Not really an answer but I have to recommend Marc Maron's WTF podcast. The guy battled alcohol abuse and while it's not what his podcast is about he regularly brings the topic up in a very frank way.
Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
531–540 of 600 posts
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#532I quit a daily gaming habit by admitting that it was addicting and I did not have enough self control to not switch it on. Admit that I needed hard controls so I couldn't easily start up a game.
So I deleted the game and that was that.
First step is admitting you have a problem, and then figure out how not to put yourself in position to do it. After awhile the itch went away, and now I even forgot why it was so fun.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#533After years of heavy drinking (rock'n'roll and stuff) I woke up in one morning, found out what I have done yesterday (again) and decided that I don't want to see this face in the mirror again. It was 20+ years ago and I haven't touched alcohol since then. I can visit any party, can take part of conversations even with quite drunk people, but can leave any time I want and not to have any problems in the next morning.
Yes, there are questions and "But wine?", "But a good beer?" social pressure, but being in my fifties probably helps a lot to preserve my "I don't care" attitude towards this.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#534Earlier quoted context omitted.
You posted the comment I would have added. But let me ask, what do you have in your existential toolbox that helps you do this? What have you experienced in your life which might make this easier for you than for others?
But let me ask, what do you have in your existential toolbox that helps you do this? I realized that I occupy very little space in other people's minds. Not just me though, this is true of everyone. I'm not exceptional or famous or rich. People may see me but they don't care . I don't mean that in a self-effacing "I wish they would care though!" way. I just mean that everyone is living their own life, fighting their…
> I suspect the reason I'm able to think this way is that my partner is a therapist and talking to her for a decade has given me some useful tools for introspectively understanding what's going on in my head.
Thank you for sharing some of those tools here!
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#535Earlier quoted context omitted.
What elements are you referring to? Just curious. Maybe it's a calorie thing?
Or an association/placebo thing. My brother and I once accidentally gave our dad NA beer. He didn't know. We soon realized it yet kept giving it to him all night. Bizarre, he actually got "drunk". Slower talking, ever more exaggerated stories, etc. It's not just a personal anecdote, this has been replicated with two student groups in a bar, one served alcohol, the others not. Both groups got "drunk". Likewise, you ca…
That's very interesting. Do you have any link discussing the study with student groups?
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#536After years of heavy drinking (rock'n'roll and stuff) I woke up in one morning, found out what I have done yesterday (again) and decided that I don't want to see this face in the mirror again. It was 20+ years ago and I haven't touched alcohol since then. I can visit any party, can take part of conversations even with quite drunk people, but can leave any time I want and not to have any problems in the next morning.…
Folks will naturally ask, "How did you get to this point?"
One insight into successfully walking away from addictions is recognizing that this thing (e.g. alcohol, cigarettes) is unambiguously poisonous. "When I [take/do] this, it will take more than it gives."
Hard to articulate, but it happens when the scales that painted the substance with redeeming qualities falls from your eyes. Sorta like discovering you've entertained a damaging relationship for too long. However much worth this person has, being in a relationship with them is not good for you (or others, usually).
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#537I've cut back by switching to non-alcohol beer. I've found that I enjoy the taste of beer, but I don't enjoy how shitty alcohol makes me feel. NA beer tends to solve that for me. Lots of good options coming out. * Just the Hazy by Sam Adams is top tier. * Athletic brewing is solely NA beer - lots of different varieties. * Heineken 0.0 is great * O'Douls amber is surprisingly passable as well I suspect the options wil…
> 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 didn't allow a certain type of pesticide.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#538I have been diagnosed with epilepsy (though I am 31 with no priori signs of this disease) and the main factor identified was fatigue. I used to drink a lot, as I used to consider this the only way for me to relax, evade and have fun with friends. Wrong news though is alcohol lower your epileptogen threshold and added to the level of exhaustion I had at this time, it was decisive in triggering my crisis. So I decided to quit, not for me really, but mainly because I did not want to fall on the streets while carrying my daughter. What missed much was the taste of beer and wine, but for the former, non alcoholic beers have made tremendous progress and Brooklyn lagers offers a 0.4% alcohol beer that could trap any beer lover into thinking this is a real IPA. I wish you to find what works for you, for me it was all a matter of finding something more important than those destructive habits. And go easy on you, it's not failing, just making progress and experimenting. I occasionally allow me a glass of good wine with my wife when the bottle is worth the degustation.
Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#539Re: Ask HN: How did you stop drinking?
#540Earlier quoted context omitted.
Congratulations! One thing I have heard, that I am afraid to test is that if after a period of time of not drinking, an alcoholic starts again, quite quickly they revert to drinking as much or more than they did previously. I played around quitting and starting smoking several times, so I know I have a very addictive personality. It is not worth the risk for me to drink.
Yup. This is why it's about complete abstinence , not moderation. The first one begets the next one, which begets the next one, and so on... When the train hits you, it's not the caboose that kills you. Complete abstinence is really hard , unless we have some kind of supporting framework. It's been my experience, that everyone that successfully quits drugs (I consider alcohol to be just another drug, but legal, and e…
Yes to this. Best is several of the above. I started in AA. I have stayed in AA for many years. Once you clear up it is quite easy to point out quite a few issues with AA, many people quit going because of them. I feel it is my responsibility to be there for new people to let them know that as long as they do not drink, they do not have to get all hung up on the dogma of the program. There are a whole lot of things working together in AA that help folks stay stopped. For a fun outsider look see what Charlie Munger has to say about why AA works.