Quitting Alcohol

Even going sober for a couple months has a massive effect on my physical and mental well being, probably will give it up a month or two leading into a hunt to get into peak form. Beers after the hunt are a different topic...
 
I’m a little over 7 months sober now and it’s crazy how much you realize about yourself when you quit. One of the biggest things for me was I always thought I had terrible social anxiety so I would drink in those situations to “calm my nerves.” Turns out now that I’m sober I’m much more relaxed in those situations so it was the alcohol that was actually fueling the anxiety.

My mental state in general has been the biggest improvement- less anxiety, more self confidence, proud of the man I am when I look in the mirror. My wife says I’m much more engaged with the kids at home.

Quitting can really have a snowball effect. I went from averaging 4 days a week in the gym to 6, which motivated me to eat healthier, which lead to better sleep and mental wellness.

The only time I really miss it is when I’m golfing with friends on the weekend- that was my favorite place to drink. Now after a round of golf I head to the gym if time allows.

Being sober in Wisconsin makes me feel like I’m living on an island but it also makes me that much more proud of myself.
 
“I’m a little over 7 months sober now and it’s crazy how much you realize about yourself when you quit. One of the biggest things for me was I always thought I had terrible social anxiety so I would drink in those situations to “calm my nerves.” Turns out now that I’m sober I’m much more relaxed in those situations so it was the alcohol that was actually fueling the anxiety.

My mental state in general has been the biggest improvement- less anxiety, more self confidence, proud of the man I am when I look in the mirror. My wife says I’m much more engaged with the kids at home.”


You really nail it in these first two paragraphs. The unknown future benefits will keep popping up. You haven’t even mentioned how much money you’ve saved.
 
Words cannot express how happy I am that I found this thread. I literally just made the decision Sunday I need to scale back to reevaluate my relationship with alcohol which means cutting it out for a while. My psych is going to put me on anti-anxiety meds to help me cope since I used it as a stress reliever.

I have a wife and a 4 month old and used alcohol as a clutch.
 
I’m a little over 7 months sober now and it’s crazy how much you realize about yourself when you quit. One of the biggest things for me was I always thought I had terrible social anxiety so I would drink in those situations to “calm my nerves.” Turns out now that I’m sober I’m much more relaxed in those situations so it was the alcohol that was actually fueling the anxiety.

My mental state in general has been the biggest improvement- less anxiety, more self confidence, proud of the man I am when I look in the mirror. My wife says I’m much more engaged with the kids at home.

Quitting can really have a snowball effect. I went from averaging 4 days a week in the gym to 6, which motivated me to eat healthier, which lead to better sleep and mental wellness.

The only time I really miss it is when I’m golfing with friends on the weekend- that was my favorite place to drink. Now after a round of golf I head to the gym if time allows.

Being sober in Wisconsin makes me feel like I’m living on an island but it also makes me that much more proud of myself.
You’re not on an island, I’m right there with you though. I’m in Wisconsin and everything seems to be centered around alcohol. I do feel like the tide is changing a bit with a lot of “mocktail” options. I just passed 9 months, prior I was a daily drinker for several years.
 
It's been about 2 1/2 years since I last had an alcoholic drink. I don't think about it that much anymore. My friends, family, and work associates are past the comments, jokes, and questions period. Now it's just "normal" for me not to drink.

What I HAVE noticed recently is how many of my friends are becoming overweight and/or having health issues. I now have more friends who depend on a c-pap than not; compared to just a few years ago I didn't know anyone who had one. Since I've quit drinking my health has gone the opposite direction. I've lost weight (and kept it off), I'm now active in endurance sports, and my diet, though not close to perfect is much better balanced.

I don't know if I would've quit if I never read this thread, but sure as hell happy that it pushed me over the edge into sobriety.

Thank you @Stubborn_bowhunter for starting this thread and I love seeing the followers grow over the years!
 
It's been about 2 1/2 years since I last had an alcoholic drink. I don't think about it that much anymore. My friends, family, and work associates are past the comments, jokes, and questions period. Now it's just "normal" for me not to drink.

What I HAVE noticed recently is how many of my friends are becoming overweight and/or having health issues. I now have more friends who depend on a c-pap than not; compared to just a few years ago I didn't know anyone who had one. Since I've quit drinking my health has gone the opposite direction. I've lost weight (and kept it off), I'm now active in endurance sports, and my diet, though not close to perfect is much better balanced.

I don't know if I would've quit if I never read this thread, but sure as hell happy that it pushed me over the edge into sobriety.

Thank you @Stubborn_bowhunter for starting this thread and I love seeing the followers grow over the years!

I agree on the friends' health thing. I know a ton of guys from 35-60 that are on BP meds, use C-pap machines, and other stuff. ALL of them are consistent drinkers.

Through my 20s to early 30s my BP was always 120/80. Mid 30s it was more like 140/100. I was about 30 pounds fatter than I should be and in my usual drinking routine. I snored ALL THE TIME, my wife hated it. In the time since stopping alcohol my BP is now something like 100/70, I'm 30 pounds lighter, and I only snore occasionally if I roll over to my back during the night.

