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40 Days Without Booze
- gadders 13y agoWhen you click on a link here you never know if booze will mean alcohol or some node.js/go framework you've never heard of.
- d23 13y agohttp://html9responsiveboilerstrapjs.com/ http://html9responsiveboilerstrapjs.com/
- mumbi 13y agoThat made my day.
- kin3tic 13y agoYup, I still think the last answer is wrong.
- ryandrake 13y agoMissing the word "beautiful" to describe every aspect of the visual design, but very funny!
- egads 13y agoThe "download now" files are fantastic!
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- benched 13y agoI am so gratified that someone made this.
- gadders 13y agoAwesome :-)
- VLM 13y agoI thought it was going to be about a Dwarf Fortress disaster. I ended up in a downward spiral in one game because I didn't have enough plant matter to feed the dwarves and brew at the same time, and dwarves go in slowdown mode when they don't have booze, so you can guess how this turned out. Its a noob error to not keep an eye on the food supply...
- general_failure 13y agoHonestly, this the best comment on this thread.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- kvcrawford 13y ago> carry on raising pints I don't think that means you've learned much. The point is personal reflection.
- tomjen3 13y ago(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.
- Articulate 13y agoI didn't think he sounded like an addict at all just a person that is more like a light switch than a dimmer... as in he is either in-or-out and when he is out he is able to clearly spot the environment around him... like a fish that can finally see that they live in water. I really related to this piece.
- graeme 13y agoI don't think so. Depends how you define addict. If I started drinking milk every day, I would experience a variety of (mostly negative) physical symptoms. Doesn't mean I would be addicted to it.
- stusmall 13y agoIf you start having negative physical symptoms but keep drinking then you'd start to fall into that category. I don't know if addict is the right word but I'd say he has a higher intake than the mean.
- AndyKelley 13y agoAs a milk drinker I am interested in these negative physical symptoms. Can you provide more details or link to the relevant things that you are thinking of?
- _delirium 13y agoI'm guessing it's a reference to lactose intolerance.
- graeme 13y agoNot 100% certain. I have IBS-like symptoms. Even whey protein (which has no lactose) makes my stomach rumble. Sometimes get flashes of heat from consuming dairy. The tricky thing is, I used to eat that and other foods for years without any symptoms so severe that I should obviously eliminate them. But, after eliminating dairy and a few other foods, my day to day digestion and energy levels are consistently higher. I've tested reintroducing them. Relating this back to alcohol, the idea is that something could have significant effects, yet they're not high enough to be an acute problem. So you can persist in a behavior that harms you, without being addicted. You just haven't realized you might benefit from stopping.
- nmcfarl 13y agoMy wife is pregnant and as a show of solidarity I’m not drinking around her (which cuts out the majority of my drinking). Which is not quite this experiment, but has shown me one thing where his and my experiences differ: Socializing. As it turns out I socialize a lot in bars - and I don’t like bars at all when not drinking. Mocktails° help - but not enough, and basically no bars serve those in Seattle, only fancy restaurants. Which has meant more socializing at fancy restaurant bars… In general it’s been a mildly interesting change in behavior and a pretty good experience. ° Fake beer is just bad. And I don’t like sodas. And soda water seems like ostentatious abstinence. --- Edit: Thanks for the suggestions! I should clearly have asked the internet before doing this, I could have been doing it much much better :)
- chcleaves 13y agoI applaud you for not drinking around her - but you should have seen how long you could go without a drink. She knows she cannot and ultimately has forced will power behind her decision, but you should have seen if you could have done the same. It's so easy after a stressful day to have 1 beer or to wind down with something stronger - but I do believe it shows a lot of character for someone who's willing to 'suffer' with their significant other to show support.
- sophacles 13y agoAs someone who no longer drinks, but spends a lot of time in bars (where I live its the only way to really socialize publicly), a soda water in a drink glass is nice, because it avoids awkwardness and seeming odd man out - ppl just assume its vodka or such. Of course not liking bars is a different thing entirely :-)
- stusmall 13y agoI don't drink but find myself in bars a lot. I also don't like soda and won't drink fake beer. A lot of the time I will get a cup of coffee. Depending on the bar they will have something decent brewing. Nicer bars its actually enjoyable, quality stuff. Rough dive bars its usually some instant garbage that's been on the hot plate all night that serves no purpose other than to wake up the drunks before they drive home.
