giving up alcohol

Used to drink heavily and regularly, gave it up for a while to see if I could. Easy. Made not a jot of difference, other than saving money.

Funny how much emphasis some people put on drinking alcohol – I’m sure it’s a culture thing.

As this thread has shown, some people can have a whole discussion about drinking alcohol … but it’s really not that important.

I recently seen somebody in a shop telling the cashier the relevance of some bottles of beer he had bought; I couldn’t imagine somebody feeling the need to discuss their reasons for buying butter or semi-skimmed milk.

Bizarre!!

Anyone felt any better after giving up when they only really drink a glass of wine a day. I drink most days but only very rarely drink more than 1 glass of wine a day. If I only drank at the weekends for example would I feel any better or lose weight…could do with losing 0.5-1 stone

I should add I drank relatively heavily, but apart from the hangovers don’t feel much better/worse in myself when I quit.

Quitting smoking on the the other hand…

I gave up booze for a month and felt great; awake, refreshed, fitter.
I wasn’t ever a heavy drinker, but a glass of wine most nights, maybe a drink in the pub after riding on tuesday evening.

I really don’t know why I went back to drinking tbh. I don’t even enjoy it that much anymore – I hate being drunk (to the point of I actually get anxious thinking “I might get drunk”), and with 2 lively young kids, I need to be ‘on my game’ 100% of the time for them.

I often whinge that it’s pointless me drinking as I just wake up with headaches/migraines (even after 1 glass) and feel cr@p. Yet I do still drink (though drank 2 glasses of fizz over xmas).

Meh – I’m a laugh I am…..

DrP

*cancels DrP’s NYE party invitation*

I was getting to the stage of drinking, not too much, but too regular a few years ago. I’d be drinking a bit every night and even having a bit to drink would get me drunk.

Guess it was just ” topping up ” the alcohol everyday.

I decided to just stop as I was getting hangovers really bad. I still very occasionally have a small glass of wine, and my mate bought me a bottle of red for Xmas which will probably take me a year to get rid of.

Personally, I don’t miss it. On the rare occasions I go out to the pub or for a meal I will just have a shandy just to be sociable and my mates know I don’t drink and respect me for that.

Not getting the hangovers obviously makes me feel a lot better.

I’m giving up the booze for 2017 for no particular reason but largely curiosity. I’ve drank since I was 16, fairly heavily during Uni and post Uni years but probably nothing unusual. These days a beer or two or wine most evenings. I’ve always had the urge to give up but also a reason or event not to, but on that basis it would never happen. A “fear” (to put it strongly) of the unknown (ie what would a night out be like without booze? Argh, I couldn’t cope… ) has always been my excuse. So now I’m just doing it. For a month I guess it’ll be tough, after that I’m hoping it will be great along these lines:

My temper isn’t as short, I’m far more relaxed, I wake up in the morning feeling ready for the day ahead

Also, I hate hangovers. More and more they feel like a waste of life for the few days after a good session.

Will be going alcohol free from January 1st to April 23rd to train for an event. In the last 10-15 years the longest I have gone without drinking is the odd month so I am half worried about the nearly 4 months ahead, but also hoping that maybe this is the catalyst to just leave it behind and move on.

i can write the book on this one, but long and short there is no ‘right’ way you have to find a way for yourself.

if you want to try giving up, as i did for years, i would start with dry january. find it on facebook. love it or loathe it its good to be able to have a look and read about other people having the same issues and troubles with not drinking.

my advice is not to look at the whole month, its too long, go day to day at first then after say a week go to a week as your goal. i literally just had the goal of getting through a night.

you will see some people say if you slip just start again, i disagree with that. its a month, make sure you manage it, the effort is the point and i dont think its ever easy giving up or staying sober.

in with this i would work out how much i had saved, the cash for me was a huge motivator. almost as much as not having hangovers.

when i got to the month i decided i’d carry on andf try to make 50 days. then 100, then a year… and now in a few days its two years. i still miss drinking, but i don’t miss the drink.

benefits… my daily shopping is heaps cheaper and i wasnt a huge drinker as well. even then over a year it was well over 2k.

i like that i can always drive, not that i often want to drive in the middle of the night, but should i need to jump in a car i can. plus i dont have to worry about driving the morning after.

its easier to manage my weight, even though the run up to xmas has been a bit lardy due to excessive cake.

not being chained to alcohol, i really wouldnt have considered myself a drinker with a problem but i definitely always had to go buy some at night and would often go to all three supermarkets looking for the best price especially when i was on a whisky trip.

the worse is not being able to have the odd beer, but i know that i use it as an excuse to avoid stress and that i could’nt just have a couple on saturday because on sunday i would want some again and then on monday too etc etc

give it a go, its hard but worth it.

