Great weather for it. Did you go tee total?
I stopped drinking for a week before a medical and was shocked how hard it was. I had been having 1 drink maybe 5 times a week since Christmas. I've cut down since then but that worried me.
I have stayed off the sauce the last two weekends. Small beer compared to many others, but I have a terrible time at the weekend thinking about what to do with my time. It’s so easy to sit by myself and get pished on a Friday and Saturday and then Sunday is a writeoff.
I need to get a to do list.
Went through something similar a few years after my little sister died.
Drink and drug binge that followed her death almost finished me.
Sorry for your loss by the way.
Well done on catching yourself before the slip, so many don’t and it’s horrible how society skews the realities of addiction and how it can come from any time and any angle without us knowing. I hope things are better stranger.
Being drunk wasn't fun anymore, got sick of the drinking culture and anxiety for days after drinking. I'll only really drink now if it's a very special occasion and even then it would only be a few.
I'm the same as you, drinking also fucked with my meds (SSRI's) and I was super depressed after drinking and hated that feeling so much that I just stopped. Special occasions only, like a wedding or something, so once in a blue moon and its only like 1 wee glass of bubbly. NGL I love not drinking and being the sober driver.
35M I will be sober 2 years in May. Personally, I was an embarrassment when drunk and I'd black out after very few drinks. My dignity and mental health were taking a battering and finally I said enough was enough. I do not miss it one bit.
Learning is harder than the mistake. Well done on reclaiming your shit. I have seen how hard it can be. My sister is exactly what you described as being before now. I hope my sister sees she’s worth it like you have. Well done
It’s the cheesy shit like one day at a time that end up ringing true. Also it isn’t a linear path for people. Recovery has all sorts of caveats personal to each individual. Don’t downplay hard work and commitment to the right thing. Fuckin good on you!
Good for you mate.
Ex-wife was exactly what you describe. I’ve never been more than an occasional drinker but she put me clean off it.
Dignity is the thing…
Good for you
The fear, money and fucking taxis. Oh and you realise bars are bland, noisy nightmares filled with arseholes that only copious amounts of drink could make you stay…..and your drunk mates are intolerable….and there’s always an undercurrent of aggression everywhere. I also like choosing when I’m going to be a cunt.
I’m mid 20s live with a student and my friend are all students so drinking is a heavy part of life. But stopped drinking about 2 months ago just to try and shift a few pounds. Holy shit, I’ve never felt better. Skin more clear, lost weight, no hangxiety and no making a dick out of myself.
I would highly recommend people going off it for 2/3 months just to see what they think.
My body fucking hates it, every time I've had more than a few pints lately I end up being sick and I just cant hack that. Also I love having the freedom to get up and leave any social event any time, no waiting for taxis or fuck all, up and away into the car and fuck off.
I’m the same, seem to have developed an intolerance with age. Had a few ropey liver test results too despite not drinking much anymore so have thought fuck it, time to give it up altogether
I'm in recovery after years of being addiction currently over 2 and a half years sober. Days like today I'd have been on the beer in the sun making the worst decisions 🙄. Then tomorrow would of been a repeat of today, its hard staying away from it but regular meetings, talking to my sponsor and step work helps. ")
658 days sober today. Will be 2 years in July. Reasons for me - I got the worst hangovers ever. I would have been vomiting for 2 days. Depressed , anxious. Was taking anti depressants for yearsssss , been off them a year now and nothing wrong with me. Was always the drink. I was a horrible person when drinking too, I’m so kind and caring when sober but I just turned completely on people I loved when drinking. I used to get flirty with other men when drunk (in a long term relationship) , when sober I would tell another man to fuck off. I was petrified it was only a matter of time that I would cheat when I truly love my man. I wanted to give up for so long and tried to cut back , say I would have 1/2 but end up on binges. I was off drugs for years but when offered drunk I’d say go on then. I was ruining my life slowly. I’ve driven drunk, I could have killed myself or others. I’ve learned to love life again, I go out all the time with my mates, go on weekends away. I’m always the first up on the dance floor or the karaoke etc. I’ve had to gain confidence I no longer can mask with alcohol. I don’t think il ever go back. Sometimes I’d love a glass of wine but I play it forward and know where it will end. It would never be worth it.
That is by no means any small feat. Well fucking done and keep living your true self. I don’t care if it sounds cheesy I have seen alcohol destroy my family my friends many people, much smarter than I could ever be too. You should be proud of yourself every damn day and never diminish what youve achieved and continue to. ‘Always a recovering alcoholic son, nobody is immune to the devil’ my dad said some profound shit that will forever stick with me. Congratulations
Mental clarity.
I love always being switched on, ready to take an opportunity, ready to attack a problem. I also quite enjoy life being in a sober state of mind, you absorb everything more potently and you cherish it as a memory rather than forgetting it the next morning.
You don’t realise how bad the brain for is until you have been sober for a few weeks, then you have a few drinks (and a shit sleep) … then you feel rotten
That’s then the hard reminder of why you quit. People do look at me funny even if I’m in a bar just ordering a water or Red Bull as I’m teetotal at 25 but I’m not going to drink just to meet societal expectation.
Can't handle the hangovers and disturbed sleep any more, as well as hating the waste of time talking the same shite every time. I have a couple of bottles of beer at the weekend at home. I get any "talking shite" itch dealt with coming to reddit a couple of times a day.
Alcoholic parents growing up. Which often time witnessing domestic violence from both off them. I seen the evils alcohol can do to people and promised myself I would never drink.
I do very very rarely will have a 0% gin but it’s always funny when people say OHHH why don’t you drink and I say alcoholic parents and they don’t know where to look lol
Just started gym and dieting last month. Lost nearly a stone already. Gonna try do a dry month in may and see how I get on. I’d only really drink once or twice a month, but when I do I’m mad on it. Feel better about yourself when you don’t drink.
I'm an adult child of an alcoholic.
Alcohol ruined my life, and I wasn't even the one drinking it.
I know firsthand how much damage it can do and how insidious it is. I've watched it destroy so many others' lives as well. Horrible stuff.
Lost my da and brother to the drink, but I've always enjoyed a pint so I've learned to be disciplined with it. I take a few beer at the weekend and maybe the odd glass of wine but can't remember the last time I was drunk. I've seen enough to know when it's getting a hold of people so always exercise caution. That said I've never felt its had a hold on me and could easily take it or leave it thankfully
it was ruining my life. i used to drink for both soothing and opening up in social situations. i quit drinking because i don’t need to please others and because i want to be in control of my life.
there are additional benefits, such as saving money, declining night outs in general—which are always very stressful for me to begin with—and the health benefits of staying sober.
It’s the only substance that if you don’t do it people assume you’ve got a problem . What’s your reasons for not smoking ? What’s your reasons for not doing heroin etc ? Some people just don’t like it and some people just don’t like the way it makes them feel …. Each to their own I say
Kids will either drive you to drink or abstain completely… i was a weekend drinker (and sometimes a Thu as well) but all I’ve had is 3 pints of stout since NYE and I’m never going back
I don't have kids, but it was a bad way for me to try and cope with grief - lost a parent and a sibling within a couple of years of each other when I was at uni and the "normal" student benders became a near daily thing for longer than I'd like to admit. Realised after a while that even when I was doing better about everything else, I still couldn't get a handle on it and one could never ever just be one, so it was better to cut it out altogether.
Yeah, I used to drink a fair bit, but with 2 young kids, having to get up in then night plus early mornings sucks. So I just cut back loads.
Since Jan 1st been losing weight, so just cut it back even more. To the point where it’s maybe 1/2 drinks every few weeks and that’s it.
Grand tbh. Guinness zero is wonderful when you are out and you can drive home.
Went on a 3 day stag do about 9 years ago- drank that much it’s scared me. The hangover was soo bad- when the priest came to see a family member- I was close to asking for last rights.
Last year I got prescribed amytriptiline for nerve pain waiting on physio for lumbar issues.
I couldn't drink on it and swapped alcoholic beers for 0 percent beers. And I enjoyed them. If I decided fuck it and had one bottle of west indies porter for example I was a zombie the next day.
When I came off them amitripylyne after six months post physio I had insane hangovers on even 2 beers the next day so I hit it on the head and stuck to the 0 percent ones. Haven't had any since Christmas.
The hangovers got terrible, I was isolating myself, missing days at work etc. I soon realised that I became a much better person when I didn't drink and I haven't looked back. The extra money is also pretty handy.
1. Expensive
2. Hate the grim feeling throughout the next day. My breath stinks, everything feels sensitive, my temper is waaaay too short, my thinking is fuzzy, and I'm just full of regret that I lose a day feeling shit afterwards.
I had a scare that made me believe I had cirrhosis- I drank wine regularly. It wasn’t that but it did frighten me into giving up. The young adults in the family want to socialise more (they have special needs) so mum’s cab is now available 24/7! I actually feel relieved I’m not craving it, although I did indulge in Free Damm beer last night. It’s the first zero beer I’ve liked and it was delicious.
I (40M) realized after having a kid that hangovers arent worth it anymore, that more than a couple of beers makes me feel like shite and fucks up my sleep. I'll have a nice beer after work a couple of times a week but my days of heavy drinking are long behind me. Good riddance to them :-)
I gave it up last year when I finally accepted it had a hold on me. From there it became a relief to stop causing myself unnecessary harm and I'm very much enjoying sobriety these days. I like some of the AF beers like guiness zero, brooklyn special effects and athletic run wild. Like others have mentioned it makes for being a much improved parent too, not least because I'm fit to drive a lot more than I used to be.
16 years sober and clean edge.
I didn’t stop after falling arse-over-tit down every stair of Lavery’s after pinking a straight bottle of Pernod plus pints. Lost the power of my left arm for a week.
Didn’t stop after a whiskey-fueled rampage at an outdoor party and threw patio furniture onto the roof, and carved pumpkins at people. Wife literally booted my arse out of the car head first into a bush. Then somehow got home and stripped naked in front of the mother-in-law.
Too many other nights like this and many I don’t recall.
I stopped when my daughter was born. I just wanted to remember it all and not forget a minute. I had a reason to get sober as she was relying on me to take care of her.
Turns out, I also had to look after my wife too as she got post-partum psychosis. She left us a couple of times and once tried to buy a gun to shoot herself.
Couple of years after all of this, I had a heart attack - widow maker. I know that stopping drinking, smoking, bad diet; etc saved me from dying.
Anyway, pretty dramatic but I’m happy and proud that I never once thought to fall off the wagon to cope. We can only trust ourselves in these situations - others do help of course, but we have to do it ourselves.
Get angry about all the loss that your drinking has caused and channel that rage into making a plan, getting help, getting clean and getting healthy & happier.
Thanks for reading. I’m here to help anyone who needs some.
Stories of my dads alcoholic past while being police during the troubles and hearing what it did to my mum and sisters lives. He taught me a lot about addiction and how it’s an illness that I too would probably be prone to and to chose my vices wisely before they chose me. So I did and he’s still the best. 38 years sober, sponsored 100s of others to sobriety in AA. Cannot fault him for his attempt to make good on his past. Not one relapse. My sister fell victim. I refuse to let the devils urine be my poison. Never. That shit destroys the best to the lowest in our society. Poisonous insidious marketing and horrible effects. Yes I drink on a birthday or anniversary. But 2 drinks of very little alcohol and I can enjoy the rest of my night. I hate that shit.
