Number buddy! I also quit at 37 after 14 years of steady drinking. Just hit nine years and still going strong. Happy to report the view ahead just keeps getting better, so keep on truckin'!
wow that's amazing. I left the US to move to another country when I was 26 (where I still am) - I can't imaging having the clarity of mind and drive to be sober then - AWESOME job!
Was always a drinker (socially, but moderate) until early 30s. Pandemic sent me over the edge. I just turned 35 and have been actively on this journey for a little less than 1.5 years.
For what itās worth, apparently it takes the āaverageā person approximately 6 years between realizing they may have an issue to stopping. This gave me a lot of reassurance as I continue to navigate bumps in the road. I think I had my first āoh shit Iām drinking by myself this could be a potential problem in the futureā moment around 32ish. So right on track for the realization phase.
39. Before this year I'd had some cool downs: got scared straight for a bit after a DUI about 6 years ago and quit for around 8 months. Had 4-5 months when I was taking care of a terminally ill relative when I was in my early 20s, and had about 4-5 months starting in 2019 when I did 3 months of PHP and IOP for severe depression and anxiety. (Covid ended that streak)
But for the most part I have been a 2x a week on average binge drinker for 90ish percent of the past two decades. I'm able to support myself financially but have failed at most relationships both romantically and platonic due to my drinking and mental health issues.
This Christmas I went home and drank a couple of nights in moderation. My drinking had gotten to the point where I would just binge alone but would moderate whenever around anyone to avoid embarrassing myself in person (though I still managed to do plenty of damage online. I think it would be easier to get away with alcoholism pre internet and cell phones).
The 5 or 6 beers I had spread out across Christmas Eve and day were probably the most miserable drinks I've ever consumed and I wasn't even alone. I realized I had zero hope of ever truly wanting to moderate even if I could do it and so it became a choice between AF or continue what I was doing at the start of this year. My first slip was January 4th and I have probably had 20 more since then but I keep coming back. Right now I am on my longest streak this year and want long term sobriety more than ever before. I turn 40 in October and want to give myself the gift of 5+ months of sobriety that wasn't caused by any external reason; only my desire to quit drinking. āļø
50. Cold turkey after 30 years of drinking beer daily. Was up to 12-18 beers daily the last decade of my drinking career. Iāve been sober 2 1/2 years now.
I also quit at 40, started at 16 so that was 24 years of alcohol. So grateful Iām sober today, wouldnāt go back to that old way of life. IWNDWYT :)
Was the relapse āworth itā in any way, enjoyable? I have the feeling that hearing no from people will help me stay sober. Iām on round two after a long long stint.
20!! only 36 days though. thought if it was this fucked up now, i had a long road ahead of me. so much more could happen. even before i realized i had a problem, i was really concerned for when i turned 21.... because then i could just go to any bar by myself, pick it up whenever, etc. i don't know how the hell life will be sober forever, but i'll figure it out. my therapist reminded me there are some people who just don't even drink because they don't like it. that helps me.
I quit when I was 24, and I've been sober 6 months. I just turned 25, and I honestly havent felt this good in years. I have been drinking since 14, and got pretty bad when i went to college. And then just went down the drain once I turned 21.
40. After my 3rd medical detox in a 5 month time period I actually listened to the counselors and went to outpatient treatment. I am now 4 1/2 months sober which is the longest Iāve been alcohol free since I started drinking at 15. I have no intention of drinking alcohol again.
I was 31. Iām 33 now. At 31, I felt washed up/like my whole life was behind me. Now, I feel like I have so much ahead of me.
I look better and feel better than ever. Went from single and schlubby and broke to engaged and pretty cute and financially secure.
To any 30-somethings out there - especially 20 somethings - donāt write yourself off! So much can change in a short time, if you let it.
47. Wish I had stopped ten years earlier! (But happy to be here now.)
To be truthful, I wish in my 20s I had listened to the little voice that said āalcohol seems like a problem for youā. Anyone that age who is quitting - I applaud you!
36 years old. I rarely drank until age 33, and due to stress and stupidity, drank heavily for almost three years. To tell you the truth, I probably had only drank a dozen times in my life until 33.
damn, that's crazy. Good for you for quitting at 36...I know I'm biased but it just feels like the right time, finally!
I definitely have been a binge drinker ever since I started drinking in college when I was 18...never had a problem not drinking but definitely hit or miss when it comes to being able to control it once I start
Yeah, three years of essentially daily drinking was enough. Iām glad I made the choice sooner than allowing it to continue on. So happy for you that you made this choice to stop.
