doing dry-during-the-week january. was enjoying too many bourbons during the week towards the end of 2021
Trying out no alcohol, weed, tobacco, or caffeine in January. Usually drink some beers/liquor a few times during the week (heavier on weekends), coffee maybe 4 days a week, and then smoke most evening/nights. Occasional dip/cigar on the tobacco front. I do have a college buddy's wedding in late January where I'm a groomsman, so may cheat then, but I'll do double days in Feb to make up for it. Interested to see the effects, but I'm sure a little detox will be a net positive to start off the year.
You're gonna be a joy to be around! (I tried a complete abstinence from everything one time and Mrs. TC begged me to stop after a day)
I got about 60 of the first 65 days dry last year then did no beer/wine until about June. Lost 18lbs I’m now up 5lbs from where I started last year- Last 6 months have been ugly with eating and beer- back at it. Two days down dry- keto started
Smokes, alcohol and weed. Going to go as long as I can. I’ve done it before for longer, so feel like I can do it again. Already feeling better, even with some withdraws.
Awesome, man. Decided to do that in July of 2020 after a health scare and some other factors and I’ve never felt better. I do still enjoy marijuana quite a bit but no drinking in well over 500 days now aside from a sip or two of champagne at my best friends wedding after giving the toast.
Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome https://www.semel.ucla.edu/dual-diagnosis-program/News_and_Resources/PAWS Post-Acute-Withdrawal Syndrome (PAWS) refers to a set of impairments that can persist for weeks or months after the abstaining from a substance of abuse. PAWS symptoms most commonly manifest after a withdrawal period from alcohol, benzodiazepines and opioids, but have been known to occur with (cessation of) use of other psychoactive substances. It is estimated that 90 percent of recovering opioid users experience the syndrome to some degree as do 75 percent of recovering alcohol and psychotropic abusers. The precise mechanisms behind PAWS are still being investigated, but scientists believe the physical changes to the brain that occur during substance abuse and are responsible for increased tolerance to the substance are responsible for the recurring symptoms. Signs And Symptoms Symptoms of PAWS tend to fluctuate in severity, and may disappear altogether only to reappear at a later time. Some of the most common symptoms of PAWS include: Difficulty with cognitive tasks, such as learning, problem solving, or memory recall Irritability Feelings of anxiety or panic Depressed mood Other symptoms may include: Obsessive-compulsive behaviors Difficulty maintaining social relationships Craving originally abused substances Apathy or pessimism Disturbances in sleep patterns Increased sensitivity to stress These symptoms tend to increase in severity when triggered by stressful situations, but might flare up even without any clear stimulus. Causes And Risk Factors It is thought that PAWS is the result of physiologic changes that occur in the brain as a result of substance abuse. During drug abuse the brain makes adaptations to accommodate for the changes in available neurotransmitters, and these changes can result in excitability when levels of these neurotransmitters change during abstinence. Scientists hypothesize that that the brain’s capacity to deal with stress is reduced with prolonged substance abuse and the related withdrawal experiences. Infants born to mothers who have repeatedly abused substances are also at risk of developing PAWS. PAWS can manifest after withdrawal from almost any abusive substance, but those abusing benzodiazepines seem to be the most at risk. There have been reports of benzodiazepine abusers experiencing symptoms of PAWS for years after final cessation of the abuse.
I could have never done that. If I take one more sip of alcohol, I may never quit again. Id definitely go on an immediate bender of epic proportions.
I don't plan to do it for the month but will try it for a week and cut back during the week. I was having 3-4 every night for 14 nights straight and then didn't have anything the last 3 nights. Probably the first time I didn't have a single drink on a Saturday or Sunday in many years. I'm mostly doing it to try to cut the weight I added during the holidays which having a few IPAs a night doesn't help.
having a newborn + this thread really helped last year. gonna give it another go this year. at the very least gonna go dry during the week
def grumpy and sleeping weird. Have had crazy vivid dreams past two nights. slightly depressed mood. Thinking about exgf a lot, fucking lame. Also slightly apathetic towards work. Might just be getting back after two weeks off. will try and mitigate with long walk / jog later.
