I am thinking of giving up drinking for a year. Does anyone want to join me?

[gracepaley]

I surely will not have enough willpower to do it alone, I can barely manage a week.
BUT - am splitting up with dh, trying to get over a totally ridiculous and destructive non affair with someone, and generally trying to become menschish, and I think being clear headed would help.
Zippi you did this didn't you. Htf did you do it? I LOVE WINE. WINE is GREAT.

Wow a year! Wonder how much money you'll save!

Anyone?

are you all pissheads or are you all already sober?

I have considered doing this in the past.

No. I would have to think of a new name.

Nope. Good luck and all that but it's not for me.

grace I take my hat off to you.....it might just kill me to try!!

wow
good luck
i dont drink monday-thursday
thats good enough for me

No way

Good luck though!

Aw, come on, someone......Madamez I totally heart you for your no nonsense replies on this and pretty much everything.

Have you always had such clarity? How does one obtain it?

why do want to give up or is this just a windup?

I'm always giving up alcohol and then slipping. I seem to be able to manage it for about a month but I always end up drinking again.

wine-d up?
Why would it be?
It's not particularly funny.

Gracepaley = it's caled 'being old'

nah. It's not. I am old and I am still flailing.

Don't see why you would want to try something that you already know would be really difficult - bit like fad dieting. Can't you just cut down?
Giving up when pregnant was tough enough for me, and I'm not a big drinker.

hmmm. Well I am a big drinker - and I would like to try life without the crutch of alcohol. But there's no way I could do it without some kind of support. I'm not an alcoholic though.

I think it's a brilliant idea. I'm tempted to join you for all the same reasons you have listed but not entirely sure I could do it... When are you thinking of starting?

I just told my husband and we are going to join you.

Have the rest of the Champagne from the other day and then we will join you.

I am hoping to lose weight, save a few pounds and that it will help with the depression I suffer from.

Are you sure you're not an alcoholic? Seriously? Have you spoken to anyone? GP?

It's great that you want to cut down - much better for health and overall gorgeousness - but, a bit like signing up for the gym, I would shy away from committing to the whole nine yards if I couldn't be confident of making small changes first, because if you can't deliver, you are going to feel you have failed which will make you feel crap and in need of a drink.........
How much do you drink now? (no need to answer if you don't want to)

Well I'm joining you, but only really because that covers 6 more months of pregnancy, and the first few months of breastfeeding, where I don't tend to bother.

Ahhh - I'm sorry, I didn't fully read your OP. This is about more than alcohol, isn't it.

great lulu 3nab, when do we start?
Give me a date.

If you really have problems for giving up for more than week at a time, then I'd give AA a go. Seriously, so many people have the wrong idea of what an alcoholic actually is, it's quite frightening.

One thing's for sure, alcoholism is the only illness that denies it's own existence. If you have any sort of dependence on booze, it's really quite unrealistic to say that you're going to do it 'for a year' without any real life support.

Try taking it a day at a time, and DO see your GP. If you drink everyday you will be deficient in B vitamins and thiamine - alcohol prevents the absorption of these, as well as promoting depletion. These are essential vitamins for neural function, skin, liver, in fact pretty much every major organ.

Actually, this is quite interesting for me...how do people define being alcoholic? HOw would you decide you were 'just' a problem drinker, rather than an alcoholic?

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