The benefits of giving up alcohol

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22 contributors in last 30 days

Derby Tup Jun 2020 8:42am, 7 Jun 2020 42,820 posts	0 Derby Tup I’m in for today. Stef has the occasional drink but I’m lucky in that what she has doesn’t appeal to me (Bacardi and Coke, wine, fruit cider)
Big_G Jun 2020 8:45am, 7 Jun 2020 23 posts	0 Big_G HappyG, in my case, the lockdown has coincided with a lot of gardening! We moved in here in Feb last year, and the house has a steep back garden with different levels of decking. All that needed to come out, as it was rotten. Currently I've taken about a third of it out, knocked down a wall, and levelled two sections out so that's usable. With left over wood that was salvageable I've made 8 large raised beds for veggies, and OH bas been very busy with that - tomatoes, cauliflower, different lettuce, courgettes, kale, pumpkin, squash, cucumbers, carrots, beans, peas, strawberries etc. Also, I made 5 or 6 planters, and I made a storage crate for gardening "stuff" that was getting blown around the garden OH is very happy that we've made a start but there's still a long way to go. I did get in to standup paddle boarding and bought a nice one in summer of 2018. I really enjoyed it, but sadly for me, much of 2019 was written off with a shoulder injury so I couldn't use it. In 2020, with things as they are, I don't feel it's wise for me to use it as I wouldn't want to be responsible for emergency services having to be called...! I'm a strong swimmer so that chance is very, very slim, but as I'm not 100% on it I don't want to risk it, but I do real enjoy it. Other than that, it's running marathons, and the travel involved with that, which I really love. I suppose you could say I had a life changing moment in 2014 when my wife died unexpectedly, and looking back now I was self-medicating with drink afterwards. 2018 I started this alcohol free journey, which has almost coincided with me jumping on the marathon juggernaut (I did 20 in 2017, 34 in 2018, 17 in 2019 and 8 this year before lockdown). I have a new partner now, and although she's not a runner, she comes with me to some of the marathons abroad that I've done - Berlin, Sofia, Rotterdam (OH is Dutch), Marrakech etc. Last year, when I was recovering from my shoulder, I did some long runs out on the coast path and loved it - i.e., catch the train/bus somewhere, run/walk 20 miles along the coast path, get the bus/train back home. This type of thing kept me fit and sane when I couldn't run much last year. It's not all about running, but I'm on my club's committee. Obviously at the moment there are no races, but I look after the Club Championship and get involved with other stuff for the club, which I really enjoy. Last night, for example, I organised a second Zoom quiz for club mates. I put together 30 questions, and we all had a bit of a laugh. It was supposed to my club's main race yesterday - Dartmoor Discovery Ultra - so I organised the quiz to coincide with that. Other than that, I read quite a bit, and in some ways you could say that if Netflix was a game, I've completed it.
Derby Tup Jun 2020 8:55am, 7 Jun 2020 42,821 posts	0 Derby Tup Sounds like you’re doing good Big_G
Oscar the Grouch Jun 2020 8:55am, 7 Jun 2020 1,626 posts	0 Oscar the Grouch Big G - we have probably met - I have done the DD 8 times... absolutely fantastic race.
Big_G Jun 2020 9:12am, 7 Jun 2020 24 posts	0 Big_G Oscar, we may well have done! It's a great race! I've only done it once - 2018 - when it went back to the 34-mile version for the 20th anniversary. Other than that, for 2 or 3 years prior I was timekeeper at the marathon point so if you ran it those years, you'd have ran past me I DNSd last year due to the shoulder although marshalled somewhere in the early part of the course, but was due to toe the start line again this year.
Oscar the Grouch Jun 2020 9:59am, 7 Jun 2020 1,627 posts	0 Oscar the Grouch I ran it on all of those occasions. Very nice to be able to say a public, thank you, here. The 34 mile special with the extra climb at the end was a killer. The poor Marshall on the turning by the radio mast copped some x rated stuff for which I later apologised! Many happy memories of weekends away
Oscar the Grouch Jun 2020 10:00am, 7 Jun 2020 1,628 posts	0 Oscar the Grouch I will return for every year I think I can make the cut offs
Big_G Jun 2020 11:12am, 7 Jun 2020 25 posts	0 Big_G Oscar, well done on that and maybe we'll bump into each other in real life next year Have you been to the DD Teignbridge Trotters party? You can probably imagine that me being Alcohol Free doesn't really fit in with the club's ethos around drinking! Ha ha, I was out with the best of them a few years ago, but I have to say - to their credit - I've had no issue since I've been AF.
Oscar the Grouch Jun 2020 4:41pm, 7 Jun 2020 1,629 posts	0 Oscar the Grouch Yes, I'm a regular at that. Have to say that although there is plenty of alcohol, there doesn't seem to be pressure to drink per se
Winniefree Jun 2020 8:55pm, 7 Jun 2020 1,685 posts	0 Winniefree Just logged my third week of less than 14 units. I’m happy with that - the drinks that I’ve had have been intentional and I have enjoyed them. That’s a far cry from where I was (experimenting with the worst-ever ‘quarantini ’ cocktail out of whatever I could find in the cupboard).

