what it's been like for me without drinking alcohol.
 

I was never a super heavy drinker. maybe 5 beers a week. but that is a pint of beer, so that is what? 1.5 servings? I don't have much beer at home, but sometimes while cooking I'll have a glass of wine or an IPA.

for personal reasons between me and my doctor, I stopped. I stopped basically last November. since then I have had maybe 8 drinks in total. I will still taste a sip of my wife's wine to see if it is any good.

first thing I noticed is the money savings. I get a beer in me and I get generous. I buy rounds all the time, since I tend to leave my CC open with the bartender.

next, my body. I dont think I am losing weight, maybe. my clothing fits better.

health. everything is better. no headaches ever. I poop better :) (sorry), I sleep way better, and I never snore. weird. even my skin seems to be better.

at this point my biggest awareness is that I am shocked I quit. I was never an alcoholic, but I did love the social aspect of it all. my office engineering staff got good with the introduction of three young cute female engineers that like to go to happy hour. I left all that fun. hahahah. I thought I was domed when they walked thru the door. :D. but to be serious, I miss my drinking buddies. last Time I went, I ordered a half pint a a big glass of ice tea.

i feel like the quality of your posts has declined a bit.

Get back to drinkin' !

Glad it's working out for you, sir. At least you can still go be social, but drink something else. I'd probably drink club soda. I don't drink much either, and don't have a social group like that. I think the most that I have is .5 - 1.5 drinks at a time, and that's usually only 1 or 2 days a week. Usually a beer (mostly stouts) or a Tom Collins or French 75 or Kir Royale. (I like them all, but those last 3 are mostly because that's what the missus likes).

LOL!

ooof that hit :D

Vash i was kidding!

Do you wear a fitbit or other tracker? I do - and my "resting" heart rate increases after drinking - stays elevated for quite some time after (days.)

I know you were. but I am side-eyeing you all day today

Hah! That was funny:)

I’ve gone from probably 30 to 40 beers a week, plus wine and other mixed drinks down to an avg of maybe 2 beers a week…for over a year now

Have not noticed any change at all, including my blood work, blood pressure or weight…..with the exception of a reduction in headaches

I have no idea why I reduced my consumption other than I just noticed I stopped craving alcohol the way I had for over 30 years. The strong urge to drink myself (always drank alone, never socially) into a coma just vanished over night. Strange

Funny thing, just before seeing this thread I had gone in fridge and saw 4 Heinekens in there and thought how weird that I drank more beer everyday on lunch break at the restaurant when I worked in an office than I do now working from home, eating at home etc….the beer just sits there for weeks these days

I’ve done more than my fair share of drinking over my lifetime. Never a regular drinker, only social, but in my 20s to early 40s our friends and neighbors regularly had some ragers so the social drinking was often what one would call “to excess.” :D

But I’ve pretty much stopped alcohol completely over the past several years. Even socially where everyone else is drinking. Not really sure why.

Weird fact, I’ve never once in my life had a drink alone. Again, no real reason why.

I have spent 80% of the money I have earned on booze and babes......the rest I just wasted.
:)

“I feel sorry for people that don't drink because when they wake up in the morning, that is the best they’re going to feel all day.”
“Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy.”
“Basically, I'm for anything that gets you through the night—be it prayer, tranquilizers or a bottle of Jack Daniel's.”

The only form of alcohol I like is beer. I have never had a sip of wine and thought "that is good" usually the exact opposite. Never cared for hard booze, I like beer. Not IPA, I don't have a pony tail or man bun.

When I had my hip replaced my doctor gave me a prescription for pain pills. I don't even know enough about pain pills to remember what, be he emphatically stated, no alcohol with the pain pills. It was a 21 day period of no beer. I hated the pain pills and was ready to flush them after two weeks. I was happy to get back to normal.

Nothing better than mowing the lawn, physical exercise and sweating a bit, look out at the yard, and see the instant gratification of the yard looking great, and sitting on the tailgate of my El Camino, and enjoying a cold beer and cooling off. That and a beer with dinner is wonderful.

I have not gone to a bar to drink a beer in more decades than I can remember. Unless it is a bar with a restaurant, and I have dinner.

I can't remember at all the last time I was drunk. Likely over 40+ years ago.

Like Glen, I only like beer. I do not touch anything else. I can go weeks without drinking and its not a problem.

And then last nights happen, the Av's collapse and lose in OT after a great performance by one of their players. That deserved a beer.

After awhile, not drinking can become a part of your identity--a way to see yourself with the will to keep that commitment.

I wish I drank more to build up some tolerance. I will have maybe 2 gin & tonics a week in the summer. One is enough that I am done for the night, just a half G&T more and I'm drunk, would not drive to go get some ice cream or something. I'd love to be fully functional after 1.5 drinks, they are so tasty and perfect while doing small projects or just watching youtube on a warm night.

I don’t drink much at all anymore. Maybe 1/2 a cocktail on Saturday nights, if that. I’ll take four puffs of mj though.

Unlike Glen and 911 Boost...

