200-375ml and 2-7 beers...

[slow99]

Make room on the wagon. I'm about to climb on.

Wtf ... now what am I supposed to do to feel better about myself?

[Chili]

...Even when tanked up pretty good I'll toss and turn. But when the sauce wears off, there's zero chance of sleeping any more. That may come at 2AM, that may come at 7AM...

Going to bed really drunk typically guarantees a shitty night's sleep for me. Exactly as you describe. Tossing and turning and then the eventual waking up once sober, usually somewhere between 3-5 AM. Nearly impossible for me to fall back to sleep after that.

[dsrtuckteezy]

Make room on the wagon. I'm about to climb on.

your liver already gave up!

[BradM]

Make room on the wagon. I'm about to climb on.

[Cooter]

Oh I've had some serious hangovers, but I've always been a blue collar guy, so it's a lot easier to put your head down and get your work done and sweat the poison out than if you're white collar and have to maintain a certain appearance...

If anything, the fact that I do get after it and sweat it out has been part of why I've been able to maintain all this time.

But I've had some benders for sure...

It's been over a year since I've had a drink, and I still don't feel 100%, though given that you don't seem to have the hangovers like I used to get, hopefully your body will bounce back all that much quicker.

We don't realize the toll our body takes when we drink heavily for long periods, pretty much down to the cellular level. For me it never got to daily drinking, but by the time I quit, I didn't go more than 2 weeks without tying one on, and more often it was every weekend, and by the end I'd drink during the week every couple weeks. By heavy I mean a 175mL over the course of a weekend, and 1 to 3 6ers in between, sometimes I'd add another bottle if I started early on Friday. Not as much as your maintenance regimen factored week to week, but all at once, thus the horrendous hang-overs.

That said, life has never been so good, and in the last year I've been able to enjoy so many things, that would otherwise be tainted, if not ruined by a 3-4 day recovery period. I no longer "need" booze to have a good time, I'm myself all the time, and usually I get to be the happy part of my "happy drunk" personality without the drunk.

Good for you for nipping it in the bud Forrest, stick with it. We never think that we'll be the one to let it get out of control, but alcohol really can have a mind of it's own, and once it's in control it's too late.

[Big A]

It's very rare for me to have one or two drinks. It's pointless. If I'm going drink, I'm going to DRINK, especially if I'm not in public. Of course, sometimes I might only have 2 drinks, however both of them are 4 fingers...

Honestly man, Danny and me were a little worried about you when we met up in Sacramento. I know you had been under a lot of pressure with all the moving and being away from family and friends. Glad to see it's all getting better for you.

I appreciate the concern, I was worried about myself too, and finally took the steps needed to get right again. It got to a point where I was literally watching my own life from a third party perspective, and like the recurring nightmare I've had where I was frozen and unable to move, I was watching myself spiral out of control, with my livelihood (job) in the balance.

I share my experience to hopefully show that nobody is completely immune. I spent years in the gym, had plenty of self control with the diet, and a generally healthy outlook on life. Career was going better than I could have planned, no financial woes to speak of, and none of that kept me from going down the rabbit hole. Anyone that drinks a lot and/or regularly, for whatever reason, has just as real a possibility of it getting out of hand, so it's something to be aware of.

Drinking regularly can absolutely kill motivation, for one it interferes with testosterone production, which is a big factor in "whiskey dick." When a dude gets all superman and horny when he's drunk, that's all centered in the mind, and relaxed inhibitions, physiologically alcohol is another story.

Also factor in that alcohol metabolizes in the body into a cousin of formaldehyde, not into sugar as the common misconception states. So after a night of literally embalming ourselves, the body goes into overdrive repairing itself, with little energy left over to do anything else.

I do wish that I could be satisfied with having a glass of wine with dinner, but being that in my mind having just one or two is pointless, there truly is no point for me to drink anything alcoholic.

It's very rare for me to have one or two drinks. It's pointless. If I'm going drink, I'm going to DRINK, especially if I'm not in public. Of course, sometimes I might only have 2 drinks, however both of them are 4 fingers...

Honestly man, Danny and me were a little worried about you when we met up in Sacramento. I know you had been under a lot of pressure with all the moving and being away from family and friends. Glad to see it's all getting better for you.

[Big A]

I don't know how much of an actual difference it has made, and it might be a lot to do with it finally cooling down, but I'm also a lot more inclined to get out and exercise lately. Since I've started keeping weird hours being off work so long, it's nice to get out into the cool morning air at 4am and go stroll around The Ballpark with no one around.

Drinking regularly can absolutely kill motivation, for one it interferes with testosterone production, which is a big factor in "whiskey dick." When a dude gets all superman and horny when he's drunk, that's all centered in the mind, and relaxed inhibitions, physiologically alcohol is another story.

Also factor in that alcohol metabolizes in the body into a cousin of formaldehyde, not into sugar as the common misconception states. So after a night of literally embalming ourselves, the body goes into overdrive repairing itself, with little energy left over to do anything else.

