Hello Chickies!

Are there are women or men in here who quit drinking? I've decided to dry out as of today, after nursing yet another terrible hangover all day.

Of course drinking has also been putting a HUGE crimp in my efforts to lose weight. Not to mention the money wasted on alcohol!

I was normally drinking 12 oz. of wine a night, at least, sometimes 24 oz. Last night, I think it was 36 oz. I lost track, and I woke up this morning at 3 AM with a God-awful headache so bad I couldn't get back to sleep. I took 3 aspirin, drank some water and went back to bed.

That was it! Drinking is kicking my butt and I'm losing my ability to drink just one drink, so I made up my mind that today was it.

What I get out of drinking is nothing compared to what it's taking out of me.

So if there are others here, I'd love to hear your stories

Me too, I gave up alcohol last year. I stopped drinking around June 2009 because I would binge on food everytime I drank. Then I got pregnant in September 2009 so I couldn't drink until June 2010. After my son was born, I decided not to go back to alcohol. I don't regret it. I don't seem to make the same poor choices without it.

That really is a LOT of wine you were drinking eh? I think you are making the right decision. It's a slippery slope and drinking such large amounts frequently can lead to alcoholism in addition to weight issues and money. Good job and you are doing great by adding your accountability to your signature!

sacha, hi! Yes, I was eating way too much also. I don't know if it was from the wine dropping my blood sugar, or it just removing my inhibitions. Either way, bad news!

I've had issues with alcohol before, and my mom's side of the family has alcoholism running through it. I didn't start to drink really (except for the rare social drink at a party), until 2003. Then after a bad break-up, I went to town. I got it back under control for a few years, but I noticed I'm rebounding into too much again.

Ugh! Easier to just cut it off completely, I think

I already noticed getting up today was a lot easier than normal, heh! And last night, I had this jumpy energy that I usually don't.

I'm sure in a few days, my liver will be thankful, ha!

hey there. Yeah i have given up alcohol, both me and my partner for more reason than one. Apart fromit bein packed with hidden calories, its just amazing how it can put pressure on other parts of your life ,- like u say youve gt a hellish hangover so that means plans for today have went out the window. It put pressure on our relationship. It wastes soooo much money.
we used to drink frequently especially at weekends , and we used to drink ALOT.
Now its been about 4month, weve had the odd glass ove wine but thats litterally IT. We swapped beer for non alocoholic beer and bottles of shandy. And now as its been so long , we can take it or leave it.
At the weekend we got some beers in and took us all night to drink one , we jut dont feel the need for it anymore and after a while you realise you feel so much better with out it.
And helps drop the pounds. Good luck with going tea total ull not regret it x

Ex drinker RIGHT here! I quit drinking before I was even able to drink legally. I had a severe problem, and probably wouldn't even be here right now if it weren't for sobriety. It's been 14 years since my last drink and I am so grateful to God for taking that cup from me, literally. Now I struggle with other addictions...such as EATING! lol Good luck to you! I wish you all the best in this!

lucky8, thanks for sharing! Yeah, I hear you on the day being ruined bit! I was setting aside Saturday as my "Hangover Day" to recover from Friday night, crazy... and so anything I had to do (chores, shopping, laundry), I did on Sunday. How nutty is that??? Thanks for the good wishes!

Hot Chicka, sounds like you've been to the edge and back. Glad you are here I once went to an AA meeting and I was respectfully impressed at what the people there had suffered through and yet they came back from possible destruction. I was thinking I might go back to a meeting. I felt some real community there. The people there are strong, especially as a group. This sounds cheesy, but it really struck me how the energy in the room felt. I'm not a woo-woo New Age person, but when they all took hands at the end and said the Lord's Prayer together, it was intense. I thought at the time "I don't belong here... I'm not this bad" but I haven't been able to stay dry for more than 30 days by myself yet. So, I'm thinking about them. I don't know if you went the AA route, but sounds like maybe you did?

Hi! I used to binge drink when I was younger, but I've cut down over the last five years. I still find it hard to have just one beer, so I decided to just cut it out completely. As others mentioned, it is high in empty calories and it made me so hungry and the hangovers were the worst feeling in the world. Being hungover ruined a whole day or two so I wouldn't do nothing, but lay in bed or sit on the couch eating. Drinking can be so debilitating, let alone the stupid things that we do when we are drunk. I have not been alcohol free for a long time (a week), but I have not binge drank in a few years. Good luck!
I never went to the meetings because I knew I could quit if I really wanted to.

BerkshireGirl,

I am glad to see you are aware of your drinking habits. You sound alot like I did. I quit drinking almost three years ago because I couldn't open a bottle of wine without finishing it and I was drinking alone.

