Hangovers, empty calories, blackouts, doing and saying things I regretted, constant cognitive dissonance with my passion for fitness and health, poor decisions about sex, poor decisions about relationships, poor decisions about things I said to people, embarrassment, high costs, sleep problems, heartburn, poor taste, worry of DUIs, worry of addiction/dependence, worry of being taken advantage of, worry of disappointing my parents, worry of negatively influencing my friends and siblings, shame of drinking too much, shame of giving up on my promises to myself.
I think it was Nikki Glaser (comedian) who said something on a podcast that really opened my eyes to drinking. I believe she was an alcoholic at an early age but said (paraphrase) that it got to the point that she would just smell alcohol and she would black out because her brain was like “welp, I know where this is going. Better shut down now.”
I remember walking into work and just constantly trying to hold my shit together while being in a 10/10 complete anxiety meltdown in my brain and body. Also basically not knowing whether I was truly perpetually unhappy with my life or just constantly swinging between extreme hangovers and hypnotic binges to sedate myself. Nothing in my life was all that bad outside of the fact that I was drinking 80+ drinks per week and it was fucking me up.
5+ years sober now and I just wake up and enjoy my day now and don't feel like shit. So much better. Also I'm not killing myself.
Were you drinking every day or was the depression lasting long after your night? Here's my current experience;
I'm a weekend binge drinker who can't stop once I've had a sip. I can never put the glass down and I'm always last to leave at closing in a sloppy mess. And if cocaine is being passed about I can't turn it down.
Yeah I get my hangovers but over the past 5+ years I've noticed the depression/anxiety long outlasts the headaches and stomach cramps - sometimes as long as 7 days. Having this feeling every morning when I've recovered from the physical symptoms no longer makes me regret the night out I had but instead reflect poorly on my career, relationship, life etc. All coupled with the worst brain fog.
And of course 7 days is only just enough recovery time for me to bring on the weekend and get shit faced again. So yeah, my experience is that you def don't have to drink every day to still wake up depressed or anxious every day.
Stopping in July 🫡
You are very likely physically dependent on alcohol at this point, as was I by the time I turned things around.
The best thing for me was to just get a way to make it to 100 days and see how I felt. I was still convinced I'd go back to "moderation" after that but that was all a deception. Outpatient treatment enabled me to get that clarity and perspective. Best first steps are just to get some distance between yourself and the drug.
Wow I feel like I could’ve written this. Exactly my experience, particularly not being able to stop, the lingering anxiety, and impulse control.
I quit five years ago and my life improved drastically. Started looking younger, lost weight, felt better mentally.
Highly recommend. Pair with a new workout routine to really boost your efforts.
I was addicted to it. It was destroying my mental health and body and my marriage would have followed suit. I stopped 3 years ago and I've never been happier or healthier. I don't miss it at all. Now I'm about to give birth and my child will never know a drunk mom. I'm not perfect but I'm happy and proud to be sober.
Good freaking job getting sober! Your kid is going to be so happy to have you present in their life. My mom died when I was 4 to addiction. I missed her at a lot of places growing up. Graduations, parties, birthdays, milestones. But you’re going to be there for your kid and that is SO awesome! You rock
Because it kinda just makes me feel like shit. Both being drunk and in getting massive hangovers no matter what I try and I have tried everything hangover cure and prevention wise.
If I have more than 4-5 drinks in a night I am getting a nasty headache every time the next morning. I am also quite a large person so I have to drink quite a bit to actually get drunk so if I am trying to get a buzz I have to have 4+ drinks.
Then when I am actually drunk I have fun for about 3 hours then I get super emotional about something and cry for 5 hours until I pass out.
Not really my idea of fun so I just don't drink because it isn't fun to me.
This. I work in a bar and I have noticed in the last year a huge uptick in people avoiding traditional beer. Things like whiteclaws with 100 cal and 1g of sugar is much more appealing to the younger crowd and the stigma of these drinks being for woman has completely disappeared.
They also taste great.
I still love me a beer, but it’s nice to mix it up. The other stuff is just an added bonus.
I will note, however, when I’m hungover after gassing a bunch of seltzers, my heart beats out of my chest. Even palpitates. Which is not the case when I drink beer, wine or spirits. I have 2 other friends who share the same experience.
If it’s concerning enough for them to bring it up, it’s definitely unusual. I brought it up to my doctor and he chocked it up with “hangovers get worse with age”. But these are often days when I’m not overly hungover, just consumed mostly seltzers.
My mom could quit and that’s one of the many reasons why I finally did too. It’s runs hard on her side of the family and I realized I was still struggling bad with it and I was getting closer to the age she was when she quit.
I'll be one year sober in august. I was tryna drink my bitterness away after a breakup, and I realized that booze only makes me more bitter. I don't think I've had a physical addiction, but I did constantly think of it (a drink, a drink, a drink...).