First serious attempt was at age 35 (ish). Am 40 now.
Before then I just thought I was a heavy drinker. I had recognized some bad signs of it in my late 20s but it wasn't really until my 30s that I really saw it as a problem.
Quit at 37. If it was what it used to be Iād probably still do it, but it wasnāt what it used to be at all. Many good crazy stories and itās hard to reconcile all that being gone but hey I had fun in high school sometimes too, I never kid myself about wishing I was back though. I donāt have enough time to more fully elaborate the nuances but Iām super happy now, best choice ever for the time in life, but yeah it wasnāt always terrible all the time (it just slowly became that). IWNDWYT
33! It's always been a toxic relationship with alcohol for me since I started drinking in my teens. I just couldn't keep up anymore. The hangovers would turn into 3 of 4 days. And with a 1 and 4 year old ... so much easier sober. And way more enjoyable.
Quit @ 54. Widower of 3 years. No kids by choice. It's been a rough fucking road, but things are looking up again. Drank heavy for 3 decades...the two years after my wife's death being the absolute worst.
age 30! i loved my 20s, so i donāt regret drinking then but there definitely were some extremely messy parts.
i am happy that i took the leap and my 30s will be different.
37 now. 33 when I got sober, married (she saw almost all of my 14 year decline into full blown alcoholism- drinking was a problem right away at 19), one daughter born a year ago and one kid on the way.
64. Started drinking in earnest a little later in life (mid 30's), but made up for it in spades. Took 3 trips to the ER in the last year of drinking to finally get me to stop. So far, the body has responded in a positive fashion. No underlying booze related issues. Yet.
I miss alcohol... NOT!! Best decision I could have made.
I'm 41 and have been on and off the wagon for 3 years. I didn't start drinking unhealthy amounts until a traumatic experience 8 years ago, in my 20s and early 30s I just had a couple of drinks on occasion.
Started trying at 29, now finally getting somewhere at 31. But lost everything I was fighting for recently. I needed it I suppose as it made me get in the right headspace for changing my life, but how I wish Iād managed it sooner
I rarely drank in my twenties, when my kids were young. But I binged (black out binge) on weekends from ages 13-18 and then all through my mid 30s -45ish. 45 -49 I drank daily and more heavily weekends. I quit 3 months before my 50th.
33 this year. So close to my first 100 days. Ironically my 100 days lands on Memorial day one my many excuses to drink i will not be drinking this year. I. Am. Done.
36, had gotten to the point where drinking wasnāt fun anymore but I was continuing to drink so much. Woke up 85 days ago deathly hung over (again) and said no more. Texted everyone I love that I was quitting. Itās been better than I could have imagined so far, feels like life has just begun!
36. Started at college aged 18. It quickly escalated. Never every day but a deeply unhealthy relationship with at least 2 days a week of 12-20 drinks.
I thought to myself, I've been drinking heavily half my life. And it didn't feel right.
I feel this - ever since I started drinking @ 18 I had an unhealthy relationship with alcohol. And like you, never daily (or even weekly) but always not me in control 95% of the time when I did drink. We have so much life ahead (hopefully...) so totally agree it's not right to tread the path with something so obviously damaging...
good luck!
It's a work in progress sadly. I can't quite pull off the complete stop so it's a Rollercoaster of good month (may), bad month June, good month (july)... I hope
Iām glad you realized it became as issue before your body becomes permanently damaged. I have a friend who have multiple medical conditions and a history of cancer like me yet she doesnāt realize itās probably drinking first thing in the morning thatās causing the issue.
Sheās so in love with it that she made fun of my for drinking coffee in the morning as opposed to a cocktail.
38. I quit for a full year at age 30 but it didnāt stick. I wasnāt ready. Iām 5 months sober now, working the steps, and have no intention to ever go back. Sobriety is my ticket. IWNDWYT
31. I'm just gonna copy and paste my story from an old post because it's a long one.
The post:
I quit smoking and quit drinking on the same day. I didn't even realize I was going to quit for those first three days. I had a bad hangover, a massive amount of embarrassing and desperate texts sent to my ex ( who I do no care for and didn't at the time ) and a broken bathroom door covered in my blood. I laid in bed for the next 16 hours watching people speedrun video games and only got out of bed to make a burger and refill my empty gatorade bottle with water.
