Give Up the Hooch: Booze Free for as long as you please!

[CrustyBadger]

That's awesome. Do you find after two years the cravings are gone? I've read through something Annie posted that research indicates that the brain is pretty much readapted after two years.

I cannot remember exactly anymore, but I'd say I have had cravings off and on every so often now. It seems psychological now. I feel the urge to drink most strongly when I cannot meet the needs of all my family members -- like my husband wants X and my daughter desperately does NOT want X  (and both need me to provide or limit X)

I think I mentioned here on this thread an uptick in cravings maybe a month or two ago but I did associate that with general Pandemic related stress.  Curious though as I was just about hitting the 2 year mark.  I'd be interested to know that the brain readapts after 2 years!

[CrustyBadger]

Ooof two years, congratulations! that is amazing, especially in light of the post of yourself that you quoted. Any resources other than Annie Grace you can recommend? I'm big on podcasts when walking the dog if you have any?

Just Annie Grace -- the videos and articles she posted on her  (free) web based group, The Alcohol Experiment.  I think she had podcasts too.

I had been drinking for many years, and it had turned pretty habitual for about the past 5. I knew it was getting to be a problem so I was highly motivated to quit.   The key piece of information I got from Annie Grace was the idea that the cravings don't last.  I learned from her to just acknowledge the craving, sit with it, and say "Yup, that's a craving".... and then let it pass. 

For some reason, just that knowledge really helped me a lot.

[wenchsenior]

That's awesome. Do you find after two years the cravings are gone? I've read through something Annie posted that research indicates that the brain is pretty much readapted after two years.

I cannot remember exactly anymore, but I'd say I have had cravings off and on every so often now. It seems psychological now. I feel the urge to drink most strongly when I cannot meet the needs of all my family members -- like my husband wants X and my daughter desperately does NOT want X  (and both need me to provide or limit X)

I think I mentioned here on this thread an uptick in cravings maybe a month or two ago but I did associate that with general Pandemic related stress.  Curious though as I was just about hitting the 2 year mark.  I'd be interested to know that the brain readapts after 2 years!

I'm at a year and a half since I gave up my ~20-year habit of nightly wine-drinking.  I've had about a dozen drinks since then, mostly clustered here and there on a few trips, last one being about 6 months ago.  I'm not sure whether that affects cravings or not. I certainly don't feel deprived, nor do I any longer think of myself as 'a drinker'.

So, depending on what you mean by 'cravings', I still regularly get a passing 'ping' or 'tug' at home during cocktail hour, esp if I have low blood sugar or am feeling stressed.  Historically, this is when 90% of my drinking happened, and it's where the vast majority of my triggers are.  This 'ping' happens despite the fact that I haven't had a drink at home during cocktail hour in the entire 1.5 years.  These feelings are not strong usually, but typically flicker through my mind and pass away most nights.

The strong cravings I've had since I did the Annie Grace program have been triggered by sudden unexpected stress combining with cocktail hour, or social pressure combined with low blood sugar.  There have only been a few of them during the past year and a half, and they can kind of blind-side me when they happen.  I suspect they have more 'teeth' b/c those triggers are so sporadic that I rarely get a chance to 'practice' dealing with them. 

I sometimes wonder if I'll ever be 100% free of cravings (it's not a big deal if I'm not...cravings can't hurt me and they always pass; but it is just something I need to stay aware of).  After all, I don't think our brains 'dismantle' neural networks for automated behaviors once they are built.  If I didn't drive a car for ten years, I'm pretty sure I could still sit down in the driver's seat, put the key in the ignition, and pretty automatically remember how to drive.

[Metalcat]

That's awesome. Do you find after two years the cravings are gone? I've read through something Annie posted that research indicates that the brain is pretty much readapted after two years.