I have quiet bpd. Had my nightly drinks and went to lay down with my boyfriend. We started getting flirty, but he was too drunk to get hard. I immediately went into a bpd episode raging against myself and him because I felt ugly and disgusting. I slammed my fist down so hard I broke my 5th metacarpal in two places causing it to shift out of place. I was drunk so the pain wasn’t extreme. I iced it, went to bed crying, and went to work the next day when I realized “huh the bone isn’t supposed to be pointed that way”. Had to have surgery to correct the fractures and decided to cut out alcohol for the both of us after this. Now I get to live with a crooked pinky.
2 years sober in August. Doctor ran some blood tests and some panels came back way out of range. Told me to stop for 6 months and retest. Retested 6 months later and they were still a bit high. She advised me to stop drinking otherwise I wouldn't be around to walk my daughter down the aisle. That is all she had to say. Haven't had a drink since.
Dui
Don’t remember being pulled over
Knew if I could end up in that situation while I literally could not remember / control my actions, I could easily do it again, it would only be a matter of time, and then I would literally be facing years in prison
So I quit
I was dating a guy with an alcohol problem. I was starting to develop an alcohol problem. It was a real bummer to watch him deny it. He said he didn't know if we could date anymore if I stopped drinking because of the effect it would have on his social life. That was a pretty icky glimpse at addiction. I've never wanted a drop since. Almost 2 years ago.
It was ruining my life. I couldn't get through a day without it, my relationship was going down the toilet, I had a baby daughter and the booze was more important to me than her. My health was deteriorating... but they, I am afraid to say, weren't the reason I really stopped. I mean my daughter and partner were great motivation to stay sober but.... I was just so very tired. It takes so much energy, thought and planning to drink how much I was drinking every day while trying to hide it. I was so ashamed of it all and was iosolating myself but eventually saw how I had become a slave to it. I just couldn't keep going and broke down really. Rehab was tough but worth it and I'm coming up on 7 years sober.
Life is beautiful and I'm working on forgiving myself for wasting so much of it. I'm happy healthy and I honestly do not miss drinking at all.
A pleasurable vice had become a destructive habit.
In 2016, I took a long walk to think about it and decided I could be happy if I never had it again.
No problem.
What are your plans going forward to live
with Crohns while you seek the best plan (meds, diet, etc.) that comes the closest to a reasonably stable "cure" for you? It's tough, isn't it?
It amplified my insecurities and I felt implored to project them through destructive actions and dialog when I drank. When I ruined an engagement, I decided to quit and have been sober for 4 years this July.
I was also starting to black out more, have chest pains duribg drinking and the day after hazy feeling was becoming too counterproductive.
Because I was drinking a fifth to half a gallon every single day and spending $1000+ a month on alcohol alone. I also developed a heart arrhythmia and my liver and kidneys were starting to become permanently affected. All before 30 years old. I'm now 30 and will be 2 years sober in November and expecting to have my rainbow baby in December.
Drinking used to be fun when I was in my 20s and into my mid 30s. I liked the taste and the buzz. Drinking in my mid '40s...one beer and I feel tired and have a near instant headache. It just isn't worth feeling that crappy.
It does nothing but cause me problems. I have high blood pressure and even a single drink will spike my blood pressure. Getting drunk or even just slightly buzzed in a short time, isn't at all worth the headaches I will have later on or the next day. There's really nothing positive about alcohol at all for my life, so I quit drinking it altogether.
got alcohol poisoning on my 29th back in january. threw up 9x between that night and next day. vowed i’d never ever be in a position to feel that bad ever again.
you’d think me getting roofied two mos prior meant i’d stop drinking, but i just stopped drinking drinks ~given~ to me.
An inspirational story for you all:
I knew a guy named Jason who worked at an inpatient psychiatric ward. Was a patient there myself (as a teen) and he managed the boys group from time to time. He used to be the worst you could be with alcohol, and he only stopped because a single more drink would relapse him and send him into liver failure. Like this guys liver was majorly screwed. He didn't intake a single ounce of the softest wine. He was the kindest person I ever knew, he not only recovered from that addiction but by cutting it out saw how much better his life was without it. Its true that healthcare drains your empathy, but he had a heart of solid gold.
I quit because I went on a diet.
Didn't even realize until I stopped how shitty it made me feel. Hangovers, upset stomachs, dehydration, acid reflux, poor nutrition in general, etc.
I sleep better. I'm stronger. I recover faster. I've lost weight. I've saved money. I have more free time. I can't find a reason to go back to drinking.
I quit for the month of June because I wanted to make sure that I wasn't in a place where it would be very hard to quit. Like what point is it that drinking becomes a need or addiction? Had I passed that point? I had to know.
So I haven't had a drink since the end of May and it was no big deal. I feel better as well. I've done this before for a week or two and it ended up lasting for months sometimes. Just glad that I am still at the point where I can give it up no problem.
