Battling the bottle.

[Maladict]

Thanks for sharing, especially Jezza.

I used to drink too much.  It was the nights out with the lads.  I stopped about 8 years ago too, after having given myself a fright in 1999.  I was sober for 3 months, and when I drank again I had lost my tolerance, and became quite ill.  I think I did myself some damage to get to that stage.

I was basically teetotal for about 4 years.  I now allow myself the occasional drink if I feel I deserve it.  Say after PBP, for instance.  It's not an addiction, and never was, but if you have frequent black-outs in your memory of a night out with your mates, then you have a problem.

And I do feel much better for it.  I reckon I'm as fit in most respects now than I was when I was 25, and in some ways I'm obviously much fitter.  I am getting close to the body fat level I had back then, though I doubt I will ever be under 10 stone again (not that I need to be!).

I occasionally miss some of the things that went with it, but I think the positives outweigh the negatives about 10:1.

[Sergeant Pluck]

My parents were not great drinkers.
One year, I visited them for Christmas lunch.  They brought out a bottle of white wine and we had a glass each.  Then I asked for, and got, another glass - though the atmosphere was a little frosty while I drank it.

Next year, I visited them for Christmas lunch again.  The same bottle of white wine (now half-empty) was produced ...

 

I recognise a lot in that story. I dare say my liberal attitude to self medication stemmed, in part, from just such an upbringing.

I occasionally miss some of the things that went with it

Likewise.

But even two years or so without alcohol, I still often (as in a few times a week) wake up and marvel at how good I feel in the morning.

[bobajobrob]

Is this a symptom of addictions, whether to alcohol, drugs, a sport, even food?

When you exercise, your brain releases endorphins, which are effectively opiates. So yes, it's quite possible to become addicted to exercise and sport.

[Hummers]

Great piece Jezza.

I seem to have the ability to consume vast amounts if booze, mostly with little or no affect but I have no doubt that it does me no good whatsoever and I hate 'wasted Saturdays' when you just can't get going.

Reading other people's comments, it seems that 'it's all or nothing' is a common thread. Although I can and have cut back, I still binge.

As it happens, I plan to be off the booze for a period of 40 days sometime soon but am struggling as to when this period should start. If it starts now, it means that I will not be drinking when my wife's family stays with us. If the period starts after they leave, then this means I will not be drinking when I go cycling in France with my old (drinking) chums from Exeter.

My dilemma is not the lack of booze (oddly, I'm looking forward to that) or that I feel I will be missing out. It's the effect it has on the people around me who are used to boozy Hummers, the living embodiment of Bacchus himself. (In the past, people have even invented an expression for it "I've been Hummered" which to be honest, does not fill me with pride.) No, the issue is that I know that my wife's family will feel a bit put out and my chums, no matter what I say to convince them otherwise, will be convinced that I am not enjoying myself if I am not sinking bottles of wine and balloons of Cognac.

This is not a new thing as I have gone without booze for over month a couple of times in the past. I agree with others that it is surprising the uplifting effect it has on your capacity to enjoy life. It is also interesting to note how you really notice the smell of stale alcohol on others - something you find hard to notice when you drink regularly yourself.

So the question I find myself asking as I type this is why do I drink at all? I suppose A massive part of it is the social aspect but I feel that is entwined with my identity as a man who draws deeply on the cup of life more than it is to do with the grog itself.

Of course, there is the taste of drink.

Real Ale, by far my favourite, is almost irreplaceable as a social drink and one pint brings me far more pleasure that many. I tried to match my mates, drink for drink, with orange juice and threw up.

Wines are bursting with flavours and textures in your mouth. There is nothing like having a good full bodied red rolling over your tongue? _{Yes, I know I just typed that and there is not a hint of intended smut, honest.}

Single malt whiskey is also high on the list but I drink a lot less of that since my friends moved away to Scotland to live. Oddly, they would (and do) say the same.

Outside of all of this, there is the 'coming home and opening a red' which Mrs H and I noticed was on the increase - so we stopped buying wine when we shopped.

I think that if I could have the tastes and textures without the affects (and if possible, the calories too if that is not asking too much) I'd be perfectly happy.

H

[Rapples]

Why 40 days??

Mrs Rapples and I keep trying to cut out all alcohol Mon-Thur.  When we succeed the first few fridays are a bit of a blur, but we then find we generally drink less at the wekends too.

Unfortunately, the best we have managed is about 6 months, the summer seems to be the hardest, and gradually we creep back into drinking every day.

Today has been a bit of a write off, we didn't drink that much, but some friends popped over, and we didn't eat anything!

[Sergeant Pluck]

Great post Hummers.

Alcohol is, overall, a depressant. For me, the sum of the good and the bad was a negative quantity.

It's the effect it has on the people around me who are used to boozy Hummers, the living embodiment of Bacchus himself.

