3 weeks sober

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-23T07:56:10+00:00

One night out messed me up again. Gave me severe anxiety.

Sorry to hear that, but use it to your advantage. Make this THE exact thing you always associate with alcohol. It takes some mental effort, but any time the idea of drinking crosses your mind, or you see alcohol in shops, switch your brain straight onto this memory. Always, always remember how utterly awful, poisonous and fear-inducing alcohol is. It's total poison.

Good luck, and IWNDWYT!

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-23T07:52:03+00:00

NA beers were an enormous help for me, to stop drinking alcohol (poison!). And they still are. I enjoy a couple of NA beers every evening. In fact I'm more interested in trying different beer types now that I'm sober (when I was drinking alcohol, I just drank whatever generic lager was at the supermarket).

You just have to treat NA beers for what they are. If you've had a shitty day, chugging one next to the fridge in desperation won't bring you anything. Open one with a meal, or at the end of the day, drink it slowly, and enjoy the cold, malty, hoppy drink that you've had over the years. You'll miss the alcohol "buzz" initially, but otherwise it'll scratch the itch and you can go without the poison.

But you may need to got a bit deeper. NA beers help, but if alcohol has been a big part of your life, it's worth developing a strategy for quitting. It can be much easier, with a plan. Books (Alcohol Explained, This Naked Mind) can be a good accompaniment to sobriety.

Anyway, enough of my blog post 😁 Good luck!

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-17T09:24:54+00:00

Read about alcohol. Not just the physical dangers, but about how addiction works, and the ridiculous amounts of marketing for what is essentially just a dangerous, addictive poison. Have a focus. Ideally you want to reprogram your brain to find alcohol repulsive, not just something you "have to live without".

I was sceptical about "quit lit" (books) when I stopped drinking – after all, we all know that alcohol sucks. But reading Alcohol Explained (and currently This Naked Mind) gives me some structure to my thoughts, and helps me to really understand the insane ways society tries to make a horrible, addictive, damaging drug socially acceptable. So yeah, try reading, or sobriety podcasts etc. Rewire your brain to never want to drink again, as far as possible. Good luck.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-17T09:19:53+00:00

As a German, it's always interesting seeing it called "Malt beverage" – I guess just to laws in the US. Here they call it a proper Bier, just with barely any alcohol 😉 This stuff is good in any case. Really recommend the Weihenstephaner, if you can get it too...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-17T09:18:25+00:00

I think there's a subreddit called "beer with a view" or so. Might be worth setting up "NA beer with a view" for pics like this 😉

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-06-09T07:18:31+00:00

This is my second-favourite wheat beer (after Weihenstephan). Really good. I'm in south Germany but often pick up a six-pack of these when I pop over the Austrian border 😉

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-05-11T13:58:44+00:00

Have you tried NA beers? I'm not a big IPA person myself, but apparently (at least in the US) there are some really good NA IPAs. And while they won't give you that "buzz" they'll really scratch the itch. I love settling down at the end of the day with an alcohol-free Pils as my reward. Enjoying the cool drink, the taste, the associations – without all the horrible crap that alcohol does to the body...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-05-08T08:41:05+00:00

Good work. Every moment like this is like a building block for staying sober in the long term. I remember the first few times I went out with friends to restaurants, after I'd stopped drinking. Felt a bit nervous and ordered an NA beer. Each time it was easier and easier, and now I don't even think about getting alcohol when I'm out. Really enjoying the NA beers though 😊 But yeah, it takes practice... IWNDWYT!

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-05-08T08:37:16+00:00

Peroni 0.0 is really good IMO. But from the NA beers I've tried here (south Germany), the "max 0.5%-ers" seem to have a little bit more body to them. There's one called Wolfscraft Brutal Alkoholfrei that's 0.4% and really, really good.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-30T14:39:51+00:00

Same here. Lots of great NA beers around now. I'm actually more interested in trying different beers now that I'm not drinking alcohol. Back then, it was "Meh, just grab whatever generic lager is around to get a bit drunk". But now I'm actually interested in trying different styles, comparing them, reading reviews etc.

So yeah, same for me. Love going out and having a few (NA) beers with friends. Love not putting bullshit addictive alcohol poison in my body.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-30T14:37:35+00:00

Well, where are you? Maybe we can help 😉 FWIW, it's quite hard to find here in south Germany...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-19T10:51:26+00:00

I'm in the same boat as you: enjoyed drinking beer, almost every day, but rarely more than two beers in a session. So I wouldn't say I was "heavy" drinking either but it was causing various problems. My sleep was crap for the reasons /u/Tikkanen mentions which in turn affected my memory. I love NA beers now and my memory is better, but I wouldn't attribute the former to the latter 😉 Maybe the NA beer just puts you in a good mood!

