The Stop Drinking (or using other substances) thread - Hello, my name is "kiwi farmer", and I am an alcoholic.

[thejackal]

If you don't mind me asking, do you think alcohol free beer might help with being on booze focussed social situations? So much socialisation is tied with drinking it can be isolating. I've found that helps me personally. Cocktail bars especially, are in my experience very happy to make lovely alcohol free drinks too which is nice.

I found having cigs in the flat helped me kick smoking too. Knowing they were there if felt I needed one meant I didn't want one, perversely.

Whatever is working for you though, I hope it continues.

And I totally get the better mental feeling. Work is super stressful but my manager has noticed I'm taking stuff well and coping great which is amazing.

Yea, I have totally found that just having any liquid around to sip on helps. I've been doing iced caffeine free mint tea. I'm just a creature of habit. I get off work, I sit down at the computer and I crack a beverage. Having something to sip on that isn't booze helps fill at least the "I have something to sip" part of the habit.

I'm really glad I I'm taking this break because (forgive me Kiwi) I forget what poster upthread said it doesn't help to beat yourself up it helps to be positive and such. I'm way more positive now knowing that I'm not physically addicted and that I can -- in theory -- quit any time I want.

We'll see if I can make it the next 9 days or whatever to get an even two weeks. I'm tempted now that I'm feeling so much better to crack a few tonight, NGL. Good luck to all Kiwis battling any sort of compulsion or addiction shit isn't easy. Not the end of the world but not easy either.

 

[Airbrushed Van Art]

Having a case of severe acid reflux does wonders for motivation to quit drinking. Been sober for 2 years now and I actually no longer miss alcohol at all. Maybe once in a while I wish I could have a glass of red wine with a steak but whatever.

I did discover some non-alcoholic beers that don’t taste like hell, so that helps.

 

[Fliddaroonie]

Yea, I have totally found that just having any liquid around to sip on helps. I've been doing iced caffeine free mint tea. I'm just a creature of habit. I get off work, I sit down at the computer and I crack a beverage. Having something to sip on that isn't booze helps fill at least the "I have something to sip" part of the habit.

I'm really glad I I'm taking this break because (forgive me Kiwi) I forget what poster upthread said it doesn't help to beat yourself up it helps to be positive and such. I'm way more positive now knowing that I'm not physically addicted and that I can -- in theory -- quit any time I want.

We'll see if I can make it the next 9 days or whatever to get an even two weeks. I'm tempted now that I'm feeling so much better to crack a few tonight, NGL. Good luck to all Kiwis battling any sort of compulsion or addiction shit isn't easy. Not the end of the world but not easy either.

I think that was me, and my point was, self flagellation is self-defeating. It won't help you. You need kindness and acceptance just now. Whaling on yourself aint gonna achieve anything just now. Cos feeling bad will make you wanna drink, you know?
Iced tea is a godsend. Dunno if you have Aldi near you but i found a lovely herbal tea there recently with apple and clove. And it's nice but it's better iced. In a pinch though, cold water, lime juice and a pinch of salt is good too and it's very refreshing.

I promise you, you've absoloutely got this. You can do it. I've found having something to do with my hands helps. Whether it's cooking, cross-stitch, or just having a box of paperclips to mangle. It's all good. You can do this and I will (forgive me for sounding like a total fucking faggot) be thinking of you in my prayers because you've got this. 9 days is awesome going. You got this.

 

[Iron Jaguar]

Knowing they were there if felt I needed one meant I didn't want one, perversely.

I get that. I still have some beer in the fridge but I haven't touched any for weeks.
I have realised that I get into habitual behaviour very easily, the plus side being that good habits are therefore easy to fall into.

 

[Mittens]

Having a case of severe acid reflux does wonders for motivation to quit drinking.

Do you take anything for it? Personally I find PPIs worrisome.

 

[Airbrushed Van Art]

Do you take anything for it? Personally I find PPIs worrisome.

I was prescribed two different kinds: Nexium and then I switched to Pantoprazole. Both did some help, but made me feel nauseous all the damn time. I eventually weaned off of them and changed my diet.

Nowadays I feel much better with just Gaviscon when I need it (works wonders and much better than Tums) and the occasional Pepsid AC. I hated being on PPIs… who knows what they do to us in the long term…

Regardless I can’t drink anymore: the very idea of feeling drunk gives me cold sweats and a sickly feeling. The TASTE of alcohol makes me gag. And I used to drink Whiskey and Scotch straight up all the time.

 

[KiwiFuzz]

I usually drink a lot every night 'cause I'm bored, but in the last few weeks drinking has seemed really boring, too.

What do you do when everything is boring?

TV is boring, the internet is boring, work is boring, food is boring, weed is boring, booze is boring, everything is boring.

What do you do to fill the endless boring hours?

 

[Goyslop Muncher]

I usually drink a lot every night 'cause I'm bored, but in the last few weeks drinking has seemed really boring, too.

What do you do when everything is boring?

TV is boring, the internet is boring, work is boring, food is boring, weed is boring, booze is boring, everything is boring.

