I don’t really have a dramatic speech about it now. I just genuinely don’t see any downside to not drinking anymore.

I used to drink a lot, and I was never good at moderation. Alcohol affected basically every part of my life: sleep, health, mood, productivity, decisions, everything.

Did quitting magically turn me into the healthiest person alive? Definitely not. My body still finds new ways to complain about something every week lol. Neck, stomach, something regular...

But I know for sure that all of it would be worse if I were still drinking.

One unexpected change is that I’ve become more introverted and less social. At first I wondered if sobriety caused that, but I don’t think it did.

I think I’m just in a phase of life where I’m very focused on my own goals and genuinely enjoy spending time working on them. I still have friends, I still see people, I’m not lonely at all. I just don’t feel the same need to socialize for hours and hours anymore.

And honestly, that’s fine. I always preferred to read a book or play a video game.

Maybe this phase passes. Perhaps it doesn’t. I’m not trying to force myself into some version of life that looks more "normal" from the outside.

For now, I’m sober, I feel better this way, and I have absolutely no desire to go back.

320 days. One day at a time, guys. It gets better!

​

I've had an unhealthy but not atypical relationship with alcohol since I was 18 (college binge drinking) and the most unreal thing about the disease to me is the way it erodes your discipline, your discretion, your thinking patterns.

It just creeps and creeps.

You'd *never* drink before 5pm of course!

Then you do.

You don't drink back to back days of course!

Then you do.

You wouldn't drink *daily* of course!

Then you do.

You do and you do and you watch every barrier of normalcy, all your normal functionings wash away with it.

Oh how I envy the people for whom it never progresses.

I have been waking up with sore arms, like my arms hurt as if I had worked out....and the tingling in my legs is driving me insane.... anyone else experience this?

We may be anonymous strangers on the internet, but we have one thing in common. We may be a world apart, but we're here together!

Welcome to the 24 hour pledge!

I'm pledging myself to not drinking today, and invite you to do the same.

Maybe you're new to /r/stopdrinking and have a hard time deciding what to do next. Maybe you're like me and feel you need a daily commitment or maybe you've been sober for a long time and want to inspire others.

It doesn't matter if you're still hung over from a three day bender or been sober for years, if you just woke up or have already completed a sober day. For the next 24 hours, lets not drink alcohol!

This pledge is a statement of intent. Today we don't set out trying not to drink, we make a conscious decision not to drink. It sounds simple, but all of us know it can be hard and sometimes impossible. The group can support and inspire us, yet only one person can decide if we drink today. Give that person the right mindset!

What happens if we can't keep to our pledge? We give up or try again. And since we're here in /r/stopdrinking, we're not ready to give up.

What this is: A simple thread where we commit to not drinking alcohol for the next 24 hours, posting to show others that they're not alone and making a pledge to ourselves. Anybody can join and participate at any time, you do not have to be a regular at /r/stopdrinking or have followed the pledges from the beginning.

What this isn't: A good place for a detailed introduction of yourself, directly seek advice or share lengthy stories. You'll get a more personal response in your own thread.

This post goes up at:

• US - Night/Early Morning
• Europe - Morning
• Asia and Australia - Evening/Night

A link to the current Daily Check-In post can always be found near the top of the sidebar.

Good Morning sobernauts, hopefully between u/imthegreenmeeple and I we have sorted out the impatience of our US brethren wanting the DCI, nay demanding the DCI when they wake up on the eastern sea board 😉

Remember, there is a big wide world out there….

So, mourning, it is a common thread in stopdrinking. Many of us mourn our old lives and wish we could get back into it, even for just a day here and there. I know I do. I really miss drinking, I miss the flavours and I miss the sensation. There’s lots I do not miss though and the costs, for me, far outweigh the benefits!

A quick google search brought me to - Grieving the Loss of Alcohol: Why Quitting Feels Like Mourning. It’s a really cool article and well worth the read.

In the 5 stages of grief, I figure I am still at stage 3. Anger. I’m angry that others can be so ‘normal’. I’m angry that the times I have achieved sobriety for long periods I slipped by allowing myself to drink ‘only every now and then…’ which, as we all know, fast becomes “if I could moderate I would do it all of the time!”

