As a substance abuse counselor, you know that I'm not going to say anything good about drinking. Forget for a second the addiction part and just focus on how terrible it is for you. It's empty calories of sugar, it's horrible for your skin and attacks almost every organ.

Speaking of the addiction part, blackouts ARE a real sign of moving into alcoholism, if we're talking true blackouts and not passing out. And, food for thought (no pun intended) - in the substance abuse field the fastest growing group in need of treatment for both alcoholism and addiction are those that have had gastric bypass. Doesn't take a genius to figure out why - if you've had food addiction issues and you take away the food, another addiction pops up.

Seems like we have some friends of Bill on here - congrats on your sobriety!

Intentionally working to lose weight has meant that I've been drinking less. I've never been really into alcohol or bars (they usually bore me) and rarely got drunk, but I did keep tend to keep more alcohol around and went out more often (about twice a month) than I do now. I often still keep some in my apartment, but I don't go through it as quickly. I also don't go out as often (about once a month), and I usually drink less than I did before (down to 1 or 2 drinks, from probably about 3 or 4). I think I've only drunk a lot (for me) twice since I started this weight loss effort, but I planned for those occasions.

Like you, I have found that drinking too heavily or too often tends to disrupt my normal life by making me feel dull and unmotivated, which is another reason I don't usually indulge.

I studied abroad in England, and was a bit surprised not only at the binge drinking problem (although we've got that here as well - I just never participated in it), but also at how pervasive alcohol is in British society. I'm not passing judgement on that aspect of the culture; it was just very strange to me. Most people can handle it of course, or stay dry and still have decent social lives, so I'm sure you'll figure it out.

ETA: I find it motivational (in a minor way) to imagine myself sitting in my favorite bar at my goal weight. I like to imagine myself being more attractive, better dressed, able to sit on a barstool without my *** hanging over the sides, and enjoying a drink or two and some fried mushrooms without feeling self-conscious or guilty/worried that I'm keeping myself fat. So, to get to that point, I've been trying to stay out of bars and limit my intake of the stuff they sell.

Thanks for all your comments - it's really interesting to get the perspectives - and from the guys who've stopped drinking too.

I won't go into the whole food/alcohol addiction things - completely unrelated to alcohol, I was once referred for counselling (if I got started, I am a complete text book case) but I'm quite self-aware, I know where I'm going wrong in every aspect of my life and instead of going to counselling, I worked hard on every area that my GP picked on and am a stronger person for it.

As an update to my post yesterday, I met my friend at the pub, he had a beer and I had a lime & soda water (almost a quarter of the price of what he paid too). On the way home he stopped for fish and chips, passed me a little wooden fork, which I proceeded to throw in the next bin. I got home and made a stir fry and went to bed feeling proud of myself. Small steps... be proud of me!!

I am proud of you!

Jay

That is awesome!! I find the less I drink the less I miss it.
I haven't had a drink since Monday! I am now trying to limit to just a couple on the weekends...

WTG, BetterLikeMel!

you are amazing..such a great loss of weight and keeping it off!!

Luckily I've always hated the taste of alcohol except for the occasional sangria or glass of wine. And by occasional, I mean 2-3 times a year. Now if I could only stop smoking...

I like alcohol, but aside from a handful of youthful over indulgences, I've always been able to enjoy in moderation. However, at this point, it's calories and not allowed on my current plan, so it's currently off my agenda. Once I reach goal, I will go ahead and enjoy an occasional drink.

I've never been much of a drinker, I did a little drinking when I was 17-20 but not very often and as soon as I turned 21 the appeal went away lol. That said, there seem to be two types of heavy drinkers as far as food goes, those that drink instead of eating, and those that drink and eat a ton. Neither is good for you :-P Social drinking is fine, but blacking out (precursor to alcoholism or not) is never a good thing. Not even thinking about how hard it is on your body, but what could happen while you're blacked out... Not being able to say no after drinking one or two is kind of worrying too... But congrats on saying no yesterday! Stay safe.

I used to drink a lot more wine (I stopped drinking hard liquor many many years ago) but once I started on this journey, I realized how many calories were in wine and decided I wanted to eat those calories instead.

Since then, I find that I don't miss it, my social events go perfectly fine without alcohol and I save on calories and money!

I will drink at work events, when it's expected -- I have a boss who is a big lover of wine and he knows that I love wine, so I'll take a glass. But I haven't gotten drunk on wine in a very long time and I think my weight loss has gone faster without the wine in my diet (period).

I never understood the drinking appeal. It's expensive as h-e-double toothpicks (have never been one to throw money away) and it makes you look stupid and do stupid things. I used to run university residence halls - living in hall and out of hall and man have I seen drinking ruin many a students lives.

With that said, I enjoy wine and mixed drinks, but it's so not worth it for most occasions. So proud of you for getting a lime and soda water! That sounds good too!

I went through a Martini phase. I craved them just like I crave chocolate. Didn't care about any other alcohol. Didn't want any other drinks, Just wanted my Plymouth gin, Dolin vermouth, dirty, three blue cheese olives.

I would give up my dinner so I could have 2. This did not go well. I would be drunk and end up eating anyway. Usually pizza. Usually half of it.

I thought I could get back on track and just have an odd drink here or there..tried it with jameson on the rocks. Fail! Ended up drunk and eating cheetohs.

Oh and the resulting dehydration makes me retain water so I do see a increase on the scale. Even if temporary, I feel like I'm losing time. I also felt like I wasn't in control of my cravings - just like with food. I can easily see why gastric band folks might deal with that. Overeating brings a bliss of it's own. You lose that and 4 measley ounces of alcohol gets you smashed.

I must abstain. I can't integrate alcohol into my diet if I wanna see weight loss.

I think drinking is a very individual thing, just like eating. Some people hear alcohol calling their name all day, others don't. I fall into the latter group. I can have alcohol in the house without ever thinking about it. That said, I drink a glass of wine (occasionally two) with dinner almost every day. I enjoy a mild buzz but don't feel any compulsion to get drunk, though I've certainly gotten hammered quite a few times in my youth.

I've always KNOWN that I don't have it in me to become an alcoholic, so I don't worry about it. I also know that I DO have it in me to balloon to 400 pounds, so food is an area where I have to put in more conscious thought and vigilance.

F.

We've had home brewed beer and wine from friends sitting in our garage for six months and I'm still not tempted by it, nor the beer in the fridge and rum in the cupboard. I'm another who drinks on rare occasion but isn't tempted by it AT ALL. Not at a party, restaurant, or here at home.

Oh how I WISH I could say the same about food!