I do wish that I could be satisfied with having a glass of wine with dinner, but being that in my mind having just one or two is pointless, there truly is no point for me to drink anything alcoholic.

[dsrtuckteezy]

i've had 5 beerz and have 5 more to go.

[Big A]

I know it'll take 5-6 months before I REALLY feel like I've turned a corner, but I'm feeling better after 4-5 days than I did last time I did 10 days (I wasn't in the right mind frame at the time)

It's been over a year since I've had a drink, and I still don't feel 100%, though given that you don't seem to have the hangovers like I used to get, hopefully your body will bounce back all that much quicker.

We don't realize the toll our body takes when we drink heavily for long periods, pretty much down to the cellular level. For me it never got to daily drinking, but by the time I quit, I didn't go more than 2 weeks without tying one on, and more often it was every weekend, and by the end I'd drink during the week every couple weeks. By heavy I mean a 175mL over the course of a weekend, and 1 to 3 6ers in between, sometimes I'd add another bottle if I started early on Friday. Not as much as your maintenance regimen factored week to week, but all at once, thus the horrendous hang-overs.

That said, life has never been so good, and in the last year I've been able to enjoy so many things, that would otherwise be tainted, if not ruined by a 3-4 day recovery period. I no longer "need" booze to have a good time, I'm myself all the time, and usually I get to be the happy part of my "happy drunk" personality without the drunk.

Good for you for nipping it in the bud Forrest, stick with it. We never think that we'll be the one to let it get out of control, but alcohol really can have a mind of it's own, and once it's in control it's too late.

Honestly Eric? That one or two is where it all starts... Whenever I've taken lengthy time off of it (I think almost 2 years at one point... a month or few here or there) and had a beer or two, I get a hot flash and don't particularly enjoy the first one or two... And it tricks me into thinking "meh, I've got this... I don't even really enjoy it like I used to. I can do this whenever I want.

Well... I've been doing it whenever I want for about 8yrs now, and I'd like to see how 8yrs without it feels and go from there

That's cool, too, man! Whatever works for you.

[Cooter]

Congrats man, glad to hear it. I've never been as heavy a drinker as I think most people assume, but I definitely enjoy drinking, and went off the deep end for awhile after the divorce with partying it up. Since this year started I've dialed it pretty far back, not really because of a need to do it, I just realized I was tired of it and not getting much out of it any more. I'm maybe drinking a few times a month, if that. People are surprised at parties to see me with a bottle of water or a coke. If I really feel like it, I'll drink, but most of the time I don't. With all the back and neck problems I've been having and the meds it was just a good idea to scale it back anyway, and I was already headed down that road.

I don't know how much of an actual difference it has made, and it might be a lot to do with it finally cooling down, but I'm also a lot more inclined to get out and exercise lately. Since I've started keeping weird hours being off work so long, it's nice to get out into the cool morning air at 4am and go stroll around The Ballpark with no one around.

Keep it up man, and hell, don't be afraid to have one here or there, but really think about if you actually want it before hand. There isn't anything wrong with enjoying yourself, but I agree, at that level you were just asking for trouble, even though you're a big dude. LMK if you need anything.

Honestly Eric? That one or two is where it all starts... Whenever I've taken lengthy time off of it (I think almost 2 years at one point... a month or few here or there) and had a beer or two, I get a hot flash and don't particularly enjoy the first one or two... And it tricks me into thinking "meh, I've got this... I don't even really enjoy it like I used to. I can do this whenever I want.

Well... I've been doing it whenever I want for about 8yrs now, and I'd like to see how 8yrs without it feels and go from there

[dee]

Congrats.

Congrats man, glad to hear it. I've never been as heavy a drinker as I think most people assume, but I definitely enjoy drinking, and went off the deep end for awhile after the divorce with partying it up. Since this year started I've dialed it pretty far back, not really because of a need to do it, I just realized I was tired of it and not getting much out of it any more. I'm maybe drinking a few times a month, if that. People are surprised at parties to see me with a bottle of water or a coke. If I really feel like it, I'll drink, but most of the time I don't. With all the back and neck problems I've been having and the meds it was just a good idea to scale it back anyway, and I was already headed down that road.

I don't know how much of an actual difference it has made, and it might be a lot to do with it finally cooling down, but I'm also a lot more inclined to get out and exercise lately. Since I've started keeping weird hours being off work so long, it's nice to get out into the cool morning air at 4am and go stroll around The Ballpark with no one around.

Keep it up man, and hell, don't be afraid to have one here or there, but really think about if you actually want it before hand. There isn't anything wrong with enjoying yourself, but I agree, at that level you were just asking for trouble, even though you're a big dude. LMK if you need anything.

[Tx Redneck]

Grats man. I'll get my "whiner's chip/18 month" the 25th. It's the longest I've been sober since I was 16.

We who self medicate, be it with booze or illicit drugs, are forced to learn how to deal with stressors or triggers that caused that felt need to medicate when we choose sobriety. It's been challenging to say the least, but one of the greatest pleasures as well.

Keep it up man! You'll appreciate the sober life more than you thought possible.