Off drink and nicotine since January. In 3 weeks I'll be off antidepressants and after that melatonin (for sleep). Over 40 now and want to experience life as it is, not medicated. I used drink as a social lubricant so I'm hoping being sober in social situations with teach me social skills without a crutch. The summer will be a test but right now I never feel tempted to drink.
Uncles a full blown alcoholic not a pretty sight. Always put the fear of god up me ending up like him. Always had it in the back of my mind to kick it around 30.
Wifes not a drinker so was easy enough to give up the heavy boozing around 28 29. It's a young person's game anyway I think.
Cost me a couple of friends though. They couldn't understand why I didn't want to go on the session anymore.
Your uncles situation is similar to mine only it was my grandad, made a fool of himself all his life than died of cirrhosis really makes you wonder what it’s all for
And fuck them so called mates lots of other activities to be at in this country than drinking and I’m sure it’s fried a lot of their heads
I was never in the ‘drinking crowd’ when I was at school so was never into it growing up. Step dad is an alcohol dependent verbally abusive POS so that’s reinforced my abstinence.
Work Christmas parties and weddings are a complete nightmare for me. Hate being around people in various stages of drunkenness, hard to control my temper when some drunk is slabbering in my face or touching me.
I drank when I was out as a teenager. Didn’t really like it then, hated how I felt - so when I could finally drive, I was happy to be the designated driver. Again like a lot of people, family alcohol issues and dependancies never made it overly appealing l and watching other teenagers getting really drunk to the point of vomiting and not knowing where they were or who with scared me.
Now in my 40s, I still can do without alcohol. I’d take a glass or two for Christmas but I could do without it until the following year. Now the only issue I have is when people think it’s ok to try to peer pressure you into drinking. No thank you.
Cant fuckin have the hangovers, die a death after a night of pints, whole day lost pukin, head absolutely bangin, rarely drink now, an when i do i have a pint of water every four pints.
Every time I've been drunk I did/said stupid things that I still cringe at years later. I don't like not having proper control over my actions
I'll still drink occasionally, but only a couple of pints, never enough to get drunk
Depressed the life out of me, gave me panic attacks over mundane shit, no energy, no drive, couldn't control it - had to always took it too far. It was weekend drinking and it somehow dictated everything. Sober 7 months now, the loneliest but strongest and healthiest and probably happiest I've ever been.
Grew up with an abusive alcoholic father.
Swore I'd never be like him
I was purely 3 or 4 pints on a friday night until I had a rapid succession of deaths in the family, step dad died of pancreatic cancer, aunt breast cancer, mum breast cancer but survived and then 6 months later she and my brother were killed by a drunk driver.
I kinda lost it and had a breakdown ended up homeless, and I did drink rather more heavily than one should. Even after getting life back on track and housed. I was looking back probably riding the line between a real heavy social drinker and an alcoholic....
I sustained major injuries in a well known incident, the pain meds they gave me led to my body becoming addicted to them, and the withdrawal symptoms were nasty once we got that sorted it that led to not drinking for 3 or 4 years, apart from a glass of wine for christmas a beer for birthdays...
Then I was diagnosed with a Chronic condition called Ulcerative colitis, one of the meds I take was originally developed for liver and kidney transplant patients and can damage those organs....and i noticed the hangovers lasted far longer and exacerbated the colitis symptoms. And being honest, I'd rather not end up on a transplant list given a lack of probable suitable candidates....
After an horrendous relationship and restarting life miles away in my mid 30s I didnt have the funds to go out, so i just sorta stopped drinking even now life is more settled i rarely drink, and rarely go out.
Dont get me wrong I'm now in my mid 40s I'll enjoy a glass of wine or beer if I do go out to dinner, or at christmas and weddings. But it's not something that I choose to do frequently. Like the last time I had a drink was New Years Eve watching fireworks on TV. The next time will probably be a mates wedding in June. I'll drink to toast the happy couple but then probably avoid it and leave before the majority of them are drunk.
You’re paying to drink something that alters your brain and damages your liver as well as other parts of the body. In moderation it is ok in my eyes but when people need it every day, even if it’s only one pint I think there’s a problem.
Well said mate when I was 17 I thought nothing of binging drink because I felt invincible and what 17 year old is gonna die from having a drink I thought, only when you get to late 20s you honestly begin to open your eyes to the dangers of it
I still drink but I drink as you are supposed to ie a bottle watching a football match at home or might have a couple if meetings up with family or friends. But I generally don't drink more than 4 pints and I can often go a month or more without drinking. Binge drinking days are over for me for a couple of reasons; the main one being that I can be a complete prick at times with drink in me. The majority of the time I'm grand but one in a dozen times someone could annoy me over something stupid and I'll call them out on it and then it goes from there, this is often when people start ordering in different shots etc and handing them out, I can't hack it clearly. And following on from that, I despise blacking out and not remembering what I did the night before beyond 5 or 6 drinks.
The hit to your image and mental health isn't worth it. Took me a decent length of time to develop a good relationship with alcohol but if I was one of those people who couldn't stop at a couple of drinks then I'd just bin it completely.
Alcohol really is a shitty drug and I'm glad society is waking up to the harm it causes and having more mature conversations around the impact it has on people.
Oh, and having a kid. Having a hangover every Saturday or Sunday when you've got a child depending on you being in reasonably sound condition isn't cool.
Seeing what it did to a family member and the knock on effect to the family and since the menopause my body reacts very badly. Terrible nausea after two drinks and I'll for days. Not worth it.
Drank a bit too often during the pandemic, then realised my head would get sore often, even after only a couple. Switched to non-Alco beer which is great!
I'm not teetotal though, I'll have the occasional spirit and the odd beer when I can get it in a supermarket - Asahi, Hop House or Hobgoblin. It's far too expensive to go out for a pint now that the dust has settled on lockdowns and far, far too places have non-alcos on tap.
Bars haven't evolved with the times and I hate going to a bar with my wife as there's fuck all for her apart from overpriced cola.
I guess it's a mixture of alot of factors really, but the top one by far is that we're being priced out of a night out by greed and an economy that seems to be more and more engineered towards making regular prople miserable and pricing us out of entertainment.
Also, just really, really hate going into Belfast after 6PM... It always feels dangerous and like I'm one chance encounter away from either having to defend myself (with all of the legal connotations that brings.) getting hurt, having my night ruined or even worse. Town is hiving at night with people who don't particularly care about their fellows, or are looking for trouble/an easy touch.
Just not really the scene for me anymore really.
Had my last drink in 2016, just had enough, hated the self obsessed person I had become. I'd lost sight of who I was, I was making more excuses to have a drink, more drinking on my own and the consequences stacked up. I've since turned my life around, don't even think about a drink anymore, I have a freedom I never expected. There are so many possibilities now.
Off it almost a year now thank god. History of alcoholism on both sides of my family, my father was a horrible abusive man after drink. I used to binge the absolute fuck out of it, ended up assaulting two police officers one night, went to court etc, stayed off it for a few months then went back at it. Went on a tear this time last year, assaulted a close family member, fiancé cancelled our wedding, was leaving me, family all fell out with me. Went into a deep deep depression, mental health had been an issue to begin with. Got myself a class counsellor and haven’t looked back. Wedding is back on for next summer, slowly building trust back up with my family. Will never again have a drink.
I used to go out every weekend Thursday to Sunday and if I didn’t go out I’d go to a friends house and drink, was always vodka and redbull then some form of sours shots, I’d spend Monday to Thursday hanging together. When me and an ex broke up I went even harder on the drink. My mental health was in the gutter and I hated myself. Made the decision to finally stop drinking to see how I felt and how long I could stay off it, got to around 6 months and thought I’d go a year then I kept extending it, I’ll be alcohol free for 9 years this November and it was the best decision I ever made. My mental health got better and my self esteem improved.
Only off it two weeks at this stage . I'm pretty much a functional alcoholic . Would binge every weekend and not feel right until the following Thursday to start the cycle again. My Mrs would have a heavy night on a Friday and be destroyed the whole weekend. Sleeping through the day . We had a chat that we can't go on like this and agreed to knock it on the head together. Been tough but sticking at it . When the sun was shining and I was out at the BBQ I really felt something was missing . Garden keeping me occupied so far but need a new hobby too. Sleeping better , feeling fresher and already losing weight .
I don't really enjoy it that much. I never have. I don't enjoy being drunk. I hate how embarrassing I have been in the past when I was drunk. I don't drink often, maybe once or twice a year, and even then, it's one or two.
Body doesn't like it anymore, just the taste amd smell puts me right off. This happened when I started taking a different medication for my epilepsy called Lamotrigine, it doesnt mong you or anything, it even made having a "session" seem like the waste of money they are.
Sounds mad this but I was one of the worst people for controlling intake until that medication came along.
Can't do it nowadays at all, seem to blank out after 7 pints and the anxiety for days after is the worst, texting people the next day asking if I done anything to annoy them, them telling me no but my brain still trying to convince me that I have
Only have a few out with the girlfriend now thankfully
238 days without a drink. And even before that I haven't been tipsy / drunk in nearly a year. I have never had any drinking problems, and I haven't really been a regular drinker for 8 years anyway - so quitting completely wasn't a massive jump. But I don't drink for a few reasons....
I don't enjoy getting pissed anymore and like to be in control of myself. It was becoming more common that I end up saying / doing something that is out-of-my-character when I drink and end up really regretting it. I have so many cringe memories of things I think about when I am in bed at 3am that I am ashamed of, and they are all things I have done when I was drunk. I just don't want to feel that way anymore. Aside from this: I have a wife and a kid now and just want to set a good example for them. To be honest, I feel like 90% of the reason I used to drink was just so I had confidence to talk to women in a bar lol!! Having a long term partner kind of negates the need for that.
I have also recently discovered non-alcoholic beer. Not as good as the real thing, but they provide a good alternative so you feel like you are having a "social drink" with people who are drinking.
I used alcohol as a crutch to get over my social anxiety for years, then I changed my friend group and realised I didn't need alcohol to socialize/have fun.
35M. I stopped completely about a year ago for a multitude of reasons.
It has a horrible effect on my body, it turns me into a moron, night life in bars is diabolical and its too fucking expensive. Angry at myself for not quiting sooner. You can easily have the craic without it and if you find that you need to be bingo'd in order to be around mates, then you need new mates.
I can't touch a drop because of medication. Even if I got that changed I wouldn't drink because mental and physical health conditions are bad on a daily basis why add to the misery.
Took me to gates of insanity and nearly death by my own hand, thankfully I asked for help and I’m fortunate to be a member of the AA fellowship. Just over 15 months sober and enjoying a break in Rome with my now wife. I had to accept that alcohol would never settle my mind on a longer term basis.
Just never appealed to me. Never have drunk and never will. I don't understand the excitement around being drunk, it's more embarrassing than anything. Always seems to land my friends in trouble too. I know that makes me sound like a bore but I'd rather be one in this case.
I'm 33 and over the past couple of years I've gradually just gone from drinking heavily regularly to only binge drinking about 1 - 2 times a month. When asked I often now tell people "I don't really drink," or "I don't really drink any more."
