Quitting Alcohol

[Customweld]

Not sure if this has been posted, but it's a great podcast on the effects of alcohol. He states in there he wishes he can find something good to say about alcohol but there is nothing. And he said those that say they drink wine for the health benefits! By the time you drink enough to get the benefits from the grapes, you've more than toxified your body from the alcohol.

Episode 86: What Alcohol Does To Your Body, Brain & Health | Huberman Lab • Podcast Notes

In this episode of the Huberman Lab podcast, Andrew Huberman takes a deep dive into all things related to alcohol, its consumption, effects on the brain and body, alcoholism, and much more. He breaks down the physiological effects that drinking alcohol has on the brain and body at different...

podcastnotes.org

This episode is very informative. It definitely helped me.

 

[ChrisA]

Not sure if this has been posted, but it's a great podcast on the effects of alcohol. He states in there he wishes he can find something good to say about alcohol but there is nothing. And he said those that say they drink wine for the health benefits! By the time you drink enough to get the benefits from the grapes, you've more than toxified your body from the alcohol.

Episode 86: What Alcohol Does To Your Body, Brain & Health | Huberman Lab • Podcast Notes

In this episode of the Huberman Lab podcast, Andrew Huberman takes a deep dive into all things related to alcohol, its consumption, effects on the brain and body, alcoholism, and much more. He breaks down the physiological effects that drinking alcohol has on the brain and body at different...

podcastnotes.org

I'd heard about it several times earlier in this thread but didn't listen to it until I was 2 or 3 weeks off booze. I believe it was instrumental for me and wondered why in the hell was I hearing most of this information for the first time at age 50.

 

[DLIP]

9 months today. What started as taking a break for week turned into a month and here we are. I feel great and outside of a few hard days, I don’t miss it.

 

[Finch]

Checking in - yesterday was 2 years for me! I've attended two weddings this summer and our family beach vacation but didn't falter. Still drink Busch NA's every now and then but haven't touched the real stuff since 7/14/2023.

Congrats to those on their own sobriety journeys. I always had the disclaimer that I may one day enjoy a real beer again (I really miss those ice cold Dos Equis Ambers when at our favorite mexican restaurant) but the thought of throwing away two years keeps me from following through with it.

I'm afraid if I have one - then I'll fall off the rails.

 

[schmalzy]

Checking in - yesterday was 2 years for me! I've attended two weddings this summer and our family beach vacation but didn't falter. Still drink Busch NA's every now and then but haven't touched the real stuff since 7/14/2023.

Congrats to those on their own sobriety journeys. I always had the disclaimer that I may one day enjoy a real beer again (I really miss those ice cold Dos Equis Ambers when at our favorite mexican restaurant) but the thought of throwing away two years keeps me from following through with it.

I'm afraid if I have one - then I'll fall off the rails.

Way to go man, I’m pumped for you.

I’m the same way.


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[tbumpus]

Just a FNG passing through but I wanted to echo schmalzy, way to go guys! I've know too many people in my 6+ decades that weren't able to do what you guys have done.

 

[KevinMartinez1]

I’m 4 weeks sober today. Just in that short span i feel a lot better. I don’t crawl out of bed anymore i actually get up haha. I don’t plan on taking a sip anytime soon either


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[mattflipper]

I’m 4 weeks sober today. Just in that short span i feel a lot better. I don’t crawl out of bed anymore i actually get up haha. I don’t plan on taking a sip anytime soon either


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Keep up the good work. If you made it that long you can do it again and again and again. I’ve basically quit for medical reasons here lately and I feel amazing million times better. I wish I would have known how good I feel when not drinking and what life is like without it. If my life ever gets back to normal medically I certainly never will return to drinking like I did before. Life is just better without it. Relationships, the way I feel, and everything else around me.

 

[Team4LongGun]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

 

[Customweld]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

Continuously have a water bottle in my hand. As long as I have something to fill that void of having a drink in my hand, I don't really notice it not being beer. The first few minutes are still kind of tough, but then you start to see the alcohol kick in to every one around you and you start feeling alot better about the situation.

 

[Bulldawg]

Cool thread and I haven't read all of it. But, No drinks for me for 11 years, officially have not drank longer than for when I did. One thing that is kind of funny for me to see is peoples reaction when they ask me if I want a drink for the first time and I say I don't drink they get all weird and worried that I'm in recovery or something and they feel like they need to be hiding their drinks from me. Nope, I just don't drink do what you want.

