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I quit drinking for a year

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Re: I quit drinking for a year

#11

Post by budududuroiu »

I didn't drink for 8 months in 2025, then I went to friends' weddings in Eastern Europe where it's expected to drink. After about 2 months of binging, I'm back on the no-drinking train.

I think what made it stick for me this time is cycling. If I want to be up and hit the road, even one drink the night before will totally derail that, so the calculation completely shifted.

Drinking is really fun, being up to no good until 7am on a bender is really fun, but I much prefer my early mornings with a coffee and cycling nowadays.

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#13

Post by rhyperior »

pton_xd wrote: post #6

> But gradually I noticed that I didn’t really want a drink, I just wanted a thing. ... It could be alcohol, but I found dessert worked just as well. Whoa! That's not healthy at all... ;) I've found non-alcoholic beers are actually pretty tasty these days, moreso the longer its been since having a real beer. They definitely scratch the itch to "have something" while out socializing. I don't miss the alcohol at all.

I agree, I actually prefer them now because there’s no ill effects AND they’re generally lower calorie, too.

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#14

Post by charles_f »

This is inspiring, you might have convinced me to do the same, if only for the sleep part.

One thing that I'd miss is the taste though, I don't drink soda or sugary drinks, and I can't think of a replacement for the taste of good wine, beer or spirits. (there's good dealcoolized beers nowadays but it feels like cheating). Not that I guess one absolutely needs it, but is still part of the culinary experience. It's probably because I never looked though, is there anything non alcoholic that "grown ups" drink?

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#15

Post by tejohnso »

2Gkashmiri wrote: post #10

I have been trying to ask people this but its havent gotten a satisfactory answer. Sure alcohol is ingrained in society, sure Americans tried prohibition and all that but its not gloom and doom. Muslims who are about 2 billion choose not to consume alcohol and go about their lives without it. They just do fine without it. How does that work for them? ? I mean I have never consumed and never will so why is it that you…

We pay extra tax on alcohol. It doesn't matter. People pay it and consume. Same with gasoline. Doesn't seem to matter how expensive it gets. Rate of complaining goes up, but road trips continue.

Alcohol is especially harmful for some people, but for others it almost always leads to a more enjoyable experience. I don't think those people would try to say it's good for them but they will say they like it, it's important to their social life, and it's no worse than junk food.

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#16

Post by dhruvkar »

For 12 years, I did one year ON, one year OFF (2012 - 2024).

On my ON years, I felt compelled to drink, every night I had at least a beer, if for no reason other than, I wanted to make the "most of it".

On my OFF years, I didn't feel the need to drink, and generally slept better, lost weight and was more focused.

Stopped drinking completely after that.

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#17

Post by chrysoprace »

I've found that nowadays I largely like it for the taste (which often surprises non-beer drinkers) and so I'm quite pleased that non-alcoholic options are becoming more widespread.

My main wish is for non-alcoholic craft beer to become much more widespread and cheaper. In Australia alcohol is taxed at a ludicrous rate, but non-alcoholic drinks are not, however they often attract the same price - which is disappointing.

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#19

Post by esafak »

chrysoprace wrote: post #17

I've found that nowadays I largely like it for the taste (which often surprises non-beer drinkers) and so I'm quite pleased that non-alcoholic options are becoming more widespread. My main wish is for non-alcoholic craft beer to become much more widespread and cheaper. In Australia alcohol is taxed at a ludicrous rate, but non-alcoholic drinks are not, however they often attract the same price - which is disappointin…

One thing that annoys me is that non-alcoholic beer is subject to age checks in the US. I assume it's because the programmers didn't create a separate group for them, so they ring up with the rest of the liquor, triggering a check? Maybe there's a good reason ('coz that's not one).

Re: I quit drinking for a year

#20

Post by jeremyjh »

2Gkashmiri wrote: post #10

I have been trying to ask people this but its havent gotten a satisfactory answer. Sure alcohol is ingrained in society, sure Americans tried prohibition and all that but its not gloom and doom. Muslims who are about 2 billion choose not to consume alcohol and go about their lives without it. They just do fine without it. How does that work for them? ? I mean I have never consumed and never will so why is it that you…

A lot of states do tax alcohol. Alcohol is dropping in popularity, but I think that is mostly due to legalized Marijuana and THC. Actually, there are more DUI for THC now than Alcohol.

People have been drinking for thousands of years, and all that time there have been people who think its a bad idea.

For me personally I can't drink successfully, so I quit entirely about 17 years ago. The only thing I really miss is the occasional drink with co-workers, especially at long dinners. A long dinner at a restaurant - sober - with co-workers who are all drinking is a special kind of hell.

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