What do you do to fill the endless boring hours?

Exercise. Hiking on a trail can be exciting. Gyms can be boring but also exhilarating if you get into it.
You can try learning something new, like a language.
If you have the means then traveling to a new location can also be fun. It could be a part of town you've never been to or another city close by.

 

[mindlessobserver]

My latest quitting attempt failed. I actually managed to get past the 4th of july, but around week 4 the headaches got too much to bear and I had a beer. Headache went away immediately. Annnnd, drinking again. This is intensely frustrating. Should I consider medication again? I've clearly gotten to the dependency stage if I am having persistent withdrawal symptoms. I don't know if Naltrexone can stop those headaches though. Would normal headache medications stop it?

 

[Goyslop Muncher]

My latest quitting attempt failed. I actually managed to get past the 4th of july, but around week 4 the headaches got too much to bear and I had a beer. Headache went away immediately. Annnnd, drinking again. This is intensely frustrating. Should I consider medication again? I've clearly gotten to the dependency stage if I am having persistent withdrawal symptoms. I don't know if Naltrexone can stop those headaches though. Would normal headache medications stop it?

Friendly reminder that none of us are doctors or psychiatrists. That said if I were you I wouldn't beat yourself up over it and just try again. If you can control yourself to one light beer to take the headache away and stop drinking after that then i don't see a problem tapering like that.
If you can't control yourself then you can try taking pain meds. I like Bayer 325mg for headaches and Aleve for body ache.
Naltrexone worked well for me taking it short term to stop heavy drinking. You most likely will have to see a psychiatrist to get a script. I don't remember if naltrexone stopped headaches but it's been a while for me. I believe it would.

 

[A valid name]

Stop drinking? I'd have to stop reading kiwishit first. Maybe check on animal control to find all the zoosadists dead or in jail?

 

[hellogoodmorning]

I was a poly-addict for 5 years. I was addicted to booze, dokha, weed and LSD. Now I know those may not seem as bad as heroin or meth, but anyone who has experience with either dokha or LSD abuse knows how destructive both of those substances can be. I gave myself brain damage, attempted suicide twice, and overdosed countless times on dokha.

I've been sober for four years now and I was only able to change because of two reasons: a) I had a 6 gram mushroom trip that made me swear off psychedelics for the rest of my life (no, Terence, those machine elves are little rapists), and b) I had a psychotic break after the trip. I was hearing voices, and one of those voices was the voice of an angel. I've never believed in God or been spiritual, but for a two week period I was convinced heaven and hell were raging a war inside my skull. The angel told me I was going to die before I'd get to see my grandchildren, and because one of my grandfathers died before I was born, I was scared enough to cessate the other addictions.

I'm fine now. I dropped out of college and I'm in the process of writing a book, but I still have lingering HPPD, and although I consider myself intelligent, my short-term memory has been damaged. Ironically enough I haven't had a girlfriend since I quit drugs, so it looks like I wont have any grandchildren. All hail the age of Aquarius.

If anyone wants to vent or get advice on quitting those substances, I'd be happy to listen.

 

[Slobs]

I'm trying to quit drinking for probably the 100th time at this point. I feel like this might be the one though, and the sad thing is that I'm not doing it because I found the motivation. In fact it's the opposite, I'm extremely exhausted, more than I ever have been. I've been depressed and lethargic for a long time but lately I can't bring myself to do anything at all, not cook, not eat, not entertain myself, not read, not think, even turning over in bed sucks the life out of me. I've heard that alcohol can deprive you of nutrients, and I suppose this is what 10 years of being deprived of them does to you.

I've accepted that I can't ever fully recover or get back everything that I've lost, but I'm hoping that at the end of this I'll have a life worth living again. I hope that those of you who are on the fence about quitting will start the process earlier than I did, and with a lot more sincerity than I ever gave it.

In a week and 4 days it'll be two months since I stopped drinking. I've been pleasantly surprised by how much, and how quickly, I've started to see improvements in both my mental state and my physical health despite being a hard drinker for over a decade; so if you're in the same boat as I was and feel as if you've reached the point of no return (which is something I often told myself) don't give up on reforming just yet.

That said, this past decade has undeniably taken its toll in other ways. Bad habits have formed, it's much harder to sleep without a drink at night, and the things that drove me to drink are still there since all I've done is run away and cope. I've managed to quit temporarily in the past, back before it got this bad, and I think that part of the reason why I failed is that I didn't put much thought into what alcoholism really is, or why recovery is considered a "forever thing". It's not necessarily because the addiction never goes away but because it's directly tied into self-improvement, lifestyle changes, and not letting bad habits (re)form. Much like those that have weight problems, or any other vice for that matter, it's less about what your weakness is and more about making positive changes in your life which is a lot harder than simply not doing something for a while.

So for now I'm going to start making little changes, just small productive things to break me out of my routine and serve as a positive distraction. It'll also serve as a warm up for the bigger changes, and for the kind of unwanted changes life throws at you that can send you spiralling back into alcoholism. Hopefully with that not only will staying sober be easier, but life in general should get a lot better too.

