LESS Alcohol ~ May 2025 ~ One Day at A Time

SurferGirl1982
SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member
edited April 23 in Motivation and Support

Do you want to drink LESS? Completely stop or just cut back?

Cutting back can mean ONE less drink a day, week, or month. Or deciding to drink only on weekends or at special occasions.

On the flip side, maybe you could use this nudge to finally get to that completely sober point and be all in-alcohol free.

Join us in drinking LESS (whatever that means for you) as we continue to support and learn from each other.

LESS ALCOHOL RESOURCE & GENERAL INFORMATION LIST

USING THIS THREAD:

  • Join us at any time.
  • Set your own goal – this thread is about drinking less and you decide what that means to you.
  • There are no scheduled check-ins…post as often or as little as you want or need.
  • AF is an acronym for Alcohol Free. For others commonly used on this site see - https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1069278/acronyms-and-terms-for-new-mfp-members-v-6/p1
  • To follow this thread easily, bookmark it by clicking on the star or ribbon at the top right of this thread.
  • Remember that we are here for you and care about you. Check in with us when you have time and let us know what you need!

Reported Benefits of Less or No Drinking: (Results may be incremental, and/or they may vary)

  • Improved sleep after 2, 4, 7, 10, & 60 days
  • Improved skin/complexion after 10 days
  • Improved ease in weight loss. Not only from the savings of alcohol calories but some report making poor food choices after drinking.
  • Increased energy after as few as 2 days
  • Increase in other fun activities. Some have found that daily drinking became their main recreational activity, and their world was decreased in size.
  • Reduction of high blood pressure
  • Lower resting heart rate
  • Retention of vital vitamins and minerals
  • Less Acid Re-flux and improved gut health
  • Significant financial savings
  • Better relationships with family and friends

Life with Less Alcohol:

  • It can be helpful to educate yourself with books and web research.
  • There is no benefit to comparing yourself to others because this is a personal journey.
  • You may often feel conflicted. You will know that there are numerous real benefits to sticking to your goal while at the same time think that alcohol is an important part of stress relief, relaxation, celebration, etc.
  • You may feel punished by not drinking or drinking less but that feeling usually fades with time.
  • Sometimes drinking less or quitting will strain friendships that centered around alcohol.
  • Having a list of reasons to stick to your goals handy for yourself can be helpful. Some lists have included remembering how bad it feels to have a hangover, excess/unwanted calories, having a racing heart during the night, sleeplessness, anxiety, and depression.
  • It is not uncommon for certain activities that were once combined with alcohol to trigger temptation. Many have said that outdoor activities in warmer weather made alcohol very tempting.
  • If you begin drinking daily again whether planned like a vacation or unplanned you may once again face a struggle to get it under control.
  • For some people it is easier to not drink than it is to moderate drinking. Others have found moderating impossible.

Getting Started or Starting Over:

  • Some people find it easier to set small attainable goals at the beginning to help boost confidence.
  • If you have been drinking daily the first days will be some of the hardest and drinking again will feel like a cure but it delays the relief that only time can provide.
  • There will always be a reason to delay the start/restart of your journey.
  • For those ready to commit to being alcohol-free permanently, the videos on YouTube by Craig Beck will help. He also has a program you can join.
  • You may experience mood swings and anxiety during your first two weeks. It is suggested you try and focus on the benefits of your goal.
  • You may find that filling the time you drink with other activities like exercise or hobbies can be a helpful distraction.
  • You may have initial/increased sugar cravings.
  • Celebrate the smaller victories too. Less alcohol is still less alcohol even if your goal was zero at that moment.
  • Failure is not giving in and drinking. Failure is to stop trying to accomplish your goals.
Tagged:

Replies

  • itladyee
    itladyee Posts: 6,526 Member

    LINKS:
    ▪▪▪▪
    •General Information/Blog Sites:
    https://thesoberschool.com/
    https://thisnakedmind.com/blog/
    https://alcoholmastery.com/blog/

    •Sobriety Blog:
    http://mummywasasecretdrinker.blogspot.com/

    •The Thirty Day Experiment:
    https://www.alcoholexperiment.com/

    •Ten Things That Helped Me Quit Booze:
    https://unpickledblog.com/2017/01/04/replacement-behaviours-ten-things-that-helped-me-kick-booze/?wref=tp

    •The Neuroscience Behind How We Make Decisions:
    https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-athletes-way/201505/the-neuroscience-making-decision

    •Summary of Book on Addiction:
    https://drgabormate.com/book/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts/

    •Article on the Difference Between Being an Alcoholic and Really Liking to Drink:
    https://www.self.com/story/alcoholic-or-just-really-like-to-drink

    •To the Mom questioning her drinking habits:
    http://www.scarymommy.com/questioning-drinking-habits/

    •Guided Meditations:
    http://marc.ucla.edu/mindful-meditations

    ALTERNATIVE DRINKS:
    ▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪
    •Overnight Cold Brew Iced Tea:
    https://www.splendidtable.org/story/you-can-cold-brew-iced-tea-while-you-sleep

