PSA: I'm having a dry February, and honestly it's a good thing

B

BJ

BJ
Just sayin. I was drinking too much. In particular, it was affecting my sleep. Good to get perspective.
 
I'm in total agreement with what Jim says. I'm glad this is working for you.

However, it's not for me. At my age and given that I've used up 2 of my 9 lives, it's just not gonna happen. Life is short. I'm not going to stop drinking for a month. I'm well aware that it affects my sleep, but I'm retired. I don't have to worry about getting on the hamster wheel the following day.
 
Brad, rather than going "dry", I have been limiting myself to 2 glasses max per day (exceptions being for special wine dinners).

I plan to stick with this regimen as it seems to be serving me pretty well health-wise without too much of a sacrifice.

. . . . . . Pete
 
originally posted by Florida Jim:
I applaud you listening to your body.
For me, just not today.
Best, Jim
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Well said.

I've been doing one glass a day equivalent, mostly, for a while, because it's what feels comfortable since I stopped eating dinner - also because of sleep. If I recall correctly, Maureen does not drink alcohol during the week at all, only on weekends. Total respect to her; I've tried this regime but lack the strength of character to stick with it.
 
Interesting discussion. Different things work for different people.

For many years, I too have only been drinking alcohol on Friday and Saturday. I definitely notice a lower quality of sleep after drinking, so my weekly 5-day fast gives me time to replenish the body! And I don't do dry months.

Of course one could go further and not drink alcohol at all, but life is all about balancing different pleasures and virtues!
 
I took seven months off entirely in 2020. Got pneumonia and decided to do a dry month after recovering, then Covid hit and it seemed smart to stay as close to fighting trim as possible. The sleep disruption is real. Since I started imbibing again, I generally have a 7:30 cut off. That gives me some time to get the alcohol metabolized, or at least on its way, before going to sleep. It's not as good as not drinking at all, and I do sometimes miss having a glass AFTER the kids go to bed, but its a workable compromise. When I drink later, which is mostly at wine dinners, I definitely feel it the next day, even if the amount is pretty modest. Day drinking has all sorts of bad connotations, but if I were retired, I think I'd drink wine almost exclusively in the afternoon.
 
For a few reasons, we customarily have dinner a little after 5 so that everything is pretty well digested by bedtime. Wine only before and during dinner.

I've not been aware of wine affecting my sleep patterns...thankfully (even if ignorance is bliss).

. . . . . . Pete
 
Thanks BJ for sharing - I have had real sleep issues with alcohol, too, and observed a dry January and now a mostly dry February as well.
 
It was just starting to have an impact. I had been trying things like weekend only drinking, but which would then be set aside then for Weds. date night, then random happy hours, going out etc. and effectively I was only skipping a couple nights a week. To be transparent, I have a pretty hard time limiting once I start - two glasses just don't happen (I'm ok with a sip or two but once the inhibition goes, I'm probably gonna finish the bottle).

It has been a long time since I've had an alcohol free stretch - I used to skip it for Lent, but it occurred to me recently that was 20 years ago.

It has been a revelation. I've definitely been sleeping better. We were drinking enough that it really affected weekend sleep, which spilled over to the week. Definitely gone up a notch sharpness wise. Also, once over the initial shock of not coming home to a drink, I feel like I'm pretty settled in the evenings. Believe or not, I drink herbal tea an hour before bed, and that's a real nice chill thing to do.

I just needed to get enough space to get perspective to figure out where to go with things. I'm definitely glad I did it. I am guessing where I'll end up with one bottle between the Mme and I Sat and Sunday, pub night Sunday (a tradition), and that's it.

I think if I were retired it would be a different deal. I have a pretty high stress job.
 
originally posted by BJ:
I had been trying things like weekend only drinking, but which would then be set aside then for Weds. date night, then random happy hours, going out etc. and effectively I was only skipping a couple nights a week.
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The perils of an active social life!

For the past several years, I've been playing tennis 3 nights a week, which actually made it tough to schedule social stuff sometimes, because I also liked having the Fri/Sat relaxing at home with wine and family. But that's another story...

originally posted by BJ:
Believe or not, I drink herbal tea an hour before bed, and that's a real nice chill thing to do.
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Whatever works. Speaking of the accumulated problems we face with aging, I enjoy sipping spirits after dinner but also need to limit fluid intake before bed to avoid bathroom interruptions messing with sleep.

I think if I were retired it would be a different deal. I have a pretty high stress job.
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IDK. I'm not a real doctor, but I don't think it's about the stress in and of itself as much as the patterns we develop for dealing with stress.
 
originally posted by BJ:
...I had been trying things like weekend only drinking, but which would then be set aside
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The problem with these 1 or 2 night deals is you still have an open bottle if you are only taking a glass out, you need to preserve the wine for the next few days.

originally posted by BJ:
...Believe or not, I drink herbal tea an hour before bed, and that's a real nice chill thing to do.
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Herbal teas are a nice thing to do at night as it balances out the day
 
originally posted by MarkS:
It's always good not to drink.
Put the liquids on the table and see how they split the atoms.
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Whoa! Can I quote you, Mark?

How's your lovely family, btw? Any new sallies planned to the rolling hills of the Virginia Piedmont?
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
originally posted by MarkS:
It's always good not to drink.
Put the liquids on the table and see how they split the atoms.
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Whoa! Can I quote you, Mark?

How's your lovely family, btw? Any new sallies planned to the rolling hills of the Virginia Piedmont?
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Sure. Wine, like water, seeks the path least difficult. I did not say where those droplets may go.

Sadly no to the second part. Right now there are too many places to go to play catch up, but would always let you know if I do.
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
If I recall correctly, Maureen does not drink alcohol during the week at all, only on weekends. Total respect to her; I've tried this regime but lack the strength of character to stick with it.
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Well, not accurate. I just don’t drink by myself and as I live alone and don’t go out or entertain all that often it means I don’t drink very often. When i drink good wine, it encourages me to eat too much (unusual I know) - so i decided years ago not to open a bottle unless I had someone to share it with.
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