re: Quitting Drinking

Every time I see these posts I always wonder how bad off the poster is. I quit in 2018. By that time I was drinking extremely heavy all day all night but still functioning. When I decided to quit I had to go to medical rehab because the withdrawals were so bad. That's the hard part.

depending on your means and ability rehab (a good one) can really help. if anything for the time to be away from everything to reset. if you go in with earnest you can walk away with the right tools to move forward.

not everyone can do that, i understand. ultimately its different for everyone. also a lot of variables

1. are you physically dependent? if so you need to be very careful. you can find yourself in the hospital or worse by trying to quit alone. i did.

2. reach out for help. family, friends, AA. thats the typical go to. people to talk to when you need it.

3. at some point you need to find out why your drink. wheres it coming from? you need to address the root cause for it. in my experience very few people are drinking excessively just for the shits and giggles of it.

thats a start. if this is a real post, and your honest about admitting to yourself its a problem then youve started down the right road.

quote:

---

I'm sure waking up every day with a clear head and no hangover is amazing

---

Have you been outside lately? Traffic is the worst it’s ever been. Drivers on their phone not paying attention. Inflation at an all time high. Social media teen influencers making more then brain surgeon's. This is the perfect time to start drinking.

Do a real thorough look inside and ask yourself why you were drinking, and work on that. Don’t discount therapy outside of AA. In fact, do both.

The physical addiction is part of it, but for most of us there is some underlying psychological reason. For me it’s anxiety and depression brought on by decades of covering emotions brought on by a family history of alcoholism and my need to try and “control the situation” when that family member was acting inappropriately.

I’m a relative newcomer with only 4 months under my belt, but it’s worth it. As far as how to tell friends and family; I brought this up at my meeting last week anticipating having to do this over the Easter weekend and their advice rang true:

You are probably making it out to be more than it is. For the most part, no one is going to grill you about why you have a Coke in your hugger instead of a beer, and if they ask, give them whatever explanation you feel comfortable with. You don’t owe anyone an explanation. In fact, look around and you’ll probably be surprised at the amount of people who are not drinking.

My BIL was my family drinking buddy for the last 10 yrs and asked me if I was drinking these days (since I’ve lost ~ 50 lbs since New Years) and I told him, “No, I don’t drink anymore. It wasn’t good for me and I was doing more than social drinking. I’ve been going to meetings and it’s working out pretty good.”

His response was something like, “Oh, ok cool. If this (his beer) is bothering you, I can not drink if it’s making you uncomfortable.” The rest of the weekend, it never came up again. No big deal.

Good luck Doof

I just tell people I quit. Most everyone just says good for you. Others ask questions and I say I did it for health reasons, which is true both physically and mentally. Those who know me well knew I could drink my arse off, so I’m sure they read between those not so subtle lines.

I think everyone is different, so figure out what works for you and do your own thing. Maybe that’s meetings, maybe it’s a new hobby, therapy, all of the above.

Struggling with this right now. I don’t have physical wd beyond the fact that I can’t sleep without throwing a few back. Most melatonin doesn’t work and the ones that do don’t last through the night. Benadryl is like poison to me and put me in a mental fog for several days. Pot makes me paranoid and tends to be more stressful than relaxing for me. Those who’ve quit successfully, have you found anything that helps for the first week or so? What would you recommend? I’ll be away from civilization in the woods for 4 days this weekend, going to try to use it to my advantage on this front.

I just quit after Mardi Gras. I just tel people I’m on the wagon. Most leave me alone. We do have one drinking friend that’s a total fricking retarded lush about it - oh my god, just have one shot of tequila - her husband is a good dude and pretty much tells her to shut the frick up the moment it starts.

Here’s my short story- not much a home drinker, more social. But I have no, zero, zilch off switch. I grew up drinking and partying w hat ever drugs I could get my hands on. When I go out and drink I go until blackout drunk. I’ve also been fat as frick for a while. Went to doctor right before Mardi Gras. My hbp, diabetes and liver enzymes were really really high. Got an ultrasound and have a fatty liver.

So, I partied through Mardi Gras w family and friends - had a great time. Had a couple bloody Mary’s on Mardi Gras day and decided I’d quit for a while. I didn’t put a timeline. A year feels about right. A couple people said I can’t go a year, high makes me want to do a year even more.

It’s been 40 days or so of healthy eating and no drinking. I’m down 20 pounds and feel so much better.

I always felt I wasn’t an alcoholic bc I don’t drink everyday. Doesn’t matter. I drive when we got out to dinner now, I feel fine when I wake up, I don’t have any new injuries caused by falling down while wasted, setting a better example for my kids. I still want a drink at various times, but have quickly learned to just not do it because I don’t want to be puking the next morning.

I also smoke/eat a lot more pot, but that’s always been my preferred method.

One more thing - just had a family beach trip. It was so nice not worrying about what I’d drink all day, having a handle of vodka, fresh ice etc. throw a couple sodas, waters, Perrier’s in a cooler and go.

quote:

---

When I decided to quit I had to go to medical rehab because the withdrawals were so bad. That's the hard part.

---

Yep, my muscles were seizing and I was having auditory hallucinations. I heard things that weren’t there. It’s was absolutely terrible and indescribable.

Thank God for Librium

I wish you strength and peace