Moderate red wine consumption gives health benefits ?

*cancels DrP’s NYE party invitation*

Mate..I’m going to get smashed off my face on sherbet and panda pop at the Tot Rockin’ Beats NYE party[/url]…
So hardcore, I’ll be celebrating NYE at six o clock… rules..out the window at Chez P….

DrP

I couldn’t imagine somebody feeling the need to discuss their reasons for buying butter or semi-skimmed milk

Maybe the time is right for you to open a string of dairy based bars and nightclubs?

I’ve been looking back at the amount of whiskey I drink over a month.. turns out it’s close to two bottles.
I think this is too much, I’m quitting.

Just as I received 5 bottles of the stuff for Xmas.

Been pissed every day for about a month. Hands shaking like a shitting dog today. Time to knock it on the head for me too. Have had spells off it before, always feel fitter, more alert, less tired and happier. Downside s, I like a booze or two so do feel like I’m missing something.

I don’t as rule get hangovers because I don’t drink that much.
I do like going to the pub and talking rubbish with my mates so drink non-alcoholic drinks, not no-alcohol beers, they’re rubbish IMO. So no weight loss as pub no alcohol drinks are full of sugar. Little money saved as no alcohol in a pub costs about the same as alcohol. No real change to sleep either.
Only real difference is that every so often I pick up a bottle of wine and if I open a bottle I’ll finish it. Not enough for a hangover and no impact on sleeping, but drinking at home means drinking later means needing a pee in the middle of the night.
I’ve given up giving up drinking, I can’t see the point – I like beer..

I hit 2 years teetotal today-ish.

Not quite sure why I am abstaining, it’s just kind of a thing I do now.

Also quit caffeine, so trying to get a drink that isn’t lemonade at pubs/cafes/restaurants is a hoot.

Might go vegan just to really paint myself into a corner

25+ years of no booze/drugs/smokes/meats/cheeses/eggys here. still caffeinated though, but not to a huge extent (green tea and snobby coffee mostly).

people think i’m a dick. don’t really care, i’m quite the introvert anyway so no loss!

Maybe the time is right for you to open a string of dairy based bars and nightclubs?

Sounds nice.

My problem is lack of hangovers – a blessing and a curse as I can drink myself to destruction on a Friday night and get up Saturday right as rain, so I have little in the way of a deterent. I keep waiting for the hangover to arrive as I get older – the only upside is it really annoys the other half who suffers massive hangovers

I’m a massive alky and have been for years. Still manage to give up every few weeks or so, and stay off it for a few weeks. It’s less than ideal obvs.

On a practical level, if you’re a habitual drinker and suddenly stop, it can be desperately unpleasant (you’d have to be on a bottle of spirits a day for a while to actually put you in danger). So instead of four cans at the end of the day, have three the first day and keep cutting down – helps to write it down so you have a plan to follow.

Do this as soon as you can or you’ll end up entering “the arena of the unwell”.

Past year drank as little as possible. Think in the last month only had one small whisky. Personally I feel fitter, stronger and healthier for not drinking so I’ll keep abstaining.

I used to have a real problem. Not every day but the switch that said ‘you’ve had enough now’ didn’t work, so I’d have some truly major drinking sessions. I twice vomited in my sleep and woke in the morning covered in it. It hit the nadir when my wife had just miscarried, shortly before Christmas and then on my work do out in London when everyone went home I just carried on, in late bars and god knows where. I ended up sleeping rough, being moved on by the police and woke up with my wallet lost (presumed stolen).

I couldn’t cut down because the issue wasn’t starting – I could relatively easily choose not to drink – it was stopping and once I’d had a few then as I say the stop switch was stuck open.

So I had to give up completely, which I did for best part of a year. Which has reset the switch so now I can have a social drink and then stop.

TL:DR – cutting down doesn’t work for everyone, sometimes you need stronger measures.

Absolutely agree and my post about cutting down was in regard to abstinence, rather then just drinking a bit less.

Very well out put by the way and am glad you’ve sorted it out – it’s crap when that switch is missing.

I went teetotal for 3 years. When I started it was just for a month but then I kept extending it by a month, then three months and so it went on.

I eventually went back just because I had enough of being teetotal. No regrets on not drinking for that length of time or going back on the booze.

I gave up booze when getting back in shape after a bike accident in which I had put on weight whilst out of action. I certainly lost the extra pounds and not drinking helped getting back into shape.

Stopped for Dry January this year and it was so good that I kept going. Not teetotal though, maybe half a dozen times I’ve had a beer ( friend visiting, once or twice on holiday, one night on a bike tour,night away with wifey, Xmas day). Point being its now for special occasions and nightime or the weekend doesn’t constitute a special occasion.