I cannot remember exactly anymore, but I'd say I have had cravings off and on every so often now. It seems psychological now. I feel the urge to drink most strongly when I cannot meet the needs of all my family members -- like my husband wants X and my daughter desperately does NOT want X  (and both need me to provide or limit X)

I think I mentioned here on this thread an uptick in cravings maybe a month or two ago but I did associate that with general Pandemic related stress.  Curious though as I was just about hitting the 2 year mark.  I'd be interested to know that the brain readapts after 2 years!

I'm at a year and a half since I gave up my ~20-year habit of nightly wine-drinking.  I've had about a dozen drinks since then, mostly clustered here and there on a few trips, last one being about 6 months ago.  I'm not sure whether that affects cravings or not. I certainly don't feel deprived, nor do I any longer think of myself as 'a drinker'.

So, depending on what you mean by 'cravings', I still regularly get a passing 'ping' or 'tug' at home during cocktail hour, esp if I have low blood sugar or am feeling stressed.  Historically, this is when 90% of my drinking happened, and it's where the vast majority of my triggers are.  This 'ping' happens despite the fact that I haven't had a drink at home during cocktail hour in the entire 1.5 years.  These feelings are not strong usually, but typically flicker through my mind and pass away most nights.

The strong cravings I've had since I did the Annie Grace program have been triggered by sudden unexpected stress combining with cocktail hour, or social pressure combined with low blood sugar.  There have only been a few of them during the past year and a half, and they can kind of blind-side me when they happen.  I suspect they have more 'teeth' b/c those triggers are so sporadic that I rarely get a chance to 'practice' dealing with them. 

I sometimes wonder if I'll ever be 100% free of cravings (it's not a big deal if I'm not...cravings can't hurt me and they always pass; but it is just something I need to stay aware of).  After all, I don't think our brains 'dismantle' neural networks for automated behaviors once they are built.  If I didn't drive a car for ten years, I'm pretty sure I could still sit down in the driver's seat, put the key in the ignition, and pretty automatically remember how to drive.

Yeah, the neural pathways are never totally gone if they were well established and reinforced to begin with. I'm not sure I would consider drinking an automated behaviour as a opposed to a habitual one, but that's the neuroscientist in me being finicky.

[wenchsenior]

That's awesome. Do you find after two years the cravings are gone? I've read through something Annie posted that research indicates that the brain is pretty much readapted after two years.

I cannot remember exactly anymore, but I'd say I have had cravings off and on every so often now. It seems psychological now. I feel the urge to drink most strongly when I cannot meet the needs of all my family members -- like my husband wants X and my daughter desperately does NOT want X  (and both need me to provide or limit X)

I think I mentioned here on this thread an uptick in cravings maybe a month or two ago but I did associate that with general Pandemic related stress.  Curious though as I was just about hitting the 2 year mark.  I'd be interested to know that the brain readapts after 2 years!

I'm at a year and a half since I gave up my ~20-year habit of nightly wine-drinking.  I've had about a dozen drinks since then, mostly clustered here and there on a few trips, last one being about 6 months ago.  I'm not sure whether that affects cravings or not. I certainly don't feel deprived, nor do I any longer think of myself as 'a drinker'.

So, depending on what you mean by 'cravings', I still regularly get a passing 'ping' or 'tug' at home during cocktail hour, esp if I have low blood sugar or am feeling stressed.  Historically, this is when 90% of my drinking happened, and it's where the vast majority of my triggers are.  This 'ping' happens despite the fact that I haven't had a drink at home during cocktail hour in the entire 1.5 years.  These feelings are not strong usually, but typically flicker through my mind and pass away most nights.

The strong cravings I've had since I did the Annie Grace program have been triggered by sudden unexpected stress combining with cocktail hour, or social pressure combined with low blood sugar.  There have only been a few of them during the past year and a half, and they can kind of blind-side me when they happen.  I suspect they have more 'teeth' b/c those triggers are so sporadic that I rarely get a chance to 'practice' dealing with them. 

I sometimes wonder if I'll ever be 100% free of cravings (it's not a big deal if I'm not...cravings can't hurt me and they always pass; but it is just something I need to stay aware of).  After all, I don't think our brains 'dismantle' neural networks for automated behaviors once they are built.  If I didn't drive a car for ten years, I'm pretty sure I could still sit down in the driver's seat, put the key in the ignition, and pretty automatically remember how to drive.

