14 ms·

Ask HN: What to do instead of drinking alcohol?

• mentos 5y ago
  Go to bed early and wake up early - fill your Saturday and Sunday’s with 32 hours of consciousness doing nothing special first. You’ll find that the weekend will feel twice as long and make your work week that much easier to bare. Then see what activities/hobbies you gravitate to in those hours and try to support them with more deliberate focus.
• hdjjhhvvhga 5y ago
  Get a high-speed blender (not necessarily Vitamix, there are many cheaper brands). The possibilities are endless. There are thousands of recipes online and you will discover many interesting flavors and textures. Many of these are very good for your health.
• mark_l_watson 5y ago
  I meditate and hike with friends. For Friday and Saturday nights, even though I don't drink, I enjoy having dinner with friends who are drinking. You can give up drinking and not lose friends.
• telesilla 5y ago
  You're in for some fun! A friend who is a winemaker recently started making professional non-alcoholic ('dry') cocktails using botanics: he drinks all day for work and decided with his wife that they would stop drinking at home but they loved having a g&t after work, so he had to come up with something new. While these aren't yet for sale I've been "helping" with the taste testing (enjoying them very much) and they can be very very satisfying. Here is a similar company, see their "What's inside" for ideas: https://clevermocktails.com/en/mocktails/ https://clevermocktails.com/en/mocktails/ There are a ton of dry gins you can get: https://www.sinalcoholshop.es/espiritus-sin-alcohol/alcohol-free-gin https://www.sinalcoholshop.es/espiritus-sin-alcohol/alcohol-... https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/wine/g32283343/non-alcoholic-spirits/ https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/wine/g32283343/non-alcoh... Find a dry cocktail you like and make your own at home: https://www.cocktailchemistrylab.com/home/mocktails-3-ways https://www.cocktailchemistrylab.com/home/mocktails-3-ways https://thekitchencommunity.org/mocktail-recipes/ https://thekitchencommunity.org/mocktail-recipes/ https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Proof-Drinks-More-Low-Alcohol/dp/0778806758 https://www.amazon.com/Zero-Proof-Drinks-More-Low-Alcohol/dp... Learn how to make smoke. Learn how to mix syrups. Make syrups and flavours from teas and coffees and chocolates.. try mixing with non-alcoholic wines (pregnant women drink them mostly!)..
• orwin 5y ago
  Dancing (learning then using the learned skills) for social gatherings. It can be very technical and interesting, and you might find other sober, interesting people (not particulary in a romantic way, but also in a romantic way). Nowaday, i'm much less social (it became more and more tiring as i grew older), so i try to learn one skill a year. This year its climbing, last year was sailing. It can be water polo, Football... Club activities that takes you one big afternoon are often interesting. I stopped drinking in 2017 btw.
• VoodooJuJu 5y ago
  I would suggest reconsidering your decision to quit because: 1. you don't have a drinking problem 2. your decision is premised on a sort of "news-shock" experience, which, per Postman [1] and Carr [2], is a bad way to make serious decisions In particular, drinking alcohol (moderately, socially) is Lindy [3] as hell. I would actually go so far as to say that drinking alcohol (moderately, socially) is a net good for you. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amusing_Ourselves_to_Death https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amusing_Ourselves_to_Death [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shallows_(book) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shallows_(book) [3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindy_effect
  • fsloth 5y ago
    IMO it's a bit uncharitable to presume a person did not think through his new position. Generally novel events cause people to think through their life's choices. Dropping off alchohol has zero downside and will statistically improve health a bit if the drinking has been only moderate. If one yearns the social meetings one can drink non-alcohol drinks and still have a good time (unless the person has severe anxiety issues and is using alcohol as cure).
• newusertoday 5y ago
  I cook! i prepare delicacies which usually takes lot of time to prepare and friday/saturday nights are ideal for it. Eating what you prepared is quite satisfying in itself. I am not dependent on alcohol but i do drink occasionaly i.e. once in 2-3 months.
• ivraatiems 5y ago
  Could you tell us more about why you want to stop drinking? If your concern is seeing the posts on HN about alcoholism, and you're anxious about becoming dependent but currently are not, I can suggest an alternative formulation that I follow. I have a lot of alcoholism in my family, and I myself am quite a moderate drinker. (1-2 drinks per week most weeks; often none; maybe 3-4 in busier summer months when there's more social stuff going on.) Here are some rules I came up with for myself when I first started drinking, several years ago. They are based on the behaviors that I observed in other people who were "moderate" drinkers. 1) Never drink alone. Alcohol is for social engagements only. (I do count hanging out on video chat/Discord as "social" to an extent, if other people are also drinking. Social engagements don't have to be parties; dinner with your spouse counts. The important thing is it is a social activity.) 2) Never drink more than three drinks in a night. After your third, you're done. Instead, drink slowly. (You could vary this from two to four depending on your health and tolerance. In practice, I almost never drink more than two. I tell people I'm a slow drinker because I'm a lightweight, which is true, but only because I have let it be true by not drinking much.) 3) If you can afford it, drink good quality beverages - craft beer, scotch or bourbon, nice wine - which taste interesting and are worth savoring. Helps with part 2. 4) Never drink solely because you feel bad in some way and "could use a drink." If you feel badly but also are in a social environment where you would have had a drink otherwise, that's okay - you just don't want to form an association where 5) Avoid drinking on an empty stomach - having something to munch on slows you down. I am not an expert and I don't guarantee this will work for everyone - and certainly it will never work for someone who is already an alcoholic. But it has helped me define my relationship to alcohol in what I feel is a healthy way, and maintain it.
  • freedom2099 5y ago
    Alcoholic beverages (especially beer and windows) are food! Great for accompanying food! It enhances the dining experience! As long as you see alcoholic beverages as a drug no wonder you have an issue with it!