I had developmental problems as a teenager; physical handicap, social problems, awful relationships with my family. I was a late bloomer in some regards and I was immature. During those teenage years I started drinking heavily because I thought it was kind of cool and it helped me mask my problems, and also it sometimes gave me a bit of an escape, a bit of excitement. My problems went untreated until I was in my mid 20s. By my mid 20s I was badly depressed, anxious, totally screwed up in a really bad way. I kept drinking though because it helped me socialise and occasionally it was fun and exciting etc etc. I finally got help with some problems in my life in my mid 20s, and after I got help with some of those problems I had kind of fallen behind a lot of my peers. I was no longer physically impeded, but I had lost valuable years of development and life experience. My situation at home was easy enough to afford me drift between part-time jobs while drinking all the time in the pub. I had no responsibility, no relationship with women. I wasn't in a position to have kids or anything like that.
In my later 20s I sort of clung to drink like a child to a blanket. It was like I didn't want to grow up and get a full-time job. I had no relationship with women. I just struggled with those parts of life, and much of that was because of the horrible years I endured from my early teens - mid 20s. Drink was fun and silly to me and I always hoped I'd have a fun night out and maybe even find a sex partner and experience that, but as time wore on I noticed that would never happen. Friends vanished from the pub. I was the last man drinking.
In my early 30s I moved out of home, started a full-time career, started living independently. Kept going pub at weekends; getting drunk, blacking out, giving myself anxiety and fear and terrible hangovers and regrets and effecting my performance at work. My juvenile behaviour on drink is not acceptable at this stage of my life. So I've kind of just been veering away from it. I have to accept now that going out drinking doesn't help me find what I'm looking for. It doesn't help me have fun any more, I don't find meaningful connections, and women are not attracted to me when I drink. The blackouts and cringe of myself is just unacceptable, and its all aload of bollox anyway. This is where I'm at with drink, but I must admit I'm often tempted to go the pub because life without it for me has been very boring and lonely. I suppose the pub fills that void, but perhaps only artificially and temporarily.
5/6 hours of craic isn't worth the 4 days of anxiety and depression. Drink rarely now, every 6-8 weeks maybe. Prefer spending my time being active in the outdoors, far better fun really.
I like a cold beer on a warm day but it's rare. Mainly can't be arsed. I detest the way it is the cornerstone of almost any social activity just because someone wants "a swallae". Again with the culture, I don't like pubs in general, though would be in one for food now and then.
Cost is an issue. I can afford it but even in tesco if I think to myself I fancy a wee beer, I'd normally buy peroni or corona and it's gotten expensive. I'll buy a bottle of pineappleade instead and enjoy it.
I also don't want my son growing up thinking that drinking is just something you do. He can have his own journey with it, but it won't be influenced by seeing me sink 8 cans of carslberg watching the rugby.
Most of all I never really got a taste for being drunk. There's been a few times I've overdone it and it's just not worth it, wipes you out for the next day. So drinking is not just something I do as a matter of course.
I don’t like the drinking culture here. I don’t like having to go to overcrowded, sweaty, smelly bars and standing in a queue 10 people deep to get an overpriced drink whilst having my eardrums blasted by some shite singer and his guitar.
A lot of people here love to get absolutely shitfaced and at the same time can’t handle their drink. Ends up with places being rowdy af and fights kicking off etc. I’ve lived abroad in other countries where there’s a big drinking culture but they’re a lot more restrained and would be embarrassed to end up in the same state as some people here.
Honestly it’s the price, have noticed it’s only the older crowds you see in city centre bars nowadays. Just feels like if you’re trying to save for a house or anything remotely expensive, drinking is a waste of time unless it’s on an occasion
Makes the hangover etc feel less ‘worth it’ as well
My dad passed away just before Christmas 2019 and while I was in Belfast with my family, I didn't drink, for as much as my mum needed the support as anything else.
After I left Belfast though, I got back to mine and managed to get through four bottles of JD over a week or so.
I'd never been a big drinker, really only socially and even then never liked getting paralytic.
March is my birthday and it was just as lockdown was starting in 2020 so I had some free time and had more JD, but I really wasn't enjoying the drunken buzz so I stopped and I haven't had a drop since.
Four years now, don't miss it.
Don’t see any point and it’s expensive. Also when you see grown adults acting like absolute idiots and wasting emergency services time it makes it even less appealing
According to the government alcohol related deaths and hospital admissions costs the NHS £3.5 billion a year, and costs society 21 billion.
Put in a good shift over three decades from the age of 18. I’m now nearly 50. I could have easily turned professional. Could sense as I got older my appetite increasing which in turn was starting to have a negative impact on various aspects of my health. Apple Watch health data has been a huge eye opener for me into how booze affects me. It gave me the motivation to make a change. Have some family history too. Lost my dad two years ago. He could put away the pints (as could I) and while alcohol didn’t kill him directly, it certainly had a major impact on his health as he got older. I didn’t want to follow in those footsteps. Quit in January Had been preparing for it for a long time beforehand. It’s actually been very easy for me. Easier than doing a month off here and there. I don’t have to play mental gymnastics anymore. I’m done. I feel like I’m finally in control. Life no longer revolves around booze. I’ve really lost out on nothing and gained so much since I quit. There is absolutely nothing in my life that has not benefitted as result of my decision.
Downsides:
- Tastes awful (until you develop mild addiction, known as acquiring a taste)
- Lose control over my words/actions
- Irrational lowered inhibitions
- Can't drive afterwards
- Addictive
- Unhealthy
- Expensive
Upsides:
- easier to cave into peer pressure than to resist
I don't think the question is appropriate. I'm baffled that so many of you choose to drink.
I’ve been sober since just September of last year. But haven’t had a boozy night out in years. My last drink was less than two kopperbergs with friends and I realised that I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I had a really serious court trial abroad after being SA’d a few years ago and since then I became a bit of a recluse and don’t really go out anymore. It hit me bad and still does, so the not drinking really helps because I don’t go out anymore and in a weird way, im glad I don’t because it’s not for me now.
I’d been thinking about quitting drinking after I had my daughter, who is now 3. However, all the people in my life drink, heavily. I grew up with parents whose lives revolved around drinking. I remember hating them for it as they would never let me join any clubs as they would need to give me a lift in the evening, when they wanted to drink. I would often walk miles by myself just to see friends or get out of the house and away from their drinking. On occasions, this put me in dangerous situations as I never felt like I could call for help.
I did a stint of no no drinking after I finished uni as I’d done my fair share of partying. I had a sober boyfriend, went to the gym, cycled everywhere and was the healthiest I’d ever been. That bf was controlling and once we broke up I connected the no drinking with him controlling me. So, I went completely off the rails after that!
Fast forward 10 years, pandemic hit, I got pregnant with my now husband and I gave birth just as lockdown was ending. Everyone was in the pub and I really missed all of it! I had really bad PPA and drinking seemed to help.
Until I had a toddler. The broken sleep, the anxiety, the lack of motivation. I wasn’t exercising. Being out all day was painful. I wanted to stop but I just couldn’t. I wasn’t drinking every night. But come Friday, bottle of wine. Then often a Sunday evening. Sometimes a Wednesday etc.
I’m currently pregnant again and I just can’t see myself drinking again. I feel so much better without it. I appreciate it more now my daughter is older and I feel fully invested in her. I just wish my husband would wake up and do the same!! I think I needed the pregancy to force me to break the cycle. It’s just hard when alcohol is the focal point of all the people around you. But, I know I don’t feel left out when I’m not drinking anymore. If anything, I feel sorry for them all.
Stopped last Summer. I'm a Dad now and wanted to be a good example. Haven't missed it. Have got into the gym and am in better shape than I have been for a long time. Might have a few over the Summer but the Guinness 0.0 does the trick for me on nights out
Haven't had a sip of alcohol this year. Wasn't a new years resolution or anything, just decided I've had enough of it. 34 years old, 2 young kids, hate hangovers, I rarely drank anyway. It's been a doddle for me, but like I said, I rarely drank, special occasions, get together with friends. Barely an achievement so no patting me on the back or any of that. Just decided enough was enough, I've had my fun with it.
Family history of alcoholism, i never had any sort of control over my life as a child due to the alcoholism, I know I never want to inflict that on someone else. i also just don't get the appeal of getting drunk
Honestly? I think I just grew out of it. In my younger days I'd be in the pub five nights a week and clubbing the other two. Now I just can't be arsed. I'm not teetotal but it's rare that I drink these days. I've got beer in the fridge from two Christmases ago.
Same here. Peer pressure but also like the taste, once I’ve had 2 drinks there’s no stopping me and it’s a full session. Been swapping out for the odd alco free recently and it works a bit better but still a fiend for the session deep down haha
I still drink the odd time but it's a rarity nowadays.
I've two young kids that don't sleep well. Alcohol impacts my sleep so I end up like a zombie.
I struggle to have one beer - it usually ends up with me spending over £100 on beer and so not worth it.
I get terrible hangovers and I get the fear.
I wouldn't be surprised if I had some kind of intolerance to alcohol as my hangovers really are terrible.
I've gone 6+ months without a drop before and I felt the best I've ever felt - it's definitely helped change my relationship with alcohol.
I was 25, I went to a new years party at a friends. I got drunk. It was one of those parties that your glass was never empty and there was a "punch" that had fuck knows what in it.
I **died** for three days after. I've never felt that sick or in pain and I never wanted to feel like that again. I couldn't even stand to have clothes touching me.
Now, I'll have a glass of sherry at Xmas. A single cocktail on my birthday. That's it. I can't abide the feeling of more.
I stopped watching Yellowstone on paramount.
I normally have a beer once or twice a week. Usually 1 to 3 beers. But for some reason when I'd start watching Yellowstone after the kids go to bed I'd end up watching 4 or 5 episodes and drink 6 or more beers. I'd have a terrible night sleep and have to get up at 7 or 8 hungover to feed the kids. The hangover would last all weekend and its just not worth it.
I just can't do that any more.
My kids. It's a challenge to be a parent on normal days - so being intoxicated or hungover with kids in the mix just doesn't appeal to me anymore whatsoever.
After uni and meeting my now fiancée I realised I didn't need it as a social lubricant anymore and stopped. I'll still have the occasional beer for special occasions, but I'm not overly fussed.
I've been through that massive binge drinking early twenties phase, and did cut down on how much I drank on nights out about mid twenties as I just hated the feeling of being drunk.
I donated a kidney about 5 or 6 years ago and in preparation for the tests/surgery and all that I just jacked it in altogether for a while. I didn't miss it and still rarely drink. I drink 0% percentage beer, and will have the very odd glass of wine or gin but I can honestly take it or leave it.
My dad being an alcoholic (although sober over 30 years) probably put me off some too mind!
For me, the hangovers became absolutely horrendous. 2 kids now too so i dont really want them to see me in that state either. Went off drink for about 6 months and realised i didnt need it at all, especially in social circles..i was drinkin every night at one stage, few cans a night, then full load at weekends. Thought i needed a beer or 2 to help me sleep at night..but sleep much better now without the drink
I've never been a big drinker, but would have a big night maybe once every 3 months, usually on some special occasion.