Here's how I came to see just that issue: the people around me were not so much interested in "me" but in the confirmation or reassurance that their own behaviour was OK that my companionship gave. I found that whether I drank or not was irrelevant to my true friends and that the others just fell by the wayside when I stopped. No great loss.

I had to make a massive change in my lifestyle when I stopped. Frankly my social life has never been the same since but overall this is for the better.

I think that if I could have the tastes and textures without the affects...

For me, I found that I was purely interested in the effect. Yes, I did enjoy a good bottle of wine but the subtleties were redundant. If subtleties and nuances of flavour are so important, do you feel the same way about food / tea / coffee?

As it happens, I plan to be off the booze for a period of 40 days

About 2 days after the end of that 40 days, things will be as before. 

[bobajobrob]

I do it because I enjoy it and on balance I don't think I'm harming myself.

It can be fun to intoxicate yourself. It's testament to the human body that it can effectively deal with being poisoned on a regular basis.

I sometimes find myself wracked with guilt about how much I drink; but it never impinges on my life. I don't get drunk, it doesn't affect my work, I can afford it, and it doesn't affect my marriage

It's funny (in a sad way) the lengths people go to to justify their drug use. Alcohol is just that, a drug. It's no better than cannabis or heroin. The only difference is that it's legal and you pay tax on it.

Wines are bursting with flavours and textures in your mouth. There is nothing like having a good full bodied red rolling over your tongue? _{Yes, I know I just typed that and there is not a hint of intended smut, honest.}

Single malt whiskey is also high on the list but I drink a lot less of that since my friends moved away to Scotland to live. Oddly, they would (and do) say the same.

Alcohol tastes foul to me. Sprits especially so, just smelling them makes me gag.

[Chris S]

It's funny (in a sad way) the lengths people go to to justify their drug use. Alcohol is just that, a drug. It's no better than cannabis or heroin. The only difference is that it's legal and you pay tax on it.

True I guess, but if I wanted to be a Monk, I'd have joined a Monastery  .

[Wowbagger]

Alcohol tastes foul to me. Sprits especially so, just smelling them makes me gag.

Chacun a son goût, innit?

Talking of which, I've got some port somewhere...

[Zoidburg]

I probably drink to much

I do from time to time take a break though and it never seems to be a issue for me when I do, if it ever does become one I may look more closely at my levels of drinking

[Chris S]

Mon night - Bottle of red
Tues night - 4x500ml beer
Wed night - 4x500ml beer
Thur night - 4x500ml beer
Fri night - 4/5x500ml beer
Sat night - 6(+)x500ml beer
Sun night - 4x500ml beer

Mmmm.... about 45 units. Chug-tastic  .

[bobajobrob]

Chacun a son goût, innit?

I smell BS when people say they enjoy the taste of spirits. How can you enjoy something that tastes like poison? Next you'll be telling me that meths tastes pleasant. There's a reason alcohol tastes bad, it's because it's poisonous.

Enjoying the effects of a drug, now that's a different matter.

[Clare]

Mon night - Bottle of red
Tues night - 4x500ml beer
Wed night - 4x500ml beer
Thur night - 4x500ml beer
Fri night - 4/5x500ml beer
Sat night - 6(+)x500ml beer
Sun night - 4x500ml beer

Mmmm.... about 45 units. Chug-tastic  .

It's impossible to calculate the units involved without knowing abvs, but assuming 13% for the wine (and assuming a 750ml bottle) and 4% (which is fairly low these days) for the beer, that is closer to 62 units.

[hellymedic]

I am humbled by some of the posts on this thread and understandably brassed off by others.
I am lucky; I've never drunk to excess; revealing my own drinking habits would be unhelpful.
I have worked with colleagues who were problem drinkers.
I have seen people die of alcohol-related illness.
My father lost his sister at the hands of a drunk driver.

I never really had insight into the mind of the drinker until I read some of the posts here. You are so brave!
Many here have battled successfully with the bottle ; chapeau!
Some have decided to start the battle; they need a chapeau too.
Saturday night's NOT alright for fighting.
Right?

[Sergeant Pluck]

Anyway, to come back to Hummers' interesting post, it has made me think of something else - pubs, clubs and bars.

When I had stopped drinking for a while I returned to a couple of old haunts that I had been in the habit of spending far too much of my available time and money in. I'd found myself missing one or two particular bars. I wasn't sure what it was that I missed, and I wondered if whatever it was would still be present even without drinking. I tried this a few times with one or two old favourites and came to realise that (for me) there was nothing there in the absence of alcohol. The "cameraderie", good atmosphere, feeling like a home from home - all these things disappeared. It was an illusion brought about by the fact that most of the time when I had been in those places I was, to a greater or lesser extent, drunk. Now when I walk past pubs (the ones around here anyway) I can't imagine why the hell I ever spent time there. So strange.

I suppose this is perhaps a change in attitude that has come about deliberately to some degree, I don't know.

