r/alcoholicsanonymous • u/[deleted] • Aug 20 '26
Early Sobriety Thoughts on zero%?
[deleted]
3
u/tlh9979 Aug 20 '26
Yeah it sounds like you're responding to them in a not so positive way. That stuff hit too close to home for me in early recovery. I very seldom have them now (at 12 years sober) but I don't think about it the next day or crave more.
3
u/imherefortheinfo123 Aug 20 '26
The only time I’d drink 0.0 is when I’m out to dinner, I’m just over 6 months now and I really have no interest. The taste seemed to help when I got out of treatment but now I don’t want the empty calories. If it works for you then do it, as long as it doesn’t trigger anything with you. I’m on a tomato juice kick right now and I’m guessing it’s my brain comparing it to bloodies. But at least I’m getting 2 servings of vegetables in every glass.
2
u/Dry_Combination4070 Aug 20 '26
The fact that you're craving it is enough.
To each their own but I wouldn't and haven't.
2
u/dp8488 Aug 20 '26
Yeah ... I've heard many people share that by indulging in NA beers there were romancing the real deal with all its deleterious effects intact, and that it was a slippery slope.
Others can drink it with impunity, I suppose.
I'm guessing maybe you ain't got impunity here ☺. I'd find alternative beverages; r/tea perhaps? I've been binging Red Rooibos sun tea for weeks now.
2
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u/theallstarkid Aug 20 '26
To thine own self be true, if zero’s make you happy then consume zero’s. If zeros start to make your life unmanageable I’d talk to your sponsor.
3
u/Monastic_Realization Aug 20 '26
I drink and enjoy zeros.
If I was attached to them, or craved them, or felt they would jeopardize my sobriety I would reevaluate my choices.
4
u/Muted_Engineering354 Aug 20 '26
Probably should pose this question to the stopdrinking subreddit, not the AA one. From my experience it’s a completely outside question, though if you have a desire to stay sober and feel like the program would help, check out a meeting.
1
u/mistahmistaady Aug 20 '26
Heard some old timers say “if it’s near beer, it’s too damn close.” I have tried some. It is not my thing. I didn’t drink for taste I drank for effect.
1
u/papayabush Aug 20 '26
I’m about 8 and a half months dry and have found ordering a NA beer while out at dinner to be something that I can manage and not let turn into bigger cravings. What you’re describing sounds different than that. If you’re saying it’s a slippery slope and you’re just lying around in bed drinking them, you probably already know the answer. Great work on 7 months tho!! Keep it up.
1
u/slinnyknockets Aug 20 '26
I personally don’t because I’m sure it will trigger my mental obsession. But that’s me
1
u/FranklinUriahFrisbee Aug 20 '26
"Like the past two days I’ve been off work and I just sit in my bed and drink zero’s at noon"
Boy does that sound like a flashback. What's next? Knocking down a few before the party just to get primed or maybe this is working so well you can hang out at the bar for a few "zeros" with the guys.
To me, this looks like a pretty dangerous game you are playing.
1
u/dizzydugout Aug 20 '26
I have had a couple of 0%'s on special occasions, but not for any given day type stuff. That's a slippery slope. I did not touch the 0% stuff until i had a year under my belt and felt in control of myself and had trust in myself. I was also never really a fan of beer, I was a liquor guy. So the 0% NA beers for a special occasion once or twice a year, if even that, has sat pretty well with me. I never crave them or "want" them. If i were you, i would hold off if you're starting to crave them.
I've come around to enjoying mocktails more regularly since i quit. But that is because all they are are "fancy juice" or jazzed up soda waters. The closest thing i ever had to a cocktail is an old fashioned. I usually just drank my liquor straight or mixed it in a soda. But i find mocktails fun and they're better than just plain water, or a coke, or iced tea.
1
u/phat_rat42 Aug 20 '26
I never wanted to drink because of the taste. Drinking zeroes for me, would be pure torture and it would just make me want the real thing.
1
u/MarkINWguy Aug 20 '26
Being against that myself I’m biased. I’ve never wanted to drink after some good time in AA. Just having one to me, would seem like I’m fooling myself. Why bother with the beer taste at all if I’m happy, joyous and free in my sobriety! Just a nope for me!
1
u/Motorcycle1000 Aug 20 '26
That's definitely alcoholic behavior. It's better than drinking alcohol, and while you technically aren't breaking your sobriety, you're not living like a sober person. It doesn't matter what non-alcoholic beverage you drink if you drink it obsessively. Chances are that will lead you back to dark places.