  • Graffur 5y ago
    I added "It's worth noting I don't have a problem with alcohol or being around it." to my post to clarify that this is nothing to do with alcoholism. I just want to. It won't be forever but it is for right now. Your post is good for people in a different situation to me though.
• guilhas 5y ago
  You don't need alcohol to have fun But you shouldn't stop to do something because of half a dozen internet posts Alcohol bad, sugar bad, salt bad, fat bad, palm oil, refined seed oils, meat, sugar soda drinks, pizza, McDonalds, drugs, processed foods, food additives... bad bad bad Saturday and Friday I am having fun programming Go or configuring my home server. I might also be drinking alcohol occasionally, but I have fun either way... Socially karaoke is always fun, no need to drink, although you might want to rehearse some songs to replace the "courage" alcohol gives you On social occasions I will mostly drink alcohol because there aren't many good alternatives. Drinking sugar drinks like coca-cola will probably do you worse
• maximus-decimus 5y ago
  I spend my Friday night streaming a movie on Discord with a friend every Friday since the beginning of covid and spend the rest of the evening talking. Similar alternatives would be gaming with friends or tabletop game night.
  • cableshaft 5y ago
    Yeah, developing a board game hobby (especially strategic and/or hobby games, not so much party games) and meeting up with friends who also like board games would fill that slot. I have a group of friends that I've met up with on Friday nights to play games with for like 8 years now. And several other groups that meet more sporadically or to play at different player counts. Or you can play them virtually or digitally (for free even) via websites like BoardGameArena. And since the pandemic started there've been a ton of good solo board games that have come out, and I play a decent amount of those too. At some of those places there might be alcohol present, but if there is, there's not much incentive to drink because you'll play the games better if you're more lucid. And most groups I've played with don't include alcohol as part of the events at all. But be careful, it's a pretty easy and deep rabbit hole to get sucked into (we're pretty much in a board game golden age right now, tons of great releases every year this past decade), and takes up a ton of physical space if you have an impulse control problem and keep buying them when you don't really have the space for all of them in the house. I may or may not be speaking from personal experience.
• programmarchy 5y ago
  Finding a new habit to replace the endorphins will make it easier to break the old habit. Maybe something like weight lifting, swimming, rock climbing, or martial arts would suit you?
• taubek 5y ago
  Soft drinks, sodas, juices, mineral water, cocktails ... Non-alcoholic bear sometimes has 0.5% alcohol so if you are totally ditching alcohol keep an eye on this. Conversation is my main reasons for hanging out. I don't need alcohol to get the conversation started. My friends know that I don't like to drink and there is no pressure from their side.
• fuzzfactor 5y ago
  >Ask HN: What to do instead of drinking alcohol? I prefer to put it in the gas tank of my truck.
• towb 5y ago
  You have to learn that fridays and saturday nights aren't when everything fun and exciting happens. Takes some getting used to.
• objevt 5y ago
  I've started brewing a big pot of mix of loose leaf green and jasmine tea, drinking 4-5 cups has really quenched the 'thirst' for having a late night wine or beer, that I once had. I used to home-brew wine and beer, and always had a cupboard full of it. Well instead of noticing that supplies were dwindling and brewing more wine/beer, I've let it run out. If I do feel the urge one evening, I'll just buy a 6pack of beer every now and then I think. It will be cheaper in the long run, to shift to this very infrequent mode of drinking
• kleer001 5y ago
  Same thing I do every night. Have dinner with my wife and kid, put 'em to bed, watch some netflix, take a shower, and go to bed by 10.
• quickthrower2 5y ago
  I rarely drink. I have kids so Saturday and Friday nights are pretty much at home like any other night. If I didn’t I would consider a social sport in replacement of beers. Maybe a bouldering gym or a run through the city. Followed by a lemon-lime-soda kind of drink at a pub after? The super power of being sober if you have a car is being able to drive. You can go wherever you like within say 60 miles - plenty of experiences for most people. The biggest problem is friends or colleagues not accepting the change and trying to get you yo have a drink. You need a strategy for that and if there is too much pressure ot drunkness becomes too annoying have a bail tactic.
• vpradeep3 5y ago
  There’s a false narrative floating around the alcohol-free culture; “it’s boring,” or “I won’t be able to socialize the same.” When in reality, the majority of nondrinkers enjoy the weekends even more sans-booze! (Think about it, no Sunday scaries, money saved, and more time to be productive!) For the alcohol-free or sober curious the weekends are filled with everything that those who drink regularly do- just without the booze. We enjoy cozy movie nights in, fancy dinner dates and fun boozeless brunches with our gal pals. The only difference is, we’re now available for early morning hikes, spin classes and at-home projects. The truth is, when you stop drinking, you get to know yourself better. You figure out quickly what your really enjoy; perhaps you’re more introverted than you thought, or you prefer a good book on a Friday night over a crowded bar. The possibilities for the weekend are truly endless because you aren’t tied down to activities that only involve drinking. You have extra time to not only unwind and relax, but practice self-care and explore new hobbies. If you’re new to the booze-free crew try a few of the following suggestions to fill up your weekends while you rediscover yourself: * Attend restaurants and bars that serve non-alcoholic options so that you feel “part of” (call ahead or check their online menu if you aren’t sure) * Schedule early morning movement and get those endorphins flowing to start your day off on a positive and productive note * Connect with other alcohol-free peeps through sober Instagram and find new friends near you * Stock up on fun, non-alcoholic drinks to make mocktails or experiment with at home * Plan fun days/nights at home with friends that revolve around things you all love to do- crafting, vision boarding, a book club, a sports team, hiking... If you want some extra support, try out the Reframe App (https://www.joinreframe.com https://www.joinreframe.com). For full disclosure, I’m one of the co-founders. Reframe guides the casual drinker through their cut back/sobriety journey through 10 minute daily exercises, community support, coaching, and progress tracking
• phytax 5y ago
  Well, you have to change your live. Simple said, hard done. Now you have to ask yourself, what to do with all the time you spent consuming. That's the price of beeing free. Now you can, and have to, decide what you want to do. You could learn, create, or even care about others. It's totally up to you. And that's the hard part. Beeing conscious about yourself.
