No more alcohol

[paeterus]

Hello there. I'm 18 and about a year and a half ago I had my first alcohol. I drink on occasional weekends when there is a party or my mates want to go out to a club. But now, I've decided I want to give it up. I have been months and months without it before, it wasn't a problem, so I know I can't be 'addicted' to it. But I just find it boring to go out and not drink. I don't like going out that much anyway. I'd be just as happy to sit in my room and learn, say, Hungarian.
Anyway I went out last night and drank a bit, got a bit intoxicated etc.
Woke up this morning and I had an epiphany "if i want to be the best person i can be, healthy, smart, in control, drinking isn't going to help, and I'm probably hurting my brain by drinking"
So, I'm going to stop. Simple. No more. Starting with a 30-day trial, which should be a nice boot-strap towards giving it up for life.
If anyone has any advice, or info on how bad alcohol is for you, please let me know.

[Calculusaurus]

I think you're a lot like myself. I would drink because that's just what you did going out to clubs. Call it a decision of low-consciousness, but whatever. I sometimes had fun, and other times felt being drunk was overrated.

At 18 your brain is still going through developmental stages. Alcohol kills brain cells. If you want to develop into the mentally sharpest person you can, then avoiding alcohol pre-25 will do you good.

[paeterus]

Originally Posted by Calculusaurus

I think you're a lot like myself. I would drink because that's just what you did going out to clubs. Call it a decision of low-consciousness, but whatever. I sometimes had fun, and other times felt being drunk was overrated.

At 18 your brain is still going through developmental stages. Alcohol kills brain cells. If you want to develop into the mentally sharpest person you can, then avoiding alcohol pre-25 will do you good.

Yeh, it was a low consciousness decision for sure. I'm the same, I felt like it was fun sometimes, and had a good time, but at what price? It wasn't THAT fun.
I DO want to be the mentally sharpest person I can be. I might still go out with mates, but leave early when I start getting bored. That way I'm being social but also not getting bored and drinking my brain power away. And I can just not go out, which is fine with me.

[Tina McLeman]

Sometimes I like to go out for a drink or two or three.... I like a good night out, but I always regret it the next day. A few hours of fun (or not) followed by a day (or two) of suffering. I sometimes think, whats the point? Sometimes it's nice just to go to a bar (or stay in) with friends for one drink and a good chat and then head home. It's important to have friends that understand you though.

My friends back in Scotland were great! They were pretty much the same as me. We had a great time with just one drink (not always alcoholic) and a good chat. Some of my friends here in Italy though are not so great. They want to get wrecked, and if you don't as well, then they give you the biggest amount of hassle for it! They make you feel bad for not drinking, or having one then going to bed early, or if you do drink but not what they want you to drink. It's very hard, and sometimes I've been close to tears trying to get them off my back because I'm not drinking.

Let your friends know what you're doing, and if they are really your friends they will be supportive of you. I think you are making a wise decision. I'm tempted to do this as well. Good luck, and let us know how things go.

[Stu]

Drinking beyond your limit is certainly a big no-no, both from a personal development standpoint and a healthy body standpoint. I know though that very moderate levels of wine (one glass a day) have some health benefits. From a personal development standpoint, drinking a glass of wine a day is really a personal preference I suppose, but I know I quite enjoy it and I feel it helps me unwind and relax.

[Jarrod]

I don't drink alcohol (but I drink way to much soft drink) and never have (tasted plenty of time, but not drink).

At parties (where everyone drinks) I always get told, have a drink, it will make you happy, relax you. Get a drink, you have to to be social.

The odd thing is when I drink soft drink when others are drinking alcohol sometimes I've been told that it is still not 'social' enough.

What is the difference between standing drinking a can of soft-drink in a circle compared to a can of say beer?

When I am already happy and relaxed and I know the main obstacles to my happiness and level of relaxation is fear, how would drinking help me? (Particularly in the long term)

So good luck with your trial. I can't tell you why it's bad for you (apart from excessive consumption, liver problems, killing brain cells?) and that's not the main reason I don't drink. I just don't see the point.