Also I just want to leave this passage here because of what I've read the last page or two. Starts on page 31 of Alcoholics Anonymous aka "The Big Book" Spoiler We have tried every imaginable remedy. In some instances there has been brief recovery, followed always by a still worse relapse. Physicians who are familiar with alcoholism agree there is no such thing as making a normal drinker out of an alcoholic. Science may one day accomplish this, but it hasn't done so yet. Despite all we can say, many who are real alcoholics are not going to believe they are in that class. By every form of self-deception and experimentation, they will try to prove themselves exceptions to the rule, therefore nonalcoholic. If anyone who is showing inability to control his drinking can do the right- about-face and drink like a gentleman, our hats are off to him. Heaven knows, we have tried hard enough and long enough to drink like other people! Here are some of the methods we have tried: Drinking beer only, limiting the number of drinks, never drinking alone, never drinking in the morning, drinking only at home, never having it in the house, never drinking during business hours, drinking only at parties, switching from scotch to brandy, drinking only natural wines, agreeing to resign if ever drunk on the job, taking a trip, not taking a trip, swearing off forever (with and without a solemn oath), taking more physical exercise, reading inspirational books, going to health farms and sanitariums, accepting voluntary commitment to asylums - we could increase the list ad infinitum. We do not like to pronounce any individual as alcoholic, but you can quickly diagnose yourself. Step over to the nearest barroom and try some controlled drinking. Try to drink and stop abruptly. Try it more than once. It will not take long for you to decide, if you are honest with yourself about it. It may be worth a bad case of jitters if you get a full knowledge of your condition.
I wish I could describe the insomnia and other effects I went through last year. Never had the shakes, but that experience was a weird one. Especially the dreams or whatever the hell my mind was going when I thought I was trying to sleep and close my eyes. And it happened like 2-3 weeks after I stopped drinking. DTs ain't no joke.
Yeah so spidermanpointing.jpg. The pandemic has definitely enabled me to slip into drinking enough to put on weight. I’ve probably gained 15 lbs since it started which mostly comes from the 3-4 hazies I have 5 nights a week (along with the requisite snacking). I exercised a lot more in 2021 and my physical/bloodwork was actually the picture of health. Then I see pictures from the recent holidays and it’s not a good look. Vanity thy name is a thicc jbr thanks to delicious beer and bourbon.
Dry since NYE. I've been on quite the bender since Covid started. No booze or weed for at least the month of January. I'll even skip the obligatory birthday shenanigans next week. Doing it mostly to lose some pounds and reset. I'm going to attempt to cut back from the norm sometime in February once I break the seal.
The holidays/birthdays and even football are tempting but with my wife pregnant (and she stopped drinking long ago when we started fertility treatment), there’s never any booze between us, which has made things very easy compared to some others.
Just me and my youngest (just turned 14) so I am grilling up one of her favorite meals (steak and shrimp skewers) usually have a couple bourbons one while I grill and one while I eat it like the good lord intended. Wish me luck if I can make it tonight I’ll make it all of January
I joke that I have a condition that doesn’t allow me to grill without a drink. Something about the night sky the open fire that lends itself to a couple drinks.
i honestly set myself up to fail. Grilling? Steak? And there is CFB. Yup I’m drinking. I only drink once a week or every other week now so it’s not that bad. Haven’t drank since my birthday which was the 24th
Had my last drink on 12/26, which was a smoked old fashioned with dinner. But it was during that dinner that I started to suspect I had the symptoms of 'rona so I stopped after that drink. I was confirmed positive two days later, and I've felt repulsed by the thought of alcohol since then. I don't have any specific plan to do Dry January and I have gone up to about 5 months in the past without a drink on another occasion where I was dealing with an unrelated health issue. Honestly, it was, and has been, nice to detox for a good while. Waking up fresh without stale alcohol breath or cobwebs in my head feels really good. I'm certain I'll drink again and that may be any time within the next days, or weeks, or months. Whenever the spirit strikes me. But I can certainly appreciate the feeling of being clean.
FWIW I want to make sure everyone knows I am not making light of those itt who suffer with addiction. I have plenty of demons that I struggle with daily fortunately addiction isn’t one of them.
72 hours with no cigs, booze or weed. Could care less about the booze and weed, but man do I want to chain smoke some cigs
Good news is I feel my energy levels already climbing and getting. That gym itch. Have also slept better the last two nights