alcohol: No more beer here
A while ago I launched a post about why I stopped drinking alcohol and how it influences our society (read the whole post here). At that point, I knew that I had forgotten some things and I was thinking about doing a second one somewhere near in the future. After a while, I got more and more hate about the fact that I released that post (yeah the normal people were doing what they like the most once again). So I did what every person would do in this situation. I decided to write a second post instead of deleting the first one (makes 100% sense I know).
My whole environment is still in shock about the fact that I stopped drinking alcohol. They really can’t cope with it. I know one thing for sure, the day that I start drinking again is the day that I lose grip on my life. Luckily I learned a lot in life over the past years to see when I need to deal with problems but that’s not the case for everybody.
Alcohol is the number one drug to cure anxiety
A lot of people deal with anxiety these days and sometimes they’ll drink to gain more courage. Some drink a little too much or suddenly get too much courage but anyway this is not the way to go.
Work on your anxiety instead of trying to drink it away. It’s a short term solution for a long term problem. Read my guide on how you can beat anxiety. You can solve it without a single drop of alcohol.
Alcohol makes people fight over really dumb shit
I’ll go out again on New Year’s Eve since I wanted to celebrate it with friends. But I’ll still workout and blog that day. I’ll even do it the day after I don’t care that I’ll be tired, it’s possible if you’re not hungover
But something that occurs in almost every group of friends is the discussion on who’ll drive and stays sober that day. They argue who will be “punished”. Because drinking no alcohol on New Year’s Eve is the worst thing that can happen (no it’s not).
In this way, you’ll get two groups, the too drunk annoying ones, and the sober frustrated ones. Life’s a party am I right?
Sadly, people want to do everything to get drunk that one night. You could do it every night but that night they have too. The next day they’ll go out eating with family and they’ll complain about the fact that they can’t eat due to stomach problems.
I volunteered to drive, it makes life a lot easier. Besides New Year’s Eve is a day like any other. Most people just don’t treat it that way. Every day should be a holiday instead of a misery day.
Don’t fight over dumb things, just look at what you want to achieve in 2017 and make it last.
Less alcohol, please
On the 27th of December of 2015, I told myself that 2016 would be my year. I wanted to drink less and so on. I wanted to achieve more in life. Now almost one year later I can tell that I made them last one by one. I was working towards my best- self.
I’ve heard a lot of people claim that they’re going to drink less the next year but they never do it longer than one week. I can name you one million things that are more pleasant than waking up with a hangover or in your puke. It’s not that hard to name more joyful things.
Triggers is a good book on how to make these resolutions last (buy it here). Give it as a present at Christmas, you’ll make people a lot happier. Who wouldn’t be happy if they finally could crack the code on how to make their resolutions last?!
Alcohol is more dangerous than smoking
Smoking used to be the real deal back in the days. Only the tough people would smoke, or the cool kids whatever you prefer. Alcohol can be considered a new kind of smoking these days. It’s more dangerous than smoking because the whole environment will call you out when you’re trying to cut off alcohol.
Most people will ask you what wrong with you or call you a pussy. The pressure from friends and even family to drink again is enormous. Nobody ever called me out when I stopped smoking. When I’ll drink tea at a bar most people will give me strange looks.
Alcohol can be linked to more than 60 diseases (cancer in one of them). Why would I sacrifice my health? To be liked by others? I don’t think so.
I learned how to stop giving a single fuck.
Alcohol and moderation?
In the end, people have to choose for themselves whether they want to drink alcohol or not. It’s your life and health, not mine.
Science disapproves
There was an interview with a Dutch professor lately in a magazine in which he claimed that we should watch out more with alcohol.
He made some pretty strong points in the article but one sentence struck me the most. Alcohol is never healthy, not even one glass of wine a day because it remains alcohol. It’s a myth and it makes sense if you ask me.
The guidelines on how much people should drink per week changed drastically after that interview. Well at least here in Belgium.
Too much alcohol makes you look older
But consider moderation if you’re planning on drinking every weekend. It will save your health in the long run. I’ve seen more than enough students who aged dramatically in their faces due to high alcohol consumption.
I’ve dated a girl once and a friend of mine saw her without makeup. He claimed that she looked 30 without it (she was 23 at that moment). I saw her again recently, we didn’t see each other for about a year and now she looked 35 with make- up (she’s 24 now).
Don’t think that your lifestyle won’t catch up with you. It will and it will hit you big time, you’re just the only one who doesn’t realize it. Don’t think that you’re genetically blessed. Putting crap in your body will make you look like crap.
The anti-alcohol mindset won’t last long
I recently had a conversation with a guy about my point that alcohol was more dangerous than smoking. He looked at me and told me that used to drink a glass of wine every night when he watched television until the day before that conversation.
He watched a documentary about alcohol (it must have been on BBC this Saturday but he wasn’t 100% certain) and he threw his glass of wine away. Suddenly he didn’t like the taste anymore. He was completely unaware of what alcohol, even in the smallest amounts, really does to your body
It was funny that he mentioned it while he was drinking… a glass of wine (he joked about it himself). It’s hard to change behavior so you can’t expect people to change after 24 hours. But I guess he won’t drink every night anymore in the long run.
So how are you going to deal with alcohol? The same as this year or are you finally going to make the long-promised change?
This is once again food for thought only 25 days before the new year.
The alcohol trilogy: the last time or a new start?
This was the last part of my alcohol trilogy. Well, the last part so far. Maybe I’ll do another one in the future. Who knows?!
But Alex, what about the haters? Well, the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate (I genuinely hate that song). Maybe this sounds better: Zero To Alpha, not making any friends since the release of the first alcohol post.
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Till next time
Alex
I love that your answer to the hate was to write another! Haha. Keep it coming.
Hahhaha thank You. Don’t worry the post will keep on coming 😉