[TheDuncan]

From 22-26 I was a damn near alcoholic, at my worst point I was drinking beers first thing in the morning and felt like I needed to be in a drunken state just to feel “right” or “good”.

I would drink every single day and wasted countless money on alcohol, thats not to mention the various drugs I was using at the time as well.

Now a days? I’d be lucky if I finished 2 or 3 12oz bottles..I just cant do it, I have no desire to, I mean I am sure I can force myself but its not like before where I fiend for it and can drink 7 bottles easily just to start.

Now heres the odd part, at that time I was depressed and not doing so well in the woman/love department, shitty job, no stable family life, I was a mess, now its the opposite, ok job, good girl, car, my own place, family etc.

With all that being said I can say with certainty that with all the bad and depressive stuff I was going through, being drunk with friends and going on drunken adventures in the city was fun as hell!..perhaps that is why I sort of chace that drunkeness again, yesterday I bought a 12 pack with the intention of getting drunk and I literally finished 3 and had no desire for more, its just so crazy to me that I went from 2 40oz to start to barely being able to finish 4 with no buzz even..

Do you guys, drink or smoke? Do you think its just all an escape?

[realologist]

Sounds like you were drinking to fill the missing areas in your life. Family, sex, finances, job all we're shitty and with not much to look forward to. Understably you were depressed. Congrats on getting out of that hole and improving your life or you were certainly still be drinking that much if not more.

As you continue to move forward more and more in life you can drink, smoke, etc a controlled amount for max enjoyment instead of numbing yourself.

[RoastBeefCurtains4Me]

If you got away from endless thirst for alcohol, I wouldn't go looking for it again.

You might find it. You'll enjoy it less this time, and you'll get fat very easily now that you're older. Leave things the way they are.

[bacon]

There is already a thread dedicated to this for members interested in quitting alcohol.

thread-30625.html

[MikeS]

I was drunk every weekend - and the occasional other day of the week - from age 15 to 21. Then it was down to a few times a month until my late 20s - plus having a beer or two in more relaxed social settings. Diminished further until my late 30s, and now at 40 eight times out of ten I don't even drink alcohol when I'm in restaurants or private settings with friends and other people who do, I'll take water or something else instead.
I still usually have alcohol on evening first or second dates - old habits I guess.

[choichoi]

Im also hitting the point where I don't feel like drinking anymore. It's the body and soul saying enough is enough. Listen to them

[Irenicus]

I don't smoke, and I drink only wine.


Truth be told, I don't feel I missed everything. I actually believe that I gained a whole lot.


SMOKING/WEED


As far as smoking is concerned, I took my first cigar when I was 12. Now...I can't recall what happened when Mum found out. All I can say is that I have never touched a cigarette since then. Later, when I was in Uni, I smoked weed (like 99% of all students), but stopped during Army service. Haven't smoked weed since then. Not to mention cigarettes.


Yes, I was considered to be a little ''weird'' because I did not smoke. But...because of that, my teeth are very healthy and white, and people notice that. My lungs are fine as well. Yes... people have laughed at me and ridiculed me. But now, when I see them...I am pretty sure I will have the last laugh.


ALCOHOL


I never liked alcohol much - I do not like the taste of most alcoholic beverages. I feel much more alive and calmed when I am 100% sober. It's weird, yes, but that's me.


When I am out (with a girl or someone else), I usually order wine. Compared to other alcoholic breverages, it's healthy, good aphrodisiac, a sign of sophistication, and, if a hot girl is present, very sexy (don't ask me how, I do not know - I just know that it is ).


Like the aforementioned example with cigarettes, people also considered me ''weird'' because I do not enjoy drinking. Even a fag (!!), because I enjoy(ed) wine. The result? No beer belly (due to all the estrogen and fat). Very little fat (I still wear Levis' I wore in High School). No problems with my Johson. And first quality sperm (if a country need a re - population, PM me and I'll take care of that).


Here, where I currently live, there is a saying: ''The person who laughs the last has the sweetest laugh''. Seems to be true in my case!



Now, to answer your question OP.


Some people do find escape in alcohol (like you did). Others find in other things, like weed, LARPing and MMORPG's.


Yet, some others (like in my case) are peer pressured to do so. Their reasoning is that they will lose friends if they don't drink, and will not be able to find a GF. I used to think that way as well. What I did is that I have ditched all of them, and made new ones in the gym. Instead of getting wasted Friday night, I enjoy doing composite movements, and making new friends. Most of the guys are very intelligent, and quite Red Pill. And I got a 9/10 girl, very young and intoverted, showing signals that she would like to be with me. You will not find those in your local club.



TLDR - for some people, alcohol is indeed a mean to escape. For others, it's something else



Keep your head up OP. Listen to your body.

[Conquerer7]

(10-01-2017 08:48 AM)realologist Wrote:  

Sounds like you were drinking to fill the missing areas in your life. Family, sex, finances, job all we're shitty and with not much to look forward to. Understably you were depressed. Congrats on getting out of that hole and improving your life or you were certainly still be drinking that much if not more.

As you continue to move forward more and more in life you can drink, smoke, etc a controlled amount for max enjoyment instead of numbing yourself.