• billconan 5y ago
  For those of you who don't drink, how do you fill your Friday and Saturday nights? > programming, reading
• RickJWagner 5y ago
  No advice, others have given some great advice. I just wanted to congratulate you on your excellent decision. Your future self will thank you.
• SN76477 5y ago
  I rarely drink, it just do not think of it. Friday and Saturday nights are spend making music with friends (jamming with synthesizers mostly) or online gaming with friends ( 7 days to die mostly) It is creative, can be really social and can mostly be done at home.
• izackp 5y ago
  * Cleaning * Exercise (Mountain Climbing; Basketball; Kayaking) * Learn things - - to dance (Bachata/Salsa) - - a new language - - an instrument * Hobby groups on Facebook - - Meet randos to play boardgames * Make things * Help people The biggest problem with me is being social. That's what people want to do around the weekends. The dance classes allow me to interact with people in a less awkward way, but it hasn't exactly provided me with as much opportunities as drinking at a brewery to meet people..
• Bostonian 5y ago
  Can you go to the same social events or venues and drink non-alcoholic beverages? When colleagues would go to a bar I would drink a Coke.
• Hackbraten 5y ago
  My impression is that this has a lot to do with habits and acquired/unlearned tastes. For example, I’ve grown to like extremely sour alcohol-free cocktails so much that I now prefer them over alcoholic drinks.
  • neom 5y ago
    Recipes please.
    • Hackbraten 5y ago
      Mixing orange juice with lemon juice and grenadine already does the trick for me.
• neom 5y ago
  Diet Coke, Documentaries, Weed, Hackernews, Discord, Teenage Engineering, Documentaries, Documentaries, Documentaries. As someone who drank v.copiously all day every day for years, it's somewhat easier than you might imagine, just gotta stick it out till you're in a new routine. (BTW something very unexpected, I had zero sweet tooth when I was a heavy drinker, gave up booze and a month or so later I was craving cake every night. Not sure how common it is, but push through that too I think.)
  • Graffur 5y ago
    Documentaries is a great recommendation. I have plenty added to my lists on Netflix and Disney+.
    • neom 5y ago
      https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW39zufHfsuGgpLviKh297Q/videos https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW39zufHfsuGgpLviKh297Q/vid... Extremely good. :)
  • codpiece 5y ago
    Anecdotal evidence, but in my experience many people crave sweets after quitting alcohol. I believe it's a known thing in AA.
  • abirch 5y ago
    “I traded one addiction for another. But golf is the crack of sports. Once I took it seriously I loved it. It absolutely saved my life,” [Alice] Cooper said in Golf Digest magazine
    • neom 5y ago
      HN certainly helped me greatly when I was in the throngs of removing myself from my daily engagements with alcohol. Whenever I was at my worst I could come on and have a stimulating conversation with someone kind, took my mind off the physical and mental stress of detoxing. I thought about killing myself many times, but HN was always there to keep me excited about life. I owe a lot to this community, I'd go as so far as to say it contributed to saving my life given the path I was on.
• rdubs333 5y ago
  make stuff!
• sea_anemone 5y ago
  I’ve decided to give up drinking after I caught Covid over the Christmas break… sort of a “complete recommitment” to my health. Add to that, hangovers have gotten fairly brutal north of 30. The ultimate life hack I’ve found for when you feel like a beer is Lagunitas Hoppy Refresher. They’re super tasty, zero alcohol, zero sugar, zero carbs. It’s basically seltzer flavored with hops and man is it delicious and nicely carbonated. A little over $5 for a 4-pack. Thank me later! Runner up is Heineken 0.0, surprisingly good. And for another healthy way to alter consciousness - weed edibles are where it’s at.
  • davidandgoliath 5y ago
    Try brewdog's stuff if you haven't. Far fewer calories but all the taste.
  • t0mas88 5y ago
    Lagunitas is a Heineken brand so both your favourites come from the same kitchen so to speak.
  • Wonnk13 5y ago
    100% agree on the weed gummies.
  • obruchez 5y ago
    Vandestreek Playground IPA is the best non-alcoholic beer I've tried so far.
  • tchock23 5y ago
    Most anything from Athletic Brewing is good as well, although they do have carbs.
  • arisAlexis 5y ago
    There is a super boom of hoppy or homebrew beers in the Netherlands and Belgium 0%. I mean every bar can have 5 different choices. Big difference than a bar in Southern Europe with only Heineken 0 (which is bad imo).
  • katzgrau 5y ago
• ericholscher 5y ago
  Here in Oregon many bars now serve kombucha and cbd sodas on tap. Makes a nice beverage that isn’t alcoholic but still feels like a real drink (and looks like one too).
• stwr 5y ago
  I’ve stopped drinking alcohol and sugary drinks about 4 years ago, but I likely still do the same things as you on my fridays/saturdays. It’s just me ordering water instead of alcohol/sugar, i am still as sociable and ‘fun’ than anyone else in the room, minus the annoying tendencies most drunk people have! The biggest thing you run into is social pressure for not being called fun etc. Ignore it and you’ll be good :) you’ll notice amazing benefits 3 to 4 weeks after you stop drinking that’ll keep you going! In terms of how you fill your evenings, that can stay the same, just involves a different drink. :) (unless you literally sit on the couch with an alcoholic beverage and do nothing else, but I’m unfamiliar with that!) hope that helps.