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- misiti3780 13y agoI quit drinking for three 30 days stints last year (not back to back though). I can relate to most of what he says - I did feel a lot better, I didnt lose that much weight though (oh well). In the end, I think this experiment is really great but one also needs to consider where you live - I live in lower manhattan where I cant walk 5 feet without passing a cool looking bar / happy hour. I am glad I quit drinking for three months last year but am I having more fun drinking now - definitely.
- reustle 13y agoGreat 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.
- eyeareque 13y agoI'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.
- hcurtiss 13y agoRespectfully, why not? Putting aside state regulation, what's your objection to recreational drug use? edit -- I'm pretty sure your second sentence appeared after I commented. In any event, I don't mean to put you out. Just curious.
- mumbi 13y agoI suspect a history of family related substance abuse. That usually does it.
- hillbillyjack 13y agoThough I suspect I'm not as strict as the parent comment this is why I avoid alcohol. Father's side extremely alcoholic including several deaths (both liver failure/pancreatic, and alcohol related deaths). I've never had more than 1 drink in a day and usually only drink once per month out to eat when someone else is driving. Alcoholism is scary for most of us that have seen it up close.
- ultimoo 13y ago>> ...alcoholism is often linked to highly driven, ambitious, over-achieving personality types... I have come across this point multiple times in the past -- reading or conversing -- but never has a concrete source or study been cited. Not to say I don't agree with it -- anecdotal evidence is not always false. It is really true though? I consider myself very driven and ambitious and also have a drinking habit, but know a few others who don't.
- k-mcgrady 13y agoThis statement probably also applies: ...alcoholism is often linked to non-driven, unambitious, under-achieving personality types...
- a3voices 13y agoPeople who drink alcohol in moderation statistically make 10-15% more money. http://www.esquire.com/blogs/food-for-men/drinking-statistics-by-income-080210 http://www.esquire.com/blogs/food-for-men/drinking-statistic...
- smsm42 13y agoI'd say people that are capable of making responsible decisions and regulate their passions should be making statistically more money, so no wonder.
- plg 13y agoPeople who drive Porsches statistically have higher salaries. Lets all go buy Porsches and our salaries will go up. I'm in, what about you?
- Raphmedia 13y agoSure, but that money goes into booze.
- dholowiski 13y agothan people who don't drink. (finished that for you). Note that this was not a scientific study, it was a telephone poll. _Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted July 8-11, 2010, with a random sample of 1,020 adults, aged 18 and older, living in the continental U.S., selected using random-digit-dial sampling._
- corylehey 13y agoI did the same thing last year, falling asleep was a lot harder. Its like a circus up there in the brain.
- _delirium 13y agoYeah, alcohol interacts with sleep in complex ways. Insomnia is one of the more common and long-lasting, but less recognized, symptoms of moderate alcohol withdrawal, versus something like delirium tremens, which is more recognizable (and more dangerous), but rarer and tends to happen only when withdrawing from very high alcohol consumption.
- smsm42 13y agoThere are techniques to handle that. I haven't have too much experience in it but from what I heard in limited encounters with them, unless you have some physiological problem, you can learn to relax and get the circus under control pretty efficiently. Takes some work, of course, as any good thing does :) Drugs are an easier shortcut, that is true.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- pwenzel 13y agoI can definitely relate to the workaholism issue. After getting the kid to bed, I often work late and need to wind down fast so I can hurry up, go to bed myself, hurry up and sleep, and then hurry up and get up in the morning. I need to work on that.
- purephase 13y agoAre you me?
- goostavos 13y agoYeah, it feels like a narrow line to walk, but the effectivness of alcohol as a wind down quick elixr can not be denied. I found myself mixing whiskey into a glass of water last night at 2:30 just so I could slow my mind down enough to get to sleep. As I was watering down the alcohol so I could quickly consume it I paused for a second to wonder if this was destructive behavior, but... It feels like I'm in control of it. The alcohol is a tool. A drink before bed to me is like the inverse of waking up and drinking coffee.
- AlexandrB 13y ago> A drink before bed to me is like the inverse of waking up and drinking coffee. I find that weird. My sleep is completely wrecked if I have something to drink beforehand - I'll go to sleep fine, but the sleep is always fitful and I don't feel rested in the morning.