Yeah, the neural pathways are never totally gone if they were well established and reinforced to begin with. I'm not sure I would consider drinking an automated behaviour as a opposed to a habitual one, but that's the neuroscientist in me being finicky.

I'm not sure either.  I'm not sure what driving is, technically speaking, either. 

[Cassie]

I was much happier all those years I didn’t drink and had no problem resisting social pressure. I have had some very stressful things happen in the last 2 weeks and zero urge to drink. I consider that very lucky and hope it continues. I have flavored sparkling water at wine time.  I am not going to get complacent because you never know when it will rear it’s ugly head.

[StarBright]

I was much happier all those years I didn’t drink and had no problem resisting social pressure. I have had some very stressful things happen in the last 2 weeks and zero urge to drink. I consider that very lucky and hope it continues. I have flavored sparkling water at wine time.  I am not going to get complacent because you never know when it will rear it’s ugly head.

That is great that you had zero urge to drink!

[Stubblestache]

A second weekend down without booze. Much easier than usual as my OH has also quit for the time being.

[Metalcat]

A second weekend down without booze. Much easier than usual as my OH has also quit for the time being.

It took me a little bit to understand this sentence, because to me "OH" means alcohol.

[Cassie]

That’s great stubble!  My husband rarely drinks at home and is only a occasional one.

[Stubblestache]

@Malcat it's always been the third wheel in any relationship I've ever been in...!
@Cassie thank you! We both drink a LOT in our house, come from very heavy drinking family and friends so it's always felt normal, but the older I get the more I realise that it is definitely not normal.

[katekat]

I'm giving up alcohol for a bit.

I'm trying to get pregnant. I'm not under the illusion that drinking has HUGE fertility effects, but at the same time it began to seem really perverse to me, given how desperate I am for a baby, that I was regularly indulging in an unhealthy and entirely optional activity that might impact fertility. If I'm at the stage where I'm trying to move the needle by resorting to prayer & old wives' tales (and I AM at that point) I should also be willing to make actual healthy changes in my life.

MrKat hardly drinks, and because of covid I barely see anyone else, so this should be an easy time to do it. My last drink was August 14th. If I'm not pregnant by the Christmas season, I will likely let myself drink then. So let's say initially that I am setting myself the challenge of no drinking until December 1st. Hopefully I get pregnant and end up going a lot longer than that.

Thanks for this thread. At the weekend, I read all the way through from the beginning :)

[mspym]

@katekat welcome aboard and nice to see you here. I have my fingers crossed for you.

[Cassie]

I think it’s a good idea not to drink when you are trying to conceive. I hope you have good news soon.

[katekat]

thanks for the welcome and encouragement guys! I started The Alcohol Experiment yesterday (obviously didn't get the full benefit of the 'examine your drinking' since I had already stopped drinking) so we'll see whether that's helpful. I might have more to say as I go through it, but at the very least I'll check in after The Alcohol Experiment is over and share what I thought of it :)

[Cassie]

I have a good friend that considers herself a alcoholic. She has been sober 40 years. When I quit drinking my best friend and her husband did too. My friend said she thinks there are many more people with drinking problems than alcoholics. She said that the problem is you never know when you will slip over to the other side. She said true alcoholics have great difficulty quitting. The fact that many people don’t have a hard time quitting means that they haven’t crossed the line yet. She went to AA for a year but quit after that because she didn’t want to trade one addiction for another. I found her prospective interesting.

[BikeFanatic]

I do feel it is strange to be sober 40 years and still call yourself an alcoholic. There are ranges and we may not all fit into one category of drinkers. I feel  I may have been a gray area drinker. I do feel I was addicted to alcohol, and I feel that alcohol is an addictive substance. So while I feel that I have been an addict I do not feel like I am still addicted to alcohol. It has been a year this time, and initially difficult but not that difficult. These days it is easy to say no.

