Can the effects of intoxication be overcome by willpower?

[Daecon]

Can the effects of intoxication be overcome by willpower, whether it be from alcohol or any other mood-altering drug?

 

I'm guessing mind-altering drugs that modify your perceptions probably can't be overcome through willpower...

[iNow]

No.

 

You can simply train your mind to be more adequately prepared to mimic normal behavior under the influence of those subsances, but regardless of your preparation or mental ability, those substances will act physiologically in the same way.

 

Also, you might look into reaction time studies. That will show just how measurable the effects truly are at the scale of millisecond differences.

[insane_alien]

nope, you can think you are acting perfectly sober but in reality your still behaving like a drunken lummox. The movie beerfest has an excelent example of this when they are in the pub and they are playing the drinking game 'asshole'. the guy is obviously completely trounced and it cuts to what he's seeing and he see's himself as being perfectly fine but reality is that he's slurring, can't stand up straight and should probably be passed getting his stomach pumped.

[YT2095]

certain "Agencies" do teach Drug Consciousness to their agents.

it`ll help you resist such things Truth drugs or spiked drinks/food that can be used against you by employing techniques that`ll keep you Mentally capable if not exactly alert.

[tvp45]

One of the things that alcohol in the bloodstream does is screw up the density balance between the cupula and the endolymph in the inner ear. This produces vertigo and nausea. No amount of willpower can possibly alter a density.

[SkepticLance]

Willpower will not do it. However, training and experience can make a difference. If you develop a skill to a high degree, your level of skill will diminish when intoxicated, but may still be far higher than that of a sober person not so skilled.

 

Also, tolerance to alcohol increases with exposure, so that a 'hardened' drinker will be less affected than a neophyte by the same amount of alcohol. On the other hand, at the greater extreme, an alcoholic who has utterly wrecked his body may have too little liver detox function left to reduce alcohol's effects. Such a person may be more readily knocked flat by alcohol than the aforesaid neophyte.

 

The only thing willpower will do is to fool you into thinking you are less drunk than you really are. This is seriously dangerous, since it may lead you into doing things, like drive a car, when you should not.

[Daecon]

Ah, that's a good point, and probably explains a lot of drink-driving accidents.