For those of you quitting, congrats, it's awesome, spend less money, feel better, don't have to worry if you can drive home at night! And hopefully for you the desire to have a drink occasionally wanes even more and you really don't want to drink any at all ever.

Keep up the journey men!

 

[Superx3]

Congrats to you all! I don’t drink but maybe a few a month and always feel worse for it. My question is have any of you guys tried U Relax? I have been seeing adds on it and have been thinking about buying some for a friend that drinks way to much but says he can’t sleep and wind down with out alcohol.

 

[BravoNovember]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

For me it’s just a no thanks when offered. I tried the NA beer thing a couple time, but don’t really care for it too much. I will go with a ginger ale, bubbly, bubblr or even a kombucha sometimes.

Closing in on a year with no alcohol, 99% of the time I don’t even think about drinking or alcohol. My relationship especially due to communication has greatly increased with my wife and daughter and I feel more present and less irritable.

If anyone is on the fence or feels like they should stop, I have had nothing but good come of it!

 

[North of 60]

Great thread. One thing that helps many is to remember we don't have to do this alone.

A positive/supportive peer system goes a long way...the spirituality of AA helps a lot of folks, some prefer church supported recovery groups, and some choose something secular. The particular path isn't as important as taking the risk to be on the journey.

 

[schmalzy]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

This was my biggest fear before I quit. For me, I really enjoy the NAs, but proceed with caution as I know for some of my buddies it’s a trigger for the real deal. Personally, they scratch the itch and make a big difference for me. I also drink a lot of sparkling waters.

I think the biggest thing is reminding myself that I’m on my own path, and that I’m not “missing out” I’m just on my own adventure. It can be trying at times; I try to laugh at myself as much as I can. More often than not I get questions and comments from people about it and it turns into a positive conversation.

Waking up early when everyone is hungover and going for a run or being super present and available as a husband and father also reinforces it for me when the doubt tries to creep in.

Hit 4 years last Saturday on the peak at Quandary. My wife joined me and was all smiles. Neither would have happened if I wouldn’t have hung it up.

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[Norcal18]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

NAs work for me. Iearned that it was mostly just having something in my hand, and I just like the taste, wasn’t really about getting buzzed or drunk. The Corona and Budweiser ones taste pretty close. That might or might not work for some people. I mostly use those in social situations and most people don’t even notice. At home I drink Spindrift carbonated flavored water.

 

[Finch]

NAs work for me. Iearned that it was mostly just having something in my hand, and I just like the taste, wasn’t really about getting buzzed or drunk. The Corona and Budweiser ones taste pretty close. That might or might not work for some people. I mostly use those in social situations and most people don’t even notice. At home I drink Spindrift carbonated flavored water.

At one of the weddings I went to this summer, I took some of my Busch NAs. They have the red ring around the top of the can. I do remember feeling a little ashamed/weird about having that in my hand. Not sure if most ppl even know what the red means but I felt a little weird about it. Not sure why.

The michelobe ultra zero slim cans are good too. I just hate that NA costs more than the real thing. I also find myself freely drinking and driving with an NA from the store. It'll be my luck that I get a DUI sipping on a damn NA.

 

[schmalzy]

At one of the weddings I went to this summer, I took some of my Busch NAs. They have the red ring around the top of the can. I do remember feeling a little ashamed/weird about having that in my hand. Not sure if most ppl even know what the red means but I felt a little weird about it. Not sure why.

The michelobe ultra zero slim cans are good too. I just hate that NA costs more than the real thing. I also find myself freely drinking and driving with an NA from the store. It'll be my luck that I get a DUI sipping on a damn NA.

Athletic probably has the most consistent good NAs. Some other smaller brands out there but Athletic is consistent and relatively easy to find.


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[Finch]

Athletic probably has the most consistent good NAs. Some other smaller brands out there but Athletic is consistent and relatively easy to find.


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I'll check em out... thanks!

 

[Kheimann]

This has to be my favorite thread bc of the camaraderie displayed here.

What are some of the things you guys do for an event with the fellas that traditionally was a beer fest?

My go to is just a coke in a glass as I used to drink alot of Captian and cokes so everyone is none the wiser. After everyone else is a few in they completely forget you aren’t drinking and don’t even try and pressure anymore. Then you can sit back and enjoy the show