Category Archives: Alcohol

Do I have a drinking problem? Sign #1

If you look at the ABV (alchohol by volume) and select your beverage of choice primarily by what has the highest amount of alcohol. You might have a drinking problem.

I can tell you which beers/ciders/wines have the most alcohol. I stopped drinking liquor a few years ago after it became too obvious that I was going through gallons size jugs of gin and tequila more quickly than “normal.”

Craft brews and ciders were my favorite. Almost always they were higher in alcohol, plus you are supporting a local business, yay! At at a tasting room, I would proclaim my disdain for sweet drinks, preferring dry ciders or bitter beers. Ironically, both of these preferences usually align with a higher alcohol content.

During my years of “moderation” and bargaining with myself, I would promise myself that I would only drink one drink a night. Of course, I needed to make this count so I avoided buying anything under 6% ABV, trying to find 7-8% was preferable. If you are reading this blog, I probably don’t have to tell you that the one drink a night promise didn’t last long.

If you find yourself eschewing a low-alcohol option so you don’t fill up on some weak sauce, you might have a drinking problem.

When you quit drinking you will have more energy. Energy can feel like panic.

“Get busy living, or get busy dying”

The Shawshank redemption is a great movie and a great Stephen King short story. This quote has played periodically in my mind for years, usually when I am afraid to do something new. Humans are cursed/blessed with a sense of mortality. There is no way to sugar coat it, each day, we are closer to death.

Now that we have cheered things up a bit let’s see how this plays into our plan to live each day better than the last. To start, being aware or your surroundings is helpful. You can’t change things if you are not aware of them. Numbing your brain either means you are not allowing yourself to truly feel joy or that you are avoiding discomfort.

Energy is not an infinite resource and the more you drink, the less energy you have. I used to think a drink or two would perk me up. The immediate sugar rush would rev me up but the crash was soon behind. I have never “fallen asleep” on a night I did not drink. You may think you have great ideas and plans but they all end when the action stops. When you quit drinking you will have more energy.

Sometimes more energy is a scary thing. The numbing and dulling you have been using to cope with harfd things can make dealing with reality tough. This energy can make you feel and think uncomfortable things. Maybe you don’t like your job. Maybe you feel lonely. Energy can feel like panic. Learn to make friends with this new energy. Like a puppy that is not yet trained, there will be some messiness. Put down some newspapers and get to work!

Continuing to drink is not helping you live. Make a choice today to be an active participant in your life, not an observer to your slow demise.

How do you stop drinking? Let’s get stopped

Stop Drinking

The first step is obvious, don’t drink. Find something else to put in your glass. Treat yourself. I like the fancy San Pellegrino seltzer. Add a dash of tart cherry or lime juice. This will hydrate you and fill you up, making the idea of a drink less appealing.

Remove alcohol from your home

I have found that removing alcohol from your house is very helpful. Too often I would justify a (good day, bad day, rainy day) reason to drink if there was something cold and readily available. Even a really gross cider that sat in my garage fridge (despite it’s relatively high APV, more on that later) became palatable if I mixed it with something else. Add wine and viola! Sangria.

Truly disgusting.

Disrupt your routine

Go for a walk as soon as you get home. Better yet, don’t go straight home after work, find an alternative. Humans are creatures of habit. Drinking alcohol has become a habit. Habits follow routines, break one and break the other. Excercise!

Find a podcast to motivate you

I am partial to the Bubble Hour, especially the years hosted by Jean. There is something so soothing yet stern in her voice. She is strong and living her best life. You can too. There are a lot of sober podcasts out there, find something that motivates and resonates with you.

Be accountable

There are many Facebook groups and online groups that focus on a cooperative approach to sobriety. I found that helping someone in an earlier stage or in a pre-stage of quitting motivated me to stay the course. On the flip side, I found that too many people relapsing and talking constantly about drinking actually weakened my resolve after a few months. It can be disheartening to see the same people make the same mistakes and it is easy to justify your own “slips.”

Use a calculator

As simple creatures craving rewards for behavior, somthing as simple as setting a streak can provide a mood boost and some dopamine. There are many free tracking aps available for your phone. I prefer a simple ap with a strong visual showing your continuity of your “chain.”

Read

I find this one a little tricky. The “quit lit” was useful to me during the years I needed to identify my drinking issues. When I actually became sober, I found the repetative romanticizing and the constant reminders of drinking to be distracting.

Analyze

This is the tough one, one you might not be able to deal with yet. We all know that this drinking is a result of something else. The “why” of our drinking is messy and hard and the reason we have avoided dealing with our issues. Journaling, therapy and talking to loved ones will help you make sense of the journey.

Be nice to yourself

Go to bed early, eat healthy meals, get plenty of exercise and sleep. Treat yourself the way you would treat and ailing loved one. Self care doesn’t have to be about bubble baths and facials (but it can if that’s your thing!), it can be simple kindness. I bought fancier coffee than the Costco vat I usually consume and imported seltzer (ooh la la.) Simple but it made me feel special and cared for.

It’s never too late to be a better person.

What happens when you stop drinking alcohol?

I can’t remember exactly when I realized my drinking had stopped become an occasional social event and when it became the main event. I know that like many of you, the slide was gradual. What was once a way to have fun had become my primary coping mechanism, a substitute for feeling sadness and joy. Though my kindle shows that I have been looking at “sober lit” for close to 10 years, it wasn’t until 4 years ago, just before my 40th birthday, that I consciously tried to stop, not just moderate my drinking. I have had some starts and stops since then but like all things, practice makes perfect. And life is not perfect.

So what happens when you stop drinking alcohol? You get sober. Sober has a lot of baggage, both the word and the condition.

I hate the word sober. It’s too close to somber, serious, stone cold. I prefer to think of myself as awakening, renewing, rediscovering. It’s about what you are gaining, not about what you are stopping. Notice I didn’t say losing, because avoiding feeling like shit is not losing.