[neon]

I don't know how it is in your country, but here in Czech, many beers don't contain sugar. And also wine is normaly without sugar.

So, if you are drinking the soft drinks, check the ingredients and you can see how much waste is going into your body.
If you would drink beer (without a sugar) or wine, in a moderate amount, I think it's a little better for your health, than the soft drinks.

[Jarrod]

Originally Posted by neon

I don't know how it is in your country, but here in Czech, many beers don't contain sugar. And also wine is normaly without sugar.

So, if you are drinking the soft drinks, check the ingredients and you can see how much waste is going into your body.
If you would drink beer (without a sugar) or wine, in a moderate amount, I think it's a little better for your health, than the soft drinks.

Hehe, I'm aware I should be drinking water ideally but the issue is not high on my priority list at the moment.

[infinitethoughts]

Believe or not alcohol was originally invented for medicinal purposes. The Germans still are aware of this. After every meal most Germans will take a shot of "Kraeuter" schnapps (Kraeuter = Herbs).

This immediately aids and helps with digestion.

They also have the Rheinheits Gebot (Purity Law) started in 1516 to insure that in the production of beer, it stays pure.

You can actually have a couple of pure beers and it's healthy. One of the ingredients of beer is Barley. Barley juice is extremely healthy. Then when you ferment it, as in beer, it vastly increases it's health benefits.

Now if you drink Budweiser or Miller, for example, you'll actually get worse. They like to add preservatives (tannic acid) to increase the shelf life. And their brewing process is geared towards production increase and not Purity.

Everybody already knows the story of the health benefits of wine.

[outdoorsnewzealand]

Originally Posted by paeterus

Hello there. I'm 18 and about a year and a half ago I had my first alcohol. I drink on occasional weekends when there is a party or my mates want to go out to a club. But now, I've decided I want to give it up. I have been months and months without it before, it wasn't a problem, so I know I can't be 'addicted' to it. But I just find it boring to go out and not drink. I don't like going out that much anyway. I'd be just as happy to sit in my room and learn, say, Hungarian.

I also used to drink when going to the clubs because I found it boring unless I was drunk. I always thought it was kind of pointless but just went along with the crowds. Interestingly it was getting into exercise that made me stop drinking to excess, I think exercising just made me more aware of how things were affecting my body.

[LarryC]

Alcohol seems to have health benefits in low quantities -like one glass of wine or beer per day. I heard a recent surprising study (sorry, I don't have the link, it was on the radio) saying that (moderate) consumption of alcohol may be the single best way to prevent heart disease, at least as far as quantifiable lifestyle variables are concerned. Of course, some people should avoid it if they are disposed to alcoholism -at least some of the benefits can be gotten from other things, such as grape juice and other antioxidant rich foods.

[Calculusaurus]

Originally Posted by LarryC

Alcohol seems to have health benefits in low quantities -like one glass of wine or beer per day. I heard a recent surprising study (sorry, I don't have the link, it was on the radio) saying that (moderate) consumption of alcohol may be the single best way to prevent heart disease, at least as far as quantifiable lifestyle variables are concerned. Of course, some people should avoid it if they are disposed to alcoholism -at least some of the benefits can be gotten from other things, such as grape juice and other antioxidant rich foods.

Alcohol is certainly one of the single most effective ways to prevent heart disease and stroke. But it also kills brain cells. Not everything in health is a win-win situation.

Unfortunately, I'm unable to find the neurodestructive effects of *moderate* alcohol drinking (no doubt that binge drinking wreaks havoc on your brain). A glass of wine a day -- how many brain cells does that kill, if any? I don't know. I've read from indirect sources saying that even small amounts of alcohol has a negative effect, but I haven't been able to verify this.

Regardless - I don't think there's a health-related reason to drink if you're not at risk of cardivascular disease. If you're under 40, I don't think there's a health benefit. I'm under 25 - my brain hasn't finished its growth stages, so I'll do my best to limit alcohol consumption.