or are you going to keep putting yourself in the same position until you end up fired or in jail?

These are choices that are in your lap to make... not ours. Nobody HAS to be sympathetic or have empathy for those to repeatedly make bad decisions... and worse... attacks those who do take time out of their busy lives to offer good advice.

If you really need help... ask for it and you will get it... we will not however help you continue making bad decisions.

And incidentally... its really not a random test if its schedualed weeks or months in advance... its designed to catch you doing something you are required to not be doing. You signed the papers when you were hired... you could have gone someplace else to work if that was an inconvienience to you.

Oh look at the rude Lush... loves to go off on rants and dish out not helpfuls contrary to site rules. They obviously have a serious alcohol problem.

Lets hope you fail the next test...I'm actually praying you do.


{"why": "My question was met with immediate negativity and finger-pointing. Last time I'll be here...", "source": "Don't judge so quickly.com"}..



Talk about who was doing all the judging and writing negative comments bashing everyone here. How about taking a look in the mirror.....YOU are the the one Judging everyone here......what a tool. You must be a real joy to work around.




And by the way......its not Judging when YOU prove everything we suspected beyond any reason of a doubt with your own rants.

LOL! You finish off by saying how you wasted your time posting here...after writing a long rant telling us how we suck. So you wasted your time with your original question and then needed to waste more time ranting and telling us how you wasted your time...is the irony lost here?

But anyway...to sum it all up: We can only go by what you told us and from what you posted and how you worded it, it sure looks like you have issues that you were trying to cover for. Also, just because we have specific areas assigned to us does not mean that we do not know more than that, it is just the area we were assigned to by the powers here. So the fact that Alty has "pet expert" under her name does not mean that she only knows pets.

So rant away my little friend!

LOL...I can see it..."I wasted my time posting to them to start with so I'm going to write a huge rant to prove I'm awesome and they don't know anything! THAT won't be a waste of time!!!!!"

Ahh....I wrote it, now the mods can edit it or remove it...