If you have given up alcohol, do you feel better?

[MeltingWax]

I am thinking about giving up alcohol altogether as I find just cutting down too difficult.

Over the last 20 years I have had 2 alcohol-free pregnancies and have done dry January twice but other than that no long periods without booze. I have started to get to the point where I think a proper break would probably be good for me for both mental and physical reasons.

I think am also probably peri menopausal with the associated mild anxiety which accompanies that.

So, I have been 10 days alcohol free now which yes, I know is not much. But I was kind of expecting to be feeling, I don't know, different somehow by now. Maybe am expecting too much. On good weeks previously I would drink the recommended weekly number of units but many many weeks it would be, um, significantly more than that.

So, anyone who has gone permanently alcohol free was there some tipping point when you suddenly felt much better?

Interested to follow this. Could someone explain to me the peri-menopausal anxiety thing? I think this might be what I am suffering from!

I definitely need to be alcohol free - can't do moderation. I drink a bottle of wine if I open it, most nights. I feel ghastly in the morning but by 5pm am thinking 'fuck it' again....

I am listening to this naked mind on audible - it talks a lot of sense; about lining up your conscious decision making with your subconscious.... I'm half way through.

There was an interesting Adrian Chiles programme on BBC about this. Still on iPlayer - Drinkers like me.

Yes, alcohol is a depressant! Amazing how defensive some people get when you give it up.

I watched the Adrian Chiles programme last week when I was on around day 4 of being AF. It was interesting definitely - especially about the liver scarring thing. Like moon I know I have a fatty liver so alcohol can only make that worse. I have started drinking a liver detox tea by Dr Stuart. It's pretty vile tasting - that must mean it's doing some good, right?

On the perimenopausal anxiety thing: it's mainly info I have picked up on other threads on MN as well as listening to slightly older friends who have already been through the whole shebang.

I have never been a particularly anxious person but over the last year or so I find myself getting increasingly anxious/irritated by minor issues. Rattier about very little and generally less tolerant about small irritations. And my sleep has absolutely gone to pot. This combined with changing periods and I sort of put 2 and 2 together.

I've had completely alcohol three phases and am now in one again (pregnancy. The others were for other reasons)...

No, I don't feel significantly different...

I do however tend to wake up feeling sluggish if I have more than 1 to 2 glasses of wine. (Not that I currently have any...)

Which is why I think that I'd feel a potentially rather substantial difference if I drank more often...

I am menopausal and find that I sleep better and get less sweats when I don't drink. Even one glass can make a difference to me.
I also notice that as my hydration improves I feel much better and I'm sure that drinking alcohol dehydrates me or maybe I just drink more water when I don't drink alcohol.
I wake up feeling more energetic and more positive although as PPs have said that may just be down to better sleep.

I gave up nearly 3 years ago after Christmas. Was only supposed to do dry January but felt so much better I stopped completely. I was sick of hangovers especially since id had my daughter. I was a big social drinker and started at an early age so felt like id had my fun!

It was the best decision ive ever made I love being fresh every day. Ive achieved so much more since giving up! My mum was an alcoholic and I think that made me want to stop as I didnt want my daughter ever seeing me drunk/hungover.

I read a book called This Naked Mind which changed my view on alcohol! Id reccomend it!

Also I used to get terrible anxiety especially after drinking. That has completely gone!

Placemarking hope that’s ok.
X

I haven't drunk anything since mid-December 2017. I can't honestly say I feel much different. I used to socialise a lot with work and clients but cut back, changed my job and stopped drinking. It's cheaper though!

I could have written this OP.
Apart from friends confused at why someone would voluntarily not have alcohol and thinking they're hilarious to bring it up constantly , I'm loving it.
So nice to not have a hangover on a weekend and just get up and start the day with my children. Also have more energy, less illnesses and genuinely don't miss it.

I've not had a drink for 3 weeks, I feel much better to be honest. More even mood, calmer, more positive. For me it's the improved sleep I think that improved my mental health. I feel much more on top of things and can enjoy all of my weekends. I have hardly any negative thoughts and feel generally less stressed. All while going through a divorce. I'm planning on staying sober til at least the end of November when I'm going to a gig with friends. I can predict at this stage that I'll drive, just not looking forward to being the only sober one among a bunch of drunk people. Still, better than a hangover I think.

for the poster whose husband snuck out for a drink. Not fun.