[Frugal Lizard]

I am just checking in to say:  still not drinking alcohol.  It is surprising how little I miss the actual drinking.  What I am having trouble with is the social expectations around not having alcohol.  Everyone in my social circle drinks wine with meals.  Their feelings of how much I am missing by not consuming are kind of hard to come to terms with.

[Cassie]

My friend said she knows if she had a drink it wouldn’t be long until she was down the rabbit hole again. Even after all this time she considers herself a alcoholic.  On the naked mind support group one woman relapsed after 27 years. Frugal, you could bring a special drink for yourself for social occasions. They do make non alcoholic wine and beer.

[wenchsenior]

My friend said she knows if she had a drink it wouldn’t be long until she was down the rabbit hole again. Even after all this time she considers herself a alcoholic.  On the naked mind support group one woman relapsed after 27 years. Frugal, you could bring a special drink for yourself for social occasions. They do make non alcoholic wine and beer.

Yeah, presumably everyone exists on a 'risk for abuse bellcurve' comprising a combo of genetic risk factors, conditioning, and personal habits and choice.  People can call themselves whatever they want, for sure, though I don't think there are very clear scientific criteria for what is called 'an alcoholic'.  Personally, I haven't had any issue with going down the rabbit-hole to resuming daily drinking again by drinking a small number of drinks this past year, but I sure won't get complacent about that risk ever.   

[Cassie]

Most people that try to moderate end up back to their previous level of drinking plus more.  My best friend and her husband also quit a week after I did. We have all tried to moderate and in the long term were unsuccessful. I am glad you can wenchsenior. My friend with all the sobriety is so non judgmental. She doesn’t care what others do and goes to parties with no judgment and never says a word if people get drunk. She figures it’s everyone’s own personal business.

[TrMama]

I am just checking in to say:  still not drinking alcohol.  It is surprising how little I miss the actual drinking.  What I am having trouble with is the social expectations around not having alcohol.  Everyone in my social circle drinks wine with meals. Their feelings of how much I am missing by not consuming are kind of hard to come to terms with.

Well that sucks. I'd be pretty annoyed with anyone who gave me a hard time about not drinking. Frankly, it says a lot more about them than it does about you. They're probably feeling threatened and defensive about their own habits. Still doesn't mean it's OK for them to make you feel badly about your choices.

IME the social expectation part got easier with time. I was never much of a drinker, but quit entirely in 2016 due to symptoms from a heart defect. Eventually, all my contacts figured out I don't drink anymore so I didn't have to keep dealing with the uncertainty of how each person might react. Gatherings where kids are present can be easier since you can just opt for whatever special drink the kids are having. Although I'm always happy to just drink tap water. As time went on, I also got more confident in my decision not to drink and that confidence makes people even more reluctant to question me.

Anyway, it turned out that I had zero push back and not a single person questioned me about it so all the worry was just in my head.

[Frugal Lizard]

I am just checking in to say:  still not drinking alcohol.  It is surprising how little I miss the actual drinking.  What I am having trouble with is the social expectations around not having alcohol.  Everyone in my social circle drinks wine with meals. Their feelings of how much I am missing by not consuming are kind of hard to come to terms with.

Well that sucks. I'd be pretty annoyed with anyone who gave me a hard time about not drinking. Frankly, it says a lot more about them than it does about you. They're probably feeling threatened and defensive about their own habits. Still doesn't mean it's OK for them to make you feel badly about your choices.

IME the social expectation part got easier with time. I was never much of a drinker, but quit entirely in 2016 due to symptoms from a heart defect. Eventually, all my contacts figured out I don't drink anymore so I didn't have to keep dealing with the uncertainty of how each person might react. Gatherings where kids are present can be easier since you can just opt for whatever special drink the kids are having. Although I'm always happy to just drink tap water. As time went on, I also got more confident in my decision not to drink and that confidence makes people even more reluctant to question me.

Anyway, it turned out that I had zero push back and not a single person questioned me about it so all the worry was just in my head.

