I stopped drinking about 5 months ago.
Since then my life has improved in almost every area.
Nothing has got worse.

The obvious things, I have more time, more money, make better decisions, am happier, stronger, fitter and healthier, are more considerate and have better personal relationships.

I watch TV shows and see how alcohol is present almost everywhere.
I've been to various pubs recently looking for a venue for meetings and they are have depressed people in there.

Well done, Sprint   

If MenstrualCyclist is visiting pubs ("I've been to various pubs recently looking for") looking for the life he lost.

How can a purported abstainer claim to be off the booze if he is "visiting pubs" and fantasizing about alcohol in TV shows and movies?

I have been a regular drinker for the last 3 years. My personality has changed quite a bit that I have gotten to a point where I want to figure out when my last drink should be. There is about 2 drinks worth of scotch sitting in its bottle, awaiting me coming home to finish tonight.

The last time I went sober for a long time (10 months) was about 9 years ago. I lost a lot of weight. My sleeping patterns became a regular 5 hours a night that I thought I was becoming an insomniac. But I managed to use the other 19 hours of the day quite well. I did a lot of work and I could concentrate quite well. I recall the feeling of bliss I had as a teenager, before the stress of becoming an adult took over.

I wish I saved my money and my health by not having alcohol at regular intervals. But, it seems that my mental health has been saved by having alcohol.

UnSubRocky wrote on Feb 22^nd, 2024 at 2:00am:



Thanks for sharing your experience

I have been imbibing for just over 70 years, have only been drunk twice in that time.
My tipple of choice has always been  whisky but in moderation, I still have half a bottle of Grant’s that my mother-in-law gave me ove r 30 years ago.
I drink a dram or two in her memory on her birthday.
Not for nothing is whisky known as ‘uisge beatha’ in Gaelic [aqua vitae, or ‘water of life] and had medicinal properties, such as the washing of wounds.
Taken in moderation it is a good friend but abused it is a terrible enemy.
Congratulations to those who have overcome it when it has become an enemy.
 
Tip on imbibing in whisky, only drink the good stuff, no matter how expensive [ within reason😀]
Drink it neat and only sip

Drinking alcohol is very occassional for me and mostly just a complimentary one when offered by my being a guest. It's enough for me to put up with, no different to other things in life.
I still have a near full bottle's worth of a collection-mix of alcohols I found when cleaning up a large collection of old automotive decor toys and models. You know the ones that carry little decor fills of alcohol for novelties. I replaced them all with some cheap recent whiskey. Now these very aged alcohols had become very potent. Just a bottle-cap's worth is enough to constitute a hit from a full glass. As some were as old as 1940 - I guess I now have a bottle of very smooth that hits like the whip of a Balrog!

Redmond Neck wrote on Feb 23^rd, 2024 at 12:33pm:

You've just transferred your addictive nature for wordles, waffles, quordles, etc.
Which means you can still be the same arsehole doing such, as you were an alcoholic.

Take up Buddhism - its a good discipline to break that endless circle of addiction overall.