To ask what made you stop drinking?

I stopped drinking for 18 months many years ago as I just wasn’t a pleasant drunk anymore. I didn’t want to be the person that I was when I drank.

I then drank small amounts for several years but gave up almost completely about 3 years ago, for no particular reason. I do feel better for it though. I still have a very occasional drink, less than 10 units a year.

I had tried a few times to give up drinking and even managed a full year one time before I fell off the wagon and, very quickly, began drinking 2-3 bottles of wine every evening again. No one apart from my husband knew that I was a functioning alcoholic. I would still go to work, take the kids to school and have a normal social life but behind the scenes I was a nervous anxious wreck and I wasnt a very nice person. On 6th May 2019 I woke up about 2am and was shaking so badly that I knew I needed a glass of wine but I was too hungover to move. I just lay there and sobbed until 6am then I got up, poured all the wine down the sink and haven't touched a drink since. I still miss it a lot but I know that I am a much nicer person without the alcohol in my life xx

Tbh, im in my EARLY 20s and some may think its too young but i dont drink alot at all.. 2 weekends out of 4 maybe. However when i have a drink.. i am just not the same person, hate what it brings out of me. I have completely ruined my relationship with my boyfriend because i would get angry over nothing.. ive biten him and all sorts.. seems my anger directs at him, it used to be my mum. Never used to be like this until i had an abortion.. I also suffer from pms now. I hate it.. im young and i have to decide whether its a good idea to have a drink anymore kinda sad. So i can really relate.

I was a binge drinker. I could go months without drinking, then go on a night out and drink for 12 hours straight. After one particularly horrific hangover I gave up altogether. In hindsight I drank like this because I was socially anxious and alcohol was a crutch to numb my fears and give me confidence. I never drank at home.

It was hard at first, just because I'd never 'not drank' before so I didn't really know how to interact socially without alcohol to lubricate things but now, 3 years in, I've never been happier. I've dealt with my social anxiety in a healthy way, I've made many more friends (because I'm actually interacting from the heart now instead of hiding behind alcohol) and I could never go back to drinking.

Allan Carr's 'Easy Way to Control Alcohol' book really helped me and let me see that alcohol is not mandatory to have a good time.

I know other people drink for different reasons, but that was mine. Good luck! You'll never look back!

Six years ago I gave up all alcohol. For about 18 months I drank nothing at all. Since then I do drink occasionally. But I have one or maybe two drinks and that’s enough.
Previously, having started I would always overdo it and drank most nights. I had a very life changing event during that period and when I did return to having an occasional drink I was never tempted to overdo it because it was important to me to not lose control.
Last time I had a drink was mid October and I’ll have a glass or two over Christmas.
I never really liked the idea of being tee total for ever but life is much better for me without the worry about my behaviour when drinking and the hangovers.

I gave up to reassess my relationship with alcohol after watching alcoholic relatives struggle. I kept a little note for the first month just observing when I wanted it and what not drinking felt like. It was weirdly liberating and I discovered really obvious things - I drink to relieve boredom and because it’s easier than self care. Just do it for 30/50/100 days and give yourself time and space to consider if you want it in your life.

@Lalaloveyou2020 , totally agree that it's the mental health which takes a bashing, particularly the next day.

@Lalaloveyou2020 absolutely .

think I have a "tendency " to binge drink. I don't know if it is learned or an inherent trait, but there is definitely something in me that fails to moderate.

I feel like I need a break, at the very least. A few months where I have no alcohol and then consider whether I can learn to moderate, or if I'm just happy to stay away from alcohol.

Sometimes I find the cumulative effect harms me . Before lockdown I was strictly your classic Saturday night binge drinker. Often overdid it but alcohol free all week. Then same old binge on Saturday with a Sunday being slumped on the sofa watching Netflix.
Lockdown though, Prosecco's during the week, because I wasn't driving next day.
I couldn't keep that going.

Anyway, I've found that my mental health is impacted definitely, and my decisions during a drinking session are poor.
I've cut right back, but like you I'm considering going alcohol free.

I gave up after having very similar experiences to you. I drank more when I was stressed, then started arguments then had massive anxiety in the morning.
I cannot recommend Annie Grace's book enough as it really helped me change my thinking and triggers with alcohol.
I also had a counting app that told me calories and money I saved as well as life gained and health risks that I was actively lowering by not drinking.
I think our society has a really unhealthy view of drinking and I fully believe in years to come we will view it very similarly to how smoking or using lead face cream is viewed now.
I wish you all the luck.

There's a lot of good resources on stopping, have a look for Annie Grace and also Alcohol Free Life podcast
podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly90aGlzbmFrZWRtaW5kLmxpYnN5bi5jb20vcnNz&ep=14&episode=NjdhMjllMmUtZjkzMC00YWQ2LWFkY2QtNjc1MmJiZjY1NGIy

Also once you stop completely, people stop offering you drinks. If you drink occasionally, everyone you see will want their event to be the time you drink.

I suggest stopping completely. I stopped for a while because the next day I used to be miserable and it was awful. Then I was diagnosed with a medical condition which might flare up with alcohol. I don’t know how much I would have to drink for it to flare up, but the risk isn’t worth it.
All or nothing. Occasional is too hard to control.