- c0deporn 13y ago" alcoholism is often linked to highly driven, ambitious, over-achieving personality types." gives me a reason to worry.
- akilism 13y agoI was a heavy drinker, at some points a 6 pack a night, for well over 10 years and I quit cold turkey and have been sober for going on 5 years now. There was definitely a point where getting to bed was a task but I'm such a changed person emotionally and mentally than I was when drinking. Somethings are just not for everyone. The worst part was definitely seeing who my real friends were and who were just the people who I drank with.
- jusben1369 13y agoNice! Definitely a range of people who are only interested in you if you are interested in keeping the party/illusion going.
- will_work4tears 13y agoSame here, about 10 years. Started off with the Wife and I splitting a bottle of wine every night, or a six pack. It was fine for awhile, then I'd often do a bottle myself. We'd drink 5-6 nights a week, then it was every night. Less than two years ago my son was born and drinking spiked, I cut waaay back, and when I recently changed jobs, I started again (and subsequently quit working out). I'm not doing it cold turkey though. No AC in the summer here mixed with a lifelong struggle with insomnia has given me more than a few nights of very little if no sleep. At least until Summer is over and the heat doesn't keep me awake, I'll have some wine handy to drink a bit before bed (no earlier than 7pm and I'm in bed by 8:30 or 9:00 - I get up at 4:30 am). Before the last couple weeks when I decided enough was enough, I'd often, at least the weekend, start drinking at 4pm and take down an entire bottle of wine/saki AND a six pack of IPA. The irony is, I eat relatively healthy and low calorie, but I've gained 45lbs in the last few years, and I'm thinking most of that is beer and wine - I rarely drink hard liquor or mixed drinks. Other than trouble getting to sleep, I've not had any other physical symptoms, but I'm worried. 10 years of constant drinking just cant be good.
- keithpeter 13y ago"The irony is, I eat relatively healthy and low calorie, but I've gained 45lbs in the last few years" 125ml red wine = 85 cal, or 510 per bottle. English style bitter is a bit better at 180 cal per pint, so on your consumption mentioned in 3rd para, that is just under 1600 calories extra per day.
- majke 13y agoHey, I did just that few months ago! It worked well for me. It took some time for my friends to accept that I 'm not drinking. I don't think this experience will affect my life, but it was really satisfying to prove myself. I think I'll repeat 40 days without drinking next year.
- tlarkworthy 13y agoI gave up drinking for a year and a half. My conscious really expanded in that time, and my stools were like iron bars! I started drinking after I moved away from that town, and into a new city knowing nobody. Alcohol helps me socialise faster. Anyway I didn't feel like stopping again after gaining friends, as I had already learnt all I needed to know about being sober endlessly. Now I am much older and I don't really drink that much naturally - due to massive hangovers. The circle of life
- bitops 13y ago> 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 provides some quick and effective relief. I've recently gotten much healthier and it's amazing to experience that the old adage about "making a lifestyle change" really is the core of it. All the different parts of your life have to hang together for the positive switch to happen. If you think of exercise and diet as a way to "pay down the debt" you'll never get out from under whatever is holding you down.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- ljf 13y agoFor ages I was in the habit of having a glass of wine of beer each night after work. For me it all changed when I started cycling daily. Firstly I started to notice the difference it made to me when I didn't drink each evening when I got home, on a 14mile each way ride it would take me at least an extra 5 minutes each way after just one or two beers the night before. Then in time I found the bike ride alone was all I needed to unwind. I still drink socially, but I'm planning on cutting even that back lately.
- a8da6b0c91d 13y agoBeer absolutely kills me. I don't think it did when I was younger, but now two or three beers will get me slaughtered on the racquetball court the next day and leave me mentally slow. But it's just beer and all the various crap in it. Liquor is fine.
- exit 13y agoif 5 minutes is a signal, how wide is your normal variation interval?
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- jolt 13y agoI can relate. About three months ago i went from drunk daily to absolutely no alcohol. I too felt like it took a lot longer for me to unwind, but now i use my after-work-momentum to get things done at home which i neglected when i was drunk, like cleaning, doing the dishes and general hygiene. My day is generally better balanced; i run a little slower at work, and a little faster in my personal life. Thanks for sharing.
