[Drinking] BBC2 prog - Adrian Chiles & alcohol addiction

[sussex_guy2k2]

One very positive side effect I've found from DryJanuary is sleep patterns. From the FitBit records I'd be asleep for say seven hours with about an hour to an hour and a half "restless", this has been slowly getting better, last night slept for seven hours with just nine minutes restless!

I totally get this. As an ex-big drinker, I never realised the effect alcohol had on my sleep patterns. Now that I'm at the other end of the scale it doesn't matter whether I have 1 beer or 5 beers, my sleep is noticeably worse than when I don't drink.

 

[zefarelly]

The revival used to be a good size crowd of knowledgable fans of old cars and a load of genuine enthusiasts racing their pride and joy, of which I was one on several occasions. All set in an idyllic but sympathetic 'period' Backdrop.

Now, it's just a comedy fancy dress piss up, sponsored by assorted breweries, the cars are all new and owned by pros and corporates. Last time I raced in 2014 we got to the paddock to prepare and check the car over prior to qualifying to be surrounded by a load of gawping goldfish wearing £10 eBay pinstripe spiv suits drinking pints of lager, at 9:30am.

As you should, it was only last Summer.

The Friday evening meets at Goodwood were great, very sociable, lovely setting and felt as safe as houses, now it's all about the drinking and the DJ, yes it meets their needs of more revenue but it's a different crowd. As someone stated it's really not unusual to see someone hitch up their skirt and have a pee, fighting is commonplace as is the very obvious signs of drunkenness to a point way, way beyond fun. Who's responsible for this? Goodwood, who serve people excessive amounts, people who sneak drinks in, wider society or Paul Barber ... you decide!

 

[Tim Over Whelmed]

It's also amazing the social pressures applied when you choose not to drink:

"Never trust a non-drinker"

"Never do business with a non-drinker"

"All the business is done at the bar"

"You can trust him him / her, they like their drink"

 

[pearl]

One of my best friends, when I was younger, is now a chronic alcoholic. He was admitted to hospital after collapsing in the street about 18 months ago, he spent 3 months in hospital, and was given the last rites twice. He was released from hospital care, and his sister took him in, giving him a roof over his head and food etc. He was told if he continued drinking his life expectancy is numbered in months not years.
He’s now in his own flat, drinking as much as ever, and just wasting his life away, literally.

Myself, and various other friends/ relatives have offered him help, with no strings attached, he smiles, says Thanks, and carry’s on.
He’s a couple of years younger than me, and looks 20 years older, the thing I don’t really understand, is that all my mates tended to hit the booze pretty hard when we were younger, every available minute spent in the boozer, but, he appears to be the only one who came out with a drink problem. He wasn’t the biggest drinker amongst us, but, thinking back, you could never tell if he was drunk.
Sorry for rambling on, I know I’ll be going to his funeral in the next couple of years, and, it does upset me a bit, and I do wonder if I could do more for him, but, he doesn’t want to stop drinking.

just be there as a friend, he may want help at some point, if he doesn't there is nothing anyone else can do.

 

[pearl]

I watched it last night and found it very interesting. I saw much of then behaviour I saw in myself and my friends when we were younger. I just think that, as with any addictive substance, it has to be the person affected who consciously decides to make a change.

I do think it’s a generational thing though. A lot less of the younger generations seem to have this infatuation with alcohol being linked to every activity they do, but for those in the 40/50+ age bracket, basing their lives around alcohol seems to just be the norm. It’ll be interesting to see if we see a shift over the coming decade towards less binge drinking and alcoholism.

I've noticed a lot of young people (teens/early 20s) detest alcohol, could be they got sick of seeing parents drunk? I don't know, but unfortunately they all seem to smoke (stuff)

 

[DJ NOBO]

Two years now since I last drank alcohol.
If I’m honest the root of why I stopped is that I realised I drunk so much was that I wanted to get out of my head. The reason why I wanted to get out of my head was to escape myself. I don’t find myself an easy person to be around if that makes any sense. The net result was getting arrested, jeopardising my marriage, putting my life at risk. Not cool.
So I think I’m trying to train myself to accept myself more, ultimately to feel happier.

As for what it’s like not drinking at all. Sorry to disappoint but there’s no magic bullet where you suddenly feel great and have a six pack. I haven’t found a substitute for that buzz of a few beers before the game, or going out on a bender and pulling. Life is more prosaic - my best friend has a stag do coming up. It will be boozetastic. If I’m honest I don’t want to go. I’ve lost friends through not drinking, that’s for sure.

I do generally feel more healthy and I am fitter though. Not factoring in hangovers is great. I am a better dad now.
I would love to be able to drink once a week , have a few beers and go home at 11. That was never me though. Maybe it can be me in the future but at the moment, no plans to drink.

To anyone who has issues with consistently wanting to get hammered I would say, give total abstinence a try. It’s not that bad

 

[Lush]

Two years now since I last drank alcohol.
If I’m honest the root of why I stopped is that I realised I drunk so much was that I wanted to get out of my head. The reason why I wanted to get out of my head was to escape myself. I don’t find myself an easy person to be around if that makes any sense. The net result was getting arrested, jeopardising my marriage, putting my life at risk. Not cool.
So I think I’m trying to train myself to accept myself more, ultimately to feel happier.