I've pretty much given up beer. If I have one, like with a burger at a restaurant, I am bloated and miserable the remainder of the evening. I don't mess around with beer, for me it is Negra, Guinness, or other imports (even imported from Shiner Texas).

No idea why this is but I just can't do it like when I was younger. Even in the early 2000's when we lived in Germany, I could work my way through a rack of bier.

Vodka and Whiskey? That is a whole other story...

Poof - Gone! SmileWavy

I think that's all good news.

I've never been a heavy drinker, but in my early 20s, I drank enough. I had a decent tolerance going.

Even if you "feel" ok, and "seem" ok to most folks after 2 beers, you'd still probably blow (or your blood would show) >.08. I think most folks >200-225# are >0.08 after 2 drinks in <1hr regardless of how well you seem to function.

Even if you seem OK, your functioning is still impared compared to when you're sober. You've just learned to deal with it, but you're slower and less sharp with fewer inhibitions. It would have been cool to have taken part of one of those experiments where they put you in a car on a short course and give you drinks while having you drive the course to show the deterioration.

I was a social drinker with my friends. I could easily drink 12 or more beers on a Friday and Saturday night each. At 27, I met Ms. Rocket and because we were into so many outdoor sports, I gave it up haven’t drank since (36 years). I was tired of spending the money and feeling like **** the next day.

After a longer while, you just don't think about it. I quit booze probably 25 years ago...

Not quite true...couple of years ago, a much loved pet died. Grieving, took a few shots out of Cindy's bottle (she still has one once in a while). Quickly discovered that I no longer liked the buzz, plus it seemed to make the grief worse. It made me feel physically and mentally worse. Diabetic and with AFIB now...maybe booze hits me differently than when I was younger? All I do know is that I no longer like the stuff, and really don't think about it...when asked "What woukld you like to drink?" by a booze pushing waiter or waitress, my usual answer is Iced tea, lemon, no sugar.

I wasn't much of a drinker ever. A childhood of living with alcoholics for parents and grandparents and cycling through rehab and all the collateral experiences of chaos and rehab and relapse was enough to kill most interest. Then having to work at all hours and spending up to 21 continuous days on call made it a non-starter anyway. Call is no longer an issue but I'm on a looong roll so I too no longer think about it unless it comes up in conversation. I did recently go to a bar for a going away party and the take away was "these people are so loud and unfunny." :(

My current meds don't play well with alcohol. Fortunately there are several new, very good, NA beers that I quite enjoy. I thought I would miss the alcohol buzz, but actually enjoy being fully functional after a couple NA beers.

i'm a better lay after a few drinks.... i think they call it whiskey dick...

im a two-pump-chump without some lube in up. i know what it takes to do my best work.

i cracked a beer when I opened the thread and got to post #21. I spent all day in the sun so a cold beer was pretty perfect for the 10 seconds or whatever it took me to drink it.

Good for you Vash. I've always enjoyed a drink socially but I don't drink regularly.

My ex wife has destroyed herself with booze. Once she starts she can't stop!
Awful and way too common. IMO It's the worst drug there is because it affects everybody around them.

Whiskey dick means Mr Frisky remains at rest.

I like painting car fenders and hoods after two beers. Relaxes me.

All day in the sun would've been a 12 pack ... easy... back in the daze... slow & steady all day long... nights too. Never liked a cold beer doing yard work or right after ... only H2O. And all those damn rock shows :D

Can't remember my last beer fwiw.... but just not like back in the good ol' daze... every weekend ;)

If you like the taste and the alcohol doesn't like you, you might want to check into the newer non-alcohol spirits (NA gin is commonly available)

Confession - After seeing this thread yesterday, I went out and cut the lawn and promptly drank the 4 Heinekens and 2 cans of Kolsh in fridge and blazed a doob in the remaining sun while cranking up the tunes. Wife brought a bottle of wine home that a client gave her and decided to try that too. Partied all night long. No regrets.

The key for me is to not do this daily, and I dont

Never been a big drinker. I remember being drunk 2 times when I was a teenager. That was enough for me. Now I may have a single beer a couple times per year or with a dinner with friends I may have a glass of Cabernet. That's it.

If i'm being honest i'm not sure man can improve on the sensation of being lightly buzzed on the porch listening to good tunes. I'll pass on the pot but 3 or 4 beers (or teas in my case) and some Bowie, Steely Dan and the occasional Soundgarden...does it get any better?

Boobies in the face notwithstanding.

Don't ya have a shade tree for that moment in the sun :D?

Do as I say.... and not as I did ;)

Moderation & balance is key... in just about everything....

'ere :)

for me it's a beer or a whiskey with family/friends sitting around a campfire poking at it with a stick. :)

+1

From Slipknot to Sade to Mozart. Whatever tunes float your boat

Ya know what hell is?

Give a guy a campfire, a stick, and a beer .... then tell him to pick only two :)!

instead of a stick, I use old ski poles. It takes approximately 3 years of almost daily campfires to melt a ski pole down to a 6 inch stump

just an FYI