Regarding the taste of alcohol, although my attitude to drink has obviously changed I don't think I could ever say that I wouldn't like the taste. There were few forms I did not enjoy (alcopop type confections being an exception). I can fully appreciate that drink in all its forms has its devotees. But my drnking went a different way.

I don't think I'd ever condemn anyone for drinking. If it doesn't affect your health or life, go ahead and enjoy, even if that includes occasional excess. But for some people it just goes wrong.

There is still a part of me that has a need, once in a while, to get a bit out of it. But most people seem to have some sort of inbuilt safety valve that stops it before it goes too far, whereas I found that I had a self-destruct button that I could not resist playing with. So I don't do it now.

 

[hellymedic]

I don't think I'd ever condemn anyone for drinking. If it doesn't affect your health or life, go ahead and enjoy, even if that includes occasional excess. But for some people it just goes wrong.

There is still a part of me that has a need, once in a while, to get a bit out of it. But most people seem to have some sort of inbuilt safelt valve that stops it before it goes too far, whereas I found that I had a self-destruct button that I could not resist playing with.

Great post, Sgt!
I worry about those who seem to be in aggressive denial of a problem; methinks they can't see things are going wrong.

[Sergeant Pluck]

I wasn't sure what it was that I missed

Oh I've remembered now: women  

I supose the whole question is can you stop when you want to?

The way it was for me was that once I'd been going overboard for a while, I would stop. I'd get sick of it and have a break. Maybe for a few days or a few weeks. Over the years this ability to stop helped reassure me that my drinking habits were all fine and dandy.  

My problem was not that I could not take the occasional break, it was that I could not sustain that break. It was only a matter of time. My other problem was the old AA classic of not being able to stop after one drink.

[Zoidburg]

Zoiders, that's not really all of the question, is it?

No my dear, its why you drink to excess in the first place

I think it creeps up on you...

[rogerzilla]

I can never find a moderator on Saturday night - they must have lives or something.

I'm locking this for now (we've had several complaints) so someone more competent than I can sort it out and decide whether to reinstate it tomorrow.  I don't really want to lose a thread which has a lot of valuable stuff.

If anyone wants to reconsider in the meantime, I believe you can edit posts in a locked thread  

[C-3PO]

Several posts have been removed from this thread for showing a lack of general excellence to one another.  Some more innocent posts may have got caught in the crossfire if they quoted or referred to the argument.

This thread is now unlocked.

[Ian H]

I smell BS when people say they enjoy the taste of spirits...

I often have a bottle of my favourite malt in the house. I'll have a glass once or twice a week, just for the pleasure of the taste. The bottle will last a month or more. Cheap whisky is, however, an abomination.

[Hummers]

If subtleties and nuances of flavour are so important, do you feel the same way about food / tea / coffee?

Indeed I do. Cheese, chocolate and decent coffee come a close second to booze. I don't drink instant coffee for the same reason I don't drink John Smiths   and will walk out of a pub if it does not sell decent beer (assuming they can't sell me a decent cup of filter coffee). As for spirits, I won't drink cheap Cognac (it's XO or nothing) and the only thing cheap whisky is good for is being mixed with ginger wine - making it palatable and a useful companion in a hip flask. Mind you, having a nip whilst out on a mountain on a cold day is all about the warming affect.

At the risk of contradiciting myself, what I have found before is that the first glass of my favourite red tastes vile after a bout of abstinence. This is almost certainly due to alcohol and I can understand why people hate the taste and smell of drink. When it is completely out of your system, it smells and tastes disgusting.

About 2 days after the end of that 40 days, things will be as before. 

Undoubtedly so but then again I was not intending to give it up for good, just 40 days. I also expect that 30 days into the 40 I will become a sanctimonious PITA, telling everyone who'll listen how I feel a lot better, have more energy, can cycle faster, am sleeping better, have dropped half a stone, how much I haven't spent on wine/beer and how I can't understand why the demon drink was such a large part of my life in the first place.

Hold on a minute.

Have I just talked myself into giving it up for good?

Who knows.

H

[Hot Flatus]

I sometimes have up to 7 or 8 single malts in my drinks cabinet, mostly in the winter time.  Some of these bottles last several years (unless Jaded and Matt come to dinner).  However, I never drink whisky in a pub.

[Wowbagger]

I sometimes have up to 7 or 8 single malts in my drinks cabinet, mostly in the winter time.  Some of these bottles last several years (unless Jaded and Matt come to dinner).  However, I never drink whisky in a pub.

Similar here, although my cabinet is not so well stocked. For Jaded & Matt read Michael & Jon.

[Hummers]

I sometimes have up to 7 or 8 single malts in my drinks cabinet, mostly in the winter time.  Some of these bottles last several years (unless Jaded and Matt come to dinner).  However, I never drink whisky in a pub.

Whisky and Cognac are all about enjoying it with other people. A big heavy tumbler, by a fire and a comfortable armchair. I'll have the occasional, solitary tot now and again but this is pretty rare. This is a good thing as there was a time when not even a bottle of bannana liquer was safe in our house.

H