I guess it is harder for my social circle to come to terms with because I have always been a drinker - and many of them met me through parties and drinking events.  Hell the DH and I got married at a winery.  Food and drink is part of our family culture.

Friday night my neighbour was hosting happy hour on his front lawn as we do every Friday night...and this is his last Friday as an employee.  Today he retires after 39..43 (I can't remember).  He pulled out a bottle of champagne for a toast.  I drank the smallest mouthful and felt awful for a couple of hours.  The headache!  Well that was a lesson. 

[PoutineLover]

I have been practicing saying no to booze more lately and it feels good. I like having the excuse of being designated driver, but I also need to be able to refuse just because I don't want it. I'm trying to lose weight and the calories from alcohol are just wasted, plus getting super drunk is losing its appeal.
I've also been observing people's behaviour around alcohol, and heavy drinkers seem to always want company and don't like to take no for an answer. Most other people don't seem to care and people don't notice if I have sparkling water vs something alcoholic in my hand.

[Cassie]

If someone presses the issue I just say it doesn’t agree with my medication. Your real friends won’t care. If I felt compelled to do a toast I would just pretend to drink it.

[Stubblestache]

Got through the traditionally very boozy late August holiday weekend sober. Woop woop

[Cassie]

4 weeks today and I don’t miss it at all. I am down 11lbs without trying. I did add some wrinkles to my face. Ugh!

[wenchsenior]

4 weeks today and I don’t miss it at all. I am down 11lbs without trying. I did add some wrinkles to my face. Ugh!

Nice! and also, commiseration.  I didn't get any change in appearance from giving up drinking except whiter teeth.  It did not magically cause my eyes to not be red and puffy, didn't de-age me etc.  Didn't change my weight either, so you've got me beat there at least!

[Cassie]

WS, that’s a bummer. My skin looks much better but let’s face it at 66 it is what it is:))

[BikeFanatic]

I hit a year no beer, and today sold most of my beer brewing equipment.

[Cassie]

Bike, that’s great!

[mspym]

@BikeFanatic That's excellent! My partner still brews so I didn't give away the kit I used to make ginger beer in but I think it's days are numbered - I recently offered it to a friend who was thinking about making kombucha.

[Cassie]

For anyone that needs more support you can go to nakedmindcommunity.com.   If you join that you will also be invited to Annie’s closed group on Facebook. Both are very supportive. Hope everyone is doing well.

[BikeFanatic]

Thats a great idea, I assume that the support group is free or nearly so. THANKS for the support here as well

[Cassie]

Yes both are free. She also has products sh sells such as coaching, etc but I don’t need that. It’s great for people that do. The last 5 weeks have flown by. My best friend and her husband joined me a week after I started. That’s helpful because I spend the night at her house once a week.

[Metalcat]

So, I cut my retirement very short and jumped into insane full time work for the first time in years. I got lured into a HUGE, once in a lifetime project that I couldn't say no to.

Anyway, this first week was like walking through a wall of fire. It's been absolutely brain-exploding insane, and *exactly* the kind of experience where upon arriving home there would be no better sound than the cork coming out of a bottle of red.

Not drinking has been so much better.

Annie Grace talks about alcohol being a switch, when our emotions are too intense, alcohol acts as a switch that allows us to feel something else. It allows us to pivot away from the feeling, even just temporarily.

What I have realized though is that switch prevents us from processing those intense feelings, so they just stick around. Now after work, sure, I have to spend some time with those crazy feelings, but they pass, and then I have the rest of my evening to relax.

If I drank, all it did was buy me some time, but the feelings just got pushed back, and then actually amplified by the alcohol. Why? Because if those feelings made you drink in the first place, then your brain will hop right back on them to try and get you to drink more, because that's how alcohol works.

So that "relaxing" glass of wine actually set me up to experience my feelings even more uncomfortably than I would have if I just dealt with them efficiently.

So now, I have my crazy days, I'm a little whacky when I get home for about 30-40 minutes, then I have a chill evening, sleep soundly, wake up alert, do my morning stretches, and hop back into the crazy for another round.