- jere 13y agoI'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 "fuck it" and give up. And even when I don't really have that strong of an urge, I'm haunted by rationalizations and second guessing: "just have one," "moderate drinking isn't bad for you," etc. I'm trying to do more self tracking to prove to myself that the last one is BS. What really sucks is I've noticed that a few beers will cause me problems with dehydration, weight gain, horrible sleep (I'm told I always freak out in the middle of the night after drinking) and yet I've developed such a tolerance that I don't even get buzzed unless I'm on an empty stomach.
- bitops 13y agoHave you tried breaking up any of your usual patterns? It may be hard to do with schedules and workload, but just exercising 2 or 3 times a week can make a huge difference. I've found that 90 minutes of exercise per session is its own drug.
- jere 13y agoYea, I exercise. Probably less than I should. In 2011 I was running about 30 miles a month but that dried up around the same time my diet went to crap and I started drinking more. I'm trying to get back into it anyway.
- mason55 13y agoYup. I found that drinking was holding back my fitness progress. It was much easier to say no to the nightly few beers when I knew that it would affect my performance. I even got to the point where I'm exercising 5 days a week and so I go out binge drinking on the weekends much, much less.
- 3pt14159 13y agoYeah, I assume you are in your late twenties. I've talked privately with lots of people in the Toronto tech scene about daily drinking. I was doing it when I was 27 during a stressful period when the acquisition of a company I started began to fall apart (I only ended up making 9 months of the 4 year vesting). I was told that it either lasts until you have kids, turn thirty, or turn into a full blown alcoholic. I took the easier way out and just quit my position.
- plg 13y agoI know a lot of people who are similarly dependent upon (if not outright addicted to) exercise. Typically running although I've seen it with cycling and swimming as well. For these people if they don't get their exercise on schedule, they go absolutely nuts. There are many benefits to exercise but for many there are also big big risks, e.g. joint problems, soft tissue injuries, etc.
- wavesounds 13y agoI used to be a pack-a-day smoker now I'm a runner/cyclist and you're exactly right if I've been sitting all day and I don't get exercise by the time it gets dark I start going nuts. That being said I'm pretty confident my body was designed to run and not to inhale burning plant matter or drink excessive amounts of fermented grain. So far I feel much better and I don't have any of those problems.
- glitch003 13y ago>That being said I'm pretty confident my body was designed to run and not to inhale burning plant matter or drink excessive amounts of fermented grain. So far I feel much better and I don't have any of those problems. Intriguing. Designed by what?
- wavesounds 13y agoMillions of years of evolution chasing food to eat or running from being eaten :-)
- justinator 13y agoIf you think about it, we're all dependent on exercise: if we don't do it, we'll become weak, and become prone to all sorts of maladies. I don't suggest cutting it out, completely. We're also all dependent on eating. Too much is a bad thing for a lot of different activities (sex, basket weaving, etc), be them addictive substances or not. "Everything in moderation", is a good starting point.
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- hammock 13y ago>I did find it more difficult to remain polite in the presence of people who were actively annoying me, but I managed to hold my tongue in most cases. Recently, I did a 42-day voluntary abstention from drinking. And, unlike everyone else I know who has tried this, I didn't cheat. It was inspired by a 21-day abstention a few months prior, which was due to a backpacking trip on which we decided not to bring any booze. At the end of these periods I felt great, physically and mentally. After starting up again, my alcohol consumption was less than it used to be. Sleep was better than ever, and I wake up feeling refreshed - the better sleep is far and above the most noticeable effect. Generally I just feel healthier. The social thing is a challenge, but not impossible. I actually forced myself not to go out any less, I still kept every plan with friends to visit bars, clubs, etc. Just drank a club soda. I quoted the above because I had a similar experience: when you are sober, you quickly realize that there are a few or several of your friends who you cannot stand to be around sober. You realize how annoying they are. It was fun pushing myself for three and then six weeks. It inspired me to follow up with a three-day water fast (that was particularly painful, again I did not cheat). I am interested if any HN readers have suggestions of other self-denial tasks to try out.
- bitops 13y agoThe ultimate in self-denial: no computer usage outside of works hours for a week!
- mumbi 13y agoI quit computers for two years only to resume a year ago. Very enlightening experience. I recommend it.
- HeyLaughingBoy 13y agoI, like many here, would find it difficult to pay the mortgage if I did that!