This thread is timely. I decided to do sober September. Lots of reasons - had been putting away too much over summer (and before) and I have an alcoholic parent, but the main catalyst was reading The Sober Diaries. So I’m on day 5.

I’ve been sleeping so much better, that’s the only thing I’ve noticed so far. I’ve been going to bed at 9 and sleeping right through!

I’m going to start the selfie on a Sunday thing to see if my skin changes.

DH has not joined me and I noticed tonight that after a few drinks he was definitely more irritable with the kids. Although how to tell him without sounding like an insufferable newfound evangelist I don’t know...

For about 10 years now I've had a drink only very occasionally (less than one glass a year). Before that I never drank that much, maybe 3 or 4 glasses of wine a month.

I don't really feel any different, I guess because I was never a heavy drinker. I am probably more unhealthy now because I'm older and a bit fatter.

I’m celebrating 3 years alcohol free - made the change age 35, now 38. It’s been wonderful. I noticed some changes like better skin and hair earlier on, but mostly I’d describe the change as “Running quieter” -like a car handling better and more efficiently . The change is not super dramatic but it’s noticable. Im calmer in general. Quitting completely seemed extreme at the time but it was the right choice for me. Now, I spend precisely zero time thinking about whether or not to drink, feeling guilty, etc . No hangovers. Saves money. And I think this is all having a cultural moment which is wonderful - I don’t feel stigma.

I feel better when I don’t drink. I think the sulfites in wine make my asthma worse. When I don’t drink I feel calmer, I have more energy, it’s easier to concentrate.

I quite enjoy drinking though. I would love not to feel like I have to drink. Thanks for starting this thread. I’m going to check out the naked mind book.

Your liver detoxes, detox diets, teas etc are a load of rubbish., and waste of money, I had to stop drinking last year (special deiet for gut problem) missed having a cup of tea much more, when I had my first drink (alcohol) I felt really drunk after half a glass.Depends how much you drink of course, I watched Adrian Chiles, couldnt believe he would think that levl of drinking was Ok, and wouldnt call himself an alcoholic! I have a bottle of wine each weekend, usually, 1 glass a night, and because my DH doesnt drink, he thinks that makes me an alcoholic I never drank much, but have found since I got older, I cant drink very much without feeling ill effects.

I think you can get to a stage in life when you just can't metabolise alcohol very well , if at all. I think that is happening to me now. I have really noticed how much worse I feel after a drink. I am seriously considering cutting it out altogether. I can tell myself I will just drink at weekends, but know that it will start creeping back in during the week. Watched the Adrian Chiles programme - very thought provoking. Very concerning that someone could have normal liver function on blood tests yet have a damaged liver.

I haven't drunk for three years.

It all depends on why you drink and how you drink really.

If you can drink in moderation now and again then fine. I had to stop drinking because of reasons unrelated to alcohol dependancy and I would say it's done me no favours but I only drank on occasions.

I was stunned to see how much adrian chilles drank. Crazy amounts.

5 years. Loads more confidence, less anxiety, much happier, no more “what did I do last night” moments... don’t smoke anymore... life’s is improved many times over. Did drink to excess previously though, couldn’t cut down, had to give up.

As for my social life, I find it is less problematic to say I am an alcoholic than anything else.

I very rarely drink - though I do tend to have what I want/when I want at Christmas - but even then I don't go to the point of drunkenness - more tipsy at best. I've only ever been drunk once in my 33 years (24th birthday) and it put me off to never ever feel like that again.

I had a couple of small bottles of Stella this past week.... before then I think my last drink would have been July when we made a sort of spritzer with Blossom Hill's cherry wine and lemonade - beautiful!

I do flirt with giving it up entirely - but the lure of the odd Fireball Whiskey during Christmas is just too much!

My real problem is caffeine - I run off the stuff being a carer. Between my unhealthy attachment to my Tassimo, energy drinks and coke - that is definitely something I DO have to stop!

I've been trying to lose weight so since March I've drunk alcohol for a few days at a time around 4 times, eg on holiday.
It's made me feel really unwell each time and interestingly it made my resting heart rate rise during the time period I was drinking.

I drink very rarely and then only a single glass but even then it totally disrupts my internal thermometer for days, makes my skin look different, disrupts my sleep, makes me slightly paranoid, energy levels down, headaches, limits my ability to solve anything complicated at work. For a mild 5 minute buzz or to be social even, it's just not worth it.