    •Mocktail Recipes:
    https://www.allrecipes.com/recipes/1822/drinks/mocktails/
    https://www.foodandwine.com/cocktails-spirits/mocktails
    https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/drinks/how-to/g785/best-mocktail-recipes/

    APPS:
    ▪▪▪▪
    •Daybreak iOS link. A Deakin University study of hundreds of health apps found that Daybreak is one of only four that have proven effective and provide quality assistance.
    •Dry Days by AlcoChange iOS is for those who want to cut down or cut out the booze throughout the year, while seeing the impact it has on your health and wallet.
    •nomo - Sobriety Clocks iOS - In addition to an alcohol clock and monetary savings this app lets you check in and do a sobriety exercise if you're tempted and connect with accountability partners.
    •Sobriety Counter - Stop Drinking (Sobriety Counter - EasyQuit pro version) Android- Provides health stats, money saved, games to distract you, motivational tips, and several other features

    BOOKS:
    ▪▪▪▪
    •Quit Like a Woman: The Radical Choice to Not Drink in a Culture Obsessed with Alcohol
    by Holly Whitaker
    •The Naked Mind by Annie Grace
    •Alcohol Lied to Me by Craig Beck
    •Rational Recovery by Jack Trimpey
    •The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober by Catherine Gray
    •The Liars Club, Cherry, and Lit by Mary Karr (3 different publications)
    •Kick the Drink...Easily by Jason Vale
    •Drinking: A Love Story by Caroline Knapp
    •Being Sober: A Step-by-Step Guide to Getting To, Getting Through, and Living in Recovery by Harry Haroutunian
    •The Easy, Illustrated Way to Quit Drinking by Alan Carr
    •Alcohol Explained by William Porter

    Credit and thanks to the MFP Less Alcohol One Day at a Time participants
    For their willingness to share their insights and resourcefulness in finding this information
    ~Established 2017~

  • itladyee
    itladyee Posts: 6,526 Member

    Good Morning @SurferGirl1982

    I was also in college in the late 70's and I am very much aware of the punch cards. I actually had a part-time job at the library, where my responsibilities included using the reader to validating the punch cards. I also got to write my own programs when I took a data processing class. I did not major in computer science or anything similar, I was a business major. I got into programming and IT-related activities about 10 years later.

    Doing what you enjoy is the best part of "work" as it no longer is work. I'm sure you have several stories to tell!

    Thanks for sharing a little more about you.

  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member

    Good Morning @itladyee

    I thought that you may be younger than me. And, yes, the punch cards. The younger people have no idea. When I started with computers, there was no such thing as Windows. The cool thing is that I actually saved some of the old floppy disks…you remember the ones that were soft and about 5" square? I have no way of reading them now. But, I'm glad that I saved them because they're kind of collector items. I just looked and the last OS that I was using was MS DOS Version 3.2. Funny, huh? But, I am glad that I saved them. I imagine most people threw them away.

    I will tell you a very funny meter reader story soon. I have a million. But, the one I'm thinking about really stands out!

    Have a nice day!

  • Womona
    Womona Posts: 1,946 Member

    Thanks for setting up the May thread. I’ll still use the April one until the start of May, but at least I found it and it’s bookmarked!

  • SparkSpringtime69
    SparkSpringtime69 Posts: 1,274 Member

    Thank you both for starting this thread. I'll be here on the first!

  • globalhiker
    globalhiker Posts: 1,879 Member

    Checking in to make sure I am in the right place! See y'all May 1!

  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member
    edited April 29

    Yep…see y'all on May 1st! I'm hoping for a much better month. Well, at least, I can't do any worse then I did in April 😕

  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member
    edited April 30

    Since it's just hours away from May 1st, I thought I'd post this here.

    I've been seeing these commercials on TV for a product called OAR. My husband actually pointed it out to me. I looked it up and it is Naltrexone. My doctor prescribed that for me months ago and my insurance paid for it. I still have a full bottle (minus 1/2 tablet). My pharmacist recommended that I only take a half of tablet because I guess many people don't like it (I guess due to side effects). I had read that one of the most common side effects was drowsiness or tiredness. A few days later, I decided to try it. I took it a 9 pm, thinking that would be a win-win. But I was super tired for the entire next day.

    My question is that has anyone taken Naltrexone or OAR. And, what their experience was? I think that I read that in large doses or taking it for an extended periods of time could actually cause liver damage. I'm not looking for AI generated information (I've read so much about it that my head is still spinning!) I was just wondering if anyone has any personal experiences.

    Thanks!

  • tmbg1
    tmbg1 Posts: 1,559 Member

    Here are my April stats. Not too bad. It helped that I gave up wine for Lent so I drank less during that time. Hope everyone has a great May!

