Giving up alcohol for 3 months...

[Jane Smart]

Interesting subject and one kind of close to my heart also.

My name is Jane and .. .. .. ( nah I was not that bad )

I decided in September ( I can say last year now 2009 ) to give up drinking. A glass of wine with dinner was becomming a very regular habit and the last one that I had, I did not in fact enjoy, I poured it just because of that, habit.

When I told my husband of my decision to quit totally ( or try to anyway ) he said, he would too, which made things so much easier.

I found the week days absolutely fine, but come a Saturday night, that was hard, as a takeaway and a bottle of wine were always the norm. For the first couple of Saturdays we both just looked at each other and thought ok, what now

Anyway, now it is January, I still have not had anything at all since I decided to quit. I feel much better for it and can go to parties, without blethering more rubbish than I do when I am sober

It is also nice to be able to drive to a party and not have to worry about taxis home etc.,

I also discovered I am still as mad without drink as I was with it. I got up on hogmanay and did karaoke, ( ok I was forced into it ) for the first time in my life, stone cold sober and for the record I cannot sing to save my life, I am totally tone deaf

My cycling was also a big part of quitting, as I would rather be out on my bike with a totally clear head ( especially now I am on the roads )

Anyway, good luck to you, it is easier than you think and wow such a nice feeling not to have had a hangover for such a long long time now

 

[Aperitif]

Good wishes to everyone who wants to change their ways. Unfortunately, I am weak-willed. On the windowcill this morning to the left: an external thermometer that reads -1.7 degrees. To the right: a half-full (Yep, I'm an optomist ok?) bottle of Camus XO that reads 40 degrees. Hmmm..which shall I choose..?
OK - in the time it has taken me to write this rubbish, the thermometer reading has changed to -1.4 degrees, ooops no, -1.3 now, so it's "away drink!" And out on the bike.
Good luck!
<-------- lemonades

 

[Halfmanhalfbike]

Thought that was cycling

I can just imagine some-one giving directions.....

"First you turn left on to the A567 then 2nd right at the garage onto the route of all evil. It's a straight road from there....................TO HELL." (cackle,cackle,cackle)

 

[Fab Foodie]

Blimey.
Day 1, it's just past 12 midday, no alcohol yet... god this is tough

 

[Greedo]

Good luck. Don't know if I could. I'm going to try the whole of January but 3 months would kill me without a glass of red.

Good luck !

...that's the plan. Tonight's the last alcohol util 1 April.
Why? Weight and money mostly. My weight is still creeping skywards, we drink too much Red every evening and we never manage to 'cut-down'. We should save a bit of cash too, and who knows, we might even feel better. We're not alcoholics, but we're ready consumers.
The other benefit is we should also save a bit of cash, something we also need to do.

I'm gonna miss red wine with food, and the taste of a good ale, but on the flip side, there may be other benefits.

Beware for some extra grumpiness!

 

[hackbike 666]

My cycling was also a big part of quitting, as I would rather be out on my bike with a totally clear head ( especially now I am on the roads )

After my health problems and subsequent visit to Barts in the mid 90's and my usage of the Radiotheraphy machine I found I had aquired Bronchitis...so in the early days it was really scary as I realised I couldn't cycle/smoke so one had to go.Same with booze affecting my fitness badly.Now sleep better also.

 

[Cranky]

This is a coincidence as I have also decided to abstain from alcohol, but only for a month, initially, as part of a post-December detox and weight loss regime. I gave up smoking three years ago after several attempts over the years but have never considered avoiding alcohol.

My main vice is red wine with meals, usually three times a week but every day during the festive season, but I have to finish the bottle, regardless of how much/little Mrs C has.

The first major test will be this evening when we always have a bottle of red with a curry.

Good luck, all!

 

[Arch]

Good luck everyone. I'm not going to follow suit, but I drink very little anyway. The last week and a bit has seen me drink more than the last few months put together, and even that only amounts to 2 pints of beer, a half of cider, about 5 glasses of wine and a finger of Scotch.

I did give up completely for a couple of years, more than a decade ago, but not being a regular dinker anyway, it was just more hassle and annoyance to 'make a point' and not drink on a night out than to just have the occasional light evening of booze and then nothing for weeks. I drank more when I was a student, and had lots of evenings out, but these days I can go weeks without more than a half pint without thinking about it... Living alone helps - no one to share a bottle of wine with, and I wouldn't dream of opening one just for me.

The annoying thing about not drinking much is that to increase weight loss I really have to eat less, instead of just cutting down on booze....

 

[UKPhil]

Gave it up over 10 years ago having seen what this drug can do to others. Vile muck dressed up and marketed as necessary to have fun! It's a bit like smoking used to be, sadly you still get people who think you are odd for choosing a healthy lifestyle.

 

[rh100]

I've not drank a drop since about May 09, had a fright on a blood test (not booze related) and it just put me off all together, even though subsequent tests showed all was well. I was not a heavy drinker before that but have had my moments like everyone else. I've gone all through christmas without any and havn't missed it at all. My only vice now is food

The only trouble is, some people don't listen when you say you don't drink anymore - guess what I got for christmas - you have to wonder if people would prefer it if you did

Hope it goes well FF - why not extend it if you get used to it?

 

[rh100]

Gave it up over 10 years ago having seen what this drug can do to others. Vile muck dressed up and marketed as necessary to have fun! It's a bit like smoking used to be, sadly you still get people who think you are odd for choosing a healthy lifestyle.

It certainly is an eye opener when you see it hit someone hard. The sad thing is that everything will get blamed instead of booze.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Hope it goes well FF - why not extend it if you get used to it?

It's a good question... because I love the taste of a good real ale, the aroma of a peaty single malt, the sensation of cheese and red-wine, port and stilton, the refreshing digestive of Jaegermeister, the cool of Pastis on a warm Provence day, the myriad flavours of foreign beers encountered as I travel. I gave up cigarettes 4 years ago, to give-up drink for ever would be too unpalatable.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

...I love the taste of a good real ale, the aroma of a peaty single malt, the sensation of cheese and red-wine, port and stilton, the refreshing digestive of Jaegermeister, the cool of Pastis on a warm Provence day, the myriad flavours of foreign beers encountered as I travel...

I was thinking of a period of abstemiousness until I read that!

 

[2Loose]

yum yum

 

[tdr1nka]

I gave up all alcaholic drink because of an intense period of medication, thought it'd be a temporary thing but nearly eleven years later I've never gone back.
Only need to quit smoking now.

Best wishes and well done FF & Noodles!