About This Thread

Maintained by Merry Christmas and Happy NewG(rrr)

Looks as though this thread has become popular again, here in 2010 (it's now 2024, and it started in 2008, so I think "ever popular" might be more apt! :-)

G )

Good Luck everyone.

A recent plea for those struggling to "reach out" as they say in US of A!

"Anyone not feeling strong and confident, please shout out. Or fmail. Or any other comms that works. Don't drink alcohol when you don't want to, for lack of someone to talk to. Pick up the phone, not the bottle."

Some acronyms, in case people use them:
JFT - Just for today
ODAAT - One day at a time
KIS - Keep it simple
TBOGUA - The Benefits Of Giving Up Alcohol (the title of this thread!)

New feature: article/blog of the month (period may change randomly!) Swittle's wonderful 14,611 days blog: (see links below)

Linking Joopsy's 17 year blog too, cos it's awesome!

There is a GREAT article summarising some of the benefits, to save you having to trawl through the thread (includes links to helpful apps and other resources).

And a great list of Alternative Drinks started by the lovely LindsD:

Please add to these articles and make them as valuable as possible! Thanks! :-)

G

And one from way back when...
Dirt Monkey's brilliant blog on TBOGUA too - go try this...

Rebel has recommended a couple of good books:
The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober: THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER
by Catherine Gray

The Alcohol Experiment: 30 Days to Take Control, Cut Down or Give Up For Good
by Annie Grace

A great response from a health professional in Ireland responding to a question from a Guardian reader about why the warnings on alcoholic drinks that are coming in:

theguardian.com

"Alcohol is responsible for at least 1,000 cancer cases every year in Ireland, with one in eight breast cancer cases arising from alcohol use. Even one to two drinks per day increases the risk of developing cancer, and that risk is the same whether those drinks are wine, spirits or beer. Unfortunately, there is a very low level of public awareness that alcohol has been classed as a Group 1 carcinogen, meaning it is carcinogenic to humans. That is why Ireland has passed legislation that provides for health information labels on alcohol products, including warnings about cancer, liver disease and the danger of drinking in pregnancy. It is unsurprising that the alcohol industry, which promotes its products with carefully crafted myths of good times for all, is objecting to the mandatory provision of facts (Anger brews in Italy over Ireland’s plans for alcohol health warnings, 12 January).
Dr Sheila Gilheany
CEO, Alcohol Action Ireland
"

And the all important fabulous services:
Alcoholics Anonymous
National Helpline (FREE) 0800 9177 650
help@aamail.org

Al Anon
020 7403 0888

medal

Contact TBOGUA medal

We're adding in our own Fetch offer of one to one contact too, for anyone who doesn't want to post in the thread for whatever reason. Please feel free to fmail ANY of the names listed below.

- - - -
HappyG(rrr)
( Oscar the grouch RIP )
mrs shanksi
Derby Tup
iaincr
Love Lettuce
DocM
LindsD
GeneHunt59
GregP