As for what it’s like not drinking at all. Sorry to disappoint but there’s no magic bullet where you suddenly feel great and have a six pack. I haven’t found a substitute for that buzz of a few beers before the game, or going out on a bender and pulling. Life is more prosaic - my best friend has a stag do coming up. It will be boozetastic. If I’m honest I don’t want to go. I’ve lost friends through not drinking, that’s for sure.

I do generally feel more healthy and I am fitter though. Not factoring in hangovers is great. I am a better dad now.
I would love to be able to drink once a week , have a few beers and go home at 11. That was never me though. Maybe it can be me in the future but at the moment, no plans to drink.

To anyone who has issues with consistently wanting to get hammered I would say, give total abstinence a try. It’s not that bad

This rings true - thank you. My better half is a counsellor specialising in addiction (he's been there) and some people do drink to escape what's going on in their heads/lives. Giving up the booze is never going to be a bad thing, but you might also need some help to deal with whatever shit you're trying to escape from.

 

[Tim Over Whelmed]

Wooooaah, hang on, what has NSC become the last couple of days? Empathy, sound advice, mutual support, understanding and tolerance .... what have we become?

Seriously though, taken a lot from this and the support offered, and I don't really drink a lot just started doing Dryathon and it's opened up a whole new World!

 

[DJ NOBO]

This rings true - thank you. My better half is a counsellor specialising in addiction (he's been there) and some people do drink to escape what's going on in their heads/lives. Giving up the booze is never going to be a bad thing, but you might also need some help to deal with whatever shit you're trying to escape from.

Thanks.
Actually I’ve realised there’s not some deep traumatic event I’m trying to get away from.
It’s more like I got into a habit, over a period of decades.

 

[Bry Nylon]

Wooooaah, hang on, what has NSC become the last couple of days? Empathy, sound advice, mutual support, understanding and tolerance .... what have we become?

Seriously though, taken a lot from this and the support offered, and I don't really drink a lot just started doing Dryathon and it's opened up a whole new World!

Well, I think it is safe to say that the Official Friday Night Drinking Thread is going to have a rather different feel to it this week...

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Wooooaah, hang on, what has NSC become the last couple of days? Empathy, sound advice, mutual support, understanding and tolerance .... what have we become?

Seriously though, taken a lot from this and the support offered, and I don't really drink a lot just started doing Dryathon and it's opened up a whole new World!

I think it's always been there. One thing I quickly realised when I started looking at these pages many moons ago was that if ever a fellow fan was in need – of pretty much anything – there would be someone to help out. To paraphrase the old NatWest advert, "It's not all football, football, football"!

 

[Horses Arse]

I always had Macca Pakka as a pot head. No-one finds stones *that* interesting unless they've had a puff. The guy who drives the Ninky nonk has clearly dropped an E. Upsy Daisey definitely likes a G&T.

Mecca Pakka may have the secret. A little smoke before the pub limits the alchohol intake for sure.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

 

[LowKarate]

Dr Zef would prescribe a week long course of Watneys red barrel.

Ooh.. that is nasty.

I see your Red Barrel and raise you a Brickwoods.

 

[withdeanwombat]

I watched the programme. I could easily relate to it. I had found wine o’clock getting earlier and earlier, and found myself downing any old rubbish wine in increasing quantities. And beer, and cider, and malt whisky. What unit count?

Then I fell over, honked everywhere and forgot everything.

I’m 87 days into being a non drinker. I’ve lost some weight, sleep better, and can safely watch others drinking.

My problem was that easy on switch with an off switch I didn’t like using.

I will continue to be a non drinker I hope, but I do envy those who can safely enjoy drinking without exceeding their personal safe limits

 

[Tim Over Whelmed]

I watched the programme. I could easily relate to it. I had found wine o’clock getting earlier and earlier, and found myself downing any old rubbish wine in increasing quantities. And beer, and cider, and malt whisky. What unit count?

Then I fell over, honked everywhere and forgot everything.

I’m 87 days into being a non drinker. I’ve lost some weight, sleep better, and can safely watch others drinking.

My problem was that easy on switch with an off switch I didn’t like using.

I will continue to be a non drinker I hope, but I do envy those who can safely enjoy drinking without exceeding their personal safe limits

Good luck to you going forward.

 

[pearl]

I watched the programme. I could easily relate to it. I had found wine o’clock getting earlier and earlier, and found myself downing any old rubbish wine in increasing quantities. And beer, and cider, and malt whisky. What unit count?

Then I fell over, honked everywhere and forgot everything.

I’m 87 days into being a non drinker. I’ve lost some weight, sleep better, and can safely watch others drinking.

My problem was that easy on switch with an off switch I didn’t like using.

I will continue to be a non drinker I hope, but I do envy those who can safely enjoy drinking without exceeding their personal safe limits

Woe! That's scary, but you're doing really well now - good luck and best wishes

 

[spring hall convert]

What do you drink in the pub? I am trying to work my way through soft drinks that are not just full of sugar but struggling to find things I like.

Soda water
Tonic Water is good for convincing yourself you are having an actual adult drink
Some of the alcohol free stuff is good. Becks Blue is a decent approximation of an industrial lager if that's your bag. The Big Drop Pale Ale is better than a lot of beers with alcohol in. Pistonhead Flat Tyre also rather good.