• iqanq 5y ago
  Don't stop drinking. Live your life. You only have one. Are you going to worry about an air conditioner falling on you while you walk down the pavement?
  • kadoban 5y ago
    You can live your life and still avoid the obvious bad ideas. In fact on average you'll live a longer and more fun life.
  • marginalia_nu 5y ago
    Is all you want to remember when you look back at your life a bunch of hangovers and stupid things you did?
    • andybak 5y ago
      Not everyone who drinks does stupid things or gets hangovers. (I can't remember experincing either very much over the last 10 years. When I was younger maybe.)
    • wittycardio 5y ago
      Those "stupid things" are often things you reminisce about with friends many years laters. Engaging in a bit of reckless abandon together makes you closer to people.
      • fuzzfactor 5y ago
        not my downvote but, >Those "stupid things" are often things you reminisce about with friends many years later Often only because your friends inform you of your "memorable accomplishments" at the time which you actually have no recollection of whatsoever.
        • wittycardio 5y ago
          You don't have to drink till you forget to have a good time drinking.
• kadoban 5y ago
  Weed is probably the closest thing, and should be far more healthy than alcohol. Vaporizers (dry flower or otherwise) are low on smell, edibles have no smell at all but can take a while to kick in.
• rdtwo 5y ago
  Kids.. make kids don’t worry about how to spend free time you won’t have any
  • telxosser 5y ago
    I don't drink but I honestly would much rather start drinking than have kids. I think it was Schopenhauer that said love is nature's way of tricking people into taking on the responsibility of having children.
  • revnode 5y ago
    This guy parents.
  • abirch 5y ago
    Kids are the cutest time thieves.
  • pstadler 5y ago
    Even though this post may seem funny to some, I can underline what OP wrote. I used to drink a lot. Usually went out for drinks 3-5 evenings a week. Always social drinking and never missed a day at work, but it was certainly too much. The birth of my son changed everything. Not only have I been barely drinking for the past two+ years, but drinking is making me quite hanxious the day after and I‘m suffering a lot more than I ever used to in the past. I don’t miss alcohol, but I do miss the social part. Having kids is taxing, but also incredibly rewarding.
    • FeteCommuniste 5y ago
      I like having a drink or two to wind down after a taxing day with the kids. But the logistics of actually “going out” is certainly much harder.
• siva7 5y ago
  I don’t think that life can be as fun without alcohol so instead of totally quitting i would try to reduce it for special occasions like night clubbing
  • Graffur 5y ago
    This made me feel old. I don't consider night clubbing to be a special occasion. Either way I have done the night clubbing thing and don't see myself in one any time soon.
  • donny2018 5y ago
    Moderating doesn’t really work if you are an alcoholic. It’s easier to quit than go through torture of waiting for the next dose IMO.
    • haggy102 5y ago
      The OP said they had no issues with alcohol (not an alcoholic). Moderation is something that everyone should do anyway
  • dougmwne 5y ago
    I've had plenty of fun with alcohol, but more fun without it. And at some point, most people's bodies call it quits. This seems to happen in your 30's, some metabolic change perhaps. Now the stuff makes me sleepy or a little lightheaded. If I try to chase the high, I end up sick. Friends started falling asleep at the table. The wild nights of our 20's are in the rearview mirror. And I'm a more confident person now, so the liquid courage is no longer required.
    • randomopining 5y ago
      Same here on all counts and I’m not even 30 yet. It just seems make me feel dull, basically never that euphoria of the early 20s. Over the winter while being at the parents home I have gotten into drinking high quality irish whiskey on a Friday night after a week of work to chill. But it’s not that amazing. Luckily that stuff is the only thing that doesn’t give me a subpar next day. Even 2 beers will make me feel scuzzy the next day.
• marginalia_nu 5y ago
  Partner Dancing (on hiatus last 2 years, sadly) Cooking Lifting Reading Building Stuff Dabbling in various other hobbies
• kdazzle 5y ago
  N/A beer has gotten surprisingly good over the last couple years. The brand I’ve been getting around here is Wellbeing - I like their Amber and Pale ales
• supreme_berry 5y ago
  I would recommend marijuana or cocaine/lsd/mdma. Pretty good trips and better overall feelings.
  • randomopining 5y ago
    You think mdma is able to be used a lot? Seems like as you age it should be kept to like once a year.
  • asteroidp 5y ago
    I hope you forgot the sarcasm tag because suggesting you should replace alcohol with coke. That's insane
• dougmwne 5y ago
  Since you don't have any issue being around it, just order a tonic, coke or 0% beer at the bar. Half-decent friends won't require you to drink. Most of my friends slowly switched to non-alcoholic drinks at some point in their 30's. I drink a little, but something about my body's reaction changed to alcohol as I got older and it mostly produces sleep instead of euphoria now. And for what to do if you'd rather not spend your weekend at the bar with friends, well you can do anything else, and that's a pretty vast category. Just do a brainstorm on the things that interest you. Sit down and list 10 things. Then 20. Keep going till you have a list of 100 things that interest you. There will be that many things. The world is an interesting place for most. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hobbies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hobbies
• oxymoran 5y ago
  Cannabis? Or are you looking for a hobby? How about painting along with old Bob Ross episodes? That’s how I learned to paint landscapes. If you mix it with the cannabis, it’s even more fun;)
• bostonsre 5y ago
  You can focus less on the nights and more on making most of the following days by getting better sleep and waking up earlier. I've gotten religiously into golf during the pandemic and am in much better shape because of it.
• Overtonwindow 5y ago
  What about an indoor sport? Maybe you’re using the excuse of alcohol to have those social interactions, so you just need to shit to a non-alcoholic activity. I’s say cannabis is your closest drug alternative, but maybe go 180° and go for a fitness social scene.
