Since getting married and having kids the drinking naturally reduces. But i found strange effects from spending a decade going out every Fri/Sat to not doing so. First thing that struck me was waking up sober for the first month or so, was I felt awful still - like a phantom hangover of sorts. This really spooked me and after a while it disappeared. I NEVER excercised. Now I do, and have lost 3 stone over 2 years. You realise that a lot of your friends are through alcohol/clubs/pubs and it takes a lot to cope with losing that ring of friends as you want to meet sober and they don't. When you do attend a night out you feel like an outsider. Maybe a reason why running solo now helps me as it's something I'm doing for myself for a change.
The mentality of alcohol is big in this country. When I was younger, going into a pub for food or in a pub at opening meant you still had to have a pint. Now I go in pubs just for food, and fuck off the beer.
Back to the topic of hangovers. Had one about 10 months ago on a school night. Slumped in my office at desk and felt like vomiting everytime I had a bite to eat or sup of a brew. It was hiddeous. I really value being a dad to two young boys and feel shitty towards them if I cannot function to the basic things they want from me like a game of hungry hippo or a thumb war. :o)
Beer or lager are nice though, but even after a couple I feel like the effect on my reasonably fit body is it acts like a poison of sorts that just doesn't feel right and if I drunk say 5/6 pints rather than the headache side of things it's more like my organs are being attacked. Probably due to the fact it's a shock to the system.
