Great news they are back to normal, my cousin got heavy on spirits for a couple of months and it absolutely destroyed him, he just wasted away to nothing as wasn't eating properly. He's now sorted and been AF for over 2 years. But from seeing the damage done first hand it's very scaryYour point about spirits ,when I was in my prime about 15 pints a day the Mrs dragged me to the doctors for a blood test ,the thinking was showing me my liver and kidneys were fucked would shock me into stopping .
When the results came back they weren't too bad not fucked she was gutted and couldn't understand why ,the doctor explained it's the spirits that do the damage and I was only doing industrial amounts of lager ,
Since stopping later blood tests have shown their functions back to normal ,quite remarkable realy
Hiding the empty vodka bottles in my work bag and chucking them in the bin by the bus stop early in the morning. On a daily basis. "It's vodka, they won't smell it." Who was I trying to kid?Great news they are back to normal, my cousin got heavy on spirits for a couple of months and it absolutely destroyed him, he just wasted away to nothing as wasn't eating properly. He's now sorted and been AF for over 2 years. But from seeing the damage done first hand it's very scary
When I was hammering the vodka I was a wreck physically.Great news they are back to normal, my cousin got heavy on spirits for a couple of months and it absolutely destroyed him, he just wasted away to nothing as wasn't eating properly. He's now sorted and been AF for over 2 years. But from seeing the damage done first hand it's very scary
I remember talking to you when you started your journey,you have done really well,there's so many things in your life you carnt control ,but deciding to put crap down your neck each night you can control ,Hiding the empty vodka bottles in my work bag and chucking them in the bin by the bus stop early in the morning. On a daily basis. "It's vodka, they won't smell it." Who was I trying to kid?
Mental how that stuff controls you until you show it the fucking door.
I recall our chats which were very helpful at such an early stage for me. I am so happy that I made my decision to quit and am very appreciative of the help this forum gave and still gives.I remember talking to you when you started your journey,you have done really well,there's so many things in your life you carnt control ,but deciding to put crap down your neck each night you can control ,
I look at it as fuck you booze im in control now
Reading the posts about doing dry January is both positive and annoying as an ex functioning alcoholic ,you obviously know you have a problem but it's a half arsed attempt to sort it ,it's like see I can do it ,but you obviously carnt as it's getting it's hooks back in in Feb
Just need to keep it going the benifits far out way the negatives
Wow when you hear that, it really is an eye opener, you are doing brilliant mate considering the circumstances.When I was hammering the vodka I was a wreck physically.
I can't really explain it without sounding over dramattical, but I'll try, and hopefully it might help anyone who might be heading this way.
I was totally dependent, it's all I thought about, when I wasn't drinking I was thinking about when I could drink again. It almost, almost, got to the stage where I was considering drinking at work, or on the way home from work, in the car.
I'd book a week off, and just drink. Pathetic.
I would hardly eat, the odd pot noodle or ginsters pasty. Played havoc with the bowels, I was pissing brown water out my arse. Every fart was a follow through. I had to put a towel on the bed at night. Shameful, but absolutely true I'm afraid.
I'd be in the offy at 10am. I used to rotate the offys so they wouldn't cotton on to what I was.
I'd go days without showering or even brushing my teeth, or shaving.
I was a total fucking mess, but I didn't care, as long as I could drink I thought I was happy.
Friends and family, and social engagements became an inconvenient annoyance, as they got in the way of my selfish drinking regime. Little by little I managed to ostricise these people from my life, I'd gone from letting people down, to just fucking them off in the end.
Most, if not all, didn't even know I'd got a problem, because in social situations I'd lie through my teeth and not drink, saying I was having a week or two off the beer. In reality I couldn't wait to get home and smash a litre of smirnoff.
Believe it or not, quitting spirits, for me, was like quitting alcohol. I still have a beer or 3 when I fancy it, and I consider that to be a decent compromise, for now.
Sorry for the ramble, hope everyone is winning their personal battles.
Whisky was the downfall for both my parents. When dad died we found 20 plus empty bottles hidden everywhere. At their peak they were drinking a bottle a night each.Hiding the empty vodka bottles in my work bag and chucking them in the bin by the bus stop early in the morning. On a daily basis. "It's vodka, they won't smell it." Who was I trying to kid?
Mental how that stuff controls you until you show it the fucking door.
Fancy a pint?I love a drink, as I’ve posted on here previously, but I absolutely hate when cunts do this, either to me when I’m not drinking, or to others. Actually end up being really abrupt with people if they ask more than once. I think it’s the height of bad manners, selfish, self-absorbed and lacking in empathy. If someone says no to a drink, they will have their reasons, whatever they are, and that should be the end of it.
That's very sad, when it gets to the point you are hiding it there must be massive alarm bells ringing that you need help.Whisky was the downfall for both my parents. When dad died we found 20 plus empty bottles hidden everywhere. At their peak they were drinking a bottle a night each.
Yes. I think he was past the point of no return by then sadly. My mum never had a hangover as she just became tolerant to it. The damage it did to her health though, both physically and mentally was huge.That's very sad, when it gets to the point you are hiding it there must be massive alarm bells ringing that you need help.