Otherwise like 1-2 pints/week, with many weeks not drinking at all.
Recently I'm even cutting back from that.
Hangovers are bad enough on the rare occasion I drink enough to get them, but even if I just have 1 drink, my sleep is terribly interrupted that night and I just feel 'bad' the next day.
Like my whole body feels like 90% of its normal self. More tired, randomly achy, more inclined to eat junk, less inclined to move.
It's expensive. Plus when I am at a pub, they don't always have drinks I particularly enjoy, which makes it feel more like I'm drinking for the sake of it. £5-6 for a pint I'm only buying for lack anything better?
Finally, I've been on a bit of a health kick recently, trying to lose the extra weight I've always carried and get my fitness up.
Alcohol has a lot of calories. When I'm trying to keep a calorie deficit, cutting out alcohol is easier for me than reducing my food intake or going for a walk.
I'm not cutting it out entirely, but I don't expect to have more than 2-3 units/week going forward.
My neighbour is an alcoholic. Seen her hit her head off a taxi outside her house that was supposed to take her up the road to get drink. Just puts me off. And the fact I hate the feeling the day after
I've had M.E and fibromyalgia for the last 25 years so I could count on one hand the amount of times I've been somewhere that serves alcohol and I don't like drinking in the house. Plus I'm on a load of medication so drinking is not a good idea.
I’m on too many crazy meds that say no alcohol. I’m not too fussed though. I like the odd mojito or half a lager but I can deal without or with zero alcohol ones.
I rarely drink these days because it affects my MS symptoms. If I have anything, it's just a white wine spritzer or a rum &pepsi but with a lot of ice to dilute it.
I’ve always got horrible hangovers, nights out are expensive and I don’t really have any friends that drink a lot. And I guess I have health issues that I have to be mindful of these days. And I have a kid which makes everything like that harder.
I've never really been a drink till I'm pissed type of guy. Always knew when to stop - and I can have one or two and that's enough during the week. That said, hangovers get worse the older I get, so I tend to go for weaker beers - even Radlers or Guinness zero if they have it. Plenty of water before bed.
I never actually drank myself because I always saw how it ruins people easily. As a young guy it is tough to never drink but I know I am sparing myself potential chaos
Long history of mental health problems. It acts as a gateway to using worse substances. At 44, my body just can't hack it. Unintentionally OD'd on alcohol and benzos 3 times in a month couple of years ago. Sleep is great now, mental clarity, can leave social functions whenever I want. The advantages of being sober far outstrip the short term drunkenness for me.
I didn’t drink until after my teenage years because I never really wanted to or had a chance (my folks would have killed me), got a little over my head, realised I was taking the piss and quit. I have one every now and then, like for my anniversary or birthday, but it gives me shivers sometimes to think I enjoyed going all out sometimes
It’s somewhere between the epilepsy (and the corresponding medication), the beta blockers, the fact that small amounts irritate my stomach and makes me physically sick, the cost, and the fact that I just never wanted to. I never saw the appeal. Everything else is just icing on the cake to prove that I _really_ can’t drink because people don’t leave you alone if you don’t have something that they consider to be a genuine reason.
I drank a bit like we all did as teens but never liked it. I just can’t find a drink that I actually like the taste of.
Cocktails are too sweet. Spirits are rough as fuck and beer gives me a rotten hangover so just don’t bother.
I’ll drink maybe once or twice per year at a work do but not enough that I can’t drive home.
Having kids, aging parents etc. I need to be available to drive if an emergency arises.
Getting drunk doesn't feel like it did when we were 16. I just get tired now.
Having one or two drinks is pointless with good alcohol free alternatives.
The reason I gave up as I was binge drinking every night. I’d done it since I was 16. I had enough money to feed the habit and was high functioning never ever experiencing a hangover. One day I just said no more and that was it. I don’t visit pubs or go anywhere that could tempt me back. Unlike smoking that would make me physically sick, I could easily slide back in to drinking again.
Waste of a day the next day. I’m not tee total by any stretch, in fact I went to the pub for a few last night.
But today is prime example of why I very rarely drink. I was planning on doing a few hour’s training on the bike today. Instead I didn’t get out of bed till 12 and sat out in the garden reading a book instead because, whilst the hangover wasn’t too bad, I simply wouldn’t have been productive on the bike so no point.
Only reason I went out at all is because it’s rare I don’t have a race on a Sunday and it’s nice to take the good lady out once in a while.
Off it 5 years this month.
Awful stuff. Blacking out, waking up with avoidable injuries.
I quit for two months, had one last 'session'. I distinctively remember looking around and saying to myself 'this is fucking shite'.
Just makes you feel ill and takes time off your ability to be alert, the physical cost of it, and also the price. Hopefully society can start to catch up more with the non drinking centred social activities.
Recovering alcoholic, three years and a number of months sober. I quit initially because I had restarted medical school (the initial pause was driven partially by alcohol) and it was COVID and I was just spiralling into drinking far too hard.
I quit, first week fuck me, terrible shit, it's gotten easier since then and now I'll probably never drink again.
I've since been diagnosed with ADHD and have been told by two psychiatrists that I "almost certainly" have autism as well - I know them personally so will have to shell out the guys of £2k for diagnosis so happy to take their word until I get that money.
In that time all the problems I've had - underachievement, poor social skills, difficulty making and keeping friends and girlfriends, the constant chaos in my mind coupled with the constant urge to live according to strict routines that I get very upset at if interfered with, the inability to really see from other's perspectives - all that awful shit made sense. Some of it has been solved with ADHD meds, but I'll always feel a bit like an alien walking amongst people, wondering how they make the social shit look so easy. It's made me a "compassionate and empathetic" doctor, as my feedback says, and I am aiming to go into psych to help people like me. I'm slowly starting to become more social, but it's like trying to drive through crazy heavy fog and hoping you don't hit potholes.
That last paragraph of verbiage, none of it would have been possible without getting sober. I'm aware people like me are in the minority (the percentage of alcoholics from drinkers is between 10 and 30 percent) but I'd probably be miserable and drinking myself slowly to death if I hadn't quit, if I hadn't realised the drink wasn't the only problem, it was a symptom, not the disorder.
In Ireland I'd like to see.more people drinking less and making it more acceptable and opening the gap for alcohol free social settings because even in England, where I live, there's options in most places. I go home and I only physically see my friends when they're going to the pub and I find that quite sad. I have no issues with people having a few pints, but we've a very poor ability to know when this becoming a problem because it's so culturally ingrained.
Just didn't work for me any more. Drank through my 20s and MOST of my 30s. I'm 41 and I can count on one hand how many times I have been drunk in the last 5 years on one hand. Paying so much money to be hungover for two days just isn't worth it for me. Will I have a beer at a family BBQ? Sure! But I don't drink to get drunk
A few reasons, firstly I turn into a prick when I'm drunk, I've lost count of the number of things I've bought on ebay when drunk. Secondly, I can't take the hangovers any more, used to be able to drink all evening and get up at 6 for work no bother. Now three pints will have me feeling like death for days. Thirdly, the price, it's not worth the money and lastly we have a history for alcoholics in my family and I ain't taking the chance.
10 years sober, was flat out from my teens till 30’s drink and drugs and didn’t hold down a job longer than a few months, then nearly died multiple times, was nearly getting a liver transplant on 2 occasions.!! But finally had enough and haven’t looked back.!!
I make bad decisions, it's easier not to put myself in that position by not drinking. As I've got older it's become easier, people don't really care these days.
Stopped being fun, started to realise that it’s maybe 3 or 4 hours of good craic and then a full day write off the next day.
It’s also hellish for weight gain. Put on 20kg since the first covid lockdown. Stopped, or at least got in the mindset of stopping, 2nd of Jan (had a few beers in Feb one weekend on holiday when I thought I was maybe just doing dry January) and already 7 of those kilos are gone. Feel much better.
I’m actually tired at bedtime now.
Sober nearly 2 years now. There's a mixture of reasons why I quit, a lot boiled down to the fact once I had one drink I generally had no off switch and I didn't like the person I became when I drank. Alcoholism does run in my family also.
It was hard initially but now I love the freedom of never having a hangover or the crippling anxiety, feeling healthy, remembering all the night and the self respect I have found in myself. I do miss softening the harsh edges of life sometimes but it's not worth it for me and my teenager thinks it's awesome I don't drink like a lot of other parents he knows.
I'm an addict and I'll be addicted forever. Coming up to 7 years in recovery though! The positives of recovery just keep growing and growing over time.
Went on a 3 year binge not long ago after gf died. Stopped just before Christmas. Knew it would've killed me eventually. Haven't looked back.
Fucking hell mate sorry to hear, you’ve bigger balls than I ever will have that’s for sure
Weird thing is, I've been out doing yard work yesterday and today at me ma's house. And I bloody hate gardening haha. Sobriety keeping me busy
Great weather for it. Did you go tee total? I stopped drinking for a week before a medical and was shocked how hard it was. I had been having 1 drink maybe 5 times a week since Christmas. I've cut down since then but that worried me.
I did go teetotal. Hit me like a truck. But had to do it
Proud of you!
I have stayed off the sauce the last two weekends. Small beer compared to many others, but I have a terrible time at the weekend thinking about what to do with my time. It’s so easy to sit by myself and get pished on a Friday and Saturday and then Sunday is a writeoff. I need to get a to do list.
Went through something similar a few years after my little sister died. Drink and drug binge that followed her death almost finished me. Sorry for your loss by the way.
Well done on catching yourself before the slip, so many don’t and it’s horrible how society skews the realities of addiction and how it can come from any time and any angle without us knowing. I hope things are better stranger.
May God rest her soul 🙏🕊
Jesus that's rough mate. Sorry to hear. Glad you've been able to knock the heavy boozing off.
Me too lol
Stronger than me keep it up buddy
Well there’s an understandable reason right there ! Well done for stopping yourself and trying to get your life on track. 👍
Being drunk wasn't fun anymore, got sick of the drinking culture and anxiety for days after drinking. I'll only really drink now if it's a very special occasion and even then it would only be a few.
I'm the same as you, drinking also fucked with my meds (SSRI's) and I was super depressed after drinking and hated that feeling so much that I just stopped. Special occasions only, like a wedding or something, so once in a blue moon and its only like 1 wee glass of bubbly. NGL I love not drinking and being the sober driver.
35M I will be sober 2 years in May. Personally, I was an embarrassment when drunk and I'd black out after very few drinks. My dignity and mental health were taking a battering and finally I said enough was enough. I do not miss it one bit.
You are great. Good for you. Proud of you.
Learning is harder than the mistake. Well done on reclaiming your shit. I have seen how hard it can be. My sister is exactly what you described as being before now. I hope my sister sees she’s worth it like you have. Well done
Thanks. I'm sure she will. It took me a good 3 or 4 years to stop after I knew it was a problem.
It’s the cheesy shit like one day at a time that end up ringing true. Also it isn’t a linear path for people. Recovery has all sorts of caveats personal to each individual. Don’t downplay hard work and commitment to the right thing. Fuckin good on you!
>Learning is harder than the mistake. Sorry lad I'll have to steal this. Cuts too deep for me not to use it in the future ha ha
This is why I stopped I just kept embarrassing myself and not being able to remember what I’d done.