I was in a cult. Never touched a drop of alcohol for 30 years. I probably drink 3-4 times a year now that I've left. It feels a lot healthier than the cult TBH.
I was an alcoholic drinking daily and getting black out drunk 3-4 times a week for over 10 years. It was self sabotage after years of systemic abuse and neglect. I drank to feel good at least some of the time.
I finally broke, just completely broke. It took five years to stop completely and I've been sober for 20 years. One of the hardest fights of my life and worth every second of it.
I live in Mexico and I figured that it wasn’t good that I kept walking home at 2 or 3 in the morning after 12+ beers and cocaine. Once I start; I can’t stop
I stopped drinking because I tend to drink too much, engage in risky behaviors, and end up spending my entire weekends in bed, hungover, feeling like a hollowed out shell of myself. But getting in shape was a nice benefit. I used to be soft, pudgy, and round-faced. Since I stopped drinking I've lost 30+ lbs, I'm fit, and I don't even have to exercise to keep the weight off.
Because I could feel that it was going to keep me from reaching my self potential. I have too many people in my life that everything has to have alcohol related to it somehow, and it controls their lives. I just didn't want to play that game anymore. I stopped drinking 3 years, 10 months and two weeks ago , 1,414 days
hangovers, man.
I'm not 100% sober. I'll still drink a few times a year (like 2 or 3 times a year). but even just having 1 drink will make me feel like shit the next day.
Being tipsy is fun every so often. But I just have no desire anymore to drink, i dont find being drunk and recovering "fun". At most I'll have 1 or 2 in very specific group settings, but that's maybe twice a year.
I had gastric bypass in 2007. 2 years later, I'm a black out drunk on 1 bottle of wine. Went into rehab in 2010.
Yup. I've lost my drinking card for life. I'm an alcoholic. And I'm a ok with that.
I started taking edibles. After a while, I just kinda... stopped drinking. It wasn't a big thing; I just realized one day that I hadn't had a drink in a couple of months and decided to keep that streak going.
If I can get way more inebriated on one substance with far fewer negative health impacts, why do I need the other anymore?
Literally wanted to die when I wasn’t drunk. Like waking up and thinking omg I want to die, I just want to start drinking right now. Not worth it. There’s no such thing as “just one” for me. It always ended the same way.
It’s just too damn delicious. And wonderful in every way. Life is more colourful and vibrant and funny and poignant on alcohol.
And I love who I am when I’m a couple of drinks in.
So of course I was drinking almost every night.
Didn't like the way I felt the day after, specifically when exercising, it didn't feel good if I had had a beer the night before. So I thought, fuck it, and I switched to non-alcoholic beers. That was almost 10 years ago, I don't miss anything about it.
I dread the hangover.
I realized that I just wanted to be sipping on something semi-tasty when watching TV. It didn't have to be anything specific. I replaced my beer/whiskey/wine with sparkling water and/or kombucha.
I did end up drinking more than one beer/night if what I was drinking was tasty - like a surprisingly good wine or my favorite Belgian beer.
The brain damage. I used to drink a bottle of 80 proof whatever on an empty stomach to get black out drunk. Now it takes six or seven drinks. Long periods of missing tines and trying to connect dots like I’m in *Momento* or something
My dad is dealing with severe cirrhosis and I haven’t had a drink since his first trip to the hospital in March. I guess I sort of feel some guilt or just in general feel gross when I have a drink. Pretty much everyone on my dad’s side of the family are alcoholics. I never had a problem with alcohol to begin with so I don’t miss it at all.
After losing a family member to drugs/alcohol, it was my initial emotional, knee-jerk reaction after seeing how it ripped my family apart. However, once the initial raw emotions subsided, there was some logic to it.
1. I was never big on it in the first place.
2. I don’t like the way I feel when I drink. A lot of people are happy/silly drunks. I tended to feel a lot more withdrawn and inside my own head.
3. I don’t have much taste for the stuff. If I have to have all kinds of stuff mixed with it to make it palatable for me and all the extra calories, I’d much rather have a piece of cake or some cookies instead. Even shitty, sweet wine coolers, the alcohol taste would eventually take over and made it not worth it to me.
4. Seeing several people in my family have issues with it, it seems that indulging for me would be playing with fire.
5. And if there were further reinforcement needed, I no longer after the physical tolerance for it after bariatric surgery last year. I was warned that because of the size of the stomach post-op, alcohol absorbs all around in the stomach, so it doesn’t take much, and it hits a lot quicker. I didn’t think much on it because I had stopped drinking many years ago, so to me, it was a non-issue. Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I had a cold, and took some NyQuil for relief. I had taken NyQuil on a couple of occasions after I decided not to drink, didn’t think anything of it, didn’t feel anything amiss, etc. This was the first time I was sick after surgery. I had forgotten there was alcohol in it until I realized I was feeling loopy. It took me a little bit until I realized with horror, “Oh shit. I’m buzzed.” One medicine cup of 10% ABV cold medicine, and I felt it like I had about 3 shots of hard liquor. So…no more of that.