- jlgreco 13y agoThe most I've been able to go recently (probably discoverable from my HN post history... cringe) is about 3 days. It felt great but I can't really keep it up. Also, elevated levels of booze was involved.
- antitrust 13y agoI have learned distrust. I distrust anything that makes me feel good without having achieved something that merits that sensation. Alcohol is like being wrapped in a comforter. You are warm, the world is soft, and like a child, you trust in everything turning out alright. This has no relationship to the real world. While I have enjoyed alcohol many times, and both drunk to excess and been a social drinker, I find that it distracts me. It distracts from what I should be paying attention to, while I'm busy feeling good and safe.
- Havoc 13y ago> you trust in everything turning out alright. This has no relationship to the real world. I have tried the opposite: 100% serious balls to the wall control freak & pessimism and mistrust of "everything turning out alright". I'm sad to report that that approach is no good. I'm starting to think a decent dose of naive "it'll turn out alright" is useful.
- antitrust 13y agoAnother option is a middle path: It will turn out, how it turns out. Sounds tautological, but it preserves the idea that multiple real world forces determine the outcome, not wishing or feeling. That might save us from paranoia.
- keithpeter 13y agoMy Dad used to fix radar on large ships. The company motto was "It'll be all right when you get to sea, Captain". Oddly enough, it always was. Even if the radar failed, they had radio, loren, pilot guides &c.
- vacri 13y agoMy old boss told me that her brother spends one month a year not drinking, to prove to himself that he doesn't need the booze... but he always did in in February, because it was the shortest month.
- cenhyperion 13y agoThat kind of rationalization probably indicates a pretty big problem.
- peterpathname 13y ago... or a healthy sense of humour. we didn't hear how much he drinks other months.
- jakejake 13y agoI personally enjoy a tasty beverage on occasion. But if I were to go 40 days without drinking I'm not sure that I would even notice. The OP doesn't sound like he was a particularly heavy drinker, but it always has a slight problematic ring to me when somebody tells me they haven't drank for X number of days. Especially when X is a fairly small number. I always figure that since they're tracking the time so specifically that they must be dying for a drink.
- cityzen 13y agoI quit drinking six years ago cold turkey. Working for myself it was always easy to find a time/reason to have a drink and I realized it wasn't heading down a good path. My wife and I were also looking to have kids and I decided I didn't want to drink around them. For awhile people either didn't understand it or were amazed that I just quit (I love to party, still do!). My best friend kept nagging me about having a few beers with him when I visited. Since we both smoked for a short time in high school I suggested that we, instead, buy a pack of cigarettes and smoke a few while we're hanging out. "But I don't smoke anymore." Lightbulb moment. The biggest thing i realized is that drinking is something to do. You hang out with the same people at the same bars talking about the same crap. Initially it's pretty boring when you quit but I really don't even think about it anymore. I will say that in the time since I quit drinking I had two kids, my business has seen year over year success and I've completed an Ironman triathlon.
- aet 13y agoNice job!
- MartinCron 13y agoMy wife and I were also looking to have kids and I decided I didn't want to drink around them I've actually made it a deliberate point to drink around my children to role model responsible alcohol use: Never in excessive volume, never an excessive frequency, never in response to stress or to drown unhappiness, never alone, never something that's not enjoyable as a beverage, never ever ever before driving (or motorcycling, bicycling, whatever). I'm hoping it helps. I'll report back in in 20 years to see if my kids are better off with positive role modeling than I was with terrible role modeling.
- justinator 13y agoThese sorts of stories hit me hard - not that I have my own, "I quit for x number of days", but rather, I don't think there was 40 days total in the last year that I had a drink. It would take a few years to get that number. I guess I just never developed the taste. Hard to understand the other side of the ritual.
- maurits 13y agoI feel that the understated effect is, that doing x or stopping with y for a month gives you the idea (illusion) that you are in full control of your life.
- Havoc 13y agoFair point. I'd say as far as strategies goes its one of the better ones. 30+ days is enough to get at least a semi-objective indication of physical dependence, which is a good start.
- aray 13y agoI've heard 40 days is enough to develop a habit (or break one), so to me this is a good period of time to try to work out the kinks of getting into (or out of) something.
- lazyBilly 13y agoMan that's jaded and cynical. There's a world of difference between assuming total control and tweaking your routine in hopes of living better.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- Havoc 13y agoWent 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.