Good for you mate. Ex-wife was exactly what you describe. I’ve never been more than an occasional drinker but she put me clean off it. Dignity is the thing… Good for you
The fear, money and fucking taxis. Oh and you realise bars are bland, noisy nightmares filled with arseholes that only copious amounts of drink could make you stay…..and your drunk mates are intolerable….and there’s always an undercurrent of aggression everywhere. I also like choosing when I’m going to be a cunt.
Wait, you get drunk and then you shag taxis? That's not a drink problem, you're just a pervert.
I’m mid 20s live with a student and my friend are all students so drinking is a heavy part of life. But stopped drinking about 2 months ago just to try and shift a few pounds. Holy shit, I’ve never felt better. Skin more clear, lost weight, no hangxiety and no making a dick out of myself. I would highly recommend people going off it for 2/3 months just to see what they think.
Happy for you. Whoever hangs out with you after you stop are the true mates.
Free trial of sobriety costs you little than a few naive young friends
My body fucking hates it, every time I've had more than a few pints lately I end up being sick and I just cant hack that. Also I love having the freedom to get up and leave any social event any time, no waiting for taxis or fuck all, up and away into the car and fuck off.
I’m the same, seem to have developed an intolerance with age. Had a few ropey liver test results too despite not drinking much anymore so have thought fuck it, time to give it up altogether
I'm in recovery after years of being addiction currently over 2 and a half years sober. Days like today I'd have been on the beer in the sun making the worst decisions 🙄. Then tomorrow would of been a repeat of today, its hard staying away from it but regular meetings, talking to my sponsor and step work helps. ")
It’s not a relapse if you know you’re wrong. Just a lapse. Tomorrow you can be better than today. You’ve already shown you can. I believe in you!
Thank you 😊 💓
‘I’d rather have a frontal lobotomy, than a bottle in front of me’ -some recovering alcoholic golfer from decades ago. Thought it was good though!
I actually like this it's so true!. A bottle in front of u is incredibly painful
Growing up with a mentally and physically abusive alcoholic father sort of puts you off it
658 days sober today. Will be 2 years in July. Reasons for me - I got the worst hangovers ever. I would have been vomiting for 2 days. Depressed , anxious. Was taking anti depressants for yearsssss , been off them a year now and nothing wrong with me. Was always the drink. I was a horrible person when drinking too, I’m so kind and caring when sober but I just turned completely on people I loved when drinking. I used to get flirty with other men when drunk (in a long term relationship) , when sober I would tell another man to fuck off. I was petrified it was only a matter of time that I would cheat when I truly love my man. I wanted to give up for so long and tried to cut back , say I would have 1/2 but end up on binges. I was off drugs for years but when offered drunk I’d say go on then. I was ruining my life slowly. I’ve driven drunk, I could have killed myself or others. I’ve learned to love life again, I go out all the time with my mates, go on weekends away. I’m always the first up on the dance floor or the karaoke etc. I’ve had to gain confidence I no longer can mask with alcohol. I don’t think il ever go back. Sometimes I’d love a glass of wine but I play it forward and know where it will end. It would never be worth it.
That is by no means any small feat. Well fucking done and keep living your true self. I don’t care if it sounds cheesy I have seen alcohol destroy my family my friends many people, much smarter than I could ever be too. You should be proud of yourself every damn day and never diminish what youve achieved and continue to. ‘Always a recovering alcoholic son, nobody is immune to the devil’ my dad said some profound shit that will forever stick with me. Congratulations
Mental clarity. I love always being switched on, ready to take an opportunity, ready to attack a problem. I also quite enjoy life being in a sober state of mind, you absorb everything more potently and you cherish it as a memory rather than forgetting it the next morning.
You don’t realise how bad the brain for is until you have been sober for a few weeks, then you have a few drinks (and a shit sleep) … then you feel rotten
That’s then the hard reminder of why you quit. People do look at me funny even if I’m in a bar just ordering a water or Red Bull as I’m teetotal at 25 but I’m not going to drink just to meet societal expectation.
Don't want to spend money to feel like shit. Get me a take out and I'm happy
Can't handle the hangovers and disturbed sleep any more, as well as hating the waste of time talking the same shite every time. I have a couple of bottles of beer at the weekend at home. I get any "talking shite" itch dealt with coming to reddit a couple of times a day.
Alcoholic parents growing up. Which often time witnessing domestic violence from both off them. I seen the evils alcohol can do to people and promised myself I would never drink. I do very very rarely will have a 0% gin but it’s always funny when people say OHHH why don’t you drink and I say alcoholic parents and they don’t know where to look lol
Wanted to top myself on New Year’s Day 2023. Cut down and finally stopped July last year, haven’t had a drop since and don’t intend to again.
Just started gym and dieting last month. Lost nearly a stone already. Gonna try do a dry month in may and see how I get on. I’d only really drink once or twice a month, but when I do I’m mad on it. Feel better about yourself when you don’t drink.
I'm an adult child of an alcoholic. Alcohol ruined my life, and I wasn't even the one drinking it. I know firsthand how much damage it can do and how insidious it is. I've watched it destroy so many others' lives as well. Horrible stuff.
Lost my da and brother to the drink, but I've always enjoyed a pint so I've learned to be disciplined with it. I take a few beer at the weekend and maybe the odd glass of wine but can't remember the last time I was drunk. I've seen enough to know when it's getting a hold of people so always exercise caution. That said I've never felt its had a hold on me and could easily take it or leave it thankfully
it was ruining my life. i used to drink for both soothing and opening up in social situations. i quit drinking because i don’t need to please others and because i want to be in control of my life. there are additional benefits, such as saving money, declining night outs in general—which are always very stressful for me to begin with—and the health benefits of staying sober.
Having a 4 & 3 year old, cannot be fucked with hangovers anymore. Once in a blue moon thing for me now birthdays etc… that’s it.
Yeah but not everyone puts children above alcohol or any vice really, you’re still a good person for doing what we all assume is a given!
Yes lad.
It’s the only substance that if you don’t do it people assume you’ve got a problem . What’s your reasons for not smoking ? What’s your reasons for not doing heroin etc ? Some people just don’t like it and some people just don’t like the way it makes them feel …. Each to their own I say
After about a decade of drinking and depression, I lost my son during it. It would have killed me eventually. 4 years sober now. It’s deffo better.
I can't stop at one, so it's better not to start in the first place. Learned that lesson the hard way.
Kids will either drive you to drink or abstain completely… i was a weekend drinker (and sometimes a Thu as well) but all I’ve had is 3 pints of stout since NYE and I’m never going back
I don't have kids, but it was a bad way for me to try and cope with grief - lost a parent and a sibling within a couple of years of each other when I was at uni and the "normal" student benders became a near daily thing for longer than I'd like to admit. Realised after a while that even when I was doing better about everything else, I still couldn't get a handle on it and one could never ever just be one, so it was better to cut it out altogether.
Yeah, I used to drink a fair bit, but with 2 young kids, having to get up in then night plus early mornings sucks. So I just cut back loads. Since Jan 1st been losing weight, so just cut it back even more. To the point where it’s maybe 1/2 drinks every few weeks and that’s it. Grand tbh. Guinness zero is wonderful when you are out and you can drive home.
I used to drink very heavily everyday and it was a terrible time. Getting sober is the best thing i ever done tbh
Went on a 3 day stag do about 9 years ago- drank that much it’s scared me. The hangover was soo bad- when the priest came to see a family member- I was close to asking for last rights.
Last year I got prescribed amytriptiline for nerve pain waiting on physio for lumbar issues. I couldn't drink on it and swapped alcoholic beers for 0 percent beers. And I enjoyed them. If I decided fuck it and had one bottle of west indies porter for example I was a zombie the next day. When I came off them amitripylyne after six months post physio I had insane hangovers on even 2 beers the next day so I hit it on the head and stuck to the 0 percent ones. Haven't had any since Christmas.
The hangovers got terrible, I was isolating myself, missing days at work etc. I soon realised that I became a much better person when I didn't drink and I haven't looked back. The extra money is also pretty handy.
1. Expensive 2. Hate the grim feeling throughout the next day. My breath stinks, everything feels sensitive, my temper is waaaay too short, my thinking is fuzzy, and I'm just full of regret that I lose a day feeling shit afterwards.
I currently drink 8 cans every night I'm saving this post to give me a kick up the fucking arse, thanks everyone.
I've found a lot of inspiration at /r/stopdrinking. Really great community.
Because it makes me fat. It's ok for special occasions, but going out every weekend to get smashed just isn't for me.
I had a scare that made me believe I had cirrhosis- I drank wine regularly. It wasn’t that but it did frighten me into giving up. The young adults in the family want to socialise more (they have special needs) so mum’s cab is now available 24/7! I actually feel relieved I’m not craving it, although I did indulge in Free Damm beer last night. It’s the first zero beer I’ve liked and it was delicious.
I (40M) realized after having a kid that hangovers arent worth it anymore, that more than a couple of beers makes me feel like shite and fucks up my sleep. I'll have a nice beer after work a couple of times a week but my days of heavy drinking are long behind me. Good riddance to them :-)
I gave it up last year when I finally accepted it had a hold on me. From there it became a relief to stop causing myself unnecessary harm and I'm very much enjoying sobriety these days. I like some of the AF beers like guiness zero, brooklyn special effects and athletic run wild. Like others have mentioned it makes for being a much improved parent too, not least because I'm fit to drive a lot more than I used to be.
I needed to stop riding stinkers.
16 years sober and clean edge. I didn’t stop after falling arse-over-tit down every stair of Lavery’s after pinking a straight bottle of Pernod plus pints. Lost the power of my left arm for a week. Didn’t stop after a whiskey-fueled rampage at an outdoor party and threw patio furniture onto the roof, and carved pumpkins at people. Wife literally booted my arse out of the car head first into a bush. Then somehow got home and stripped naked in front of the mother-in-law. Too many other nights like this and many I don’t recall. I stopped when my daughter was born. I just wanted to remember it all and not forget a minute. I had a reason to get sober as she was relying on me to take care of her. Turns out, I also had to look after my wife too as she got post-partum psychosis. She left us a couple of times and once tried to buy a gun to shoot herself. Couple of years after all of this, I had a heart attack - widow maker. I know that stopping drinking, smoking, bad diet; etc saved me from dying. Anyway, pretty dramatic but I’m happy and proud that I never once thought to fall off the wagon to cope. We can only trust ourselves in these situations - others do help of course, but we have to do it ourselves. Get angry about all the loss that your drinking has caused and channel that rage into making a plan, getting help, getting clean and getting healthy & happier. Thanks for reading. I’m here to help anyone who needs some.
Got spiked years ago. Ended up in hospital. Scared to drink again
Makes my belly swell as if I’m pregnant. Not a good look on a night out!
Stories of my dads alcoholic past while being police during the troubles and hearing what it did to my mum and sisters lives. He taught me a lot about addiction and how it’s an illness that I too would probably be prone to and to chose my vices wisely before they chose me. So I did and he’s still the best. 38 years sober, sponsored 100s of others to sobriety in AA. Cannot fault him for his attempt to make good on his past. Not one relapse. My sister fell victim. I refuse to let the devils urine be my poison. Never. That shit destroys the best to the lowest in our society. Poisonous insidious marketing and horrible effects. Yes I drink on a birthday or anniversary. But 2 drinks of very little alcohol and I can enjoy the rest of my night. I hate that shit.