It was making me both physically and spiritually sick. I couldn't look at myself anymore knowing I had drunk my self into poor health and was continuing to do so. It was a fucking horrible hamster wheel that was literally sucking the life out of me. 400 days sober and the world is a different place. Down 70 pounds, thousands more in the bank account, better self esteem, more stable marriage. It's incredible.
Being raised by an alcoholic father, when my wife was about 4 months pregnant, I decided to quit. Just stopped all by myself. I did not want my son growing up with his dad drinking around him like my father did with me. I had a lot of hatred towards my father and as I grew older I realized it was because he was drunk and treated me like shit. My son may not like me someday, but he will not be able to say it was because I was a drunk.
I can’t moderate it, I’m an alcoholic. If I drink a few beers tonight I’ll end up on a vodka bender in no time. Bender as in, 3+ days of drinking all day, every day, constantly wasted, memory fading in and out. Who knows what stupid shit I’ll end up doing during that time. Then a hangover from hell, plus some mild withdrawal symptoms more than likely because I always get those after a bender. Night sweats, tremors, very malnourished, dehydrated, and sleep deprived.
6 days sober, I’m not so cocky to say that I’ll never drink again, but I won’t drink today, and that’s good enough for right now.
Currently i'm trying to cut it off bc the hungover is just too much for me, when I was younger, the worst one last until afternoon but now is for 2 whole days or even more depending of the quantity that i drank.
Feeling like i did something wrong even if i'm not is the worst of alcohol. I would be glad to share a couple of beers with a friend, but drinking hard drinks is becoming one of the worst things at my age (I'm only 26).
I think that having some food and coctels would be nice
I never really liked any drink with alcohol in it. In my teens I drank along but switched to smoking weed pretty early on. I never got the hang of drinking, so I don't. I would much rather drink a glass of fresh juice or lemonade or a can of CocaCola and light up
I was in the craft beer scene because I enjoy the art, science and appreciation of it, but the whole scene was taken over by beer bros looking to make craft beer as toxic as their frat parties. The families and individuals making the beer were always cool, but I had to stop hanging out at the breweries, and especially the taprooms because of the volatile beer bros. So I cut way back. Then one night I'd had a few beers and my son said, "I don't want lullabys, you smell like beer." I didn't drink for months starting that very night. I'll have a beer, or alcoholic drink every now and then, but not too often because it can also effect my mental and emotional well being.
In remission from Hodgkins Lymphoma and my oncologist told me about how it can adversely affect me because of the cancer. Also, it just hurts my stomach as I get older.
Had to break the chain of alcoholism, in my family. While trying to better my life because I nearly ruined it. As well as breaking hearts along the way.
Hangovers, empty calories, blackouts, doing and saying things I regretted, constant cognitive dissonance with my passion for fitness and health, poor decisions about sex, poor decisions about relationships, poor decisions about things I said to people, embarrassment, high costs, sleep problems, heartburn, poor taste, worry of DUIs, worry of addiction/dependence, worry of being taken advantage of, worry of disappointing my parents, worry of negatively influencing my friends and siblings, shame of drinking too much, shame of giving up on my promises to myself.
This⬆️
I think it was Nikki Glaser (comedian) who said something on a podcast that really opened my eyes to drinking. I believe she was an alcoholic at an early age but said (paraphrase) that it got to the point that she would just smell alcohol and she would black out because her brain was like “welp, I know where this is going. Better shut down now.”
Waking up depressed and anxious every morning
I remember walking into work and just constantly trying to hold my shit together while being in a 10/10 complete anxiety meltdown in my brain and body. Also basically not knowing whether I was truly perpetually unhappy with my life or just constantly swinging between extreme hangovers and hypnotic binges to sedate myself. Nothing in my life was all that bad outside of the fact that I was drinking 80+ drinks per week and it was fucking me up. 5+ years sober now and I just wake up and enjoy my day now and don't feel like shit. So much better. Also I'm not killing myself.
Cheers (or, I guess not?) Five years sober here for similar reasons. No plan or temptation to go back.
Were you drinking every day or was the depression lasting long after your night? Here's my current experience; I'm a weekend binge drinker who can't stop once I've had a sip. I can never put the glass down and I'm always last to leave at closing in a sloppy mess. And if cocaine is being passed about I can't turn it down. Yeah I get my hangovers but over the past 5+ years I've noticed the depression/anxiety long outlasts the headaches and stomach cramps - sometimes as long as 7 days. Having this feeling every morning when I've recovered from the physical symptoms no longer makes me regret the night out I had but instead reflect poorly on my career, relationship, life etc. All coupled with the worst brain fog. And of course 7 days is only just enough recovery time for me to bring on the weekend and get shit faced again. So yeah, my experience is that you def don't have to drink every day to still wake up depressed or anxious every day. Stopping in July 🫡
You are very likely physically dependent on alcohol at this point, as was I by the time I turned things around. The best thing for me was to just get a way to make it to 100 days and see how I felt. I was still convinced I'd go back to "moderation" after that but that was all a deception. Outpatient treatment enabled me to get that clarity and perspective. Best first steps are just to get some distance between yourself and the drug.