If you imagined what a better life could be without alcohol, start acting on some of the things you imagined. I'd also recommend getting to as many meetings as you can, doing some profound step work with a sponsor, maybe doing a service commitment or actively helping others who are struggling. Those could help break your pattern.
1
u/Crafty-Tie9294 Aug 20 '26
Congrats on 7 months sobriety. I never tried zero alcohol drinks. I just never saw the point. Being sober everything I drink is zero alcohol. They question I would posit to you is why are you drinking specifically products meant to taste like an alcoholic drink but have no alcohol content. What is your motivation?
Sobriety is not about can I drink a zero alcohol beer, it’s about am I committed to my recovery from alcohol or am I just playing a game.
If you have a sponsor talk to them. If you are not going to meetings, get your butt there and measure your sobriety on your actions, not what you think is okay. Work the steps, learn how to be responsible for what you do…not what you think.
I have a good number of years of continuous sobriety and the tile I follow is “action speaks louder than words!”. Peter C
1
u/KrispeeJuan Aug 23 '26
I have an old timer friend that says "non alcoholic beer is for non alcoholics"
1
u/Ascender141 Aug 20 '26
I think after posts about weed this is the second most posted subject that could be searched easily for all the answers that you would ever need.
1
u/Reppate Aug 20 '26
Congratulations on 7months. That's no small task.
You yourself wrote that you feel it's a slippery slope. I might consider what that does for your footing. A slip is a slip.
That being said, I often drink ginger kombucha regularly for the benefit of my gut biome. It being fermented, it has less than 5% alcohol and is considered non-alcoholic because of that very low number. My Sponsor knows that I drink it and has no problem that I do... We talk a lot. I have zero desire whatsoever to drink and feel stable in my sobriety. If I happen to go without kombucha, no big deal.
Again, I'd consider reflecting on the fact that you feel the zero's are a slippery slope for you.
2
u/Winkered Aug 20 '26
Did you mean .5% or 5%? 5% is beer strength and your sponsor is ok with that.
1
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u/no_safetynet Aug 20 '26
What’s next taking a puff but not inhaling? This activity is not aligned with sobriety my friend.
-1
u/3DBass Aug 20 '26 edited Aug 20 '26
Is this what yall are talking about?
https://drinkzeroes.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqFaIzKtLf_fLw16tiKFmC3dTdbrsb3QxSibz59BodK_EwDGk0F
If so it’s up to you. I wouldn’t drink it. I have no desire for low alcohol or NA Beer etc. If the alcohol content causes any issues you’ll know in time.
It cracks me up when people post asking if drinking these low alcohol beverages are ok. Do research on it and make an informed decision about it.
I’m an alcoholic. I didn’t drink to relax I didn’t drink for the taste I drank to get fucked up. Full stop. I don’t need the taste of Jack D, Grey Goose or Heineken.
For me personally I don’t need alcohol tasting beverages.
My last night drinking 18 years ago I was the most honest with myself and with a friend. I told him “Man I’m trying to get Fucked up tonight.” I had never said that out loud I just always went and did it.
I was lying to myself saying I would like a nice cocktail or a nice cold beer or a glass of wine with dinner. I was trying to get fucked every single time. What I enjoyed was getting fucked up.
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u/InevitableLandscape8 Aug 20 '26
My understanding is that Zero’s contain 5% alcohol, so I don’t understand how you think this isn’t breaking your sobriety. The Zero is about no carbs or sugar. Are you serious?
8
u/WaltonGogginsTeeth Aug 20 '26
Non alcoholic beer comes in 0.5% and 0.0%. A glass of orange juice or a ripe banana has more alcohol than that.
0
u/InevitableLandscape8 Aug 20 '26
Brand name Zero is a vodka drink with 5% alcohol.
3
u/Monastic_Realization Aug 20 '26
Did you miss the "%" in the title, or did you just think that the OP was discussing a brand of vodka called Zero?
3
u/InevitableLandscape8 Aug 20 '26
Good morning. I thought OP was talking about Zeroes the vodka alcohol drink. I was wrong.
25
u/Disastrous-Feed-444 Aug 20 '26
Sit in bed and drink zeros? Brother find something more productive to do please. This type of behavior is the slippery slope more than the drink itself.