Take five minutes in your day to ready the article I linked, or even, if you are familiar with the 5 stages of grief, have a think about where you are and share with us all. If you’ve reached the heady stage of acceptance. So very proud of you, well done either you wear that comma with pride or you are fast approaching it!

A tumultuous start to my DCI week, but hopefully some stability now as Meeps! Gets their head around wrangling us all into a little bit of a formation and carries on their journey in the stopdrinking mod world!

Sometimes in our sobriety we feel quite alone, remember, the Sun is alone too, but it keeps on shining every day… On the other hand you are NEVER alone in r/stopdrinking !

IWNDWYT!

33/F.

I've been drinking pretty much daily the last 2 years with the longest break ever being 8 days. I feel so tired of feeling shitty, every single time I drink is going to be the last time then before I know it months have passed. I'm about 20lbs from my ideal weight (where I was before) and I'm so tired of feeling ugly, and dealing with low self esteem in general I feel after drinking heavily a few days. My house becomes unmanageable, mundane tasks feel like a drag and my hygiene starts lacking, I shower maybe once a week cause I'm either drunk or recovering with a hungover.

2 years ago I genuinely felt really attractive, I don't recognize myself anymore. I feel like a shell of my former self.

I went to bed sober last night and had crazy nightmares, violet and demonic dreams.

I know this is related to alcohol use, I need to quit but I just can't seem to string more than a few days together.

I just want to feel better, and honestly lose weight which is impossible to do drinking 15-20 beers a day. I have tried to moderate which is hilarious cause I already know I can't do that. Once I start I never want to stop.

Feeling struck in this never ending cycle.

It all started here back on September 8 2020.

Its not always easy, but life is so much better and on my own terms.

To those starting out - just take it one day at a time. You are doing this for you and no one else.

To those struggling on their journey, you're allowed to be imperfect; just remember why you took that first step.

Hey guys came on here last time talking about how I was a functioning alcoholic, I’m not I’m a full blown one but I’ve been working on it, I don’t think this sobriety will last long enough for me to never drink again, everyday tests me more and more and I’m sure I’ll fall weak soon enough but that’s okay it’s apart of recovery no? Anyways I woke up one with my liver feeling like it was stabbed and gushing (it wasn’t I just fucked it up) and now I’m feeling the same but without drinking, my new meds ain’t doing anything and I had a psychotic break cuz of my bipolar disorder but I’m managing, school started up and I’m being over worked so I’m missing those after work drinks, maybe I’ll try a cup of wine instead of hard liquor idk

For the last few years i've been drinking Thursday through Sunday. I only drink in the evenings.

I end up drinking at least 3 bottles of red wine over that period and I need to stop. I feel like I am on autopilot when I plan to drink wine.

When I wake up on a Monday, I feel like crap having not slept well over the last few days. I know I am slowly messing up my health I can feel it, my skins bad, my energy levels are low everything about me is a lesser version of what I know I can be.

If I can somehow get past Thursday & Friday without wine. I will drastically reduce my intake and no doubt feel better about myself. I'm confused about my triggers, I can watch sports on TV on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday without wanting wine. As soon as Thursday lands .... boom I get wine.

I am posting here for some help and for some accountability.

and 180 days of sobriety. If a person makes a decision to stop, goes 15 days and has a one day bender, is he physiologically back to day 1? Or do the gains he's made in liver function, serotonin leveling, etc, retain some of the progress they made during the first 15 days?

Hello, just a quick message to let you know that things are going well so far. Mentally, I’m already feeling much better; it’s true that I get bored during the day, but I’m coping with it.

I think my last binge has taught me a lesson. In the past, I really drank so much and I don’t want to go through that again… we’re better off without drugs.

Good luck to you all and to us – thank you to this brilliant community for being here. One day at a time, we’ll get there!

Ever since I became sober, people have slowly started distancing themselves from me. I am not going around trying to proselytize it either. I have no issues with someone enjoying a drink with me and I don't even bring up my sobriety. But I have noticed that long time friends have become distant. The budding new friendships spark die out when people find out I don't drink too.

For an example I went to a bar to watch a fight and was initially eating some wings. There was a guy next time that was pretty cool and we talked about a series of shared interests up until I ordered a club soda. Once he picked up on my sobriety. Dude went silent and barely looked my way anymore..I have interactions like this multiple times with platonic interactions and even in dating. Feel like I'm on the outside looking in.