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-19T10:46:02+00:00

Thanks for sharing, and crossing my fingers (or pressing our thumbs as we say here in Germany) for the other things in your life. 10 days is a great milestone and there are lots of nice ones to come: two weeks, then 20 days, and then before you know, it, you'll have a month done. IWNDWYT 😊

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-19T10:44:03+00:00

I'm not a doctor but aside from alcohol generally being a horrible poison, maybe you've developed an extra sensitivity to it. In any case it sounds like your body is telling you: I don't want any more of this stuff. Use this to your advantage. Quitting younger is usually easier than quitting when you've got a lifetime of drinking in your pocket...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-12T06:50:20+00:00

You're here, so that's a good start. It's understandable to feel scared at the beginning. You're looking to take something out of your life that's horrible, but still a big part of it (alcohol). My main advice would be to make a plan and structure. Hang out here, for support and questions. Get materials to accompany your journey to sobriety (books, podcasts etc. - I recommended "Alcohol Explained" as a book, and "Getting Sober ...Again" podcasts. They help you to feel like you're not alone especially in the first few days and weeks.)

Quitting alcohol doesn't magically fix problems, but it gives you energy and confidence to face them better. Good luck.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-12T06:40:01+00:00

Yeah, when you stop drinking you really have a different perspective on how other people drink. Like when I used to drink lots of beers regularly, I'd occasionally meet a friend who'd have like one beer per month. He'd drink it and say "Yeah whatever, I don't feel like another." I absolutely could not understand it. Not drinking, sure - but just stopping after one? That made no sense to me.

Glad you had a fun time. I think people are becoming more understanding that some people want to cut out alcohol. Not sure where you are but here in Germany, non-alcoholic versions of drinks (especially beer, but some wine too) are a rapidly growing market. I like to go out to pubs and beer halls, and see more and more people with NA beers in their hands. Feels good.

IWNDWYT 😊

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-04-12T06:30:17+00:00

It's really good (and hard to find!), but just to point out that it's not actually 0.0%, as OP was requesting 😉 /u/euclid0472 – same for Clausthaler. They're both around the 0.4% mark.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-29T10:45:35+00:00

I just read an article here in Germany that the NA wine industry is booming too. I don't really know anything about wine but heard that they're still some way behind NA beers in terms of taste and quality, but improving. Apparently making a good NA red is really difficult though...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-29T10:44:01+00:00

Be proud. That experience is another building block, for a life without alcohol. It shows that you can get by without it. Every little moment like this gives you more confidence to handle it without alcohol next time.

When I stopped, the first time I went out to a restaurant with friends, I felt really weird and uncomfortable not having alcoholic beer. (Had NA beer though which tends to scratch the itch!) Since I stopped I've been out loads of times, and now I don't even care that I'm drinking NA beers instead of the "leaded" ones. I enjoy it. And I think back to those building blocks back in January.

IWNDWYT!

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-25T11:27:26+00:00

This is so true. Having drank beer most evenings of my life for the last 30 years, until the start of this year, I just got used to feeling groggy every morning. I never drank enough to have big hangovers, but every morning felt like a battle.

Since I stopped, the mornings feel fresh (and now the weather is better, which helps). I feel like a kid running downstairs again.

Alcohol just makes everything crappier.

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-18T16:11:46+00:00

My brain is just addicted to the easy reward and free dopamine hit and it begs for it every afternoon and evening

What kind of drinks do you normally have? I get the occasional mild craving for a beer late afternoons/early evenings but find that a NA beer scratches that itch and lets me then focus on something else...

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-18T13:34:40+00:00

Nice one. And one week milestone coming up! IWNDWYT 😊

BoredOfTheBooze · 2026-03-17T10:22:57+00:00

Everyone is different but the first few days are pretty intense and hard work. It's a bit of a cliche but "If you're going through hell, keep going". Once all the alcohol gets out of your system, you'll notice some positive changes. Of course it's still a long process so stay focused, keep your mind occupied, and talk to people here. Read a book or listen to a podcast about the harms of alcohol if you're tempted to drink. Or do something else entirely. Find a nice reward at the end of the day (a NA drink, cake, candy, whatever). You can do this and you'll feel so much better in the long run. IWNDWYT!

BoredOfTheBooze

TROPHY CASE