• hliyan 5y ago
  If it's the social aspect of drinking you're after, try diluting significantly. No one is going to measure the units you've consumed. Load up on (non-sugary) chasers, or alternate between non-alcoholic drinks and low-alcoholic drinks throughout the night. If you can limit your intake to a couple of units a week, I suspect (I'm not a doctor) that you will get most of the health benefits of not drinking at all. Sometimes I find kicking back with a non-alcoholic beer / mocktail and some finger food has almost the same relaxing effect as the real thing.
• PaulHoule 5y ago
  Of all the benzodiazepines it is particularly pleasant to have a Valium or a Xanax and go to a party. It has an effect very similar to alcohol but doesn't have the physical toxicity. If you have even minor anxiety symptoms you probably won't have a hard time getting an ℞ for Xanax from your primary care doc for 30 pills or so, particularly if you intend to substitute it for alcohol. Even though those drugs are very safe (in the short term) on their own, watch out that they are highly dangerous to mix with alcohol -- if you do that you could get over-sedated, do crazy things, black out or die. Other drugs of that family are less good as a social lubricant, particularly the long-acting benzodiazepines such as Klonopin or Clorazepate which could still be sedating you 24 hours later. Unfortunately if you use BZs regularly for a long period of time you can get an addiction which is particularly hard to kick. In the realm of speculation it's been imagined that a partial agonist for the benzodiazepine receptor would have a cap on its effects even if you took a large dose and would be very safe for recreational use, kind of like the 'Synthahol' from Star Trek. One advantage is that the effects can be reversed with this stuff https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2244412/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2244412/ however there is a lot of apprehension about using that drug for BZ overdoses because a person who is badly dependent on BZs could have seizures triggered by Flumazenil.
  • popemarijuanavi 5y ago
    >>You probably won't have a hard time getting an ℞ for Xanax from your primary care doc for 30 pills or so, particularly if you intend to substitute it for alcohol. Not in the United States. Try getting a script for Xanax and you'll be lucky you don't get reported the DEA re: our opioid crisis.
    • asteroidp 5y ago
      It depends. I just asked and he gave me 90 days be plus multiple refills While people react differently Xanax scared the shit out of me. I would never touch the stuff again. I have a friend who got off Xanax and also heroin...Xanax was way harder to abstain from It is noteworthy though to not buy them on the darkweb. Fentanyl is now tainting that stuff
    • 5y ago
• dagurp 5y ago
  Go to sleep early and enjoy having the whole Saturday and Sunday for outdoor activities
  • danrl 5y ago
    This. Bonus points for hitting the outdoors with friends. Deep talks don’t happen drunk, but sober and walking/hiking. Drunk “deep talk” is mostly previously suppressed feelings (learn to express them sober) and kitchen sink philosophy. Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. — Benjamin Franklin Books - Alcohol Explained by William Porter - The unexpected joy of a sober life (forgot the author’s name, but she is a great writer)
• el_nahual 5y ago
  I went from moderate (weekends, social, never alone) drinking to _zero_ drinking for about five years. This was during peak "social" life of after university and before marriage. I did the exact same things I used to do except with no alcohol: bars, clubs, parties, whatever. The toughest thing was realizing how...boring...some of these activities can be. There is, by default, an enormous amount of "down time" at a bar or club or young person's party; down time that people tend to fill by going to the bar for a drink, or sipping on a cocktail, or eventually by being drunk and letting the time pass. The second toughest thing was realizing how irritating drunk people (and yes, this includes your friends) can be when you're sober. But I stuck with it, and after a few months I learned different strategies for enjoying a night out--usually revolving around talking to other sober people, or dancing--and my life is much better for it. Lastly, in my experience i didn't feel the full mental benefits of no alcohol until after about four or six months without a drop.
  • tpoacher 5y ago
    • reducesuffering 5y ago
  • celticninja 5y ago
    Working in a bar is a great way to understand how annoying drunk people are.
  • YellowTrooper 5y ago
    Great comment, especially last sentence - no mental benefits of being sober in a short run. You can even start to think on 3rd month - why I did so if nothing changed? But after 6 months you will feel much, much better, I can confirm this and I heard this opinion few times from quitters. Some people might expect enlightenment after week of sober life. Never understand why, if alcohol require years to turn you to an alcoholic, how you can back to normal life in a week time?
• popemarijuanavi 5y ago
  Try marijuana edibles. You don't have to smoke marijuana. It's plenty potent in edible form.
  • lolinder 5y ago
    How about rather instead of suggesting OP lean on a different substance for finding meaning and enjoyment in their free time, we offer suggestions for what a substance-free weekend might look like?
    • popemarijuanavi 5y ago
      OP doesn't have a substance abuse problem. OP enjoyed his substance of choice for a decade, with friends and responsibly. How is recommending the nearest possible replacement, marijuana, not a good solution? Perhaps you should question yourself for bias against the substances being discussed, unless you wish to admit the obvious, i.e. that you have questionable reading skills. OP does not have a substance abuse problem. Billions of people across the planet use alcohol, marijuana and any number of other substances to achieve precisely the same thing that he is seeking to achieve, and they do so successfully and with aplomb.
      • popemarijuanavi 5y ago
        We are the most fantastic machines in the known universe. We are electrical, we are chemical, we are mechanical, we are magical. And we are what? To not use what we have? To not explore who we are? To be sober? That would tempt Gott with boredom. Worse: He might smite you for being so square. I'm gunna use what I got. “Who of us is to say that the goal of this life is not in the leaving it?” —Vladimir Nabakov. </soapbox> with my apology.