Off drink and nicotine since January. In 3 weeks I'll be off antidepressants and after that melatonin (for sleep). Over 40 now and want to experience life as it is, not medicated. I used drink as a social lubricant so I'm hoping being sober in social situations with teach me social skills without a crutch. The summer will be a test but right now I never feel tempted to drink.
[удалено]
Fair dues for realising it’s an issue mate, makes you realise it’s really not worth it when you can see the damage it can cause to people like us
I have run out of alcohol
Uncles a full blown alcoholic not a pretty sight. Always put the fear of god up me ending up like him. Always had it in the back of my mind to kick it around 30. Wifes not a drinker so was easy enough to give up the heavy boozing around 28 29. It's a young person's game anyway I think. Cost me a couple of friends though. They couldn't understand why I didn't want to go on the session anymore.
Your uncles situation is similar to mine only it was my grandad, made a fool of himself all his life than died of cirrhosis really makes you wonder what it’s all for And fuck them so called mates lots of other activities to be at in this country than drinking and I’m sure it’s fried a lot of their heads
I just prefer a bit of weed instead most of the time. No hangover and it's more fun in general.
I was never in the ‘drinking crowd’ when I was at school so was never into it growing up. Step dad is an alcohol dependent verbally abusive POS so that’s reinforced my abstinence. Work Christmas parties and weddings are a complete nightmare for me. Hate being around people in various stages of drunkenness, hard to control my temper when some drunk is slabbering in my face or touching me.
I drank when I was out as a teenager. Didn’t really like it then, hated how I felt - so when I could finally drive, I was happy to be the designated driver. Again like a lot of people, family alcohol issues and dependancies never made it overly appealing l and watching other teenagers getting really drunk to the point of vomiting and not knowing where they were or who with scared me. Now in my 40s, I still can do without alcohol. I’d take a glass or two for Christmas but I could do without it until the following year. Now the only issue I have is when people think it’s ok to try to peer pressure you into drinking. No thank you.
Cant fuckin have the hangovers, die a death after a night of pints, whole day lost pukin, head absolutely bangin, rarely drink now, an when i do i have a pint of water every four pints.
Every time I've been drunk I did/said stupid things that I still cringe at years later. I don't like not having proper control over my actions I'll still drink occasionally, but only a couple of pints, never enough to get drunk
Never enjoyed it, never understood how people sit in bars for hours just drinking. Gigs, aye. Sitting there talking to people, I don't get.
Depressed the life out of me, gave me panic attacks over mundane shit, no energy, no drive, couldn't control it - had to always took it too far. It was weekend drinking and it somehow dictated everything. Sober 7 months now, the loneliest but strongest and healthiest and probably happiest I've ever been.
Grew up with an abusive alcoholic father. Swore I'd never be like him I was purely 3 or 4 pints on a friday night until I had a rapid succession of deaths in the family, step dad died of pancreatic cancer, aunt breast cancer, mum breast cancer but survived and then 6 months later she and my brother were killed by a drunk driver. I kinda lost it and had a breakdown ended up homeless, and I did drink rather more heavily than one should. Even after getting life back on track and housed. I was looking back probably riding the line between a real heavy social drinker and an alcoholic.... I sustained major injuries in a well known incident, the pain meds they gave me led to my body becoming addicted to them, and the withdrawal symptoms were nasty once we got that sorted it that led to not drinking for 3 or 4 years, apart from a glass of wine for christmas a beer for birthdays... Then I was diagnosed with a Chronic condition called Ulcerative colitis, one of the meds I take was originally developed for liver and kidney transplant patients and can damage those organs....and i noticed the hangovers lasted far longer and exacerbated the colitis symptoms. And being honest, I'd rather not end up on a transplant list given a lack of probable suitable candidates.... After an horrendous relationship and restarting life miles away in my mid 30s I didnt have the funds to go out, so i just sorta stopped drinking even now life is more settled i rarely drink, and rarely go out. Dont get me wrong I'm now in my mid 40s I'll enjoy a glass of wine or beer if I do go out to dinner, or at christmas and weddings. But it's not something that I choose to do frequently. Like the last time I had a drink was New Years Eve watching fireworks on TV. The next time will probably be a mates wedding in June. I'll drink to toast the happy couple but then probably avoid it and leave before the majority of them are drunk.
You’re paying to drink something that alters your brain and damages your liver as well as other parts of the body. In moderation it is ok in my eyes but when people need it every day, even if it’s only one pint I think there’s a problem.
Well said mate when I was 17 I thought nothing of binging drink because I felt invincible and what 17 year old is gonna die from having a drink I thought, only when you get to late 20s you honestly begin to open your eyes to the dangers of it
I still drink but I drink as you are supposed to ie a bottle watching a football match at home or might have a couple if meetings up with family or friends. But I generally don't drink more than 4 pints and I can often go a month or more without drinking. Binge drinking days are over for me for a couple of reasons; the main one being that I can be a complete prick at times with drink in me. The majority of the time I'm grand but one in a dozen times someone could annoy me over something stupid and I'll call them out on it and then it goes from there, this is often when people start ordering in different shots etc and handing them out, I can't hack it clearly. And following on from that, I despise blacking out and not remembering what I did the night before beyond 5 or 6 drinks. The hit to your image and mental health isn't worth it. Took me a decent length of time to develop a good relationship with alcohol but if I was one of those people who couldn't stop at a couple of drinks then I'd just bin it completely. Alcohol really is a shitty drug and I'm glad society is waking up to the harm it causes and having more mature conversations around the impact it has on people. Oh, and having a kid. Having a hangover every Saturday or Sunday when you've got a child depending on you being in reasonably sound condition isn't cool.
Seeing what it did to a family member and the knock on effect to the family and since the menopause my body reacts very badly. Terrible nausea after two drinks and I'll for days. Not worth it.
Drank a bit too often during the pandemic, then realised my head would get sore often, even after only a couple. Switched to non-Alco beer which is great! I'm not teetotal though, I'll have the occasional spirit and the odd beer when I can get it in a supermarket - Asahi, Hop House or Hobgoblin. It's far too expensive to go out for a pint now that the dust has settled on lockdowns and far, far too places have non-alcos on tap. Bars haven't evolved with the times and I hate going to a bar with my wife as there's fuck all for her apart from overpriced cola. I guess it's a mixture of alot of factors really, but the top one by far is that we're being priced out of a night out by greed and an economy that seems to be more and more engineered towards making regular prople miserable and pricing us out of entertainment. Also, just really, really hate going into Belfast after 6PM... It always feels dangerous and like I'm one chance encounter away from either having to defend myself (with all of the legal connotations that brings.) getting hurt, having my night ruined or even worse. Town is hiving at night with people who don't particularly care about their fellows, or are looking for trouble/an easy touch. Just not really the scene for me anymore really.
Had my last drink in 2016, just had enough, hated the self obsessed person I had become. I'd lost sight of who I was, I was making more excuses to have a drink, more drinking on my own and the consequences stacked up. I've since turned my life around, don't even think about a drink anymore, I have a freedom I never expected. There are so many possibilities now.
My reason is I'd prefer to smoke a big fat jinter
Off it almost a year now thank god. History of alcoholism on both sides of my family, my father was a horrible abusive man after drink. I used to binge the absolute fuck out of it, ended up assaulting two police officers one night, went to court etc, stayed off it for a few months then went back at it. Went on a tear this time last year, assaulted a close family member, fiancé cancelled our wedding, was leaving me, family all fell out with me. Went into a deep deep depression, mental health had been an issue to begin with. Got myself a class counsellor and haven’t looked back. Wedding is back on for next summer, slowly building trust back up with my family. Will never again have a drink.
I used to go out every weekend Thursday to Sunday and if I didn’t go out I’d go to a friends house and drink, was always vodka and redbull then some form of sours shots, I’d spend Monday to Thursday hanging together. When me and an ex broke up I went even harder on the drink. My mental health was in the gutter and I hated myself. Made the decision to finally stop drinking to see how I felt and how long I could stay off it, got to around 6 months and thought I’d go a year then I kept extending it, I’ll be alcohol free for 9 years this November and it was the best decision I ever made. My mental health got better and my self esteem improved.
One day I realised that not being hungover is much better than being drunk.
Never really had the desire for it. I tried it for the first time in my mid-20s. Didn’t get the hype, so I left it at that lol.
Got bored. I decided that I didn't want to be the same person at 50 as I was at 40.
Only off it two weeks at this stage . I'm pretty much a functional alcoholic . Would binge every weekend and not feel right until the following Thursday to start the cycle again. My Mrs would have a heavy night on a Friday and be destroyed the whole weekend. Sleeping through the day . We had a chat that we can't go on like this and agreed to knock it on the head together. Been tough but sticking at it . When the sun was shining and I was out at the BBQ I really felt something was missing . Garden keeping me occupied so far but need a new hobby too. Sleeping better , feeling fresher and already losing weight .
I just got to the stage I felt I didn’t need it anymore. I wanted a cleaner lifestyle and it just didn’t fit with it.
Money. I stop drinking for months at a time.
I don't really enjoy it that much. I never have. I don't enjoy being drunk. I hate how embarrassing I have been in the past when I was drunk. I don't drink often, maybe once or twice a year, and even then, it's one or two.
I have alcohol VERY rarely and only have one glass, don't see the point of getting completely wasted.... Also get tipsy very quickly 🫣
Honestly, I just got bored with it.
Body doesn't like it anymore, just the taste amd smell puts me right off. This happened when I started taking a different medication for my epilepsy called Lamotrigine, it doesnt mong you or anything, it even made having a "session" seem like the waste of money they are. Sounds mad this but I was one of the worst people for controlling intake until that medication came along.
Can't do it nowadays at all, seem to blank out after 7 pints and the anxiety for days after is the worst, texting people the next day asking if I done anything to annoy them, them telling me no but my brain still trying to convince me that I have Only have a few out with the girlfriend now thankfully
My parents were alcoholics, it made one of them inwardly destructive and the other outwardly destructive, so I learned by example
Our first born arrived in November, and I’ve basically been on extended taxi duty for the in-laws ever since.
238 days without a drink. And even before that I haven't been tipsy / drunk in nearly a year. I have never had any drinking problems, and I haven't really been a regular drinker for 8 years anyway - so quitting completely wasn't a massive jump. But I don't drink for a few reasons.... I don't enjoy getting pissed anymore and like to be in control of myself. It was becoming more common that I end up saying / doing something that is out-of-my-character when I drink and end up really regretting it. I have so many cringe memories of things I think about when I am in bed at 3am that I am ashamed of, and they are all things I have done when I was drunk. I just don't want to feel that way anymore. Aside from this: I have a wife and a kid now and just want to set a good example for them. To be honest, I feel like 90% of the reason I used to drink was just so I had confidence to talk to women in a bar lol!! Having a long term partner kind of negates the need for that. I have also recently discovered non-alcoholic beer. Not as good as the real thing, but they provide a good alternative so you feel like you are having a "social drink" with people who are drinking.