Plus sides are feeling better, I don’t get out of bed with a groan. More cash. Cycling more, not tempted to park my arse on the couch with a wine or beer, I’ll do something instead and its easier to get up and out the door when I get a free morning. Also me driving all the time gains me some brownie points which also means more cycling. The way it simplifies things too is amazing, no discussions on who is driving, no worries about driving the next day, or how you are going to get to and back from things.

I’m sure I could think of a thousand other reasons but it’s a big thumbs up from me.

Day 1.

Today has been easy, given the hangover this morning.

Granted it’s not over yet but I don’t fancy a drink and I’m about to read Jason Vale’s “Kick the Drink”.

Time for a nice brew!

Had a couple of bottles last night and a single shot glass of a rather nice scotch, not touched any of the beers sitting out back, or any of the four bottles of scotch/bourbon, but that may well change later.
Getting shitfaced regularly has never appealed, it’s quality, not quantity that counts, and now most of my weekly mornings start with a 5am alarm, and involve being in a car driving from 6, and for a chunk of the day, well, it’s just not an option.
That bit where the room starts to spin when you close your eyes? I hate that!

I have given up for a month a couple of times in recent years.

The first time was great, lost weight and got fitter. Second time didn’t notice any difference really.

Tried to do sober October (or was it November?) just gone, but 2016 was too depressing to manage without the odd drinkypoo now and then.

No plans to “give it up” this year, but I will be cutting back on drinking at home on the sofa – and since I hardly ever go to the pub, I hope to consume a fair bit less (and lose some weight hopefully).

I’m going to give up completely until my birthday later this month , three weeks away.

Just a little fed up with it really. Seems to be more of a habit that I have fallen into, rather than enjoying it.

Also, my sleep seems disrupted by drinking, and never feel that good first thing in the morning when I wake up.

I’m in, stubborn fat around the middle being main motivation 🙂

Longest I’ve ever gone was 3 weeks a few years ago after a stomach inflammation.

That’s interesting I starting with awful pains in the stomach last year. Went to docs, didn’t really get anywhere. Traced it to alcohol and caffeine.

What did you discover? Symptoms?

My drinking club has a cycling problem so there is no chance of given up, but the thought never crosses my mind yes we have the odd bender and regret that the next day,but my life would be much less sadder without a couple of pints after a ride!
CHEERS
Untitled by Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr

i am giving up for January .

i do it every year . bit of weight loss , sleep better .

What did you discover? Symptoms?

Not sure if it was specifically caused by alcohol but the doc said it didn’t help. The symptoms were a gnawing burning sensation in my stomach, especially after eating. Wasn’t exactly excruciating, just very uncomfortable.

I stopped drinking alcohol and coffee/fizzy drinks (giving up caffeine was worse than booze) and ate boring food for a while, and the doc gave me some PPIs to stop the stomach acid. Was pretty much ok after a week or so and It’s never come back.

Have started the dry year today, first attempt on any scale since I first drank 25 odd years ago. It strangely feels like a weight has been lifted am I’m very much looking forward to waking up feeling like I did today for at least a year. Toddler induced broken nights excluded. Good luck to anyone doing similar.

Like everything it’s moderation. Last night however wasn’t moderation. I’m still abit hungover now. This morning I was really shady.

So right now? I never want to drink again. Tomorrow? Eee.

I’ve quit caffeine- after a heavy obsession with espresso’s. It’s getting easier every day 1 week on. Alcohol? Just cut back to Post-ride drink reward. Don’t drink the night before a ride, drink after your ride. That way you’ll associate booze with relaxing/reward not daily, drudge.

Not sure if it was specifically caused by alcohol but the doc said it didn’t help. The symptoms were a gnawing burning sensation in my stomach, especially after eating. Wasn’t exactly excruciating, just very uncomfortable.

I stopped drinking alcohol and coffee/fizzy drinks (giving up caffeine was worse than booze) and ate boring food for a while, and the doc gave me some PPIs to stop the stomach acid. Was pretty much ok after a week or so and It’s never come back.

Thanks. Almost identical – apart from we went down the Stomach ulcer route. But in the end I figured something in my diet was causing the exact pain you describe.

Tick on the fizzy drinks too.

Useful.

Are you back on everything?

Day 3.

Thankfully the disappointing results of my tax return haven’t driven me to the wine bottle 😐

How is everyone doing on this? Day 11 today and going strong.

Out tonight to play snooker with a mate who is also off the beers, any usual meet up would not involve any activity other than drinking. I’m sure snooker is a fair substitute for alcohol

Wasn’t actually giving up, but only had a tipple one night this year so far IIRC.

Frankly I have no idea how I’ve gone so right.