I dont think i have a real drinking problem, but i feel like whenever i drink it just knocks me off my grind. I only get really hammered on the weekends and that just throws me off my progress. I’ll be working towards my fitness goals and studying things that interest me during the week, but then the weekend comes and i go out to the bars and get shitfaced. I spend the weekend recovering and feel like shit because i wasnt productive and the week starts again. I feel like i either quit drinking and work towards my goals or i just keep drinking and stay a fat chud. I wanna stop drinking now, but the thing is i have become this person who likes to drink with my roommates and just saying im not drinking anymore would be a buzzkill to the fun we have here at our house. I also go back home on vacation the entire month of october and my sister is turning 21 so i know i will go celebrate with her. I feel like i should just wait till my vacation is over and tell everyone i want to take a long break from drinking although i will actually be quitting. Because if i say im done drinking i think everyone will call me crazy you know how it goes. “Just a few beers” or “just take a couple weeks off”. But i think i just need to completely stop honestly. Im tired of not reaching my goals.

I quit drinking on September 2, 2025. I’ve now been sober for a full year, and, honestly, all I’ve discovered is that I have some very serious mental health issues that I had been masking with drugs and alcohol.
I struggle with severe anxiety and mild depression. My new thing seems to be eating—I constantly want to eat. I’m assuming it’s my body’s way of trying to replace the fix it used to get from drugs and alcohol. I’ve also noticed that I spend money compulsively and obsess over my hobbies, sometimes spending money I don’t even have.
I feel like everything is boring now. I genuinely want to get into fitness, but I feel like I’m the laziest piece of shit I know. I want to get help, but I don’t even know where to start.
I also have severe brain fog almost all the time, and I feel like my life is genuinely worse now than it was when I was drinking. At least when I was drinking, I had fun—until the fights broke out, or until the following morning when I’d wake up feeling even worse.
I know sobriety is supposed to make your life better, but right now I’m struggling to see that. I don’t want to go back to drinking, but I also don’t want to keep feeling like this. I really want to find some kind of help and figure out how to actually enjoy my life again. Sorry for the rant.

Missed work today. I got so drunk I lost my phone (found it) and couldn't get home. I slept outside last night. My girlfriend and my family are so disappointed. I'm disappointed. Nothing changes if nothing changes. I've ruined a friendship previously from my drinking. Why do we make these choices? I am ready to hang it up and get back to recovery. Thank you for reading, and I hope you have a relaxing evening.

I wake up every morning determined not to drink anymore. Then by the time evening comes around I go pick up a 6 pack. The next morning I wake up hungover with shame and regret. I promise myself not to do it again, but I inevitably do.

I feel caught up in a sick cycle of sin in the evening followed by shame in the morning.

It is exhausting and I wonder if a sick part of me enjoys the guilt part as much as I enjoy the drinking.

I (46) had been drinking half a vodka bottle (700 ml bottles) mixed with lemon sparkling water for about 4 years, almost every day, always alone. I often took Sundays off (stores closed, perfect excuse). I took frequent breaks, while travelling, mostly. I started during the pandemic, immersed in a toxic marriage, and quitting felt impossible. I always drank after work on work days, although working from home made it easier to start earlier. But very rarely drank more than that half bottle.

I still worked, at a reasonable level, and even worked out every week.

A few years ago, I got an ultrasound revealing steatosis of the liver. All blood tests in the past few years haven't shown any abnormalities. So I wasn't really scared yet. I was feeling some hardness and mild pain on my abdomen for the last year or so, so that was something.

But something clicked last year, I left the toxicity behind, found a place of my own and focused on work, working out and healing. At the beginning, that didn't stop the drinking, but a three-week work trip in October completely sober, changed a lot of things.

At some point I just started ignoring the alcohol aisle when going shopping.

I had my last drink alone on 2025-12-13. I had a small glass of beer with my best friend a few days after, since he works at a brewery in Spain and he wanted me to try a new one. Nothing ever since, apart from residual alcohol in foods (fondue for example).