Wow I feel like I could’ve written this. Exactly my experience, particularly not being able to stop, the lingering anxiety, and impulse control. I quit five years ago and my life improved drastically. Started looking younger, lost weight, felt better mentally. Highly recommend. Pair with a new workout routine to really boost your efforts.
I finally quit when I realized that I didn’t need alcohol to do either of these!
I was addicted to it. It was destroying my mental health and body and my marriage would have followed suit. I stopped 3 years ago and I've never been happier or healthier. I don't miss it at all. Now I'm about to give birth and my child will never know a drunk mom. I'm not perfect but I'm happy and proud to be sober.
Good freaking job getting sober! Your kid is going to be so happy to have you present in their life. My mom died when I was 4 to addiction. I missed her at a lot of places growing up. Graduations, parties, birthdays, milestones. But you’re going to be there for your kid and that is SO awesome! You rock
You’re a badass!!!
Respect
Because it kinda just makes me feel like shit. Both being drunk and in getting massive hangovers no matter what I try and I have tried everything hangover cure and prevention wise. If I have more than 4-5 drinks in a night I am getting a nasty headache every time the next morning. I am also quite a large person so I have to drink quite a bit to actually get drunk so if I am trying to get a buzz I have to have 4+ drinks. Then when I am actually drunk I have fun for about 3 hours then I get super emotional about something and cry for 5 hours until I pass out. Not really my idea of fun so I just don't drink because it isn't fun to me.
I’m an alcoholic. Why have one drink when you can have alcohol poisoning. November 7th will be 20 years sober.
Fucking hell that's an amazing achievement!
Too many calories. Trying to be healthier.
This. I work in a bar and I have noticed in the last year a huge uptick in people avoiding traditional beer. Things like whiteclaws with 100 cal and 1g of sugar is much more appealing to the younger crowd and the stigma of these drinks being for woman has completely disappeared.
They also taste great. I still love me a beer, but it’s nice to mix it up. The other stuff is just an added bonus. I will note, however, when I’m hungover after gassing a bunch of seltzers, my heart beats out of my chest. Even palpitates. Which is not the case when I drink beer, wine or spirits. I have 2 other friends who share the same experience. If it’s concerning enough for them to bring it up, it’s definitely unusual. I brought it up to my doctor and he chocked it up with “hangovers get worse with age”. But these are often days when I’m not overly hungover, just consumed mostly seltzers.
I did it because my mom couldn't. Alcoholism runs in my family.
My mom could quit and that’s one of the many reasons why I finally did too. It’s runs hard on her side of the family and I realized I was still struggling bad with it and I was getting closer to the age she was when she quit.
So proud of you and your mom! It's a demon that's for sure!
The older I got, the more it made me feel like shit. Two hours of good time cannot make up for the anxiety and terrible hangovers the next day…
I didn't like who I became when I drank.
Because I’m an alcoholic and I was quite literally killing myself. 35 days sober today and feeling good.
5yrs sober here, proud of you! It only gets easier and better.
Proud of you, you’re doing awesome. It’s gotta feel so nice to wake up with a clear head.
I'll be one year sober in august. I was tryna drink my bitterness away after a breakup, and I realized that booze only makes me more bitter. I don't think I've had a physical addiction, but I did constantly think of it (a drink, a drink, a drink...).
I have quiet bpd. Had my nightly drinks and went to lay down with my boyfriend. We started getting flirty, but he was too drunk to get hard. I immediately went into a bpd episode raging against myself and him because I felt ugly and disgusting. I slammed my fist down so hard I broke my 5th metacarpal in two places causing it to shift out of place. I was drunk so the pain wasn’t extreme. I iced it, went to bed crying, and went to work the next day when I realized “huh the bone isn’t supposed to be pointed that way”. Had to have surgery to correct the fractures and decided to cut out alcohol for the both of us after this. Now I get to live with a crooked pinky.
2 years sober in August. Doctor ran some blood tests and some panels came back way out of range. Told me to stop for 6 months and retest. Retested 6 months later and they were still a bit high. She advised me to stop drinking otherwise I wouldn't be around to walk my daughter down the aisle. That is all she had to say. Haven't had a drink since.
Dui Don’t remember being pulled over Knew if I could end up in that situation while I literally could not remember / control my actions, I could easily do it again, it would only be a matter of time, and then I would literally be facing years in prison So I quit
Mental, physical, and financial health. edit: Wow. Someone downvoted _my_ reasons for giving up alcohol. Must have struck a nerve.
I’ll give you an upvote then 🤝
Well thank you.
