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40 Days Without Booze

jdmoyer.com

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Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#131

Post by colbyh »

bitops wrote: post #53

> booze enables workaholism, because of the fast unwind time I think this is the key insight from the article. I went through a stressful period where I used alcohol to wind down quickly. But in reality it just made things worse because it numbed me up to the real reasons why I was stressed out. Sometimes though, we don't want to look at the deeper issues (emotional/psychological) for why we are unhappy, and booze pr…

Having never been a drinker (well, tried a bit as a kid but quickly realized it wasn't my thing) it wasn't until the last couple of years that I started to understand why people drink. Being in the early stages of a new company and wanting/needing to work insane hours is all fine and good but after a while of not being able to easily detach it's easy to find yourself being overly anxious and distant. Like, clinically so.

That being said, some people can use alcohol recreationally and some are more or less destined to use it as a crutch. I'm certainly in the latter category.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#132

Post by bitops »

colbyh wrote: post #131
bitops wrote: post #53

> booze enables workaholism, because of the fast unwind time I think this is the key insight from the article. I went through a stressful period where I used alcohol to wind down quickly. But in reality it just made things worse because it numbed me up to the real reasons why I was stressed out. Sometimes though, we don't want to look at the deeper issues (emotional/psychological) for why we are unhappy, and booze pr…

Having never been a drinker (well, tried a bit as a kid but quickly realized it wasn't my thing) it wasn't until the last couple of years that I started to understand why people drink. Being in the early stages of a new company and wanting/needing to work insane hours is all fine and good but after a while of not being able to easily detach it's easy to find yourself being overly anxious and distant. Like, clinically…

> some are more or less destined to use it as a crutch. I'm certainly in the latter category.

I don't think that has to be true - you just need to find something else that unwinds you. I think alcohol is easy because, hey, you drink it and it does its thing. With other practices (exercise/meditation/etc) you have to put in some up-front work to see the benefits. But I believe you can do anything in 4 to 6 weeks with consistent effort.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#133

Post by Havoc »

Went from drinking way too much (Think black out) to zero recently. It was actually surprisingly easy - weirdly effortless.

What freaks me out though is how difficult it is to hit the sweet spot. i.e. To drink, but low-moderate amounts and only irregularly. That would be ideal in my view - I don't seem to have sufficient willpower for that yet, so its zero drinks for now.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#134

Post by DanBC »

ctdonath wrote: post #27
tomjen3 wrote: post #3

(I am reading this after two glasses of wine). Am I alone in thinking that he sounds like an addict? I mean, sure he didn't have a big issue sticking to his decision, but at the same time the list of changes is pretty significant.

Was thinking that too. For all the verbiage, there was only a vague " I had only been averaging a couple drinks a day " way down the article as an indication of what the abstained-from baseline was. Averaging two? The "couple" numeric implies room for large values of 2, and "averaging" easily includes two days of nothing followed by 6 in short order. This brings back the crux of those who argue such subjects: some pe…

2 glasses of wine could be 2 glasses, at 250 ml per glass, of a 14.5% ABV wine. This is a considerable, probably dangerous, amount of alcohol.

(In the UK this is described at 3.6 units per glass, or about 7 units per day. Safe limits for men are not more than 3 to 4 units per day, not every day.)

Or it could be 2 glasses, at 150 ml per glass, of a 10% ABV wine. That would be 1.5 units per glass, or 3 units per day.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#135

Post by jacquesm »

reustle wrote: post #11

Great writeup. As someone who never drinks, and never has, it continues to sound like a drug to me and I want no part of it. That said, I still get questioned about my decision like I have 2 heads.

Same here. I have a rather addictive personality and I'd hate to find out there is a drug stronger than my willpower to get rid of it so I have decided to forego the experience completely.

If my dad was any example to go by then I think this is the right decision for me.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#136

Post by reustle »

eyeareque wrote: post #103
reustle wrote: post #11

Great writeup. As someone who never drinks, and never has, it continues to sound like a drug to me and I want no part of it. That said, I still get questioned about my decision like I have 2 heads.

I've also never drank before. People just can't seem to understand why I have never chosen to. I've also never met anyone else who has never drank.

Then you should ping me on twitter / email :) Being non-drinkers is a great excuse to connect

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#137

Post by Havoc »

jere wrote: post #60

I've slipped into the habit of drinking almost every single night over the past few months and I'm currently trying to cut it out. It's harder than I thought it would be. Like the author said, I've never noticed any physical withdrawal, but I have a strong urge to have a drink every night (sometimes even in the middle of the day). This is one of the most stressful times of my life and it's so hard not to just say "fu…

>a few beers will cause me problems with dehydration

Aside from lots of water, add add a electrolyte powder. The kind from the pharmacy intended for dehydration, not the "electrolyte" marketing crap energy drink companies use.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#138

Post by Osmium »

nrivadeneira wrote: post #128
bitops wrote: post #53

> booze enables workaholism, because of the fast unwind time I think this is the key insight from the article. I went through a stressful period where I used alcohol to wind down quickly. But in reality it just made things worse because it numbed me up to the real reasons why I was stressed out. Sometimes though, we don't want to look at the deeper issues (emotional/psychological) for why we are unhappy, and booze pr…

I find that a hardcore workout works even better than alcohol. Not only do you get the same winding down effect in a short period of time (assuming you're really killing yourself and working to exhaustion in the gym), but you get a lot of additional benefits along with it: better focus, improved health, boosted confidence, and improved body composition. You wake up the next morning feeling a lot better about yourself…

> working to exhaustion in the gym

I don't disagree, but when I've tried this I just find myself doubly exhausted: once (mentally) from the work, and again (physically) from the gym. Still agree that making time for the gym is really important though. But for me, it's not the answer to mental exhaustion but rather just part of a healthy lifestyle generally (personally, proper sleep hygiene is the only solution I've found to mental exhaustion and overwork).

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#139

Post by brohoolio »

[deleted] wrote: post #115
reustle wrote: post #11

Great writeup. As someone who never drinks, and never has, it continues to sound like a drug to me and I want no part of it. That said, I still get questioned about my decision like I have 2 heads.

[deleted]

>Drinking to much does have negative effects, you just need a little self control.

I'm guessing you never been close to an alcoholic. It's a disease. Specifically it's an addictive illness. Saying it's just a little self control trivializes that it's an addiction.

Re: 40 Days Without Booze

#140

Post by eeeeeeeeeeeee »

nrivadeneira wrote: post #128
bitops wrote: post #53

> booze enables workaholism, because of the fast unwind time I think this is the key insight from the article. I went through a stressful period where I used alcohol to wind down quickly. But in reality it just made things worse because it numbed me up to the real reasons why I was stressed out. Sometimes though, we don't want to look at the deeper issues (emotional/psychological) for why we are unhappy, and booze pr…

I find that a hardcore workout works even better than alcohol. Not only do you get the same winding down effect in a short period of time (assuming you're really killing yourself and working to exhaustion in the gym), but you get a lot of additional benefits along with it: better focus, improved health, boosted confidence, and improved body composition. You wake up the next morning feeling a lot better about yourself…

I was going to mention the same thing. Replace the after work drink with an intense workout and it does wonders.
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