My Grandma was a huge drinker, she drank GIN and IT. It was the death of her sadly, the strange thing is I never once seen her drunk.
Brilliant post that, glad to hear.I stopped a while ago. I went through my late teens drinking more than I ought, drinking on my own. And again when I was 30 something, I went through a few of month long periods of sustained binging, a bottle of spirits a day. Stopped dead maybe 10 years ago?
I tried a few beers again recently... I just wanted more, faster. Equivalent of two strong pints an hour was barely satisfying. Having had a heart attack and diagnosed with hypercholestorlism shortly after that, I think I'll have to leave it alone for good now. I know why I started again - stress. Shit in the neighbourhood, shit relationships. Other people indugling heavily.
Even if I disregard the heart attack, I'm still a bit annoyed. I know it's a lot easier to keep the habit of not drinking at all than to manage drink. I sort of feel a bit clever and safe just never even looking at the stuff, if that makes sense. Superior to myself - better of than others, or something.... free, in a way. It's not pretty, but it's just how it works for me.
I mean, it's easy to use the price to reinforce that, although I noticed the other day, the stuff in the supermarket hadn't gone up as much as I might have thought. They really need to be banning multibuys and stuff, and all the fancy lighting. It's also RIGHT AT THE FRONT of my local supermarket, and I don't think that's appropriate at all. Remember seeing the Smirnoff advert a few years ago, and thinking, how on earth did we end up with that sort of marketing being OK? Tories have caned this country's poor and young for a decade, in the pocket of big brewers and gambling firms. The effects of normalising getting obliterated on A&E and the NHS is pretty well understood, and that's just one of the ways that we've all ended up paying for it.
Good luck to anyone struggling. Really good luck. Fuck that shit. I do know what cravings are like. Most people gradually work their way down to them becoming much less noticable. Every time you say, nah, is one small step on that journey towards having made yourself a person comfortable in their habit of not even thinking about it.
I'm pretty sure the millions of people realising that the internet and stuff also leaves them feeling something pretty bloody similair are on to something. Got to do it. Got to get back online, check the sites, etc. Or I get this agitation that's so similair to how I used to feel about an evening without drink. That's how it is for me. Addictive personality.
This has been the hardest thing for me. There are some people who I was close to, who I barely see now. I think sometimes when we decide not to drink, it makes people question their own relationship with alcohol and maybe they don't like what they see. But aren't ready to do anything about it.
We should never feel afraid to leave a night out (I've done is so many times), drinking yourself into oblivion is horrendous and the fallout potentially worse. I'm 56 now, and my friends, all City season ticket holders, are around the same age....but they'll keep going till 1am, and the thought of doing that now, terrifies me.Good way of sussing out who is really a friend and who isn't, too. I've only had one person totally drop off the radar since I stopped. I was initially concerned that the lads I grew up with might try to tempt or encourage me, but they have seen that a drink for me can turn into erratic behaviour especially when mixed with other things. For me the oddest behaviour started when everything was wearing off, I'd be anxious and edgy and suddenly decide I had to leave wherever I was even if it meant a 10+ mile walk. Walked from Hyde to Altrincham once and also from Lymm to Altrincham, fuelled entirely on post session nerves.
You've said everything I'd like to say in that post. Nice one, mate. That free feeling's so good, isn't it?I stopped a while ago. I went through my late teens drinking more than I ought, drinking on my own. And again when I was 30 something, I went through a few of month long periods of sustained binging, a bottle of spirits a day. Stopped dead maybe 10 years ago?
I tried a few beers again recently... I just wanted more, faster. Equivalent of two strong pints an hour was barely satisfying. Having had a heart attack and diagnosed with hypercholestorlism shortly after that, I think I'll have to leave it alone for good now. I know why I started again - stress. Shit in the neighbourhood, shit relationships. Other people indugling heavily.
Even if I disregard the heart attack, I'm still a bit annoyed. I know it's a lot easier to keep the habit of not drinking at all than to manage drink. I sort of feel a bit clever and safe just never even looking at the stuff, if that makes sense. Superior to myself - better of than others, or something.... free, in a way. It's not pretty, but it's just how it works for me.
I mean, it's easy to use the price to reinforce that, although I noticed the other day, the stuff in the supermarket hadn't gone up as much as I might have thought. They really need to be banning multibuys and stuff, and all the fancy lighting. It's also RIGHT AT THE FRONT of my local supermarket, and I don't think that's appropriate at all. Remember seeing the Smirnoff advert a few years ago, and thinking, how on earth did we end up with that sort of marketing being OK? Tories have caned this country's poor and young for a decade, in the pocket of big brewers and gambling firms. The effects of normalising getting obliterated on A&E and the NHS is pretty well understood, and that's just one of the ways that we've all ended up paying for it.
Good luck to anyone struggling. Really good luck. Fuck that shit. I do know what cravings are like. Most people gradually work their way down to them becoming much less noticable. Every time you say, nah, is one small step on that journey towards having made yourself a person comfortable in their habit of not even thinking about it.
