Comment by specproc
5 days ago
> I began drinking too much, but luckily I was able to get out of that habit.
Alcohol is incredibly dangerous after 40, particularly if you've got a history as a heavy drinker. I've had to cut back to virtually nothing as it's guaranteed to trigger anxiety and depressive episodes.
Almost all the premature deaths in my circle, including suicides, have been alcohol-linked.
Obviously, YMMV, everyone's different, but if anyone reading this thread is over 40, struggling, and still drinking regularly, taking a break can really help.
Well, not taking a break, but stopping.
I am very glad I ripped that bandaid off over a decade ago. But success for people with a genuine problem is stopping, not taking a break
I celebrated 20 years since my last drink on Monday of this week.
People who want to drink--should drink.
People who don't want to drink but find that they keep doing it anyway, might want to check out what AA has to offer. It worked for me when nothing else did.
Congrats!
I switched to NA beer so that when I did decide to “have a few” it would be a rare occasion. Then I realized that NA beer was doing it for me and I haven’t gone back. It’s not for everyone but it worked for me.
I do enjoy NAs too, and we are blessed with a booming market these days!
But I do know some alcoholics that say they can’t even taste the stuff or it will trigger them. So to each their own
I quit 2 years ago. The juice wasn't worth the squeeze. Sad, to think at one time I almost opened a brewery.
And it's bad for you, yes, and that's why I quit, it was fucking with my sleep horribly, but also it's such a drain on your finances today. And given the state of things today, I'm glad I quit when I did. Saving a grand a year isn't a lot but that money is much better off being spent in a different way.
I wanted to open a brewery too! I now realize it was probably just fuel for my addiction, though I do genuinely love the flavors of modern craft beers (which have come a long way). But not nearly as much as I love a stable life lol
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Fair, stopping better. It's a tough thing for many to imagine though. It took a break for me to understand I needed to do more.
Yeah someone else above is talking about making friends irl is “easier said than done”
Yeah, it is. And quitting a substance (or in my case many) is also tough. It’s scary and isolating.
That said, I think modern people, especially those in the west where there is so much (often unappreciated) comfort and plenty, have become allergic to doing tough things. Comfort, like a crutch, has atrophied our capacity for discipline and determination because there is endless entertainment and consumerism to keep us warm and docile and distracted.
In my experience, tough things that require discipline and long term investment are the only things really worth pursuing in that, when I die, those are the only things I will look back on with a sense of pride and accomplishment.
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How does alcohole trigger anxiety and depressive episodes for you? When I drink I get calm. Did that change at some point for you? Like, instead of drinking with friends you used it alone in the dark or something?
Wondering if I need to look out for something...
One thing I learned right away in college was that alcohol effects different people very differently.