The work is still new, so maybe over time this will change, but no matter what, I see that there's no way that alcohol, even a single glass, would in any way actually help the situation.

[BikeFanatic]

I so agree with above, it took me a while to see that alcohol was not helping me deal with life, emotional issues and really anything. Just a temporary switch to shut off my brain, and so mot worth the blah feeling the next day and perhaps the next day morning anxiety is also worse fue to the sub clinical withdrawal that I keenly felt after even small doses of alcohol.

Here is an Annie Grace video, she starts by talking about the pink cloud, then goes on about her own experiences,  maybe nothing new here for a regular follower but I think good for anyone new to quitting alcohol (even if only quitting for a month).
Keeping
 track of my feelings and how my body felt really helped me later when I considered going back to alcohol.

https://youtu.be/T8I--oVcs9o

[Cassie]

It’s amazing that we think alcohol relaxes us but it really doesn’t in the long term. In 5 weeks I have wanted to drink 3x’s and 2 were this week. The feeling doesn’t last long. 2 were in social situations where others were drinking and I had alcohol free beer. Drinking in the evening became a thing when I retired.  My friend and I didn’t have any bad physical issues with quitting like many on the Facebook group but it’s probably because we weren’t drinking to that level thankfully.   
One thing I find sad is all the encouraging moms to drink to cope with kids, homeschooling, etc. It’s meant to be funny but really it’s not.

[AdrianC]

The first time I posted about alcohol on the boards was in 2017. That time I made it 18 days, which was the longest time without alcohol since I was 17.
 
The second time I posted was this year during my second attempt at giving up, when I was 77 days without alcohol. I’m happy to say I’m still doing it. Now at 304 days.

I feel good, I sleep well, I got my lowest ever cholesterol test a couple of months ago.

The Covid thing has actually been a help. Less social events to attend equals less temptation.

I still sometimes get the craving in the evening. Zero alcohol beers help me. Busch NA is a new favorite – tastes ok, cheap. I also put cranberry juice in a wine glass and sip at it. Whatever works.
I have dreams about drinking. Usually I’m drinking a beer and then suddenly realize that I don’t drink anymore, and I’m upset for letting myself down. Weird. I do sleep better, though.

[BikeFanatic]

Hi Adrian,
I used to have the same dream! Now when I do dream that I am about to have a beer, I realize I don’t drink this is a dream! It actually took me 10 or 11 months to really sink in that I am never going back to drinking. At this point , just over a year, I have the confidence to say no I am not just going abstinence to try it out, I am truly now a non drinker.
PS I like Heineken zero, but the best NA beer is athletic brewing in CT and San Diego. They ship free and the beer is amazing. Taste just like real beer.

[TrMama]

I see that there's no way that alcohol, even a single glass, would in any way actually help the situation.

That was a much more eloquent description of my experience than I'd have been able to write. Even though I barely drank before quitting I was surprised that it still took some effort to go from a couple glasses a month to zero. Apparently I'd developed a habit of having a drink after a tougher than average day and when I suddenly didn't have that outlet any more I had to <gasp> feel my feelings. For a short while I used house cleaning as an alternate outlet, but sadly that didn't last very long.

Anyway, it didn't take long before I was able to process whatever feelings I was having more quickly and with less drama. Now there's no possible situation where a drink would improve anything. Even in March/April, which was one of the most stressful periods in my life, I didn't want a drink.

[wenchsenior]

The first time I posted about alcohol on the boards was in 2017. That time I made it 18 days, which was the longest time without alcohol since I was 17.
 
The second time I posted was this year during my second attempt at giving up, when I was 77 days without alcohol. I’m happy to say I’m still doing it. Now at 304 days.

I feel good, I sleep well, I got my lowest ever cholesterol test a couple of months ago.

The Covid thing has actually been a help. Less social events to attend equals less temptation.