        • lolinder 5y ago
          > We are the most fantastic machines in the known universe. We are electrical, we are chemical, we are mechanical, we are magical. Yes! I agree wholeheartedly. What the human mind and body can do is monumental and incredible. The depth and breadth of experience we are capable of is truly mystical. It is this very capacity for near-magical experience that has me very wary of casual use of mind-altering drugs of any sort. I look through the comments on this thread and am horrified by the number of people who think that the highest form of human socialization and relaxation is achieved only through an altered state of consciousness. That to really live, we have to take a substance that changes how we live. The sense seems to be not that the human mind is capable of incredible feats in its own right, but that the human mind is mostly a great conduit for externally-injected meaning and value. It is this perception that concerns me.
• _zjmt 5y ago
  I'm a very big fan of good alcohol-free beer. There are some good ones, here in Europe at least. 7% of the beer sold in the Netherlands is alcohol-free based on recent reports last year. The cheap stuff in the states tastes silly, but if you can find a good brewery that makes it, I recommend as an alternative.
  • bartread 5y ago
    Here in the UK all too many of them taste like Horlicks (i.e., very malty), but I'd recommend Adnams Ghost Ship alcohol free[0]. There are one or two others that are palatable, but I'm struggling to remember their names: I had one last Friday that I thought was good so if I remember I'll post the name here. One slightly annoying side effect is that I find non-alcoholic beers tend to make me very bloated/gassy/windy. I do not love this, and I don't get this problem with alcoholic beers, or at least nowhere near as badly. (Btw, I will say in my group of friends, nobody seriously questions it if somebody is choosing not to drink alcohol, even though many of us do. Still, even amongst the drinkers, there are plenty of occasions where they might choose non-alcoholic options.) [0] Which is actually 0.5% abv, I think, but I worked out you'd have to drink 15 or 20 pints of it in a fairly short period of time to be over the limit for driving which... well, it's not at all feasible for me.
    • _zjmt 5y ago
      I find that a strong IPA that has no more than 0.3% alcohol really does a good job of filling the void.
  • YellowTrooper 5y ago
    This is a still secret for me - how to enjoy alcohol-free beer. Even its sizes - 0.33ml - told what you might not need more. Are there any advice on particular brand to try? Alcohol free Moretti is nice for my taste, but all other lager non-alco is frustrating.
    • A_No_Name_Mouse 5y ago
      Wieckse witte is a Belgian white beer that tastes just as good with or without alcohol. For the past few years I've been drinking more of that than any other beer with alcohol. Friends of mine enjoy NA IPA, but that is to bitter to my taste
• fasteddie31003 5y ago
  Taking a sauna makes me so relaxed that alcohol is really unappealing for hours after the sauna.
• jowdones 5y ago
  I was never able to give up alcohol completely, but reduced the amount and frequency of drinking. I drink coffee but can't drink six of them in a row without risking a heart attack, while a sixpack of beers gives me only a mild headache next day. Tried smoking, really tried to catch the habit but they don't do nothing for me. Feel nauseated, also at some point I smoked a packet (20 cigarettes) in a row - never felt so sick in my life. At least with alcohol you throw up and feel better but when stuff's in your lungs what can you do? Maybe if it were legal here as in Canada or California, I'd try weed. But it's not so I'm stuck with alcohol on occasion.
• krastanov 5y ago
  A lot of the answers here thoroughly confuse me. It seems like a completely false premise that alcohol is required to (1) have fun (2) let loose (3) remove inhibitions. Consume a minor amount of alcohol/sugar/drugs if you want to, sure they are damaging, but stress is damaging too, and even oxygen is carcinogenic if you use too much. But do not believe people that tell you that you need an externally delivered chemical to have a normal de-stressing night, whether it is night-club-filled or board-games-filled.
  • Gualdrapo 5y ago
    I never have drink alcohol, a "teetotaler" if that term is allowed here (and one I learned about not so long ago). I just don't like the taste of alcohol. At all. But I feel like most people began to consume it based on that false premise you mention and others impose it, like a chain effect. Can't tell if it's some cultural thing but it's so weird to me, one of those aspects of society I can't understand. Though even weirder has been that sometimes I've been ostracized because this not-alcohol consumption.
  • relax88 5y ago
    People like getting fucked up. It’s not that confusing.
    • fuzzfactor 5y ago
      >People like getting fucked up. It’s not that confusing. If it's not confusing enough, they're not doing it as thoroughly as they could be . . .
• mysterydip 5y ago
  Before I had kids, lots of hobby activities and the social communities formed by those common interests.
• kroltan 5y ago
  You can train your friend-circles to be non-alcoholic tolerant pretty easily (just buy non-alchoholic beverages on nights out as casually as you would an alcoholic one). That way you can still have the social interaction. And now for a completely left-field suggestion, online games have also become way more mainstream as a social tool lately, so you might get along with doing that (and I don't mean just traditional "Gamer games" like shooters or whatever, but things like Gartic Phone or online tabletop/improv with a few friends over a voice/video call). I know a bunch of stereotypically "party people" ("what? games? that's for nerds") who have taken the pandemic to become a bit more comfortable with virtual entertainment, and they seem to be having a blast.
• sokoloff 5y ago
  Non-alcoholic beers have gotten quite good and are available in a wide variety of styles as well. I probably drink fewer than 1 drink a week and I find the NA beers hit the spot very nicely for drinks at home. As for filling weekend nights, well, kids took care of that for the last decade.
• popemarijuanavi 5y ago
  I've found it so much easier to make a life changes for health reasons than for other reasons. I think you chose the right reason to quit drinking, for health reasons. Take one look at acetaldehyde to see what you've saved yourself from. Alcohol is a systemic poison. It affects every part of the human body in very dramatic ways.
  • popemarijuanavi 5y ago
    It's the metabolic pathway that's most jarring: a poison that gets broken down into other poisons, themselves worse than the alcohol. If your body (liver) didn't produce an enzyme called acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, you would die from one drink.