Like you, my parents are alcoholics. My mother was the kind of person that would put her kids to bed and have a glass of wine each night to wind down. Then two glasses, then three, ect. It got to the point that she wasn't waking up in the morning, missing work, etc. Her parents were angry alcholics too. My mom was sober for 15ish years, but relapsed. My father is a drunk. I've never, ever seen him sober in my entire life. He drinks himself into a coma every night, and starts drinking beer in the morning. He can't keep a job, he's destroyed every relationship he's ever had, and has so many medical problems. He is completely incoherent because of the impact of drinking and drug abuse has had on his mind. Yet...

Because I am a child of alcoholics, I realize I have unhealthy attitues about alcohol. I used to think that EVERYONE would come home from work and get wasted. I used to think it was normal to drink alone. To drink to the point you were drunk. I used to think that some people were better at driving drunk than others, and as long as you were "good at driving drunk" it was ok. I used to think that everyone has lost a job or two from coming in a "little too hungover".

While in college and meet people that didn't live this lifestyle, people that were functional. I limited my drinking to social situations but got out of control. I gained ALOT of weight. I made a lot of comments that I regretted. I went to class drunk or buzzed. I started drinking more at home. I started drinking alone. The final straw for me was when I drove home from the bar one night. I thought I was fine. I had the worst hangover the next day. I realized how much I spent and how much I drank that night. I had at least 11 drinks in a 5-6 hour period. I drove home drunk. I realized it wasn't the first time that I drove home "when I really shouldn't have". My judgment was so impaired that I thought I was fine to drive 30+ miles home. To this day, I have no idea how I made it. I could have been pulled over, I could have had an accident, I could have killed someone. I scared myself and quit drinking cold turkey at 23. This is a really ugly, aweful thing to admit. I'm still ashamed of it, but I think that alot of people do make mistakes like this and never get it.

I have a very limited group of friends now. I don't have the friends that go to the bar every week anymore. I find that alot of friendships in my age group, their activities revolve around drinking. It doesn't make them bad people. I just can't handle it myself. People are bothered by my not drinking. I never buy alcohol from a liquor store. Alcohol is never consummed in my home. I can drink socially once or twice a year. Thats enough. I'm not an alcoholic, but I realized that I have unhealthy and unacceptable attitudes about it and could easily be an alcoholic like my parents. I have terrible judgement when I drink. It is very frightening for me. I am so much happier now. I feel that it doesn't have a hold on my life anymore.

I am glad that you are self aware. Some people never get there. Take care of your body and you won't regret it.

Actually I did not go to AA, but I did go to OA for about 3 years (about 3 years ago). I learned alot of things that I still carry with me, which I'm grateful for. I think I probably needed it at first to really get an understanding as to what it was I was doing and HOW to stop doing it. Which obviously there is no magic pill, it's as they say "one day at a time". You are right about the feeling in the room, it can be intense and I am so glad that I tried it out. I live in another state now, and have thought about trying out the one here, just haven't worked up the courage yet. I remember seeing an interview with Bobby Dahl (sp?) from Poison (who I guess had a really bad drinking problem), saying that he got some advice from some of the guys that had been sober for years, it was "Don't drink". LOL yet it's so true. I really feel for you in this, but I KNOW it can be done!

I quit drinking on March 31 this year. I quit because I got diagnosed with thyroid disease and as part of my treatment my doc told me to quit drinking alcohol and coffee. I quit alcohol the last day of March, coffee the last day of April. Sort of spread the pain out, I guess. I do think drinking was hampering my efforts to lose weight. It's not always easy- sometimes I desperately want a beer- but I resist and I know that in the end it's a good thing. And I'm saving money! LOL

I quit a year ago, I used to work in Detox you see some really good people who deserved a second chance if only they would give themselves one. My mom was a raging alcoholic and I was afraid I was going down her road, I was drinking to cover up my grief so I got some counseling and it helped I have not drank in a year and I am now down to 145lbs

I gave up drinking, though I am hoping to eventually be able to add back a nice glass of red wine 2 or 3 times a week. But if I can't (without triggering binges) then I won't.

I've quit drinking M-Th, for caloric reasons, only. I was drinking a lot of calories that I wasnt enjoying. I'm a beer judge (not yet certified, but getting paid), so I have to balance my calories carefully. I put on 15-20 pounds the year that I got into beer. It's been a juggling act, since.

Not just the booze, but MILK... like a gallon a week by myself.

I find it easy to convince myself to break the M-Th ban so I'm working on that. My H is great about not having beer during the week, so I just need to follow his lead (he's a beer geek, too).

Good luck to everyone!

Check out this link. It's great for people wanting to quit drinking....

soberrecovery.com/forums/