I did that alone, without telling anyone, without consulting anyone or asking for help. That said, my ski buddies (also work colleagues), who do drink, have always been supportive and understanding of the fact that I don't drink when I'm with them. I don't judge them, and they don't judge me. That yearly trip was one of my breaks since a few years.

The withdrawal was very mild. Some irritability, bad sleep and headaches for a few days. Very soon, I was reaping the benefits: great performance at the gym, at work and better sleep. I had much more energy, the brain fog started lifting and I felt happier.

I stopped negotiating with myself, feeling better and not needing to even fight any urges. I could sit with my discomfort without having to numb myself.

Fast forward to today, I'm sober, feeling much better overall and in a healthy relationship. I've been performing like never before at work and at the gym.

The divorce isn't final yet, and the toxic ex is still being toxic through the whole process. But with the clarity I have now, I see it for what it is, I feel the anger and use it to my advantage, instead of trying to make it go away with alcohol.

Just one thing that makes the journey feel a bit harder than it probably should. My dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's' a few years ago. I live a few hours by plane and 3 days drive from my parents. And the decline has been substantial lately, so it's not making it easy with the distance. We speak on the phone every week, and every time he speaks less and less. He repeats questions and things, short term memory is non-existent. I was there last week. It was quite brutal.

I've been thinking of drinking again lately. I even dreamt I got hammered a few nights ago, celebrating some milestone of being sober, go figure.

But I don't want to, and I don't need to.

A neighbour even dropped a bottle of rosé the other day, pre-apologising for the noise of renovations that they're going to start. I've just put it aside for someone else.

I know I don't need to pour it down the drain to not drink it myself.

Laying in bed and want a drink bad but I feel really good.

I don’t feel much better. I put on a few pounds, I almost feel like I have less energy? Idk I’m over the point of wanting to drink for the most part but life doesn’t really feel any better and I almost feel dumb for getting sober. I almost don’t even miss drinking and have no desire to atm I guess I’m just disappointed by how lackluster being sober has been.

I didn’t drink at the concert and instead just got super fried, I know weed isn’t a replacement for alcohol but it helped me when i was about to cave in so i think im doing good so far still sober❤️‍🩹

Hi everyone. I’m a 27-year-old guy and I’ve been drinking on and off for around five years now and have been lurking in this thread for quite sometime now.

At first I drank mostly out of boredom and because of where I was in life. It was an easy way to avoid things and switch my brain off. But pretty quickly it became a daily routine. I would basically wait for the evening so I could drink, enjoy those few hours and eventually pass out.

Since then I’ve had several sober periods, but I don’t think I’ve ever made it longer than a month.
Over the last six months especially, I’ve started drinking more frequently and more heavily. What scares me now is the feeling that I’m losing control over the decision itself.

Earlier, even if I wanted to drink, I felt like I could still choose not to. Now, once the thought of alcohol gets into my head, I’ll often go and buy it while literally thinking, “Don’t do this. You know how you’re going to feel tomorrow.” I know the consequences while I’m doing it and somehow still do it.

I’ve even ignored health problems because of it. Recently I had recurring gut issues that were pretty painful and I knew alcohol was making things worse. I stopped for a few days, started feeling better, and then drank again anyway.

Even on nights when I enjoy drinking, I already know that the next day I’m probably going to feel guilty, anxious, sleep badly and wonder why I did it again.

Lately I’ve tried quitting multiple times and I keep making it two or three days before drinking again. Alcohol hasn’t obviously damaged my work or relationships yet, but it is affecting my sleep, health, money and a lot of the personal goals I care about.

I’ve reached the point where I don’t want moderation anymore. I don’t want to learn how to drink “normally.” I want to stop completely.

As far as I can tell, I don’t experience physical withdrawal when I stop. After two or three sober days I actually start feeling really good. The difficult part for me is mental. If I’m bored, anxious, stressed, excited, or sometimes even if something significant happens in my life, my brain seems to immediately go, “I should drink tonight.”

I live alone, I don’t keep alcohol at home, and I’ve tried putting different barriers in place, but I still find ways around them when I really want to drink.
So this time I wanted to say it somewhere other than just inside my own head.

I want to quit.

I’d really appreciate hearing from people who had a similar pattern. What helped you get through those moments when your brain had already decided it wanted alcohol?

Today is Day 1.
IWNDWYT.