 

[Ughubughughughughughghlug]

83 days without getting drunk
45 days without getting high
Constructive pessimism: drunk/high won't make it any better

for a two week period I was convinced heaven and hell were raging a war inside my skull.

I know it's a somber topic, but not gonna lie, that sounds badass.

 

[Mittens]

I was on a bender, downing a bottle of vodka a day. A woman I have been involved for a few years with gave my bud her number and sent tit pics. Sucks bro, but I know how this story goes. "He's just a friend." "You don't have to worry about him."

Yeaaaah. Anywhos, that sucks because it isn't even over yet. I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I need to stop drinking however, that old familiar pain is back in my left side. Last time that ended up being fatty liver, and that means a whole goddamned boring year of fucking sobriety. There are supplements that might speed up the process, but if you drink on them it makes things worse. Milk thistle and NAC possibly. Been a hot sec since I last took em.

 

[Blobby's Murder Knife]

Naltrexone is incredible. Take it an hour before drinking and I was shocked how unconciously well it works to keep me from binge drinking. Like you can have a glass of wine, feel some weird effect from it but unlike drinking without naltrexone on board, you have zero desire to chase the high you get from drinking because the drug blocks your physical ability to have it. Your glass just sort of sits there and you don't care that you aren't drinking it.

It cut my consumption in half the first few days and it has been reducing my drinking more and more. It isn't even difficult because I am not fighting a desire to drink. Once I have the booze it just does little for me and I get bored with it fast. I am no longer drinking like a panicked retard afraid of losing the high because I never had it. Without the high, far easier to moderate or go without. Over time, an event called pharmalogical exinction happens as your brain is rewired to its original state before you became an alcoholic.

I'd recommend giving The Sinclair Method a chance. There is a good book available on it here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/60fs7gmvbyzs1kk/Cure for Alcoholism.pdf?dl=0

 

[Pale Empress]

Sober from drugs for at least a year, I honestly don't keep track. Kicked heroin in 2018, used to do meth recreationally but cut that out after it began to impact my performance at work. I really miss amphetamines/stimulants in general, but it's for the best.

Today is ten days sober from alcohol (technically seven, I cheated last week and had a couple of shots in honour of somebody's death anniversary), and I feel pretty great. I was averaging around 750ml a day for the past four years although I've been a daily drinker for at least ten. I've "quit" before but it usually was always on somebody else's terms, this is the first time I've been totally fine with it. No cravings other than occasionally wanting a beer (fyi, Heineken Zero are the best n/a beers I've had so far, I highly recommend) and no withdrawal symptoms other than the shakes for the first couple of days.

My vanity has helped a lot with staying sober so far, as dumb as it sounds. I'm at least 25lbs overweight right now, and fuck that. Whenever I want to imbibe, I do some calisthenics or some quick workout with kettlebells until my mind is elsewhere. I've been trying to eat better and started taking vitamins as well which has greatly improved my mental state.

Downside is that I've been smoking (cigarettes) a lot more, just to cope with stress and anxiety whereas before I'd just pour a couple of shots down my throat and deal with it that way. Also people have told me that I'm a lot less fun since I've stopped drinking, which is probably true. I really don't know how to function now, I feel awkward.

Kind of waiting for the other shoe to drop in terms of the oppressive mental/emotional bullshit and the clarity that comes with it, I've ruined a lot of things because of my addictions and I know it's a symptom of some other underlying issues that I need to sort out to avoid using substance abuse as a crutch.

 

[std::string]

Also people have told me that I'm a lot less fun since I've stopped drinking, which is probably true. I really don't know how to function now, I feel awkward.

I've heard the same and went through the same. It'll take a few months for the fog to clear.

You'll quickly come to learn which friends will pressure you to drink and which won't. I think the same goes for any drug. Fuck the former, honestly.

 

[Pale Empress]

I've heard the same and went through the same. It'll take a few months for the fog to clear.

You'll quickly come to learn which friends will pressure you to drink and which won't. I think the same goes for any drug. Fuck the former, honestly.

Yeah that's kind of what ended up happening, I had twenty days and ended up hooking up with somebody who drinks hard, at first I was rationalizing it as "OK just when we're hanging out," and then it spiraled back to where I was before, except exacerbated by a grandparent dying. I'm back to five days sober today.

Started going to AA on Tuesday and it's a pretty supportive bunch. Not quite what I expected. After the meeting today I got bullied (a term I use loosely) into accepting a "temporary" sponsor who told me they'd spent all weekend thinking about me and wondering whether I was OK, which feels weird since I'm not used to anybody really giving a shit like that.

 

[Caesare]

which she was paid, and mugged for when she went to a chicken fast food joint in the bad part of town. I

Lady Di never got mugged. She spent it on crack. The missing cellphone? Traded it for crack. I was yelling at my XM radio when that caller made the connection because I had been saying that ever since she started calling into the show again. She's a drunken, crack smoking, liar. And I know this was from a year ago, but I didn't do the necro, those other people did.