Christmas and alcohol

gramercy said:
Last Christmas fell in a spell where I was having a 3 month dry period.
Not one bit of me looks back and thinks that would have been better with a few beers.
I also went on holiday in that period. Again I don’t look back and consider the holiday as a bad one because it was sober, in fact it was mint.
The alcohol companies like to create a bit of FOMO for obvious reasons.

With various months or longer off i probably spend half of the year dry. The funny thing is, today I wouldn’t be able to easily recall which months of the year were dry and which weren’t. Which tells me exactly how much beer enhances things!

I’m currently not in a dry spell, and I’m enjoying a few beers now and again.
I tend to only have one or two though as I get crippling hangovers from having too many.
I find that since having lots of time out I no longer default to beer in certain situations.
Last night for example, I’d had a very long day and reached into the fridge and pulled out a Guinness zero rather than a proper beer.

I don’t think I’ll ever go fully teetotal as I do think some beers really do have their place.
But not spending a large chunk of my disposable income on pints I didn’t really want has meant I’ve been able to spend the money on some brilliant experiences for me and the Mrs instead.
Some mates take the **** a little and say it’s boring. Then go to the same boozer every single f****** weekend. 🤷‍♂️🤣🤣
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It’s a little known fact that these were the original first attempt lyrics that George Micheal wrote for Wham’s 80’s Christmas song ‘Last Christmas’ but when he presented them to the record company they weren’t keen and got one of their team of professional song writers to tweak them a little and hey Presto, a Christmas classic was born. Funnily enough, the only words from George’s original lyrics the pro writer kept were the first two!! Tru Dat.
 
Guinness 0% is comfortably the best of the alcohol free beers in my opinion. Most of them taste a bit watered down but the Guinness doesn't. If I don't want to drink I just take the car and then I have a ready made excuse. Means I don't have to miss out on stuff I want to be doing and it's usually far more convenient anyway.

I don't drink routinely though. I'm more of an all or nothing sort of drinker. I drink socially but don't often have a drink at home. I find over a time like Xmas when I'm with friends and family I do drink more regularly but that tends to be more casual drinking than heavy anyway. I love the relaxing Xmas week with a Bailey's or a port during the afternoon which I wouldn't do any other time of the year.
 
I've never been interested in booze over Christmas, I put it down to growing up with a brother who would go out every Christmas Eve and waste half of his Christmas Day, barely touch his dinner and end up back in bed a few hours later.

Going into town is always a risk as well, there's trouble brewing everywhere you go.
 
I still enjoy the pub, two or three nights a week, sometimes more, sometimes less. I expect Christmas will be a little over indulgent but not a great deal. I'm expecting to be out more through the day than the evening with family and friends being off work.

It's the one period where I'll drink in the house more, visitors and extending the afternoon session.

Looking forward to it.
 
Bristolboro said:
recommend any? I usually drink the Lidl stuff Perlenbacher which I find ok when very cold. That and Brooklyn special effects though I can only manage a couple of them.
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The DL top 3 are:

Guinness 0.0
Leffe 0.0
Beavertown Lazercrush 0.3 technically zero as it’s less than 0.5

In a if that’s all you got situation Heineken 0.0
 
One way to fight it - it may work for you it may not - is to have a drink of something non-alcoholic, as soon as you feel the urge to have a beer.

Once you've had some juice/water/tea whatever, you won't be thirsty anymore. So the thought of downing a pint just won't be there.
 
red_harrington said:
One way to fight it - it may work for you it may not - is to have a drink of something non-alcoholic, as soon as you feel the urge to have a beer.

Once you've had some juice/water/tea whatever, you won't be thirsty anymore. So the thought of downing a pint just won't be there.
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what I found is the pint acted as a depressant so its a quick remedy for feeling wired after work by nullifying all those lingering thoughts.. like you literally drown them so you can think about something else. You're right, though, once you don't react and down the habitual pint but drink something else then the craving does subside. Friday evenings were and are still a challenge though.. end of a crazy working week your mind tells itself you should be rewarded with alcohol. I guess its the same for half the working population, probably more. Our culture is so in deep with alcohol that its the norm.
Good to hear above stories of those who have managed to give up completely.
 
I fell out of love with booze around the age of 30. Was bored of massive nights out where I could barely remember getting home in my 20s, and then managing the 'fear' the next day. In the UK, its extremely common for 18-30 year olds to booze until they blackout to deal with social situations they aren't yet fully comfortable with in life. Me (and all my mates) were no different, and I certainly wasn’t the only one doing it.

I gradually grew to like it again but not in the same way, and I have ONE beer at home 3 or 4 nights a week, I never crave more than that at home.

I go to the pub maybe once or twice per fortnight now, and can have 4-5 pints with no major side effects, and I enjoy the social occasion more than the booze. Very occasionally its more than that, if I go into Manchester or Boro or to a gig or whatever, but generally I much prefer a few pints in a local boozer. Packed bars, dancefloors and queues are really not my bag (anymore). I could also happily go to a gig now and not booze, something I wouldn't have done in my 20s. I will occasionally go to stuff on my Colin Todd as well, again, unthinkable in my 20s.

I did six months off it during covid, but it was easy as all the pubs were shut. I did drink non-alcoholic stuff and found a lot of it now is a tolerable substitute. I imagine the best way to stay off it over Christmas is to focus on the 'why' you want to stay off it rather than focus on the 'resistance'/will power aspect. If you tell anyone not to think of a purple elephant, the first thing they will think of is a purple elephant.

I do wish I could give up chocolate! Fat chance of that over Christmas.
 
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Alcohol is fine when you’re drinking..It.
It’s when it starts drinking you the problems begin.
I haven’t had alcohol for about 25 years.
 
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