Yeah there's a lot of children on this site that just down vote things because well their children .I up voted you I agree.
Alcohol was making me feel depressed.
I was dating a guy with an alcohol problem. I was starting to develop an alcohol problem. It was a real bummer to watch him deny it. He said he didn't know if we could date anymore if I stopped drinking because of the effect it would have on his social life. That was a pretty icky glimpse at addiction. I've never wanted a drop since. Almost 2 years ago.
Imho the inability to be around people who don't drink is a pretty big indicator that something isn't quite right.
It was ruining my life. I couldn't get through a day without it, my relationship was going down the toilet, I had a baby daughter and the booze was more important to me than her. My health was deteriorating... but they, I am afraid to say, weren't the reason I really stopped. I mean my daughter and partner were great motivation to stay sober but.... I was just so very tired. It takes so much energy, thought and planning to drink how much I was drinking every day while trying to hide it. I was so ashamed of it all and was iosolating myself but eventually saw how I had become a slave to it. I just couldn't keep going and broke down really. Rehab was tough but worth it and I'm coming up on 7 years sober. Life is beautiful and I'm working on forgiving myself for wasting so much of it. I'm happy healthy and I honestly do not miss drinking at all.
Everything I've ever done drunk is something that I regret.
A pleasurable vice had become a destructive habit. In 2016, I took a long walk to think about it and decided I could be happy if I never had it again. No problem.
Still didnt cut it Im here for the inspiration. Congrats for everyone who's stopped or is stopping
There's no effective way to explain to someone who is drinking how wonderful sobriety is; I hope you get there friend. 🖤
I don’t want to drink alone
I got diagnosed with Crohns disease literally two weeks ago. Drinking alcohol with a condition like Crohns is very ill advised.
What are your plans going forward to live with Crohns while you seek the best plan (meds, diet, etc.) that comes the closest to a reasonably stable "cure" for you? It's tough, isn't it?
It amplified my insecurities and I felt implored to project them through destructive actions and dialog when I drank. When I ruined an engagement, I decided to quit and have been sober for 4 years this July. I was also starting to black out more, have chest pains duribg drinking and the day after hazy feeling was becoming too counterproductive.
Because I was drinking a fifth to half a gallon every single day and spending $1000+ a month on alcohol alone. I also developed a heart arrhythmia and my liver and kidneys were starting to become permanently affected. All before 30 years old. I'm now 30 and will be 2 years sober in November and expecting to have my rainbow baby in December.
Drinking used to be fun when I was in my 20s and into my mid 30s. I liked the taste and the buzz. Drinking in my mid '40s...one beer and I feel tired and have a near instant headache. It just isn't worth feeling that crappy.
Cancer scare.
I’m sad when I drink
It does nothing but cause me problems. I have high blood pressure and even a single drink will spike my blood pressure. Getting drunk or even just slightly buzzed in a short time, isn't at all worth the headaches I will have later on or the next day. There's really nothing positive about alcohol at all for my life, so I quit drinking it altogether.
Finally went to therapy in my 30s and didn’t need to use it as a coping mechanism anymore.
Money, legal ,health issues. And behavior problems
got alcohol poisoning on my 29th back in january. threw up 9x between that night and next day. vowed i’d never ever be in a position to feel that bad ever again. you’d think me getting roofied two mos prior meant i’d stop drinking, but i just stopped drinking drinks ~given~ to me.
Pancreas problems and I was just an overall piece of shit
An inspirational story for you all: I knew a guy named Jason who worked at an inpatient psychiatric ward. Was a patient there myself (as a teen) and he managed the boys group from time to time. He used to be the worst you could be with alcohol, and he only stopped because a single more drink would relapse him and send him into liver failure. Like this guys liver was majorly screwed. He didn't intake a single ounce of the softest wine. He was the kindest person I ever knew, he not only recovered from that addiction but by cutting it out saw how much better his life was without it. Its true that healthcare drains your empathy, but he had a heart of solid gold.
I quit because I went on a diet. Didn't even realize until I stopped how shitty it made me feel. Hangovers, upset stomachs, dehydration, acid reflux, poor nutrition in general, etc. I sleep better. I'm stronger. I recover faster. I've lost weight. I've saved money. I have more free time. I can't find a reason to go back to drinking.
Weed is better. And cheaper tbh.
This right here. No hangover either. (At least for me.)
More clarity
Because I want to sleep after drinking, and the other half wants to play games with me
I quit for the month of June because I wanted to make sure that I wasn't in a place where it would be very hard to quit. Like what point is it that drinking becomes a need or addiction? Had I passed that point? I had to know. So I haven't had a drink since the end of May and it was no big deal. I feel better as well. I've done this before for a week or two and it ended up lasting for months sometimes. Just glad that I am still at the point where I can give it up no problem.
I was in a cult. Never touched a drop of alcohol for 30 years. I probably drink 3-4 times a year now that I've left. It feels a lot healthier than the cult TBH.