    16 AF

    6 LA

    8 A

  • itladyee
    itladyee Posts: 6,526 Member

    Do you need to know exactly what ONE standard drink is and looks like??
    *It is not an entire bottle of wine.
    *It is not a six pack of any alcoholic beverage.
    *And a HUGE reminder ONE SHOT GLASS OF ANYTHING and " NEAT" is counted as one drink.

    image.png
  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member

    @itladyee If I were a wine drinker…well…duh! A serving is a whole bottle! Where do you guys get this stuff? LOL 🙃

  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member

    @SunnyDays930 I'm happy that the Semaglutide is working for you. And, the part about that it's actually very good at repairing your liver is very interesting. I will ask my doctor about it. I have an appointment in a couple of weeks. But, I'm not sure if I'll be a candidate. I would like to hear others personal experiences if anyone has experience with these drugs.

    @chicbuc I was wondering the same thing about the Naltrexone, if you adjust to it over time. That's why I posted the question. It surely kicked my butt the first time I took it. And I had some pretty bad experiences with antidepressants in the past, so I'm leery.

    I will report back later. Have a good day everyone!

  • globalhiker
    globalhiker Posts: 1,879 Member

    Happy May Day 1 Everyone! I want it to be an AF month for me, no excuses.

    This month I commit to practicing the daily behaviors of eating fruit when I feel like a drink. I have been going really overboard with eating chocolate instead of drinking and my scale this morning validated that - no change in weight.

    I think I told you all about my medspa trips in prior month posts. I tried laser lipolysis for body contouring, ten sessions, an hour a session. Noninvasive, no pain or side effects. Works to spot reduce but one needs to exercise and diet 48 hrs after each session and drink a ton of water and wear compression garments after (gee if I did that daily I would be skinny for free). Many sessions needed and it did shrink me maybe 2 centimeters and the results remained. It really faded my scars well so it was worth it for that. It seemed to only work on areas that had "newer" fat and not the hard to lose fat that's been there since I was young. As far as skin tightening, did not work, in fact my skin feels looser. The best skin tightening I've ever had was going into the ocean and letting ocean sea water tighten my skin. Back to nature for solutions I go!

  • Michieb125
    Michieb125 Posts: 1,135 Member

    The month of May is going to be about renewed awareness! I am focusing on my overall health. Sleep, sunshine, activities, and nutrition. All to increase longevity. Listened to Huberman and a Sunnyside podcast yesterday. That was very motivating!

  • Michieb125
    Michieb125 Posts: 1,135 Member

    Thanks @itladyee for the great chart on serving sizes. And, to think the health guidelines for women are no more than (1) serving per day at the most. I’m paying attention to how this is important to keep our brains functioning at a high level.

  • itladyee
    itladyee Posts: 6,526 Member

    Goals for May: Limit A to social events and allow for a couple of evenings, just because. So that looks like about 7 to 10 A days and the rest AF.


    Baseball game this weekend
    Cinco de Mayo
    Mother's Day
    Book Club
    Memorial Day Holiday

    @tmbg1 ~ Looks like great stats for April. Wishing you more success in May

    @SurferGirl1982 ~ The standard chart drink was something @MissMay had posted a while back to the group. I just thought it could be a friendly reminder to us all.

    @SunnyDays930 ~ I heard semaglutide on the news this morning. Funny how I had not heard it before or maybe just wasn't paying attention :) Glad it's working for you.

    @chicbuc ~ yep, that's how I got into this "mess" as well. No time like now to do better!

    @globalhiker ~ I like your commitment for the month.

    @margim5 ~ Great goal for targeting every other weekend. We've been conditioned to "live for the weekend" and that usually means a drink or more.

    @Michieb125 ~ I love the start of a new month. Leave the rest behind and set new goals. I want to focus on sleep as well. My sleep as of late has been full of odd dreams (that wake me).

    Wishing everyone a great, successful month of May!

  • SurferGirl1982
    SurferGirl1982 Posts: 871 Member
    edited 8:24PM

    @itladyee Yes, I do remember the drink chart from months ago. I was just kidding. You must have noticed by now that I like to joke or add a little humor here or there LOL

    And, it is true. That's what they recommend…2 drinks a day for men and 1 drink a day for women. For me, I couldn't drink just one drink…it's like, "What's the point?" That's why I'm trying to quit completely.

    I think that I mentioned it before. But there was a TV show called "The Doctors". I don't think it's been on for many years. But one of the doctors said the same thing…one drink per day for women. It was cute because they were taking questions from the audience and one girl asked, "Can we save them up for one day on the weekend?" Of course, there was some chuckling and the doctor smiled, shook his head, and said, "No!" Sounded like a reasonable question to me 🙂

    Also, you've been talking about weird dreams. That usually happens to me for a few nights after I go AF. But, a couple of nights ago, I had some dossies! Maybe, you've been drinking LA?

  • itladyee
    itladyee Posts: 6,526 Member

    @SurferGirl1982 ~ I figured you were joking — and I appreciate the humor you bring to the group! 😊 I just wanted to share the chart as a little reminder, as I didn't recall seeing it for a while. Humor is good.

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