I'm pretty sure the millions of people realising that the internet and stuff also leaves them feeling something pretty bloody similair are on to something. Got to do it. Got to get back online, check the sites, etc. Or I get this agitation that's so similair to how I used to feel about an evening without drink. That's how it is for me. Addictive personality.
I can't stand pop, so having something other than water to drink occasionally helps massively. I only tend to have a bottle with a curry or pizza or something, unless I'm feeling adventurous and I might have a second. A six pack of af beers lasts me a week.Having been a fully functioning alcoholic,10 years + dry this is something I carnt get my head round never drank because I liked the taste if I'm honest the taste is awful ,only drank for the effect of trying to get back to everyone elses "normal "
Really don't want that shit taste in my mouth again if I'm not self medicating myself
Each to their own tho
Try erdinger alcoholfrei, it's a great drink. I would rather not go out if I had to drink coke/pop . Guinness 0% is also good if your trying to break the after work drink.I can't stand pop, so having something other than water to drink occasionally helps massively. I only tend to have a bottle with a curry or pizza or something, unless I'm feeling adventurous and I might have a second. A six pack of af beers lasts me a week.
I also live close to a beach and coming home from a day there and a cold one just helps the mental side of things.
You are right, it is not easy. But you are not alone. Support is available. Be strong.I find a lot of solace and inspiration in this thread. I don't think I'm a functioning alcoholic. Ive not had an alcohol free week since I was 16. Played for a pool team Monday and Thursday since 16 then out all weekend for the last 35 years.
Lockdown was a killer. 1st lockdown I stopped drinking and went for a 5k run every single day and also did weights and got toned to fuck, 2nd lockdown was kind of depressing and I undid all the good work by boozing every day up until recently. 8-12 cans of bitter a night. 7 nights a week. 2 stone overweight now.
Diagnosed with high blood pressure and high cholesterol before Christmas and it's been a bit of a wake up. My dad died of heart attack aged 43. My twin has had 2 strokes already. My younger brother has had a heart attack. Neither fatal but significantly impeded their breathing, strength and quality of life.
Ive tried to quit completely. Played pool matches 4 times in last 2 weeks and drank non alcoholic beer or pop. N/A beer seems a rip off, over £3 for a half pint bottle of piss. But I've broke the chain of always having a beer when I play pool or go in a bar which is significant for me. But then I had a beer Friday night because we were meeting stepsons new girlfriend in a pub. Only had a couple then went home.
I honestly thought I could just stop and not drink again. And I haven't. I've stopped drinking in the week at home, I've stopped drinking at pool matches. Everyone was out last night bar me so I had 2 cans that were in the house. Although that feels like a failure its a significant improvement compared to a month ago.
Its not easy. Some people can just quit and I doff my cap. I think I'm one of those that recognises the need but prefers the option of "I won't let it control me"
to reiterate my opening statement: thank you to everyone who has had the honesty and balls to contribute to this thread. you've provided inspiration to people like me to do something about their problem
It's all about your health...any alcohol is too much for you now. you need to stay well, mate. Stop altogether...for good. Your health is more important than having a drink. Don't turn to alcohol when you feel shit. don't reward yourself or use it as a crutch or anything. Easier said than done, maybe, but not when it comes to staying alive for longer, mate. I'd fuck it right off if i was you.I find a lot of solace and inspiration in this thread. I don't think I'm a functioning alcoholic. Ive not had an alcohol free week since I was 16. Played for a pool team Monday and Thursday since 16 then out all weekend for the last 35 years.
Lockdown was a killer. 1st lockdown I stopped drinking and went for a 5k run every single day and also did weights and got toned to fuck, 2nd lockdown was kind of depressing and I undid all the good work by boozing every day up until recently. 8-12 cans of bitter a night. 7 nights a week. 2 stone overweight now.
Diagnosed with high blood pressure and high cholesterol before Christmas and it's been a bit of a wake up. My dad died of heart attack aged 43. My twin has had 2 strokes already. My younger brother has had a heart attack. Neither fatal but significantly impeded their breathing, strength and quality of life.
Ive tried to quit completely. Played pool matches 4 times in last 2 weeks and drank non alcoholic beer or pop. N/A beer seems a rip off, over £3 for a half pint bottle of piss. But I've broke the chain of always having a beer when I play pool or go in a bar which is significant for me. But then I had a beer Friday night because we were meeting stepsons new girlfriend in a pub. Only had a couple then went home.
I honestly thought I could just stop and not drink again. And I haven't. I've stopped drinking in the week at home, I've stopped drinking at pool matches. Everyone was out last night bar me so I had 2 cans that were in the house. Although that feels like a failure its a significant improvement compared to a month ago.
Its not easy. Some people can just quit and I doff my cap. I think I'm one of those that recognises the need but prefers the option of "I won't let it control me"
to reiterate my opening statement: thank you to everyone who has had the honesty and balls to contribute to this thread. you've provided inspiration to people like me to do something about their problem