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.

I stopped drinking nearly two years ago when I was diagosed with PND. I thought it would be difficult (I was having 1/2 bottle of red wine a night to 'calm me down') but it wasn't difficult at all. I have been very honest and told people I don't drink because I am on AD's. Nobody has batted an eyelid. The only time I miss it is when I go out for a romantic meal with dh and it is nice then to ba able to share a bottle of wine.

Oh this is so interesting. I'm an alcoholic in recovery and in AA for the past couple of years. Got sober in a rehab though under serious medical supervision (no doubt in the least I was an alcoholic!) and thank AA for keeping me sober. So them's my credentials so you can tear me apart a bit more effectively. Oh - I also have lost over 4 stone in the past year and a half by eating less and exercising more.

I come from a slightly different perspective than Kokeshi - this challenge seems to me to be more like my losing weight thing. I don't have eating issues or any health issues related to weight, so willpower and planning were enough. It seems to me like an extreme version of that 10 years younger in 6 weeks or 10 fruits and veg a day thing. I think a year is a very long time, but not because it's alcohol, just from the goal-setting standpoint if that makes sense! If you realize that alcohol is satisfying some deeper need for you and you can't deal without it, go from there.

My view of AA is that it's very good, free, easily accessible group therapy with a program that works for me. I won't get into the god thing except to say that I don't have a god and it still works for me. But I'm not only agnostic but apathetic so that view works for me. I'm still very comfortable in the program (the same way I'm comfortable around friend who are religious in the traditional sense). I have an inkling that it doesn't work for everyone and I'm certain that not every individual AA group is for everyone (it's kind of like finding the right therapist).

The best thing about not drinking for me is not that I'm sober and can actually function (that is fantastic, admittedly!) but that I've lost the obsession with drinking - I thought about the next drink all the time.

I realise I'm babbling on - that's what knowing how to touch type as fast as I think can do (I think slowly so my fingers can keep up). Good luck and have fun!

Ooh- I do have a tip. If you're drinking a bit, you're getting lots of sugar. If you find you have a craving, sometimes a candy bar will take it away. Don't overdo it though! And remember to give up the candy bars after the cravings stop. If you'd like, I mean, there's nothing intrinsically wrong with eating candy bars.

i heard on the news today that women who drink 14 units a week or over ( a couple of glasses a wine a night put you well over) are 50% more likely to develop breast cancer. My mum died of this, i've got two small children....i won't be buying wine again for sure.

First night without alcohol and it feels very liberating. TBH I haven't enjoyed wine for a long time.

I'll send you some of my nausea to keep your willpower up, NAB .

Believe me, the thought of booze will turn your stomach.

Job done.

Blackmonday: before believing any statistic like that, it's worth checking out where the research data came from, who funded it, and the size of the sample group. As well as whether it was peer reviewed and what the control group was... News headlines that trumpet big scares are often based on very suspect data.

My god just read all of this thread now paranoid i may actually be whats classed as an alcoholic!

Me too milkmummy! I've just read this thread and am now convinced i need help! Scary. I am actually trying to cut down on how much i drink coz i realise i drink more now than i ever have and i drink at home which i never used to do. How do you know if you've got a problem? I don't wana become tee-total coz i do like drinking socially with friends now and again, but have to say it is becoming a habit to have a few drinks at night in the house, most nights. I don't like it. Anyone...how do you know if it's a problem and what the first step to calming it down?

Wiggleit, are you the only adult in the house or do you have a DP who also likes a drink in the evening? Because if it's the latter, it's going to be a bit harder to stop drinking at home unless he is willing to do the same, so maybe you should talk to him about it (but be prepared for him to say he doesn;t have a problem and is not prepared to stop just because you want to... everyone is responsible for their own drinking). If it's just you ie you are single or have a teetotal partner, then stop buying alchohol and stop keeping it in the house. If you then find yourself making efforts to go out and socialise every night so you are 'not drinking at home' then maybe there is a bit of a problem and you might want to consider getting help: there is a dependent-drinkers thread on here that might be useful.

Surely there are millions of people out there who like a drink most evenings but arent alcoholics though? as long as we know our limits and dont let it affect our work / roles as mums too much then we dont have a problem? i love my wine and dont think i would want to go a whole month without it, unless ihad to like when i was pregnant and BF. though i really did miss it so much, was one of the reasons i stopped BF and that makes me worry i do have some kind of alcohol dependency!

Thanx madamez..i'm married and my DH likes a drink too, we both drink whisky..we don't get plastered don't get me wrong but we do have a drink (or 2) most nights. My DH gave up smoking and since then whisky has become his drug! I on the other hand have just gradually increased how much and how often i drink. I can go without it and be ok but not for long! I like how it makes me feel. I never get drunk as i hate feeling drunk or feeling sick. I just enjoy the nice feeling. Is that cause for concern? I am seriously worried about how mush i drink, i def drink over the units per week..not good.

much sorry, it's the whisky!!

I have a dh who likes to have a few cans of lager before going to bed just about every night (there goes another one). I used to dring with him until I realised I weighed more than when full term with ds. I dont have asweet tooth and dont snack between meals so quickly relised 4 cans carling a night was only expanding my waist line. That was last October and didnt touch a drop again until christmas. I had a bottle of baileys bought at christmas so once that was gone I started going teetotal again.
Last friday night I had a couple of cans with him but thats all.
I have gone from a size 20 to an 18 just by stopping drinking. Thats enough to keep me off the drink.

Hmm, two (or even three) whiskies a night is not a huge amaount as long as you are talkking glasses, not bottles Though when you drink spirits at home, you generally drink more than you think as home measures are bigger than pub measures. Basically, if you are seriously worried, then just don't drik for a night or two, or three, and if you start feeling ill and anxious, maybe it's time to look for some advice on alcohol dependency.

Thanx madamez, my DH usually stops at 2 large whiskys with coke, i drink smaller measures with ice but will probably have 3 or even 4 some nights. I don't have hangovers and drinking doesn't interfere with my everyday life but i know i'm on a slippery slope. I have mentioned to DH that i feel i may have a problem and i want to cut down so he's suggested just taking it a day at a time and try not to have a drink a couple of nights. I did that last week and felt fine, it's more of a habit than a need i think. My DH just laughed when i said i had a problem, but his idea of an alcoholic is someone who wakes up and has a drink or hides bottles etc, as i'm not like that he just thinks i'm worrying over nothing, but i really don't want to carry on these habits.

I'm not giving up drinking entirely but we have decided to cut down and my partner and I have decided that we will only have a drink or two at the weekend. Maybe something like that would work for you, wiggleit? As I understand it, if you don't drink most of the time, a couple of drinks one or two nights a week won't do you any harm.

How is everyone getting on who has decided to give up/cut down?

I am loving not drinking, if only I could control my food intake as well.

DH has given in - kids have driven him to a glass of red.

gracepaley???