On April 10th this, year I finished 100 days of no alcohol. Here is what happened.
A bit of personal history might lend some perspective. I never really got into alcohol that much as a teenager, save for a few encounters with MD 20/20, Boone’s Farm Apple Wine and the occasional beers. I tended more towards the wacky tobakky and methamphetamine. But going into the ’80s (my 30s), I started to develop a love/hate relationship with beer that turned into a serious habit. A 12 pack was a good start for the evening and I often had more than that. In the late ’80s I shook the meth habit, but the beer continued to flow through me with no end in sight. The extremely stressful manager’s job I had taken reinforced the need for numbness; the viscous cycle showed no signs of ending.
Then I quit that job; there is only so much abuse I will take.
While unemployed, I saw an ad in the newspaper for a free assessment of my alcoholism, so I made an appointment, took their survey of my habits and was told that there was no way I could quit on my own and would need hospitalization. I thanked them sincerely, went home and quit drinking for nine years. Motivation is everything. That was 1992.
In 2001, I bought a house. While trying to get everything done and getting a bit frazzled, I returned to the old crutch for some comfort. After a couple of years, I found out I had hepatitis C, so I quit again. Once cured of that, I once more started drinking, but switched to a once-or-so a week dose of rum and Coke. This lasted for about the last ten years or so, but I found that my insomnia was getting worse. On my non-drinking nights I needed something to help me sleep. Ambien worked the best; Nyquil was not bad, but the next morning would suck.
Then a friend of mine mentioned he and his wife might do 100 days of no drinking and I thought it was a marvelous idea, so I started on January 1, 2019, and finished it on April 10th. The results were that my insomnia has pretty much departed, my I feel better overall and my attitude is much more positive. My blood pressure is where it should be So, I have started another 100 days. We’ll see how that goes.
Will I never drink alcohol again? 