Alcohol

[Random User]

Is there anyone on here that has stopped drinking altogether? I drink heavily once a week. I did last night after telling myself I'd kick the habit. Couldn't resist. My friends all drink heavy on a weekend and I can't say no! I want to be healthy, and productive every day and this is getting in the way! I need some advice from some good people.

[Tibor]

@Random User I my case it happends automaticly, the moment my vibrational lvl raised. 

It didnt taste anymore same with meat and other stuff. Now i ones in a while have a cognac.

But i can see the problem if you go out with friends. 

You could do a kidney and liver cleansing thats a very good thing todo body gets a fresh start.

While you do that you cant drink so thats a strong reason to not drink for 6 weeks.

And take it from there.

 

[TimStr]

Here are a few things, that helped me:

1. Get the right motivation
   • Having a positive motivation is crucial! Don't do anything, because of avoidance. You can't avoid your way to success.
   • So if you want to stop drinking, don't do it to avoid hangover or a lack of productivity, but because, you can see the health benefits of this for your future.
   • Vizualize regularely: Take 5 min and picture clearly in you mind how you are still all fit and healthy in your 70s. Picture how you play with your grandchildren... Allow yourself to get emotional about it. (The best vizualizations are the emotional ones.)
   • Estimate how much money this will save you over the course of 1 month, 1 year... and what you can get for that money. That alone may be a strong kick in the ass.
   • Remind yourself. The easiest reason to fail at anything is just to forget.
2. Eliminate temptation
   • Throw out all alcohol, you store at home. No exception.
   • Try to stay away from bars, clubs and any other places, that encourage alcohol consumtions. They profit of you being drunk. And you better bet that they want to profit.
   • At least in the beginnig, not being tempted is the easiest way to go. After you get used to it, you can actually start to go partying sober. For me personally, getting to a club and dancing is best, when I am as mentally clear as possible. I just love to feel actually connected with the experience.
3. Be ok with being the "weird" one.
   • Especially in the beginning, peer pressure can be very strong.
   • Others will point to you and ask, if you're ill, if you joined a catholic monistairy, or if you're just being a dick, just because you behave differently. People will laugh at you. People will be seriously worried about you.
   • So at first, don't join your friends when they're out, drinking.
   • After a few weeks, when you built up some momentum, you can meet them and get exposed to some social pressure.
   • This is a hard one: Consider breaking ties with people. If you have a circle friends, that you just meet to get drunk, this may be the right option.
   • It takes a while until it becomes normal to them and to you. In the mean time fake it, till you make it.
   • Act, as if its the most ordinairy thing on earth.
   • Don't justify yourself. The moment you start justifying you secretly admit, that you have to justify for not drinking. But you don't!
   • Volunteer as a driver, when you‘re out with friends. Best excuse ever.
4. Do it step by step
   • For most peoples minds, its hard to commit to a "never again in my entire life".
   • So commit to stay sober for today. Tomorrow make the same commitment.
   • If you're out with your friends on satureday, just commit to stay sober for that satureday. Next satureday do the same.
5. Be mindful of any other bad stuff, you start doing to avoid feeling sober.
   • Of cause, its no good to stop drinking, if you start doing cocaine instead.
   • But there can be more mild stuff than that. Smoking, energy drinks, binge eating...
   • That may not nescessairely happen, but just watch out for any other bad habits, that may sneak in and take the place, that drinking had.
6. Get good a sense of how you feel.
   • Being sober all the time is an acquired taste, but after a few weeks of no intoxicants, you will love the feeling of being clear mentally.
   • Your body will reward you with great performance and an overall vibrant and fresh feeling.
   • You get a greater sense of connection to any experience.
   • This really doubtails with the concept of "Awareness Alone Is Curative", see: www.youtube.com/watch?v=qy_INVm_Pw0
7. Last but not least: Meditate you're way out of addiction!
   • Just to be clear: Drinking may not nescessairly be considered an addiction by most people because drinking regularely is kind of a standard in western society. But I consider addiction anything that you feel bad about mentally, if you had to stop doing it even if they're no physical withdrawl symptoms.
   • The source of all addictions is the need to feel different, because you can't stand how the present moment is.
   • Meditation is the best way, to get in touch and learn to cope with the present moment.
   • Crucial video for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5ZYV-IMIUU
   • It's the best habit, I picked up in my life.

Have faith! You can do it!

Edited April 15, 2017 by TimStr
typos

[Evilwave Heddy]

@TimStr Thanks man.  VERY helpful.

[eskwire]

@TimStr ???

[pluto]

After finding myself and getting into spirituality, psychedelics and meditation i realized how toxic and limiting alcohol was on all levels of my being.

It was creating unnecessary problems and situations in life that were much more ego-oriented then authentic order. I was becoming a dark shadow and hurting people which was completely the opposite of who i was within.

My life has changed for the better in many ways since i stopped. Nowadays i have a few beers every now and then but hardly ever drink to get drunk anymore because i rather something that i can actually gain from like a psychedelic/cannabis or at least a healthy choice and that promotes life like a glass of red wine here and there.

You need to take time away from those friends, i know its hard at the start but you must find a balance within yourself first and then you can balance everything else out. Its extremely hard if you keep going out.

[faith]

Had a bad drinking habit throughout college. Couldn't resist. One day got a girlfriend. Haven't drank in years, and don't miss it. All friends that I had when I went out drinking are all gone. Don't miss them either. 

The worst thing about drinking is not that it's cancerous or that it causes permanent brain damage. In my opinion, the worst thing about it is that it debilitates the clarity of your consciousness. 