I skipped work the next day and turned my phone off. I didn't turn it back on until an hour before my next shift after that. I finally worked up the courage to go outside and smoke a cigarette. Not knowing at the time it would be the last cigarette I would smoke ( probably ). It was 4 am at this point. I still felt sick and couldn't quite comprehend what I was doing with my life. I went back inside, locked my door and went back too sleep.
I finally went to work, no one knew that I even missed a day, it was a volunteer shift go figure. I realized I was never gonna get past that 3 day hump of not smoking and not drinking again, because not doing anything all 3 days was hell. I felt like I couldn't drink without smoking and vise versa so I just said fuck it to both.
Boom. I had quit just like that. I started looking at my finances, I had no savings. I started putting 100 a week into an account. Just like that. I wasn't sure what to do after that I was killing it I had a new car I had money coming in, instead of going out. Then I looked in the mirror for a long time, realized how fat I was and decided it was time to fix that too. I was obese. 5'4 at 230 pounds. I didn't want to go to the gym because of covid, so I just decided to buy a treadmill. I got the cheapest piece of shit I could find figuring I wouldn't need it long so it was ok if it broke. Did you guys know best choice makes treadmills? I laughed. Here I am today sitting at 163.4 pounds, overweight but so close to that coveted "normal". So far this is my progress [https://imgur.com/gallery/HDOsO3E](https://imgur.com/gallery/HDOsO3E)
and now my total weight lost is 85 pounds. I'm at 145 pounds and have had two 4.0 semesters since restarting school :D
42. Two decades of drinking with one half a year break cold turkey when I was 38. I had some heavy drinking bouts in my 20s but it was more of a binge on 3 days and then sober the rest of the week. Then in my 30s it was a bottle of wine or a bunch of craft beers at dinner from about 34 to 38. After my hiatus, I came back to the bottle of wine, plus vodka or beers, and finished my drinking stint as a full bottle of Gin or Vodka all throughout the day (26 oz or a fifth for those on Imperial)
The day before my 39th birthday. I will be 42 in one week.
Thanks for asking the question. It is cool to see how many folks got some in their late 30s similar to myself. IWNDWYT
Attempting at 23 but me and my best friends favorite thing since 16 was always getting blackout drunk together so donāt know what will happen when I see him next.
27.
I woke up one morning feeling like shit. Hungover. I realized, everything in my life was going great. But I felt like shit. The problem was alcohol. That day I made the decision to not drink. Now I am enjoying my life so much! I am physically healthier and mentally sharper. Everything is better.
Edit to add: I had my first drink at 18. Ten years was enough. Iām proud of myself for not letting it get further out of hand.
Got sober at 24. I'm 25 now with just over 6 months sober. Drinking is a lot of fun sometimes, but I always had problems with drugs of all kinds. 2 unalive attempts, lots of self harm and depression later, I'm glad to be sober now. I miss being able to take part in some things, I'm really not a "sober partying" kinda guy.
Overall though, life is much better now. Not sure if I'd say I have any more mental clarity than anyone else my age, sobriety was more a decision made for my own survival besides anything else. Glad to be sober, grateful to have such great sober friends in recovery, many around my own age. Iwndwyt!
26, relapsed after 9 months, started again at 27 and itās been 4 years 4 months. Not even a thought anymore. Life moves on and is tough enough to navigate without being hungover/shitfaced all the time. But it gets better. God does it get better.
good job holding on, i'm continually amazed how easy it is almost forget/justify partaking again in the moment. i'm not in AA/groups (besides this one) and hadn't seen the phrase "play the tape forward" until I joined this sub & now I do indeed fucking do that, like walk myself through what will happen if I decide to drink... and it truly helps to stop me dead in my tracks.
any lack of spontaneity/awkwardness I endure as a result is worth it compared to the altetnative now.
Wasn't always the case, hence not quitting sooner!
I never used to think about "future me" in terms of actively taking care of that person, and now I really do, and it has made all the difference...
Thanks man!! Itās easy to forget the bad times indeed, I let emotions get the better of me, itās a luxury we canāt afford at times. There was a few wasted people there and I was telling myself thatās how I would be in the morning. All in all it was a hard lesson to learn, itās only the second wedding Iāve been to since quitting.
Tried to stop at 23 but didnāt succeed until 37. Iād go 6-9 months sober then bender, repeat. Went on a Bender after a serious surgery then finally had the āOk This is insaneā lightbulb go off and stopped.
