I left a relationship that was driving me to drink, not realizing it was the cause. I stopped drinking effortlessly literally overnight.
Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
551–560 of 600 posts
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#552Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Lastly, I've discovered that I have an issue with wheat and/or gluten I have exactly this problem but only with wheat beer, not other wheat products. It makes me feel awful, kind of lightheaded and I crash 30 minutes later and feel exhausted. I don't have a problem with wheat or gluten though. My partner runs a bakery and if I had a problem with gluten I'm pretty sure I'd know about it. I have also tried eliminatio…
Wow. This nearly describes my issue perfectly. Though, I do experience the issue with some, but not all, other types of wheat based products. I believe there's some evidence that pesticides commonly used with wheat can actually be the source of the issue for some people. I recall having a colleague who said they'd import European wheat because they didn't have bad reactions to it. I believe the reasoning was Europe d…
It could be but I'm European and pretty much all the wheat beers I've tried have been European - mostly Belgian I guess.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#553Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#554Earlier quoted context omitted.
>Left to my own devices, I tend to settle into a pattern of 2-4 drinks per night, 5-6 nights a week (I actually tracked this for a while with a spreadsheet). This is where I would settle as well, except some Saturdays when I'd have a bloody mary in the morning then just nurse gin and sodas from noon until 2am Sunday. Just enough to keep a little happy buzz going, I really don't like getting drunk at all. My daughter…
> My daughter started a practice of not buying alcohol for her home. This has been working for me, too. For a few years in my late 20s I was doing 1-2 drinks per day on average, with a fair number of completely sober days in there as well. Never "problem" territory, but as I got into my 30s, I realized I felt way, way better on the days where I didn't have anything at all to drink the night before. So if I was ever w…
That's what I do. At least put some level of effort between you and alcohol.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#555I haven't had a drink in 27 days, which is the longest I've gone in a while. Left to my own devices, I tend to settle into a pattern of 2-4 drinks per night, 5-6 nights a week (I actually tracked this for a while with a spreadsheet). It's not like, ruin my life, wake up in a gutter type situation, but it leads to just feeling somewhat crappy all the time, and I didn't like it, so I wanted to stop. Some things that he…
This naked mind is a great recommendation.
I drank about half as often as you.
Enough to want to cut back, not enough to let me hit rock bottom.
Have gradually been moving towards sobriety myself if only because I'm finally taking it a little more seriously.
Huberman rec is great too.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#556I've been sober for 4.5 years now - totally free from alcohol and cannabis (my first and biggest problem). I've also quit smoking. First off, let me say that it took many tries for these abstentions to stick - that is normal, and you should remember that. Be kind to yourself. It's a skill and a habit you are building, and those things will take time. It took me years to finally gain real duration in my abstention. Se…
Lot of wisdom here. I agree with everything you wrote.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#557What worked for me was Allen Carr's book Easy Way to Control Alcohol https://amzn.eu/d/89NkrKR I tried several times to stop drinking previously, the longest I managed was for about 3 months. I think the hardest part is really deciding that you want to stop drinking. Once I did that, I read the book and it was easy. I haven't had a drink in about 6 years since. What I like about this book is it doesn't make it into s…
I wanted to mention the book and then somebody else did it. It worked for me too. I've heard about the book from this guest of Joe Rogan that described what the book did for her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZrA67ohY0I
That's where I heard about it too!
Very simple book and loved her talking about it. She possibly saved lives just by sharing her story.
Never been a smoker but the take that it's marketed as addictive is something I never considered
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#558I hated that feeling too. In college in particular I had a handful of really bad nights, including a night where I blacked out my arrival back to the dorm, including apparently me showing my id to the security guy in the lobby, a morning in which I woke up to find puke all over my computer and a plate of food I had apparently prepared next to it, and a time I was at a frat party so drunk that they eventually threw me…
> I actually have beer in my fridge and wine from before the pandemic ... so I'm pretty sure I don't have a problem anymore.
Lol well said
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#559Earlier quoted context omitted.
They mean every night, as in each night. About 20 standard drinks in a bottle of vodka, so takes 18-20 hours to process all the alcohol before starting again. It's just about doable with a day job if you start as soon as you get home from work and don't have to drive in the morning. I know because that was me once. This is why people with serious drinking problems find the "I drink a beer every night I must be an alc…
How do you figure 20 drinks takes only 20 hours to process? I use a BAC calculator test, for a 70kg person 20 shots takes more than 40 hours to reach 0 BAC. (My drivers license requires 0 BAC so I’m aware of one beer taking about 2.5 hours to process fully.)
>I use a BAC calculator test, for a 70kg person 20 shots takes more than 40 hours to reach 0 BAC.
Have you ever measured? It's quite individual and usually much faster than the formulas they gave you in driving school.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#560Hello Chris!
I had stop drinking 8 years ago with help my special methodology. Below I am talking about it:
1. Firmly decide that you need to stop drinking. If this decision is in doubt, nothing will work.
2. Plan which day and time you will stop drinking = Trite to set the date and time. For example - April 17 at 18.30 p.m. Do not select a date close to or too far from the current one. No more than 3 months. This will give you time to mentally prepare yourself and will not reduce your motivation.
3. Every day repeat this date and time and speak" I will stop drinking on December, 13 at 14:15 p.m. Repeat this date when you drink or before will drink
4. When the date you have chosen comes, tell yourself - I'm thirsty, but I'll do it later. It is important that you repeat this every time you feel like drinking and put off drinking until a later time each time.
5. If you can stop drinking alcohol for more than six months, according to this method. It is imperative to change both your own understanding of the situation and the phrase - then you should say "I don't drink today." It is also important not to allow yourself any amount of alcohol, convincing yourself that it is better to endure = give up drinking today.
In the future, the previously chosen phrase for persuasion - "I am thirsty, but I will do it later" should turn into a persistent belief "I have a desire to drink, but I will not do it today."
Also, do not leave yourself alone and in idleness. Try to keep yourself busy, and during periods of an acute desire to drink alcohol - use high-calorie foods or drinks, cakes, soda. This is of course a little dangerous in terms of gaining weight, but will allow you to quickly remove the desire to drink anything alcoholic. It is important that you find like-minded people and communicate with them about your problems and just about life. A.A. can be such a circle of contacts.