tap, tap, is this thing on?

[kirkcudbright]

blk reminded me that this thing is still on. LJ is where I used to post actual thoughts, that I might not want to share with relatives, distant school friends, distant cow-orkers, Zuckerberg, etc. In fact, I haven't posted since importing everything from LJ to DW. (I still have my LJ account, as do, it appears most of you. Is that something I should do something about? I decided not to cross-post this to LJ; does anyone still do that?)

Anyway, the topic of the day is Dry July. Francie mentioned last week that she wanted to try not drinking this month, and, y'know, I'm sick enough of my own shit to give it a try. Alcohol has been my Problematic Friend since I was a teenager, and while I'm not physically addicted, it's a strong habit of long standing. And it's had some undesirable side-effects in the last several years. Sure, I can titrate it so that I'm rarely significantly impaired (at least by my own judgement), and it's been ages since I've been barfing drunk. But even at lower levels, it interferes with long-term memory formation, so that e.g. I can have a perfectly lucid conversation, but not remember that it even took place the next morning. And that's some shit that should scare me more than it apparently does, because I keep doing it. I've also had low (for me) sexual function, e.g. with new partners, where I should be horny as fuck. This could just be me being a middle-aged dude, but it seems worth trying to separate the effects. There's also the thought that this might help me lose a peristent 15lb, which would make me faster, having less ass to haul. (Appeal to my vanity and competitiveness, if it will help.)

The problem is that the first drink makes the second seem like SUCH a good idea. And the second drink makes the third seem like an excellent idea. After that, you're just topping off the third drink...

Anyway, it's a strong habit, but Precision Nutrition taught me about changing habits, specifically interrupting the mindless action. I just want to drink more mindfully, but it starts with delaying taking that first drink until August. Actually, I carved out an exception for July 4th, and noticed (mindfully) that it really wasn't doing much for me. Hopefully I can keep that in mind going forward.

Comments

[ceo]

I'll just say you're not the only one who has been concerned about your drinking, and I'm really glad you're doing this.

I COMPLETELY hear you about "the first drink makes the second seem like SUCH a good idea". I've gotten better at recognizing that loop and breaking out of it since I had a couple of memory-loss episodes last year, which really disturbed me. I don't think I need to go dry for a month at this point, but I'm keeping it in mind.

[chhotii]

Interesting how this tips in different directions for different people. For me, while the first drink generally seems like an AWESOME idea, the second drink, eh, usually I can take it or leave it. Then the second drink makes the third drink seem like an absolutely revolting idea.

Ideally you would want this kind of negative feedback loop... not the positive feedback loop you're talking about... My drinking seems to be pretty self-limiting because of this.

[ceo]

For me it doesn't kick in on the first drink; it's generally if I have a couple more in quick succession. (It either helps or doesn't help that I have a ridiculously high alcohol tolerance, so I barely notice one drink anyway.) If I space them out properly, I can avoid getting past the level of mild tipsiness that I actually find pleasant, and be safe to drive when it's time to go home.

[solarbird]

I still let things crosspost to Livejournal, but I don't view LJ, and I don't pay for an account. That copy is basically a second instance operated in explicit violation of the Russian TOS, and comments are disabled, and so on.

I mostly let it stay there at all because it's a TOS violation, and fuck those guys.

[rmd]

I hope it works well for you!

[blk]

Why hello there.

> The problem is that the first drink makes the second seem like SUCH a good idea....

Hey, you got that from me! :)

I rarely get any negative side effects from the amount of alcohol I drink, which has always meant that drinking alcohol has basically only positive connotations in my brain. I've never been sick; never blacked out; rarely minorly hungover (was never, until about 6 years ago); it lowers my anxiety to levels where I can really relax, and I enjoy the taste/experience.

When I recently took a two week break I did discover that it definitely affects my sleep (if I have it anytime after dinner at least) and some of my digestion. I suspect if I cut it out, i could also more easily lose an extra couple lbs I'd like to shed. i'm not sure I'm there yet, though.

I am, however, fully in favor of anybody else who makes a choice on the side of less alcohol, as I am pretty sure it can only be a positive change.

[kirkcudbright]

Hey, you got that from me! :)

I did that, and I'm not sorry. :P

The problem is actually that the first drink barely moves me past baseline, so the second drink is the dopamine hit, and then it just makes sense to keep going.

So I guess part of this exercise is to re-sensitize myself to what's actually going on in my body/brain.

Anyway, so far, so good.

[blk]

I have heard that a month is enough to reset some of the receptors. Hopefully it works for you!

I worked long and hard to increase my tolerance so that one drink didn't have my flat on my back, useless for the rest of the night, and I'm not actually sure I want to lose that yet.

[con_girl]

That would be such an easy challenge for me. Giving up screen time and stupid games, that's much harder :)