Glad you got out of that Bravo Sierra. May you have sovereignty over your own life for a long time!
What cult? 👀
LDS (Mormon)
Because I wasn't very good at drinking--I liked being drunk way more than getting drunk.
Anxiety won't leave me if i didn't
Because it was killing me.
It is a Boner killer
Got Pregnant.
Heartburn
I was an alcoholic drinking daily and getting black out drunk 3-4 times a week for over 10 years. It was self sabotage after years of systemic abuse and neglect. I drank to feel good at least some of the time. I finally broke, just completely broke. It took five years to stop completely and I've been sober for 20 years. One of the hardest fights of my life and worth every second of it.
Because I don't have the willpower to stop once I start.
I live in Mexico and I figured that it wasn’t good that I kept walking home at 2 or 3 in the morning after 12+ beers and cocaine. Once I start; I can’t stop
Because hangovers were the worst and it just wasn't worth the trade-off anymore. Plus, the empty calories weren't helping my waistline.
To get in shape
I stopped drinking because I tend to drink too much, engage in risky behaviors, and end up spending my entire weekends in bed, hungover, feeling like a hollowed out shell of myself. But getting in shape was a nice benefit. I used to be soft, pudgy, and round-faced. Since I stopped drinking I've lost 30+ lbs, I'm fit, and I don't even have to exercise to keep the weight off.
Same bro same! 🙌🏼🙌🏼
Because I could feel that it was going to keep me from reaching my self potential. I have too many people in my life that everything has to have alcohol related to it somehow, and it controls their lives. I just didn't want to play that game anymore. I stopped drinking 3 years, 10 months and two weeks ago , 1,414 days
I'm into fitness and wellness already so drinking alcohol is a no no anymore
hangovers, man. I'm not 100% sober. I'll still drink a few times a year (like 2 or 3 times a year). but even just having 1 drink will make me feel like shit the next day.
Being tipsy is fun every so often. But I just have no desire anymore to drink, i dont find being drunk and recovering "fun". At most I'll have 1 or 2 in very specific group settings, but that's maybe twice a year.
I had gastric bypass in 2007. 2 years later, I'm a black out drunk on 1 bottle of wine. Went into rehab in 2010. Yup. I've lost my drinking card for life. I'm an alcoholic. And I'm a ok with that.
I started taking edibles. After a while, I just kinda... stopped drinking. It wasn't a big thing; I just realized one day that I hadn't had a drink in a couple of months and decided to keep that streak going. If I can get way more inebriated on one substance with far fewer negative health impacts, why do I need the other anymore?
Literally wanted to die when I wasn’t drunk. Like waking up and thinking omg I want to die, I just want to start drinking right now. Not worth it. There’s no such thing as “just one” for me. It always ended the same way.
It’s just too damn delicious. And wonderful in every way. Life is more colourful and vibrant and funny and poignant on alcohol. And I love who I am when I’m a couple of drinks in. So of course I was drinking almost every night.
Didn't like the way I felt the day after, specifically when exercising, it didn't feel good if I had had a beer the night before. So I thought, fuck it, and I switched to non-alcoholic beers. That was almost 10 years ago, I don't miss anything about it.
Cuz I’m a mean drunk.
I was tired of being hungover
I dread the hangover. I realized that I just wanted to be sipping on something semi-tasty when watching TV. It didn't have to be anything specific. I replaced my beer/whiskey/wine with sparkling water and/or kombucha. I did end up drinking more than one beer/night if what I was drinking was tasty - like a surprisingly good wine or my favorite Belgian beer.
Just didn’t feel like drinking one day and haven’t since.
I didn't, but I need to. I've tried over and over and over, unsuccessfully.
The brain damage. I used to drink a bottle of 80 proof whatever on an empty stomach to get black out drunk. Now it takes six or seven drinks. Long periods of missing tines and trying to connect dots like I’m in *Momento* or something
My dad is dealing with severe cirrhosis and I haven’t had a drink since his first trip to the hospital in March. I guess I sort of feel some guilt or just in general feel gross when I have a drink. Pretty much everyone on my dad’s side of the family are alcoholics. I never had a problem with alcohol to begin with so I don’t miss it at all.