I still sometimes get the craving in the evening. Zero alcohol beers help me. Busch NA is a new favorite – tastes ok, cheap. I also put cranberry juice in a wine glass and sip at it. Whatever works.
I have dreams about drinking. Usually I’m drinking a beer and then suddenly realize that I don’t drink anymore, and I’m upset for letting myself down. Weird. I do sleep better, though.

So exciting!  Congratulations!  (And I still get dreams about drinking occasionally, even though I almost entirely gave it up a year and a half ago, and haven't had a drop in more than 6 months). 

[Cassie]

I have been on 2 blood pressure medications for 10 years. 6 weeks AF and I no longer need one of the medications and my BP is great. Down 12 pounds.  I am guessing that the weight loss is coming to a end because I wasn’t super overweight. Continue to feel great and this whole journey has been relatively easy. Most of my friends have been very supportive except for one. She has made weird comments and I think it’s making her uncomfortable. She has said she can’t imagine never drinking. When we went to their house for dinner I brought my AF beer. She said she wondered what I was going to drink.

[TrMama]

I have been on 2 blood pressure medications for 10 years. 6 weeks AF and I no longer need one of the medications and my BP is great. Down 12 pounds.  I am guessing that the weight loss is coming to a end because I wasn’t super overweight. Continue to feel great and this whole journey has been relatively easy. Most of my friends have been very supportive except for one. She has made weird comments and I think it’s making her uncomfortable. She has said she can’t imagine never drinking. When we went to their house for dinner I brought my AF beer. She said she wondered what I was going to drink.

Wow, that's fantastic! Good for you.

Your friend is probably just feeling defensive. Just give her some time to deal with her feelings. If she keeps being rude about it, then you can reevaluate your relationship with her.

[Cassie]

Trmama, 3 days after I quit my best friend and her husband also quit and we all are friends and do dinners together sometimes. When my friend told her that they both also quit the look on her face was funny. Her husband didn’t care. Honestly I don’t think it’s going to really be a problem.

[Cassie]

My friends came for dinner Thursday and she got super drunk and annoying. My husband was happily buzzed and her husband never drinks enough to notice a difference. By the end of the evening I was so ready for them to go and she got almost belligerent to the point that I got up and cleaned up the kitchen and her husband joined me. He was practically dragging her out the door at the end.   More people in our friends group quit after I did and I think it’s triggering her.

[Cassie]

Thought I would update this thread. 4 months AF with a weight loss of 22 pounds. I feel great and have a back problem that’s greatly improved. To mark the day we are getting takeout and I donated money to our local people and animal shelters. I also bought some new clothes. Still money ahead to put into savings. Hope everyone is doing well.

[wenchsenior]

Thought I would update this thread. 4 months AF with a weight loss of 22 pounds. I feel great and have a back problem that’s greatly improved. To mark the day we are getting takeout and I donated money to our local people and animal shelters. I also bought some new clothes. Still money ahead to put into savings. Hope everyone is doing well.

That extra money to donate every month is one my favorite things!

About a month ago, in celebration of the election results, my husband and I had a couple of shots of expensive Irish whiskey that was a gift from friends.  It's been languishing in the cupboard, and I last had a bit of it last winter, and it still tastes amazing.  But blech...the buzz was not even very pleasant.  It's very weird to me that I believed that buzzed feeling was so worth pursuing for so many years.  It's so short-lived before it turns into the blahs...fuzzy and low energy.  And the ebb in energy lingered a bit into the next day (which I never noticed back when I was drinking regularly).

Prior to the whiskey, it had been about 8 months since I last had a drink; and having the whiskey just made me want another long stretch like that.   

[BikeFanatic]

That is great news Cassie! I felt at my best at about 6 months alcohol free. I wish you continued success, I envy the weight loss.
I am at one year and 3 months ( this time) and do not expect to go back to drinking ever. I think I made that final decision at 11 months. Really can't think of a reason to go back.

[Cassie]

I don’t miss feeling tired after drinking either.  I didn’t start drinking until age 50 and obviously was a mistake. Definitely not going back.