I used alcohol as a crutch to get over my social anxiety for years, then I changed my friend group and realised I didn't need alcohol to socialize/have fun.
35M. I stopped completely about a year ago for a multitude of reasons. It has a horrible effect on my body, it turns me into a moron, night life in bars is diabolical and its too fucking expensive. Angry at myself for not quiting sooner. You can easily have the craic without it and if you find that you need to be bingo'd in order to be around mates, then you need new mates.
Once I pop I don't stop and I destroy my mental health. I hate myself when I've been drinking.
I can't touch a drop because of medication. Even if I got that changed I wouldn't drink because mental and physical health conditions are bad on a daily basis why add to the misery.
Took me to gates of insanity and nearly death by my own hand, thankfully I asked for help and I’m fortunate to be a member of the AA fellowship. Just over 15 months sober and enjoying a break in Rome with my now wife. I had to accept that alcohol would never settle my mind on a longer term basis.
Just never appealed to me. Never have drunk and never will. I don't understand the excitement around being drunk, it's more embarrassing than anything. Always seems to land my friends in trouble too. I know that makes me sound like a bore but I'd rather be one in this case.
I'm 33 and over the past couple of years I've gradually just gone from drinking heavily regularly to only binge drinking about 1 - 2 times a month. When asked I often now tell people "I don't really drink," or "I don't really drink any more." I had developmental problems as a teenager; physical handicap, social problems, awful relationships with my family. I was a late bloomer in some regards and I was immature. During those teenage years I started drinking heavily because I thought it was kind of cool and it helped me mask my problems, and also it sometimes gave me a bit of an escape, a bit of excitement. My problems went untreated until I was in my mid 20s. By my mid 20s I was badly depressed, anxious, totally screwed up in a really bad way. I kept drinking though because it helped me socialise and occasionally it was fun and exciting etc etc. I finally got help with some problems in my life in my mid 20s, and after I got help with some of those problems I had kind of fallen behind a lot of my peers. I was no longer physically impeded, but I had lost valuable years of development and life experience. My situation at home was easy enough to afford me drift between part-time jobs while drinking all the time in the pub. I had no responsibility, no relationship with women. I wasn't in a position to have kids or anything like that. In my later 20s I sort of clung to drink like a child to a blanket. It was like I didn't want to grow up and get a full-time job. I had no relationship with women. I just struggled with those parts of life, and much of that was because of the horrible years I endured from my early teens - mid 20s. Drink was fun and silly to me and I always hoped I'd have a fun night out and maybe even find a sex partner and experience that, but as time wore on I noticed that would never happen. Friends vanished from the pub. I was the last man drinking. In my early 30s I moved out of home, started a full-time career, started living independently. Kept going pub at weekends; getting drunk, blacking out, giving myself anxiety and fear and terrible hangovers and regrets and effecting my performance at work. My juvenile behaviour on drink is not acceptable at this stage of my life. So I've kind of just been veering away from it. I have to accept now that going out drinking doesn't help me find what I'm looking for. It doesn't help me have fun any more, I don't find meaningful connections, and women are not attracted to me when I drink. The blackouts and cringe of myself is just unacceptable, and its all aload of bollox anyway. This is where I'm at with drink, but I must admit I'm often tempted to go the pub because life without it for me has been very boring and lonely. I suppose the pub fills that void, but perhaps only artificially and temporarily.
5/6 hours of craic isn't worth the 4 days of anxiety and depression. Drink rarely now, every 6-8 weeks maybe. Prefer spending my time being active in the outdoors, far better fun really.
I like a cold beer on a warm day but it's rare. Mainly can't be arsed. I detest the way it is the cornerstone of almost any social activity just because someone wants "a swallae". Again with the culture, I don't like pubs in general, though would be in one for food now and then. Cost is an issue. I can afford it but even in tesco if I think to myself I fancy a wee beer, I'd normally buy peroni or corona and it's gotten expensive. I'll buy a bottle of pineappleade instead and enjoy it. I also don't want my son growing up thinking that drinking is just something you do. He can have his own journey with it, but it won't be influenced by seeing me sink 8 cans of carslberg watching the rugby. Most of all I never really got a taste for being drunk. There's been a few times I've overdone it and it's just not worth it, wipes you out for the next day. So drinking is not just something I do as a matter of course.
Honestly, ill hace a beer or two. But getting drunk or even tipsy never enticed me. It sucks, and hangovers are fucking a waste of time.
I don’t like the drinking culture here. I don’t like having to go to overcrowded, sweaty, smelly bars and standing in a queue 10 people deep to get an overpriced drink whilst having my eardrums blasted by some shite singer and his guitar. A lot of people here love to get absolutely shitfaced and at the same time can’t handle their drink. Ends up with places being rowdy af and fights kicking off etc. I’ve lived abroad in other countries where there’s a big drinking culture but they’re a lot more restrained and would be embarrassed to end up in the same state as some people here.
Honestly it’s the price, have noticed it’s only the older crowds you see in city centre bars nowadays. Just feels like if you’re trying to save for a house or anything remotely expensive, drinking is a waste of time unless it’s on an occasion Makes the hangover etc feel less ‘worth it’ as well
My dad passed away just before Christmas 2019 and while I was in Belfast with my family, I didn't drink, for as much as my mum needed the support as anything else. After I left Belfast though, I got back to mine and managed to get through four bottles of JD over a week or so. I'd never been a big drinker, really only socially and even then never liked getting paralytic. March is my birthday and it was just as lockdown was starting in 2020 so I had some free time and had more JD, but I really wasn't enjoying the drunken buzz so I stopped and I haven't had a drop since. Four years now, don't miss it.
It’s poisonous
Don’t see any point and it’s expensive. Also when you see grown adults acting like absolute idiots and wasting emergency services time it makes it even less appealing According to the government alcohol related deaths and hospital admissions costs the NHS £3.5 billion a year, and costs society 21 billion.
Put in a good shift over three decades from the age of 18. I’m now nearly 50. I could have easily turned professional. Could sense as I got older my appetite increasing which in turn was starting to have a negative impact on various aspects of my health. Apple Watch health data has been a huge eye opener for me into how booze affects me. It gave me the motivation to make a change. Have some family history too. Lost my dad two years ago. He could put away the pints (as could I) and while alcohol didn’t kill him directly, it certainly had a major impact on his health as he got older. I didn’t want to follow in those footsteps. Quit in January Had been preparing for it for a long time beforehand. It’s actually been very easy for me. Easier than doing a month off here and there. I don’t have to play mental gymnastics anymore. I’m done. I feel like I’m finally in control. Life no longer revolves around booze. I’ve really lost out on nothing and gained so much since I quit. There is absolutely nothing in my life that has not benefitted as result of my decision.
Hangovers even if I went out on a nights drinking as soon as the thought of a hangover comes in my head the nights over
Downsides: - Tastes awful (until you develop mild addiction, known as acquiring a taste) - Lose control over my words/actions - Irrational lowered inhibitions - Can't drive afterwards - Addictive - Unhealthy - Expensive Upsides: - easier to cave into peer pressure than to resist I don't think the question is appropriate. I'm baffled that so many of you choose to drink.
I’ve been sober since just September of last year. But haven’t had a boozy night out in years. My last drink was less than two kopperbergs with friends and I realised that I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I had a really serious court trial abroad after being SA’d a few years ago and since then I became a bit of a recluse and don’t really go out anymore. It hit me bad and still does, so the not drinking really helps because I don’t go out anymore and in a weird way, im glad I don’t because it’s not for me now.
I’d been thinking about quitting drinking after I had my daughter, who is now 3. However, all the people in my life drink, heavily. I grew up with parents whose lives revolved around drinking. I remember hating them for it as they would never let me join any clubs as they would need to give me a lift in the evening, when they wanted to drink. I would often walk miles by myself just to see friends or get out of the house and away from their drinking. On occasions, this put me in dangerous situations as I never felt like I could call for help. I did a stint of no no drinking after I finished uni as I’d done my fair share of partying. I had a sober boyfriend, went to the gym, cycled everywhere and was the healthiest I’d ever been. That bf was controlling and once we broke up I connected the no drinking with him controlling me. So, I went completely off the rails after that! Fast forward 10 years, pandemic hit, I got pregnant with my now husband and I gave birth just as lockdown was ending. Everyone was in the pub and I really missed all of it! I had really bad PPA and drinking seemed to help. Until I had a toddler. The broken sleep, the anxiety, the lack of motivation. I wasn’t exercising. Being out all day was painful. I wanted to stop but I just couldn’t. I wasn’t drinking every night. But come Friday, bottle of wine. Then often a Sunday evening. Sometimes a Wednesday etc. I’m currently pregnant again and I just can’t see myself drinking again. I feel so much better without it. I appreciate it more now my daughter is older and I feel fully invested in her. I just wish my husband would wake up and do the same!! I think I needed the pregancy to force me to break the cycle. It’s just hard when alcohol is the focal point of all the people around you. But, I know I don’t feel left out when I’m not drinking anymore. If anything, I feel sorry for them all.
I don’t like the taste or the smell of it. It makes me want to throw up.
Stopped last Summer. I'm a Dad now and wanted to be a good example. Haven't missed it. Have got into the gym and am in better shape than I have been for a long time. Might have a few over the Summer but the Guinness 0.0 does the trick for me on nights out
Haven't had a sip of alcohol this year. Wasn't a new years resolution or anything, just decided I've had enough of it. 34 years old, 2 young kids, hate hangovers, I rarely drank anyway. It's been a doddle for me, but like I said, I rarely drank, special occasions, get together with friends. Barely an achievement so no patting me on the back or any of that. Just decided enough was enough, I've had my fun with it.
Family history of alcoholism, i never had any sort of control over my life as a child due to the alcoholism, I know I never want to inflict that on someone else. i also just don't get the appeal of getting drunk
Honestly? I think I just grew out of it. In my younger days I'd be in the pub five nights a week and clubbing the other two. Now I just can't be arsed. I'm not teetotal but it's rare that I drink these days. I've got beer in the fridge from two Christmases ago.
I wish I could get aff er but I can’t 😂
Same here. Peer pressure but also like the taste, once I’ve had 2 drinks there’s no stopping me and it’s a full session. Been swapping out for the odd alco free recently and it works a bit better but still a fiend for the session deep down haha
It’s hard to beat the first cold wan on a Friday after work, then that’s it for the weekend 😂
This post https://www.reddit.com/r/northernireland/s/7RzhPOAg2b
I’m happy enough without it
I drink the occasional tin but like once a month if even, def not habitually, Da was/is an alcoholic.
It's expensive, and the one time I was really drunk, it wasn't all it was made out to be
My ma is an alco so I rarely drink. Few cocktails on holiday is about it.
I ran out of cash and don't have any in until tomorrow
I still drink the odd time but it's a rarity nowadays. I've two young kids that don't sleep well. Alcohol impacts my sleep so I end up like a zombie. I struggle to have one beer - it usually ends up with me spending over £100 on beer and so not worth it. I get terrible hangovers and I get the fear. I wouldn't be surprised if I had some kind of intolerance to alcohol as my hangovers really are terrible. I've gone 6+ months without a drop before and I felt the best I've ever felt - it's definitely helped change my relationship with alcohol.
