Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

The Zen of Drinking Alone

drunkard.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

151–160 of 290 posts

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#151

Post by nexuist »

tempestn wrote: post #139
okareaman wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm trying to apply what I know to food and failing. Now is the first time I've tried dieting and I have a lot more respect for the degree of difficulty. You're right, the issue is very similar

I've hypothesized that a unique problem with unhealthy eating habits compared to other addictions is that you have to eat. I would think at least with something like alcohol or nicotine, what you need to do as an addict is fairly simple (which of course is different from easy). But you can't just cut out food entirely, so it's a much more complex issue trying to eat in a healthy manner. Especially since even being to…

Well, one of the problems with alcohol and nicotine is that you also can't just cut them out entirely. Withdrawal symptoms are brutal and not compatible with modern 40 hour week jobs. Cutting out food, especially sugary ones, probably would bring about some subset of the same withdrawal symptoms...so the problems are more closely related than they appear, IMO (disclaimer that I have never been addicted to either so I may be completely off).

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#153

Post by tempestn »

nexuist wrote: post #151
tempestn wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've hypothesized that a unique problem with unhealthy eating habits compared to other addictions is that you have to eat. I would think at least with something like alcohol or nicotine, what you need to do as an addict is fairly simple (which of course is different from easy). But you can't just cut out food entirely, so it's a much more complex issue trying to eat in a healthy manner. Especially since even being to…

Well, one of the problems with alcohol and nicotine is that you also can't just cut them out entirely. Withdrawal symptoms are brutal and not compatible with modern 40 hour week jobs. Cutting out food, especially sugary ones, probably would bring about some subset of the same withdrawal symptoms...so the problems are more closely related than they appear, IMO (disclaimer that I have never been addicted to either so I…

I was mostly thinking over the longer term.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#154

Post by meristohm »

bradleyjg wrote: post #116
colechristensen wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We’re not all alcoholics. Substances affect people in vastly different ways. A key problem is that people do not understand this, that substances and substance abuse don’t work the same across the board and one person’s experience does not extend to the rest of humanity. It is more like there are tribes that don’t understand each other.

This is true. I feel for people that struggle, I really do but it should also be acknowledged that many good and enduring relationships—-romantic and platonic—-were catalyzed by alcohol. Maybe the alcohol wasn’t strictly necessary but empirically it sure helps. That’s not something we should be so quick to dismiss when weighing costs and benefits.

Yeah, alcohol helps us strip away our stuffy adult self and be children again, enjoying life in the moment nevermind the consequences. Thing is, with enough practice and humility, we can express a childlike nature without alcohol. Becoming a parent helped me do this; now I don’t much care what other people think. And, I’m more willing to ask questions of strangers or people I want to get to know. Getting older and accepting death may help with this, too.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#155

Post by encryptluks2 »

malwarebytess wrote: post #36
levesque wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A night alone on shrooms sounds like it could go so wrong though.

Really overblown. Maybe in the company of others is better the first time, maybe the second, maybe if you've got a history of psychosis, but in general tripping alone is by far the best way to trip.

Yeah, or only around those you really trust. Otherwise, it just sounds like a terrible experience.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#156

Post by racl101 »

I don't like Alcohol that much that I only drink it just to hang out with friends cause that's what they're doing and being around drunk people when you are sober is no fun. Being the designated driver is no fun either.

Needless to say, because of COVID I haven't had a drink since 2019.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#157

Post by empressplay »

noir_lord wrote: post #134
empressplay wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Gabapentin + Clonidine

People use gabapentin recreationally? I don’t even take my full low dose during the day as I don’t like the way it makes me feel (though it’s a very effective drug for me).

No to stop drinking

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#158

Post by Taywee »

coldtea wrote: post #121
kayodelycaon wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Instead of drinking, all of these can be accomplished by taking a “spiritual retreat” for a weekend. It could be a trip into the woods, a religious retreat with other people, or a stay at a quiet hotel far from home. I’ve done all three. When I have to make the long drive to my parents for a mandatory family get together, I’ll book a hotel halfway to take time for myself. The idea is to get away from your normal envi…

> Instead of drinking, all of these can be accomplished by taking a “spiritual retreat” for a weekend That's like saying to someone "instead of kinky BDSM you could accomplish the same by making sweet tender love". I don't think it works for everybody.

I think the point is that many of the advantages cited in the article don't actually depend on alcohol, and others are really dangerous. It's akin to the BDSM analogy if there was an article about BDSM where points were "you spend close time with another person" or "you get to feel another person's genitals".

I like getting drunk on my own once in a while, but I agree with the previous poster. The article is unconvincing. Nearly every point is something that doesn't need alcohol, something that is really questionable whether it's actually a good thing, or an opaque metaphor about a monkey. There are certainly advantages to drinking alone, but the article reads more like self-convincing rationalizations from an alcoholic, and fails to actually point out why alcohol is even necessary for most of this.

Re: The Zen of Drinking Alone

#160

Post by PopAlongKid »

What about time of day? If drinking only socially is a check on alcoholism, what about drinking only after 17:00, or maybe even only after 12:00? These time boundaries too are social conventions in many places.
Post reply on HN