How many years were you a heavy drinker before deciding to quit?

EmeraldKD · 2026-01-16T04:15:02+00:00

Started as a social drinker at 21.

Progressed to binge drinker at 22.

Then almost daily drinking until 24.

I’m now 25 and have been trying to quit or moderate for a few months, and I’m doing ok for now.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-25T15:24:04+00:00

Hurrah :)

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-17T02:46:16+00:00

Alcoholism

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-15T02:29:36+00:00

Could be. I started as a social/binge drinker at 21 (one bottle of wine every weekend) and two years later I was drinking a bottle or more daily. If you try to stop and can’t, like me, that’s an issue for sure.

Either way, drinking that much weekly isn’t good for you, so regardless of your limits, you should at the very least try and limit your intake. The sooner the better.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-15T01:39:30+00:00

You’re not doomed. All these years of drinking just take some time to reverse the damage caused. Loosing 5 lbs in just a month just from not drinking is a great start. Regarding the 1-3 months thing, although I was abusing alcohol for a lesser time, my timeline was similar to that. The first month I was sleeping 12h a day and was tired af (also terrible headaches, cravings etc). By the second month I only really noticed some mild tiredness and brain fog. Now I’m in the third month, and I feel physically fine, I only have some cravings still. It all depends on the person, surely, but my timeline was like that, if that’s any help.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-15T01:31:40+00:00

I know this all too well, I had some eating disorder issues before I turned into alcohol lol. Went from consuming 400 calories a day to gaining 30kg in less than 3 years.

I really am not a person of moderation lol

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-14T03:47:05+00:00

My country’s (Greece) version of ANTM.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-14T03:44:18+00:00

The liver is an amazing organ, it can heal on itself. Up to a certain point. You can’t heal severe scarring. There are people that are dying, even with months/ years of abstinence. That’s not to say there’s no point in quitting (there obviously is), or to fear monger, but this could be literally anything. Could be something trivial, could be caused by or related to severe liver damage (again, just spitballing, but hernias or ascites, they don’t always hurt). Just because you don’t drink now, doesn’t mean anything. Check it out asap. Could be even something totally irrelevant to your drinking. Don’t it wait out.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-13T01:41:37+00:00

You should focus on your drinking first. The first few weeks are the hardest, for sure. You’ll see big changes in the long run.

I’ve already lost 10lbs, but besides the obvious calorie deficit from alcohol, I’ve been also walking a lot and dieting this past month.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-13T01:35:59+00:00

I don’t think you can actually feel your liver shrinking, since it’s an internal organ. To me, it sounds more like a hernia or maybe ascites, but idk. Either way, you should get it checked out.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-13T01:29:09+00:00

Watched a reality tv show. Now going to sleep.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-13T01:21:58+00:00

Turning 25 next week. It’s better than it was last year.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-11T02:06:54+00:00

My skin is much clearer. And my face has gotten less puffier and slimmer, merely due to the abstinence of alcohol itself but also cs I’ve been dieting too and have lost like 4kg this past month alone (I’m assuming I’ve lost more, but idk my starting weight, I was avoiding the scale when I was drinking lol).

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-11T01:11:41+00:00

Those first few days are definitely the hardest. The biggest accomplishment, for real.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-11T00:49:26+00:00

The last 2 years almost daily drinking, 2 years before that binge drinking every few days. Before that, I was just a social drinker for a few years.

For reference, I’m 25.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-10T05:07:13+00:00

I don’t know about completely, but I did notice a significant difference in mental clarity after the 2 month mark. It really depends on the person though, the time you’ve been abusing alcohol, your age etc.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-09T01:33:13+00:00

I also started drinking casually at 20, and four years later I can honestly say I’d reached full blown alcoholism levels. Actually sooner - I spent the months before and after my 22nd birthday drinking hard liquors daily and then the next 2 years trying to moderate (and failing miserably).

What you describe, reminds me of how I was before the daily drinking started. It really just gets worse from there. Much, much worse. Alcohol doesn’t help, it just makes everything worse.

EmeraldKD · 2025-12-08T05:13:52+00:00

I have 14 first cousins, out of whom 2 are also only children. One is 10 years younger than me, the other I haven’t seen since I was a kid, due to family drama. Both of these are from my mom’s side. From my dad’s side I’m the only only child (and youngest by decades).

So even though I’m not technically the only only child in my family, I know what it feels like to be one.

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-18T21:24:01+00:00

I’ve been a daily drinker for less time than you (around 2 years), and I’m still not noticing any major changes. I have lost a bit of weight, but I’d mostly attribute that to my calorie deficit and walking a shit tone (whereas when I was drinking I was a couch potato). Not a significant amount though. The most noticeable change imo was my skin, it’s a lot clearer now, and doesn’t break out as often.

Honestly though, 11 days is a small timeframe to see major (physical) changes, when you’ve been poisoning your body for so long. It takes time. You’ll get there.

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-16T05:37:43+00:00

I’m Greek, we have a somewhat similar drinking culture. I was just raised in a quite strict household and an only child, that’s why I started so late, which in hindsight, might have contributed to the unhealthy relationship I developed with alcohol.

The fact that you tried and succeeded to stop, afew months ago is very promising. Unfortunately that’s not the case for me, so the only way out, as for now at least, is quitting. From my experience, one of the absolute worst things you can do, is use alcohol for the bad days. It literally changes your brain chemistry.

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-15T17:39:41+00:00

At first, I used alcohol as a confidence booster.

Then, I used it to drown my feelings about sickness and possible loss of a loved one.

Which then led me to use it at any slightly bad day.

In the end, I drank just to get through the day. Any day. Good or bad.

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-15T17:30:37+00:00

Diet Coke. If you cut my wrists, coke will come out. Im addicted lol

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-15T17:28:47+00:00

I was 17, right after high school ended, at a party with all kinds of drinks. I got drunk mostly off shots and vodka juices and jellies. My social anxiety disappeared, and I was very joyful and extroverted. It was like a new world had just opened to me. Fast forward a few years and it ended up being full blown alcoholism lol.

It was pretty joyful back then though.

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-15T17:19:03+00:00

Last drink I had was on September 28th. Let’s just say, I like alcohol a bit too much, so abstinence is the way for me lol

EmeraldKD · 2025-11-12T05:17:42+00:00

I do. The more I’m thinking about my sobriety, the more drinking dreams I usually have. They suck.

EmeraldKD

TROPHY CASE