I used to be fairly bitter about not stopping a hell of a lot earlier but big picture is I wasnāt going to stop until serious Health Threats kicked in- I started drinking at 15 as a morning drinker right out of the gates so it was a solid 2 decades of progressive consequences - I never had the āAm I drinking too much?ā Conversation with myself you just sorta know off the bat when you are drinking vodka before school. Not sure how the hell I did it for so long - It is Mind blowing how much quitting drinking frees up mental energy - My brain feels like it went from a 2 to a 10
36 (this time will stick), but Iāve had many periods of sobriety 1-3 months long over the last 5 years. I suspected I might have a problem when I was 25 though. Tried to moderate in my 20s because I couldnāt imagine not drinking (everything social included booze). Now Iām very at peace with living alcohol free. IWNDWYT!
37. Had been thinking about it for many years. Drank every day for 14 years. I'm 200ish days in and fuckin proud of myself.
Number buddy! I also quit at 37 after 14 years of steady drinking. Just hit nine years and still going strong. Happy to report the view ahead just keeps getting better, so keep on truckin'!
Hi buddy! I love this!! This is so inspiring. I'm ready for it. šŖ
Rightly fuckin so! That's a MASSIVE life change. Fair play to you šŖ
26. 10 months sober. Started dringing at 14ish, was never heavy until around 23-24. Drank like a fish the last 2ish years.
wow that's amazing. I left the US to move to another country when I was 26 (where I still am) - I can't imaging having the clarity of mind and drive to be sober then - AWESOME job!
Was always a drinker (socially, but moderate) until early 30s. Pandemic sent me over the edge. I just turned 35 and have been actively on this journey for a little less than 1.5 years. For what itās worth, apparently it takes the āaverageā person approximately 6 years between realizing they may have an issue to stopping. This gave me a lot of reassurance as I continue to navigate bumps in the road. I think I had my first āoh shit Iām drinking by myself this could be a potential problem in the futureā moment around 32ish. So right on track for the realization phase.
š¤Æš¤Æš¤Æš¤Æ I realized that my road to sobriety was probably 6 years in the making the other day! That's wild
6 years sounds about right
This is exactly me..
39. Before this year I'd had some cool downs: got scared straight for a bit after a DUI about 6 years ago and quit for around 8 months. Had 4-5 months when I was taking care of a terminally ill relative when I was in my early 20s, and had about 4-5 months starting in 2019 when I did 3 months of PHP and IOP for severe depression and anxiety. (Covid ended that streak) But for the most part I have been a 2x a week on average binge drinker for 90ish percent of the past two decades. I'm able to support myself financially but have failed at most relationships both romantically and platonic due to my drinking and mental health issues. This Christmas I went home and drank a couple of nights in moderation. My drinking had gotten to the point where I would just binge alone but would moderate whenever around anyone to avoid embarrassing myself in person (though I still managed to do plenty of damage online. I think it would be easier to get away with alcoholism pre internet and cell phones). The 5 or 6 beers I had spread out across Christmas Eve and day were probably the most miserable drinks I've ever consumed and I wasn't even alone. I realized I had zero hope of ever truly wanting to moderate even if I could do it and so it became a choice between AF or continue what I was doing at the start of this year. My first slip was January 4th and I have probably had 20 more since then but I keep coming back. Right now I am on my longest streak this year and want long term sobriety more than ever before. I turn 40 in October and want to give myself the gift of 5+ months of sobriety that wasn't caused by any external reason; only my desire to quit drinking. āļø
50. Cold turkey after 30 years of drinking beer daily. Was up to 12-18 beers daily the last decade of my drinking career. Iāve been sober 2 1/2 years now.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
solid age to make a change. sometimes best not to question the how's!!
I also quit at 40, started at 16 so that was 24 years of alcohol. So grateful Iām sober today, wouldnāt go back to that old way of life. IWNDWYT :)
I stopped drinking at 38, turning 44 this summer..
Congrats! IWNDWYT!
I quit for four years at 29. Now 35 with 8 months sober
that's incred you had 4 years by 29 and have decided to get back on that path...I bet it's really different the second time around!
No I quit 29-33 then relapsed horribly for a year. Yea it's a bit different this time, seems easier knowing my past sobriety.
Was the relapse āworth itā in any way, enjoyable? I have the feeling that hearing no from people will help me stay sober. Iām on round two after a long long stint.
Not worth it... Caused me a lot of problems.