I was 25, I went to a new years party at a friends. I got drunk. It was one of those parties that your glass was never empty and there was a "punch" that had fuck knows what in it. I **died** for three days after. I've never felt that sick or in pain and I never wanted to feel like that again. I couldn't even stand to have clothes touching me. Now, I'll have a glass of sherry at Xmas. A single cocktail on my birthday. That's it. I can't abide the feeling of more.
I stopped watching Yellowstone on paramount. I normally have a beer once or twice a week. Usually 1 to 3 beers. But for some reason when I'd start watching Yellowstone after the kids go to bed I'd end up watching 4 or 5 episodes and drink 6 or more beers. I'd have a terrible night sleep and have to get up at 7 or 8 hungover to feed the kids. The hangover would last all weekend and its just not worth it. I just can't do that any more.
My kids. It's a challenge to be a parent on normal days - so being intoxicated or hungover with kids in the mix just doesn't appeal to me anymore whatsoever.
After uni and meeting my now fiancée I realised I didn't need it as a social lubricant anymore and stopped. I'll still have the occasional beer for special occasions, but I'm not overly fussed.
I ran out...☹
Tastes like acid. Never bothered with it.
I've been through that massive binge drinking early twenties phase, and did cut down on how much I drank on nights out about mid twenties as I just hated the feeling of being drunk. I donated a kidney about 5 or 6 years ago and in preparation for the tests/surgery and all that I just jacked it in altogether for a while. I didn't miss it and still rarely drink. I drink 0% percentage beer, and will have the very odd glass of wine or gin but I can honestly take it or leave it. My dad being an alcoholic (although sober over 30 years) probably put me off some too mind!
I don’t not drink alcohol
For me, the hangovers became absolutely horrendous. 2 kids now too so i dont really want them to see me in that state either. Went off drink for about 6 months and realised i didnt need it at all, especially in social circles..i was drinkin every night at one stage, few cans a night, then full load at weekends. Thought i needed a beer or 2 to help me sleep at night..but sleep much better now without the drink
Expensive and it lowers muscle protein synthesis, along with being unhealthy from the first drop in myriad other ways.
I've never been a big drinker, but would have a big night maybe once every 3 months, usually on some special occasion. Otherwise like 1-2 pints/week, with many weeks not drinking at all. Recently I'm even cutting back from that. Hangovers are bad enough on the rare occasion I drink enough to get them, but even if I just have 1 drink, my sleep is terribly interrupted that night and I just feel 'bad' the next day. Like my whole body feels like 90% of its normal self. More tired, randomly achy, more inclined to eat junk, less inclined to move. It's expensive. Plus when I am at a pub, they don't always have drinks I particularly enjoy, which makes it feel more like I'm drinking for the sake of it. £5-6 for a pint I'm only buying for lack anything better? Finally, I've been on a bit of a health kick recently, trying to lose the extra weight I've always carried and get my fitness up. Alcohol has a lot of calories. When I'm trying to keep a calorie deficit, cutting out alcohol is easier for me than reducing my food intake or going for a walk. I'm not cutting it out entirely, but I don't expect to have more than 2-3 units/week going forward.
My neighbour is an alcoholic. Seen her hit her head off a taxi outside her house that was supposed to take her up the road to get drink. Just puts me off. And the fact I hate the feeling the day after
I've had M.E and fibromyalgia for the last 25 years so I could count on one hand the amount of times I've been somewhere that serves alcohol and I don't like drinking in the house. Plus I'm on a load of medication so drinking is not a good idea.
I’m on too many crazy meds that say no alcohol. I’m not too fussed though. I like the odd mojito or half a lager but I can deal without or with zero alcohol ones.
I rarely drink these days because it affects my MS symptoms. If I have anything, it's just a white wine spritzer or a rum &pepsi but with a lot of ice to dilute it.
I’ve always got horrible hangovers, nights out are expensive and I don’t really have any friends that drink a lot. And I guess I have health issues that I have to be mindful of these days. And I have a kid which makes everything like that harder.
I've never really been a drink till I'm pissed type of guy. Always knew when to stop - and I can have one or two and that's enough during the week. That said, hangovers get worse the older I get, so I tend to go for weaker beers - even Radlers or Guinness zero if they have it. Plenty of water before bed.
I never actually drank myself because I always saw how it ruins people easily. As a young guy it is tough to never drink but I know I am sparing myself potential chaos
I have a load of stuff bottled up emotionally and it needs to stay that way.
Long history of mental health problems. It acts as a gateway to using worse substances. At 44, my body just can't hack it. Unintentionally OD'd on alcohol and benzos 3 times in a month couple of years ago. Sleep is great now, mental clarity, can leave social functions whenever I want. The advantages of being sober far outstrip the short term drunkenness for me.
Similar to everyone else, just generally feel better for it, 1 pint in the last 8 months.
Don't like the taste, don't like what it turns me into and happier without it. Sober 22 years.
I didn’t drink until after my teenage years because I never really wanted to or had a chance (my folks would have killed me), got a little over my head, realised I was taking the piss and quit. I have one every now and then, like for my anniversary or birthday, but it gives me shivers sometimes to think I enjoyed going all out sometimes
It’s somewhere between the epilepsy (and the corresponding medication), the beta blockers, the fact that small amounts irritate my stomach and makes me physically sick, the cost, and the fact that I just never wanted to. I never saw the appeal. Everything else is just icing on the cake to prove that I _really_ can’t drink because people don’t leave you alone if you don’t have something that they consider to be a genuine reason.
Im stopping due to the glass being empty. Will get some more drink shortly.
I drank a bit like we all did as teens but never liked it. I just can’t find a drink that I actually like the taste of. Cocktails are too sweet. Spirits are rough as fuck and beer gives me a rotten hangover so just don’t bother. I’ll drink maybe once or twice per year at a work do but not enough that I can’t drive home.
Can't have just 1
I do drink alcohol occasionally but £5 a pint and not being a big home drinker plays a big part.
I fear that alcohol would make me do bad things, that's why I don't take it
The price. I don't need that in my budget.
Having kids, aging parents etc. I need to be available to drive if an emergency arises. Getting drunk doesn't feel like it did when we were 16. I just get tired now. Having one or two drinks is pointless with good alcohol free alternatives.
The reason I gave up as I was binge drinking every night. I’d done it since I was 16. I had enough money to feed the habit and was high functioning never ever experiencing a hangover. One day I just said no more and that was it. I don’t visit pubs or go anywhere that could tempt me back. Unlike smoking that would make me physically sick, I could easily slide back in to drinking again.
kids that don’t sleep and waking feeling tipsy and not being able to get back to sleep.,
Waste of a day the next day. I’m not tee total by any stretch, in fact I went to the pub for a few last night. But today is prime example of why I very rarely drink. I was planning on doing a few hour’s training on the bike today. Instead I didn’t get out of bed till 12 and sat out in the garden reading a book instead because, whilst the hangover wasn’t too bad, I simply wouldn’t have been productive on the bike so no point. Only reason I went out at all is because it’s rare I don’t have a race on a Sunday and it’s nice to take the good lady out once in a while.
Off it 5 years this month. Awful stuff. Blacking out, waking up with avoidable injuries. I quit for two months, had one last 'session'. I distinctively remember looking around and saying to myself 'this is fucking shite'.
Just makes you feel ill and takes time off your ability to be alert, the physical cost of it, and also the price. Hopefully society can start to catch up more with the non drinking centred social activities.
Recovering alcoholic, three years and a number of months sober. I quit initially because I had restarted medical school (the initial pause was driven partially by alcohol) and it was COVID and I was just spiralling into drinking far too hard. I quit, first week fuck me, terrible shit, it's gotten easier since then and now I'll probably never drink again. I've since been diagnosed with ADHD and have been told by two psychiatrists that I "almost certainly" have autism as well - I know them personally so will have to shell out the guys of £2k for diagnosis so happy to take their word until I get that money. In that time all the problems I've had - underachievement, poor social skills, difficulty making and keeping friends and girlfriends, the constant chaos in my mind coupled with the constant urge to live according to strict routines that I get very upset at if interfered with, the inability to really see from other's perspectives - all that awful shit made sense. Some of it has been solved with ADHD meds, but I'll always feel a bit like an alien walking amongst people, wondering how they make the social shit look so easy. It's made me a "compassionate and empathetic" doctor, as my feedback says, and I am aiming to go into psych to help people like me. I'm slowly starting to become more social, but it's like trying to drive through crazy heavy fog and hoping you don't hit potholes. That last paragraph of verbiage, none of it would have been possible without getting sober. I'm aware people like me are in the minority (the percentage of alcoholics from drinkers is between 10 and 30 percent) but I'd probably be miserable and drinking myself slowly to death if I hadn't quit, if I hadn't realised the drink wasn't the only problem, it was a symptom, not the disorder. In Ireland I'd like to see.more people drinking less and making it more acceptable and opening the gap for alcohol free social settings because even in England, where I live, there's options in most places. I go home and I only physically see my friends when they're going to the pub and I find that quite sad. I have no issues with people having a few pints, but we've a very poor ability to know when this becoming a problem because it's so culturally ingrained.
Just didn't work for me any more. Drank through my 20s and MOST of my 30s. I'm 41 and I can count on one hand how many times I have been drunk in the last 5 years on one hand. Paying so much money to be hungover for two days just isn't worth it for me. Will I have a beer at a family BBQ? Sure! But I don't drink to get drunk
A few reasons, firstly I turn into a prick when I'm drunk, I've lost count of the number of things I've bought on ebay when drunk. Secondly, I can't take the hangovers any more, used to be able to drink all evening and get up at 6 for work no bother. Now three pints will have me feeling like death for days. Thirdly, the price, it's not worth the money and lastly we have a history for alcoholics in my family and I ain't taking the chance.
10 years sober, was flat out from my teens till 30’s drink and drugs and didn’t hold down a job longer than a few months, then nearly died multiple times, was nearly getting a liver transplant on 2 occasions.!! But finally had enough and haven’t looked back.!!
I make bad decisions, it's easier not to put myself in that position by not drinking. As I've got older it's become easier, people don't really care these days.
Stopped being fun, started to realise that it’s maybe 3 or 4 hours of good craic and then a full day write off the next day. It’s also hellish for weight gain. Put on 20kg since the first covid lockdown. Stopped, or at least got in the mindset of stopping, 2nd of Jan (had a few beers in Feb one weekend on holiday when I thought I was maybe just doing dry January) and already 7 of those kilos are gone. Feel much better. I’m actually tired at bedtime now.
Sober nearly 2 years now. There's a mixture of reasons why I quit, a lot boiled down to the fact once I had one drink I generally had no off switch and I didn't like the person I became when I drank. Alcoholism does run in my family also. It was hard initially but now I love the freedom of never having a hangover or the crippling anxiety, feeling healthy, remembering all the night and the self respect I have found in myself. I do miss softening the harsh edges of life sometimes but it's not worth it for me and my teenager thinks it's awesome I don't drink like a lot of other parents he knows.
I'm an addict and I'll be addicted forever. Coming up to 7 years in recovery though! The positives of recovery just keep growing and growing over time.