- nitid_name 13y agoThis is one thing that Alcoholics Anonymous gets right... when you're dependent enough on alcohol to get to the "alcoholic" label, drinking just one or two is really not gonna happen.
- foohbarbaz 13y agoNo problem for me: one beer either puts me to sleep or gives me sinus headache. Don't understand what people like about alcohol. It's a pretty primitive drug too. Such a simple and small molecule, might just as well sniff glue, it seems to me. Tobacco is so much fun in comparison. Quit that cold turkey many years ago. Still like it though.
- loceng 13y agoYoga is how I broke my workaholism. It took a long time though - but it gave me 90 minutes each time I did it where I "couldn't" leave and/or do work; It started to break the cycle, and that's all I needed to start happening initially.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- hawkharris 13y agoI wish more people would stop drinking for the social benefits as well as the health benefits. In my opinion, alcohol makes people less interesting and articulate even though it makes them feel more sociable.
- dhughes 13y agoI rarely drink maybe one beer a month at my wildest but I live in a province of sport drinkers where weekdays but especially the weekend people drink until the pass out. Most events are attended by people who drank before arriving which is common but I mean they started drinking at 7am and the event is at 10pm. Currently I a non-drinker have non-alcoholic fatty liver disease which sucks because it's insulting for me to have of all things what is considered a disease of heavy drinkers. It hurts, I mean my liver actually hurts and it's frightening to have a problem like this a damaged organ in my body. I'm not even fat my friends all ask how I keep so thin, I mean I'm 5'8" short for a guy and at my peak I was 180 pounds but you'd never know it by looking at me, but all my life up to a few years ago I was a consistent 150 pounds. I'm down to 165 pounds but still my doctor telling my my risk of heart attack and stroke is double due to a fatty liver, and this from a family of people who all die from a stroke or heart attack. Your liver is precious! I don't think people realize how important it is they hear jokes about their liver when drinking to the point it's a joke or just noise more than advice. Then Tylenol the next day to fix their hangover which damages the liver even more. You liver is the only organ which can regenerate but I would guess not from systemic damage only physical damage to specific defined areas. Long live our livers!
- adrianlmm 13y agoI have 34 years w/o drinking buzz, the best way to combat an addiction is to never start it.
- epo 13y agoWelcome Captain Obvious. Please tell us how to achieve world peace. Oh! Don't have wars. We were hoping for some evidence of, you know, intelligence or insight.
- nathanscott 13y agoJust a heads up, if you're thinking about what it's like to give the booze a rest for a while there is a community of people who take on a 3 month or 12 month sobriety challenge and blog about their experiences. It makes for super interesting reading, and the passion in the community really reflects how big the drinking issue is in people's lives. http://hellosundaymorning.org http://hellosundaymorning.org Full disclosure: My team built the tech. But you'll want to get involved for the community.
- cnp 13y agoMy GF and I quit drinking for four months once and it totally changed our lives. All the haziness disappeared, and so did our desire to get senselessly smashed. Everything, literally, improved in our lives --work, school, focus, our relationship: everything.
- marincounty 13y agoThere's some people who drink because they need too. You know who you are. You might be drinking because of generalized anxiety, or panic attacks? I know how you feel. Try to keep the drinking to a minimum though. As you age, the need for alcohol might decrease; it did with me. I never thought I could give up drinking, but I think age played a part? Now, I need to get off prescription drugs? A doctor once told me, every patient is different--that might be the only useful advise he ever gave me.
- exabrial 13y agoTo quote Jack Sparrow: "But where has all the rum gone?"
- peterwwillis 13y agoTips on abstaining: * Don't keep any alcohol in your house * Don't go anywhere that drinking is the primary focus, or even secondary focus * Pick up a regular hobby that makes you happy and do it at least three times a week * Talk to people you enjoy and join them in activities that don't involve drinking * Put the amount of money you'd normally have spent on booze into a piggy bank and watch it grow * Make a list of things that make you happy, and revisit it when you're feeling down (instead of revisiting booze) * Get a buddy to abstain with you from drinking or smoking for mutual moral support * Put an 'X' on a calendar for every day you don't drink * If you find it difficult, give yourself an arbitrary goal date. Once you reach it, try to extend it further * Make it easier for you to drink healthy things by getting things you need (tea infusers, pitchers, juice concentrate, water bottles, etc) (I recently did two months, which was much harder for me than I anticipated, but I finally got over the hump and have had very little to drink for weeks. Feels nice to have more productive things to do than burn money and feel run down in the morning, and i'm looking better too!)