There is not one thing positive about drinking that you can't do better sober. And with a strong consciousness, you can do things sober tenfold better. 

I sense you'll be okay. Let the universe play it out for you. Trying to control a habit will only do more harm. 

[Hsinav]

The sneaky thing with alcohol is that at first you actually get more conscious (thats my experience anyway) but that only lasts a short period of time, then you drink more trying to reach that state again (this is happening to the vast majority of people unconsciously) which is impossible and instead you will just get more and more unconscious in the exact proportions of the amount you consume.

So at first when you drink you are rising a bit above thoughts, then after a while you are falling down to the "animal level" which life will hit you in the face for later on, the paradox is that many people wakes up this way, but this is the hard way and it is not necessary.

To hang around people that drink and don´t drink yourself is very difficult, but possible.

[Richard Alpert]

you are fucking yourself pretty bad if you drink once a week.

Your friends are shitheads

[ajasatya]

On 15/04/2017 at 8:54 AM, Random User said:

My friends all drink heavy on a weekend and I can't say no! I want to be healthy...

that's contradictory. if you want to stop drinking then abandon your toxic friends. stop bulshitting yourself in the first place.

[JustinS]

@Random User How do you feel the morning of when you drink heavy the night before? Be mindful of that. When on this path as you become more and more mindful and in tune with how you deeply feel emotionally and physically with your mind and body you will slowly bit by bit ween off of whatever the things that may cause you to feel ill. 

If you're not so much in tune already with your mind/body, try microdosing on a psychedelic and sharpen your awareness and see, feel, and touch this body/ temple you carry with you 24/7 365 days/ year and you may see how out of touch you've been. 

This might help also, best of luck! 

 

[CuteCornDog]

On 4/15/2017 at 7:54 AM, Random User said:

Is there anyone on here that has stopped drinking altogether?

 

Me.

I got drunk in California in 2012, and a lot of people remember me saying things I don't remember saying.

[Michael569]

If your reason for heavy drinking is the social aspect and just "cooling down" it is still the better case. Unless you need the bottle to help you sleep or to let go of anxieties, you are still good. 

That being said as guys commented, it is fucking you up really bad. You are an intersection of 5 people that you spend most time with. If 2-3 of these are people who contribute to you getting wasted every weekend, you should consider cutting these relationships, as painful as it can be. I have terminated many of my past relationships with people that i only hang with due to certain obligation or legacy relationships from Uni or even primary school. You don't need many friends. You need people who challenge you and give you critical but constructive feedback. You need people that grow you spiritually and who you grow spiritually in exchange. Everyone else is an obstacle as arrogant as it sounds.  

These days I drink on average 1-2 beers per month. These I do home after a hard day or taught workout to cool down. Just don't see the point in doing it any more. It takes your money, your energy, your passion and your health most of all. The amount of damage a wasted Friday does to you is to kick back your whole healthily lived week even if you are a raw food vegan athlete living in Nepali mountains. 

 

[pluto]

The only way alcohol can be good and become more like an elixir for life is when used properly like a teaspoon or a small cap of strong pure alcohol to cleanse and sterilize the system as my grandfather used to do this every now and then. I don't think we were ever meant to be drinking it like we do today. Medicinal use is far more effective and useful.

I recently had to cut 2 of my friends i grew up with because they abuse alcohol every week again and its starting to take control of them, they are becoming so egoistical and unaware and its making them abuse everything else and everyone else around them as well including me, even though they tell me they love me everytime but only call me when they need something off me compared to when we were sober it was more for genuine friendship connection.

The worse part about it is i cant tell if they are aware of what they are doing or not and last time i confronted them about it they took it the wrong way and got very offended. I still have one friend who doesn't drink routinely but is still a free spirit and does everything in moderation thus he isn't as heavily effected and controlled by the substance.

Sometimes its best just to let go of what was, accept what is and have faith in what will be.

All the best

 

Edited April 27, 2017 by pluto

[sincere]

Alcohol was my favorite drink two years ago and I drank a few cans of beer every day and then something stronger. My wife was upset by this so much that I decided to correct myself and began searching the Internet for good ways to get rid of this trouble and looked for the answer to the question how to help an alcoholic. I found a great place that really helped me get rid of this addiction and get back to the good normal life that I had before I started drinking every day. My wife is happy with the results and I am proud of myself

Edited August 29, 2020 by sincere

[Enlightenment]

@Random User I drink once a year on average, alcohol high doesn't even feel good to me. The net happiness you get from alcohol is definitely negative unlike psychedelics and by net I mean the whole experience and the whole hangover, even drugs like amphetamine give more net pleasure than alcohol. I feel like the only reason alcohol is legal and so popular is for its inhibition lowering effect so people can socialize without anxiety.

[Espaim]

I drink sometimes like 0-2x a month or so. It's not always worth it. I prefer to drink only with people I am already familiar with so I don't make friends with people I don't care when sober

If I had friends that I hang out with only to use drugs I'd cut them off. It doesn't matter how harmful the drug of choice is

For the health part, less is more. I don't drink caffeine so I can't just get drunk and get myself up the next day with a stimulant like people do so I need to moderate.

[Arcangelo]

On 4/15/2017 at 5:54 AM, Random User said:

Is there anyone on here that has stopped drinking altogether?

Yeah me.

Almost 9 years.

 

[Arcangelo]

 

On 4/15/2017 at 5:54 AM, Random User said:

My friends all drink heavy on a weekend

My drinking buddies are all gone. Less is more when it comes to friendships.

[mullerbar]

The same problem. I work hard all week and only on Friday can I relax with friends at an alcoholic party. It helps me morally, I don't think I will give up this habit any time soon.