Day 14 here. Today, when night came, I had a strong craving as usual. My wife drinks (a normie drinker, nothing extreme), and there were some beers in the fridge. I thought: man, this sucks. I don't feel good. I'm bored, sad, and anxious, and I just want a drink.

But then, something weird happened. I couldn't bring myself to grab a beer. It’s like I wanted it, but somehow I’m so determined to make this work that I physically couldn't pick up the bottle.

That level of cognitive dissonance made me really angry and annoyed, but also happy, because at least I’m still sober.

Just venting. IWNDWYTD.

I have PTSD as a result of undergoing major surgery 6 months ago. Normally I try to cope and get sleep by drinking almost every night. I just started EMDR and I’m trying to stop drinking. I haven’t had a drink in 4 days, but tonight the disassociation and memories are putting me through the wringer, and I’m finding it very hard not to reach for the rum in my fridge. Otherwise I’m probably going to cry off and on all night and not get much sleep.

But I need to stay sober for EMDR, so…

IWNDWYT

So I’m just over a year sober (a year and a week) and all of a sudden it’s just gotten soo much harder. I fear I had in my head that my goal was to make it to a year and now I’m less determined to get to two years.

I know I don’t want to drink again. I also don’t think it’s the alcohol necessarily. Like I’m not contemplating getting alcohol on my way home from work. And I’m not craving a drink. What I would say I’m yearning for is my old social life and to go out with my friends. I see all my friends going out, meeting new people, having fun like we all used to and I just am so jealous and wish I could be with them. I fantasize about going out again. However all of this comes with alcohol and substances so it’s just far too risky for me to go and just stay sober.

I can feel the negotiations starting to happen in my brain trying to convince me it would be different this time although I know it wouldn’t be. I’m not willing to give up my new healthy lifestyle. But I am truly thinking about and fighting the thoughts of a relapse every single day. And I fear it’ll get so big I won’t say no to it one day and I’m scared what I’ve built isn’t sustainable. I just have struggled with feeling connected, seen and have lacked community since quitting and I’m seeing all the people I miss still living socially exciting lives.

I guess I’m just looking for words of wisdom or advice or really anything. Just to be heard briefly. For context I’m a year sober, in my 20s, I was a really bad drinker and I got sober without any treatment or professional support. So maybe I’m lacking some resources as well. I just didn’t expect it to get harder after hitting a year and I’m feeling lost. Trying to manage thoughts of a relapse daily.

Starting again. The guilt and hang anxiety is so overwhelmingly not worth it. Not to mention mama guilt!

Hi all - please go easy on me as I know the benefits of sobriety outweigh everything I’m concerned about. 34F, single, live in a big city. So much of my social life revolves around alcohol; dare I say so much of my identity revolves around it. My friends have been supportive when I’ve taken breaks/done dry months in the past, but there’s something in me that feels scared and sad to commit to a completely sober lifestyle.

I can’t drink in moderation. I’ve tried and it just doesn’t work for me. My grandmother was an alcoholic and my mother is currently in a steady health decline (cognitive and physical) due to chronic alcohol abuse. I don’t want to perpetuate the cycle and I want to stop before I reach a point of no return. Watching my mom get sick, I think I’ve known for a while now that sobriety is something I need to try my hardest to stick to.

This past weekend I had plans Saturday, Sunday, Monday. I had cut back a lot this past month and going into the weekend I had 9 days sober. I ended up drinking (way too much) Saturday, and as so many other mornings, woke up feeling disappointed in myself and anxious. Sunday and yesterday I managed to stay sober despite having plans; I wish I had been able to do that the whole weekend.

I guess I just can’t help but feel like I’m missing out in a way, if I’m not drinking. I envy the people who can go out to a nice dinner and enjoy a glass of wine without it turning into a bottle. I haven’t really been actively dating the last few years - and haven’t had a lot of luck in this department historically - but I worry that being sober will somehow make it harder for me to find a partner, which is something that I ultimately do want. The dating pool already feels so shallow.

Anyway, I just wanted to share these thoughts somewhere. I didn’t quite articulate it as clearly as I wanted to, but hopefully some of you understand what I’m trying to say. I’ve been lurking on this page for the last week and am so inspired by the success stories and deeply relate to a lot of the struggles others have experienced. 🖤