I hear my friends complaining about this pill and that pill, their high BP, etc. and it's obvious to me now what the common denominator is.
 
I havnt drank for 5 months, I was just going to take a month off but I just sort of lost the taste for it. I like getting up early on the weekends and walking my dogs, getting stuff done, getting my workouts in before most people are getting up.

I was at a bonfire thing the other night with a bunch of functional, successful adults (medical professionals, educators, etc) and they were all drinking, I was sort of embarrassed for them the way they all started acting and talking. Made me realize that I probably did the same thing and didn’t realize it. There was one guy who was clearly drinking A LOT more than anybody else there and he didn’t seem to realize it. A few days later I saw some of those people and they were like “oh man, how did you feel the next morning”….i told them I hadn’t drank anything that night.

Alcohol wasn’t causing an major problems for me, I usually just drank a bit on a Friday or Saturday night so no major epiphanies but I will say I walk my dogs more, workouts feel easier and I sleep better while wasting less money so I guess life is better without it.
 
I agree on the friends' health thing. I know a ton of guys from 35-60 that are on BP meds, use C-pap machines, and other stuff. ALL of them are consistent drinkers.

Through my 20s to early 30s my BP was always 120/80. Mid 30s it was more like 140/100. I was about 30 pounds fatter than I should be and in my usual drinking routine. I snored ALL THE TIME, my wife hated it. In the time since stopping alcohol my BP is now something like 100/70, I'm 30 pounds lighter, and I only snore occasionally if I roll over to my back during the night.

I hear my friends complaining about this pill and that pill, their high BP, etc. and it's obvious to me now what the common denominator is.
I have a BP cuff I use at home, it’s amazing how much lower my BP is from laying off the booze, I wasn’t even a daily drinker but my once or twice a week I guess was making my BP higher.

I have a lot of friends who are just like you describe, late 30s-mid 40s and starting to get on meds, get fat, get slow when, like you said, there is a common factor. The denial I. Some of these guys is real. I have a good buddy who hasn’t worked out for a few years now, drinks beers every night after work and he thinks he’s “in shape”, I hear him “working on my property keeps me in good shape”…..bro, you sure don’t look like you’re in good shape.
 
Pm is good if you'd like. I run across quite a few people that have recently quit for various reasons, and some didn't share why but not a single one of them is worse off.

I am contemplating quitting because of all the negative effects of alcohol that I’ve been reading about.. I don’t drink much, but data says even a little is not good for you..


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Having a few drinks socially and being an alcoholic are much different. Some people cant control it and I agree they should stop all together.

There is a bunch of stuff that is bad for you. I'd wager that what a lot of what a guys eats, is far worse than a few drinks a month. Our food is almost like poison.
 
I have a BP cuff I use at home, it’s amazing how much lower my BP is from laying off the booze, I wasn’t even a daily drinker but my once or twice a week I guess was making my BP higher.

Man, I've been nearly dry for about 6 months now and it hasn't done shit to my blood pressure! I'm pissed! But I will say I'm sleeping better and I think mostly it's reduced my stress a bit, but work has also been in a good place for the last 8 months so I think things are a bit better there.
 
My wife went to an out of state treatment center for some serious health issues. Right after she left, my mother in law got in a car accident and had to live with me for a few months to recover since there was nobody else to help her. I was also dealing with my spoiled step son and was working 12 hrs shifts. Before all this I had stopped drinking for about a year. Shortly after my mother in law moved in, I started drinking again. I drank for about 3 months until my wife came home to attend my Grandfather's funeral. It was almost the end of my marriage when I told her I was drinking again. I was so burned out dealing with everything. That time I promised her I would stop. The same promise I had made two other times. I haven't had a drink since. It's been 11 years. My Grandfather's death really effected me. He was like a father to me and I didn't want to let him down.

I'm totally done with it now. I can 100% say never again.
 
I'm half irish, half mexican, and spent the first 22 years of my life in Wisconsin. If anyone should be an alcoholic, it's me....

But I never had a sip. Watched one buddy after another go down that slippery slope and it ends well for no one.

Get your mind right, there's a lot of folks cheering for ya!
You’re actually my wife but she was born in CO. Half n half like you, she can take it or leave it. What a blessing.
 
A lot of good stories here. I’ve had it on my heart the past week to either slow way down or give it up entirely. My tipping point is that I’m tired of losing half my weekend feeling tired or like crap because of the previous nights decisions. We have a young family and time is too precious. Appreciate yall for sharing.
 
A lot of good stories here. I’ve had it on my heart the past week to either slow way down or give it up entirely. My tipping point is that I’m tired of losing half my weekend feeling tired or like crap because of the previous nights decisions. We have a young family and time is too precious. Appreciate yall for sharing.
That’s why I started cutting way back. I was tired of wasting weekends. Stupidest thing, all weekend work I’m looking forward to the weekend, only to spend it feeling like shit. Dosent make much sense.
 
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