• sys_64738 5y ago
  If you marry somebody who doesn't drink alcohol then that helps immensely.
• maga 5y ago
  > For those of you who don't drink, how do you fill your Friday and Saturday nights? As life-long teetotaler, I always had more things to do than time: hobbies, sports, or simply talking to friends and family. I might be workaholic, since most of time I cannot find time for those things because of work, but if/when I do have free time the possibilities seem endless. It's Saturday evening where I am right now, I'm going to work some more and then do some chores while listening to an audiobook. But if I were not working, I'd be in the gym for couple hours and then meeting someone.
  • aurizon 5y ago
    I am also a teetotaller. In my youth I watched peers drink, seek alcohol, get drunk, crash/burn etc - apparently with great joy. As for me, I got tired, lost coordination, etc, but had no apparent 'joy of getting a little/fully drunk'. As a result, I ordinarily never drunk alcohol = waste of $$/zero apparent pleasure/abandoned it. That said, the herd effect where other drinkers act to coerce drink for drink matching was in play - so the zero alcohol drink became my choice, I drank coke by design. If someone grabbed my drink = pew, I said I was driving - an acceptable defence. Works well, saves $$ and lets me run with the herd...
    • maga 5y ago
      As a younger man I was a bit overzealous about this, and having an "assertive personality" (as someone put it) it was mostly me putting the pressure on my drinking peers. On the hand, I was incredibly lucky to find likeminded friends as a student and we needed no extra substances to enjoy each others company, although, people seeing us constantly laughing would assume otherwise. It still puzzles me when people call other people friends but need a drink to relax and/or enjoy their company.
      • aurizon 5y ago
        Yes, much the same with me - just bypassed the alcohol via soft drinks/juices and ran with the herd, people got to know I was a non alcohol type and good as designated driver. Usually drank free as coke is cheap compared with alcohol based stuff. Beer was a nuisance as even non alcoholic beer tastes like shit to me. Same with smoking grass - hated any smoke, it mattered not what was burning - I was not breathing it.
• marczellm 5y ago
  I go out regularly with a group of friends, they drink and become funny, and I'm sipiping orange juice while being entertained.
• zoomablemind 5y ago
  > ...My social and entertainment life has involved alcohol for the last 10 years. Well, I understand this as that it involved people too, and doing some things together. So, if the alcohol was rather a facilitator, then the question is rather more about you wanting to keep your social circles/interests while just personally wanting to subtract alcohol from your consumption. Is that right? After all, the options depend more on the people and the common thing that keeps you together, than alcohol by itself. Of course, your personal interests too. Starting a whole new social circle is a whole new question. Either way, it's doable, and quite liberating and money saving. Those 7-dollar pints and shots not drunk add up... well, should you not find a pricier substitute, hopefully healthier.
• relax88 5y ago
  I more or less quit alcohol when cannabis was legalized in Canada. It’s a better recreational drug by pretty much every metric. It only takes a few tens of milligrams of THC to get the desired effect vs 50+ grams of ethanol in an evening (that gets metabolized into carcinogenic acetaldehyde). While we don’t fully know the safety profile of cannabis it’s obviously far safer than booze, especially when consumed with a dry herb vaporizer. No hangover. I can wake up at 6am 7 days a week and work out. A small amount allows me to instantly shed all work related stress at the end of a busy day/week and get in touch with my body, a process that without cannabis usually takes a few hours. It makes sex better and boosts libido, unlike alcohol which can easily ruin a sexy evening if you have too much. I can grow my own, providing a fun hobby. It doesn’t cause any gastrointestinal issues, but in fact calms your gut. The opposite of alcohol. It’s just better (for me) in every possible way. It enhances my life greatly.
  • emerged 5y ago
    You sound like me. I took the same path including the dry herb approach. It eliminates the vast majority of the health downside, and meanwhile your new addiction has some genuinely productive side effects if you find the right strand etc. Compared to alcohol which slowly kills you and causes horrible decision making. I run out of productive energy around 2-3pm and the herb brings me right back! It virtually doubled my productive hour range. Its better not to take anything but as far as baby steps go this switch was a massive win.
• YellowTrooper 5y ago
  I quit drinking several months ago after 25 years relatively hard drinking. Was I an alcoholic? I guess so, but I am able to absorb alcohol quite fast, very rare had any hangovers and was a type of “high-functional alcoholic” with at least one bottle of red wine each evening. Of course, all social activities, celebrations, catch-up with friends always were combined with decent amount of alcohol. These my thoughts on challenges of sober life: First of all, there are no crazy and adventure stories around starting with “we had a couple of cups of tea”, no. In same moment, it is extremely hard to be around drunk people more than half an hour being sober - endless loops in conversations, and jokes are not so funny as it were before. I definitely have less “party time” now, but I cannot judge my friends - this is their choice. Instead, I can offer them different type of activities - dinner at home at Friday or Saturday, outdoor trips, etc, to keep friendships going and be social. Interesting, people tend to drink less if you invite them on your activities. Just create this environment of interesting activities for your friends and comfortable for you. There is no reason to suffer in overcrowded bar at Friday night - too boring (tell me this year ago!). Secondly, even with reframed social activities alcohol-free lifestyle releases a lot of free time. In my case I just overwhelmed with my old and new hobbies, all my spare time is already allocated and it is not an issue for me to spent Friday or Saturday alone in my cave - plenty things to do. Hard to advice something here, but maybe just learn something new? Alcohol is a great social clue which makes you accept people you won’t accept.
• nyokodo 5y ago
  > I am going to stop drinking It’s important you do what is best for you, however, in general I recommend avoiding excessive drink but enjoy one or two really nice drinks occasionally with friends who do the same. Why do so many tend towards drunkenness or prohibition? There is a third option in the middle.
