How many #cosonauts out there are alcohol-free too? I casually stopped drinking in 2018 and I am never looking back. My latest N/A new try was the Sierra Nevada IPA and it was excellent. But right now I have a fridge full of Just the Haze. #alcoholfree #NA #coso
@ceorl haha. No need to decide right away, At least go another 15,000 before you make up your mind for sure.
Well I joke about it, but I also know that every day is day one.
@ceorl congrats on your accomplishment. Being able to joke shows immense strength. Keep being awesome.
@BipolarArtist 👋 Have been my entire life.
@wideeyedcurious awesome. It has improved my life so much.
@BipolarArtist I’ve heard other people say the same thing. ☺️
Not fully, but I'm not a drinker. It's destroyed too many lives and I can't say the times when I drank were all that great.
A friend's widow is currently in hospice due to cirrhosis. Another friend recently got arrested for drunkenly harassing a front desk clerk at a hotel. He got lucky that the charges were dropped.
I've never really picked up the habit. I still don't like the taste. Some say it's acquired, but that's never been a goal of mine.
@nblumengarten thank you so much for sharing. It can definitely destroy lives. Sounds like you are in the right mindset.
For me, it just started to make my body feel very sick and it no longer was enjoyable. Being bipolar and on some pretty strong meds made it not that great of a mix anyway.
It helps to know that for whatever reason, you're not alone. Our society makes it hard to not drink. I constantly have to explain why I didn't really like to drink.
@nblumengarten thanks, yeah I have been able to make the adjustment to my life without much difficulty, fortunately. Other than the social aspect of it I missed the taste of some of the drinks. Fortunately we are in a kind of renaissance of NA beers which has helped.
@nblumengarten thanks, it is always nice to talk to people who get it. Other than the social aspect of it I also missed the taste of some of the drinks. Fortunately we are in a kind of renaissance of NA beers which has helped. Some NA spirits are ok too.
That's good to hear. I do think society is starting to shift towards being more acceptable of those of us who aren't drinkers.
@nblumengarten it hasn’t been too much of a challenge for me, fortunately. I am naturally an extroverted person and can party with a cup of coffee. None of my friends were weird about it and it began right around the time my wife was pregnant with our first so she wasn’t drinking either. Becoming a parent was a bigger life change for me than giving up drinking. I don’t miss it anymore.
@nblumengarten but I know it can be a big adjustment for some people, and I definitely respect that.
👋🏽
25 years.
@corlin congrats! What a huge accomplishment!
@corlin I’ll check it out! Thank you so much for sharing!
@corlin I read all three of these pieces, 10, 15, and 25. Congrats on your journey. You can move mountains.
@BipolarArtist
Thanks.
I’m just a human, doing human stuff.
😎
@corlin humans can be incredible.
@BipolarArtist I gave up alcohol some time ago, but I did not replace it with anything. But then, I wasn't drinking for the taste, I was drinking to get drunk.
@AskTheDevil yeah that’s the sort of thing you don’t want to replace.
@BipolarArtist Heh. I roll, too!
Now what I really miss is mulled wine and hot toddies.
@AskTheDevil ha! Hot toddies, yes! Haha.
The context made it pretty clear :)
@ceorl ok awesome. Just wanted to make sure I didn’t offend a group that I have much respect for.
No harm, no foul. If anyone *chooses* to get offended, it's on them.
I just realized I used the hashtag “NA” which I intended to mean “Non-Alcoholic” like an “N/A Beer.” I wasn’t thinking how “NA” has another meaning. Sorry for the confusion and respect to those of you who have gone through NA.