- scotty79 13y ago> Pick up a regular hobby that makes you happy and do it at least three times a week It would be awesome if I could do just that. And I don't even drink. Other points seem much easier though.
- peterwwillis 13y agoYou just need to try things until you find something you keep going back to. Examples of hobbies: Exercise (running, crossfit, weight lifting, parkour, tabita, yoga, hiking, biking) Sports (rock climbing/bouldering, soccer, baseball, basketball, autocross/road racing, roller derby, surfing, archery, sailing) Martial arts (aikido, thai boxing, brazilian jiu-jitsu, tai chi, capoeira, kendo, eskrima/arnis, krav maga, fencing) Dancing (salsa, merengue, swing, tango, blues, ballroom, hip hop, jazz) Music (learn an instrument, live local shows, discover new genres, download and listen to new music) Literature (join a book club, cheap books from thrift stores or yard sales, try fiction/nonfiction, reflect on what you read, blog it) Blogging (research and then write about a subject you care about) Volunteerism (soup kitchens, community gardens, local government, special needs, peace core, hackerspaces, free education community organizations, conventions, public awareness, public services, community programs) Weird stuff (slacklining, acro-yoga, aerial silks, unicycling, juggling, rope bondage, home brewing, crafting, building models, puzzles, trivia, ham radio, blacksmithing, astronomy, woodworking, car tuning, karaoke, magic, gravestone rubbing, gardening, canning, locksport, leatherwork)
- rdl 13y agoIt's interesting to do "no X for Y days", vs "no X ever". Seems a lot more attainable.
- localhost3000 13y agoI stopped for a few months several years ago (to study for the GMAT, of all things). Granted, this coincided with me actively practicing puzzles and trick questions (essentially this is what the high end questions are) but I felt noticeably sharper. Like I'd gained 10-20 IQ points. Prior to this I drank quite often over several years (college plus a few post college years). This break (and my awareness of its effects) caused me to really curb my drinking. Now I drink sparsely and mostly to appreciate a nice wine or beer or well made cocktail. I think there's a balance to strike. Enjoyment in life might be worth a marginal IQ point here and there. I dropped out of bschool but learned this lesson getting myself admitted. Thanks bschool! :D
- awolf 13y agoIn the same vein, I highly recommend people try cutting out grains for 40 days. If you're like me, you may very quickly feel so drastically better that going back to grain-eating would be out of the question. Don't get me wrong: many people do just fine on grains. But some non-negligible percent of people live with a low-level general malaise without even knowing that it's not normal. I know I did for years.
- blahbap 13y agoI think the whole premise that it should be hard to go 40 days without alcohol is ridiculous. If not drinking for 40 days is an experiment you're already in a minority with an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.
- coldpie 13y agoNot really. One could try an experiment to go 40 days without pants, and the fact that it's an experiment doesn't mean that one has an unhealthy relationship with pants.
- blahbap 13y agoBeing addicted to pants (or chicken) is not generally considered a problem.
- fader 13y agoSeriously? Do you eat meat? Try going for 40 days without eating it. Or wheat. Changing your habits is hard and requires thought. I've recently given up meat and am suprised at the changes I've felt and at how difficult it is to socialize (restaurants, buffets, etc.) Does that mean I had an unhealthy relationship with chicken?
- blahbap 13y agoThe point of the article seems to be that it is an admirable experiment to be able to give up alcohol for 40 days. If that is indeed an achievement for the author, that seems to suggest that he is physically or socially addicted to alcohol to _some degree_, which can be described as unhealthy. For me giving up meat or wheat would be much worse, because they are a part of my diet. I also enjoy drinking, but alcohol is not part of my diet, and I would be surprised and worried if I had any difficulties staying away from alcohol for 40 days.
- jasey 13y agoI went the whole of 2011 without drinking. The only difference was my wallet was fuller and I probably had a slightly better immune system. The hard part was being at social events where for the most part I was the only one sober. I found I would analysis everything allot more and found that personality types I didnt like got much worse when they had been drinking. I also realized that some of my friends were really obnoxious and hated seeing them like that. When your also drunk you dont notice these things...