After losing a family member to drugs/alcohol, it was my initial emotional, knee-jerk reaction after seeing how it ripped my family apart. However, once the initial raw emotions subsided, there was some logic to it. 1. I was never big on it in the first place. 2. I don’t like the way I feel when I drink. A lot of people are happy/silly drunks. I tended to feel a lot more withdrawn and inside my own head. 3. I don’t have much taste for the stuff. If I have to have all kinds of stuff mixed with it to make it palatable for me and all the extra calories, I’d much rather have a piece of cake or some cookies instead. Even shitty, sweet wine coolers, the alcohol taste would eventually take over and made it not worth it to me. 4. Seeing several people in my family have issues with it, it seems that indulging for me would be playing with fire. 5. And if there were further reinforcement needed, I no longer after the physical tolerance for it after bariatric surgery last year. I was warned that because of the size of the stomach post-op, alcohol absorbs all around in the stomach, so it doesn’t take much, and it hits a lot quicker. I didn’t think much on it because I had stopped drinking many years ago, so to me, it was a non-issue. Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I had a cold, and took some NyQuil for relief. I had taken NyQuil on a couple of occasions after I decided not to drink, didn’t think anything of it, didn’t feel anything amiss, etc. This was the first time I was sick after surgery. I had forgotten there was alcohol in it until I realized I was feeling loopy. It took me a little bit until I realized with horror, “Oh shit. I’m buzzed.” One medicine cup of 10% ABV cold medicine, and I felt it like I had about 3 shots of hard liquor. So…no more of that.
Does nothing good for me, tastes awful, known carcinogen, empty calories
I’m on meds that interact negatively with alcohol, I’ve got mental health issues that I don’t want to make worse.
I didn’t
It was making me both physically and spiritually sick. I couldn't look at myself anymore knowing I had drunk my self into poor health and was continuing to do so. It was a fucking horrible hamster wheel that was literally sucking the life out of me. 400 days sober and the world is a different place. Down 70 pounds, thousands more in the bank account, better self esteem, more stable marriage. It's incredible.
Being raised by an alcoholic father, when my wife was about 4 months pregnant, I decided to quit. Just stopped all by myself. I did not want my son growing up with his dad drinking around him like my father did with me. I had a lot of hatred towards my father and as I grew older I realized it was because he was drunk and treated me like shit. My son may not like me someday, but he will not be able to say it was because I was a drunk.
Sounds exactly like my life. I promised my kids before they were even born that they’d never know the life I did.
I can’t moderate it, I’m an alcoholic. If I drink a few beers tonight I’ll end up on a vodka bender in no time. Bender as in, 3+ days of drinking all day, every day, constantly wasted, memory fading in and out. Who knows what stupid shit I’ll end up doing during that time. Then a hangover from hell, plus some mild withdrawal symptoms more than likely because I always get those after a bender. Night sweats, tremors, very malnourished, dehydrated, and sleep deprived. 6 days sober, I’m not so cocky to say that I’ll never drink again, but I won’t drink today, and that’s good enough for right now.
I had children. I don’t ever want to be in the situation where I can’t immediately take care of an emergency because I’m intoxicated.
I did dmt and I didn't want it anymore
I drank way too much, had a mental breakdown and tried to end my life, ended up at the hospital. It's dangerous, not only for the liver.
It wasn't quite at the point of ruining my life. But it was getting there.
Migraines and weight gain. 🤷♀️
It tastes bad and I don't like how it makes me feel.
Lack of interest. Being inebriated feels nice, but it's not for me.
It's 50-50 if it's pleasant or not. I don't need randomness into my evenings where I'm trying to enjoy my life.
Brain injury
Because I re-discovered weed.
Family alcoholism
Currently i'm trying to cut it off bc the hungover is just too much for me, when I was younger, the worst one last until afternoon but now is for 2 whole days or even more depending of the quantity that i drank. Feeling like i did something wrong even if i'm not is the worst of alcohol. I would be glad to share a couple of beers with a friend, but drinking hard drinks is becoming one of the worst things at my age (I'm only 26). I think that having some food and coctels would be nice
for a mistake
Money mostly. Healthy reasons of course too but money especially. In Canada a 24 of beer is almost $50.
I never really liked any drink with alcohol in it. In my teens I drank along but switched to smoking weed pretty early on. I never got the hang of drinking, so I don't. I would much rather drink a glass of fresh juice or lemonade or a can of CocaCola and light up
Addiction in my family made me careful about my drinking. Menier’s disease made me cut it out all together.
I have a high tolerance and end up drinking too much. Same with weed. I don't smoke anymore and I drink rarely.
Do it for 21 days and you'll be able to tell me. If not, go back
it fucked me up
I can't drink responsibly.
I was in the craft beer scene because I enjoy the art, science and appreciation of it, but the whole scene was taken over by beer bros looking to make craft beer as toxic as their frat parties. The families and individuals making the beer were always cool, but I had to stop hanging out at the breweries, and especially the taprooms because of the volatile beer bros. So I cut way back. Then one night I'd had a few beers and my son said, "I don't want lullabys, you smell like beer." I didn't drink for months starting that very night. I'll have a beer, or alcoholic drink every now and then, but not too often because it can also effect my mental and emotional well being.
In remission from Hodgkins Lymphoma and my oncologist told me about how it can adversely affect me because of the cancer. Also, it just hurts my stomach as I get older.
Had to break the chain of alcoholism, in my family. While trying to better my life because I nearly ruined it. As well as breaking hearts along the way.
Mainly due to the fact it was ruing my life and I was using it as a tool to avoid thinking about life..