  • lolinder 5y ago
    The OP is reacting to a study that made it to the front page a few days ago that found that no amount of alcohol was safe. I suspect that they're not trying to solve a drunkenness problem, they're trying to drop a substance that more and more studies are showing has negative effects in any quantity. EDIT: here's the link to the previous discussion as requested in a comment: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30009529 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30009529
    • nyokodo 5y ago
      > no amount of alcohol was safe You didn’t link to the study so I can’t confirm, however I’m guessing the behavior I recommend would constitute a tiny added risk overshadowed immensely by other behaviors they delight in.
      • abno525 5y ago
        Thats the one I found: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.10.21256931v1.full.pdf https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.05.10.21256931v... forbes linked it: https://www.forbes.com/sites/elvaramirez/2021/06/01/study-no-amount-of-drinking-alcohol-is-safe-for-brain-health/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/elvaramirez/2021/06/01/study-no...
      • lolinder 5y ago
        This is the previous discussion they were referring to: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30009529 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30009529
• 2OEH8eoCRo0 5y ago
  For awhile I was drinking a fair amount every night. Though I haven't quit drinking I just stopped buying it. My nights are the same, I just don't drink. It's the same way I "quit" drinking soda. I just stopped buying it. It's easy to say no at the store, it's hard to say no after a long day when your defenses are down.
• ipspam 5y ago
  I haven't quit drinking, but I have cut back from an average of around 1-1.5L of strong IPA (7%) per day to a half liter 3-6 days a week. I'm also not vaccinated, which basically simulates the quitting clubs and bars thing. I have gotten into Perrier. I buy a 24 pack of 355ml glass bottles for about $16USD. I can then stimulate the carbonation, refreshing Ness, and cold factors of Beer that I so enjoy. It also helps fill my stomach, and I will now instinctively grab and drink a Perrier after my first beer, putting off the desire for a second beer for a while. Perrier is also great for stretching out alcohol. Noone in their right mind would recommend watering down a beer, and yet that is exactly what I am recommending here. With Perrier, you will get MORE carbonation than the beer, MORE cold if the beer has been out for a few minutes, and especially if drinking out of a can, or unchilled glass. But the dirty little secret is that tap water ruins the taste, and degrades bubbles. Perrier allows the taste to remain the same/better (it's probably better than the starting water used to make beer!) While diluting potency and reinforcing the bubbles and temperature (if adding to not fresh beer) Sometimes I forgo the beer altogether and make a craft soda. I don't like a lot of sugar, and won't drink pop. But with a local company, https://blackgoldcola.com https://blackgoldcola.com , I can choose the amount of syrup (sugar) I add to a glass and then fill with Perrier. It's the ultimate refresher. I typically use about 1/2 the recommended amount, or 25ml per 355ml, which is 16g of real cane sugar.
• ckdarby 5y ago
  Switch to non-alcoholic beer. Do the same stuff you were doing when you were drinking alcohol but now with the non-alcoholic drink.
• lalalalalala3 5y ago
  If you’re looking for something tasty to drink (it’s Friday and I want something special, but I don’t want to drink) I go for hot chocolate. Melt some high quality chocolate into some milk and bam, youre all set. That it some of the sparkling teas out there that are flavored with Hops. hoptea is great. I’ve gotten back into working out, taken up new/old hobbies now that I’m not drunk and sleepy from 7pm onward. All the best to you!
• billfruit 5y ago
  One idea would be to replace alcoholic beverages with Kombucha. It feels nice in the mouth and fulfilling. Another would be non-alcoholic beer, which is essentially the same as beer, but just with all its alcohol boiled off.
• pheutar 5y ago
  I was a pretty heavy drinker for the past 15 years and I have been employed at a micro brewery for 5 years. So when I chose to stop drinking it wasn't only hard to stop, but my livelihood was selling craft beer that was a constant changing variety which required me to help people choose what they may like. What I found crucial was finding what gave me a natural high again without the use of substances. Luckily for me that is board sports which I have thrown myself into again with exercise, stretching, and filming so I can improve my technique and aid in the speed of my progression. But being in my mid 30's the idea of riding daily doing an impact sport isn't something I can sustain. Now 10 weeks in I'm finding it harder than when I first stopped drinking since it is the "social lubricant" of choice with my group. My partner still has their casual "end of the day/cooking dinner" drink or two. Some lessons I have learned about couping with the cravings. 1. The craving for alcohol does go away but I'm finding cravings for sugar now. (Alcohol has lots of sugar and my body wants to replace it). 2. You can't just "replace" the act of drinking because you will just drink an equal amount of whatever you choose. (I saw no coffee or tea, I'm kicking coffee at the same time, and I like to drink Kombucha which I realize I need to be careful because it is fermented so technically has "some alcohol") 3. Don't try to control the actions of those around you it makes it harder not to drink and isolating yourself from the socialization will make it hard to stay sober. 4. Finding something that exercises your mind and or body. You need to engage yourself and begin to "grow" again and figure out who you are. So many years using drugs and alcohol really does skew your personality and you do need to "find yourself" again and find what gets you excited. 5. Try new things or hobbies. Look up groups in your city for new experiences and keep engaging yourself don't just sit around thinking about what you are missing out on by not drinking. Its hard work and it will continue to be for a while. Eventually the interests that get you excited will far outweigh the want to drink and who you grow into will be stronger than needing to drink. Best of luck.
• hogrider 5y ago
  Explore the great outdoors.
• d136o 5y ago
  Congrats! I think there are plenty of comments with great suggestions, so my addition is simply encouragement. You will have more time and mental clarity to be present for your life priorities. A new default of not drinking becomes automatic behavior after some time, so if it feels unnatural at first simply give it time. Enjoy!