Spot on. I drank a lot from 17-20. Now at 22 I have not been drunk for 3-4 months and only have Hefeweizen style beer and white wine on occasion or with a dinner. Once a month or less I have vodka/cider when seeing a DJ. A main reason for this is I no longer go to house/techno parties every week and only go to festivals a few times a year and see the odd DJ every 2/3 months. This will get even less as I only have a couple more festivals I want to attend but will still keep travelling. I can see myself totally stopping drinking one day apart from a special occasion. I still enjoy trying the different beverages a country or region has to offer when travelling though, švyturys baltas being a favourite for example.

It's a great sign of getting your shit together piece by piece and it saddens me to see old friends and acquaintances still out drinking every weekend with no sign of improvement soon.

[scotian]

I've been an alcoholic and a drug addict for about twenty years (I'm 35), I've been in some fucked up situations because of booze, I could write a book.

I often read LOZ's wagon thread and wonder "when am I going to join?"

I am literally bored of being inebriated but there's always an excuse to get fucked up.

There was a terrorist attack in my city last night and right now I'm on my sixth beer, why the fuck not?

[dsutmdo]

Remember...."NEVER trust someone who does not drink"...some of the best advice i've ever received.

[scotian]

(10-01-2017 07:57 PM)dsutmdo Wrote:  

Remember...."NEVER trust someone who does not drink"...some of the best advice i've ever received.

My grandfather used to say to teetotalers: "you don't smoke and you don't drink, what do you do for fun, beat women?"

[Australia Sucks]

I have never been drunk. I have tried alcohol a few times (beer, wine, vodka, whiskey) but never enjoyed it or saw what the big fuss is about. I'm not super healthy or anything. I just prefer vices that give me enjoyment and alcohol just does not do it for me, (never tried drugs or cigarettes either). However if I go to a good restaurant I will probably eat 2 or sometimes 3 deserts after a meal (having a sweet tooth is my weakness).

Scotian you seem like a smart, hardworking guy who is doing okay in life, how did you manage to pull that off while being a drug addict and an alcoholic?

[worldwidetraveler]

(10-02-2017 04:43 AM)Australia Sucks Wrote:  

I have never been drunk. I have tried alcohol a few times (beer, wine, vodka, whiskey) but never enjoyed it or saw what the big fuss is about. I'm not super healthy or anything. I just prefer vices that give me enjoyment and alcohol just does not do it for me, (never tried drugs or cigarettes either). However if I go to a good restaurant I will probably eat 2 or sometimes 3 deserts after a meal (having a sweet tooth is my weakness).

Scotian you seem like a smart, hardworking guy who is doing okay in life, how did you manage to pull that off while being a drug addict and an alcoholic?

My grandfather used to be a weekend drunk. He didn't need to drink everyday but make no mistake the dude was a alcoholic. I don't think he ever missed a day of work because of his drinking. I believe the term is "functioning alcoholic".

[TheBMan]

(10-01-2017 09:36 AM)MikeS Wrote:  

I was drunk every weekend - and the occasional other day of the week - from age 15 to 21. Then it was down to a few times a month until my late 20s - plus having a beer or two in more relaxed social settings. Diminished further until my late 30s, and now at 40 eight times out of ten I don't even drink alcohol when I'm in restaurants or private settings with friends and other people who do, I'll take water or something else instead.
I still usually have alcohol on evening first or second dates - old habits I guess.

Similar to me - I'm 40 and about once every 3/4 months I blow it out - usually for some crazy event - and feel like shit for 2/3 days. In my 20's I was going hard Thur-Sun - it tapered off into my 30's, and at 40 I'm almost done and have no desire to get hammered. I wake up Saturday and Sunday feeling good do things like ride a bike or hit the gym. My energy levels throughout the week have increased, and I find it harder and harder to just sit around watching TV mindlessly - I rarely do anymore.

[scotian]

^I'm going through the same thing, I drank Friday night (about 12 drinks) and felt like shit all day Saturday, missed the gym and was unproductive. I went to two bars in Edmonton with a friend and they were both awful.

AS, I would say I'm a functional heavy drinker, I also smoke a lot of weed (daily if I don't have to be tested for work), I'll do cocaine once in awhile if its around, maybe once a month on average. In my line of work (trades, mostly oil and gas) this type of lifestyle is completely normal, I would even say I'm a bit of a lightweight compared to some of my coworkers who get fucked up all the time.

I wish I got bored of drinking about 15 years ago.

[TheBMan]

(10-02-2017 01:25 PM)scotian Wrote:  

^I'm going through the same thing, I drank Friday night (about 12 drinks) and felt like shit all day Saturday, missed the gym and was unproductive. I went to two bars in Edmonton with a friend and they were both awful.

AS, I would say I'm a functional heavy drinker, I also smoke a lot of weed (daily if I don't have to be tested for work), I'll do cocaine once in awhile if its around, maybe once a month on average. In my line of work (trades, mostly oil and gas) this type of lifestyle is completely normal, I would even say I'm a bit of a lightweight compared to some of my coworkers who get fucked up all the time.

I wish I got bored of drinking about 15 years ago.

Given your age stated above you sound like me at a similar point. The physical recovery, especially as you start tapering off, gets harder to the point where its not worth it. First its a weekend w/o drinking, then a couple weeks, etc to the point where you rarely have desire. I find myself drinking in a manner where I'll have half a glass of wine before I go to sleep a couple times a week, or a beer, but w/the rare special event exception (wedding, Vegas boys trip, etc) you just lose the urge.