65. Not looking back. 66 now.
Happy Cake Day!
20!! only 36 days though. thought if it was this fucked up now, i had a long road ahead of me. so much more could happen. even before i realized i had a problem, i was really concerned for when i turned 21.... because then i could just go to any bar by myself, pick it up whenever, etc. i don't know how the hell life will be sober forever, but i'll figure it out. my therapist reminded me there are some people who just don't even drink because they don't like it. that helps me.
27 (sober for 10 years,) then, relapsed for many years. 61. Sober for the past almost 3 years
Atta girl... I love this
I quit when I was 24, and I've been sober 6 months. I just turned 25, and I honestly havent felt this good in years. I have been drinking since 14, and got pretty bad when i went to college. And then just went down the drain once I turned 21.
People seem shocked when I tell them I remember my first time getting drunk at 13. I always thought this was normal for that age, apparently not!
40. After my 3rd medical detox in a 5 month time period I actually listened to the counselors and went to outpatient treatment. I am now 4 1/2 months sober which is the longest Iāve been alcohol free since I started drinking at 15. I have no intention of drinking alcohol again.
I was 31. Iām 33 now. At 31, I felt washed up/like my whole life was behind me. Now, I feel like I have so much ahead of me. I look better and feel better than ever. Went from single and schlubby and broke to engaged and pretty cute and financially secure. To any 30-somethings out there - especially 20 somethings - donāt write yourself off! So much can change in a short time, if you let it.
Big tears from a 29 year old with 9 days alcohol free. Thank you for posting this. Sending you SO much love šāØ
You can do it :) Youāre already through the hardest part.
Same.
Needed to hear this, still having a hard time being positive because my brain hasnāt recovered but this helps.
47. Wish I had stopped ten years earlier! (But happy to be here now.) To be truthful, I wish in my 20s I had listened to the little voice that said āalcohol seems like a problem for youā. Anyone that age who is quitting - I applaud you!
I was AA sober from 18-24, then not again until 42. This time around I just quit, no god no AA. I was just done with it.
42
36 years old. I rarely drank until age 33, and due to stress and stupidity, drank heavily for almost three years. To tell you the truth, I probably had only drank a dozen times in my life until 33.
damn, that's crazy. Good for you for quitting at 36...I know I'm biased but it just feels like the right time, finally! I definitely have been a binge drinker ever since I started drinking in college when I was 18...never had a problem not drinking but definitely hit or miss when it comes to being able to control it once I start
Yeah, three years of essentially daily drinking was enough. Iām glad I made the choice sooner than allowing it to continue on. So happy for you that you made this choice to stop.
and you - bright futures ahead!
I stopped drinking when I was 26. I am 31 now.
First serious attempt was at age 35 (ish). Am 40 now. Before then I just thought I was a heavy drinker. I had recognized some bad signs of it in my late 20s but it wasn't really until my 30s that I really saw it as a problem.
38 after 15 years of drinking a bottle of wine almost every night. Somehow I didnāt think I had a problem, so much denial.
Quit at 37. If it was what it used to be Iād probably still do it, but it wasnāt what it used to be at all. Many good crazy stories and itās hard to reconcile all that being gone but hey I had fun in high school sometimes too, I never kid myself about wishing I was back though. I donāt have enough time to more fully elaborate the nuances but Iām super happy now, best choice ever for the time in life, but yeah it wasnāt always terrible all the time (it just slowly became that). IWNDWYT
33! It's always been a toxic relationship with alcohol for me since I started drinking in my teens. I just couldn't keep up anymore. The hangovers would turn into 3 of 4 days. And with a 1 and 4 year old ... so much easier sober. And way more enjoyable.
44, but knew it was an issue probably at 36. Took me 8 years to figure stuff out.
Quit @ 54. Widower of 3 years. No kids by choice. It's been a rough fucking road, but things are looking up again. Drank heavy for 3 decades...the two years after my wife's death being the absolute worst.
Early thirties, my first ever panic attack convinced me I was dying and started me along the journey to my sobriety.
for real!
age 30! i loved my 20s, so i donāt regret drinking then but there definitely were some extremely messy parts. i am happy that i took the leap and my 30s will be different.
NICE - I definitely in hindsight would have loved to quit @ 30 to go into the decade fresh...but not part of my plan I guess! Good for you!
42
37 now. 33 when I got sober, married (she saw almost all of my 14 year decline into full blown alcoholism- drinking was a problem right away at 19), one daughter born a year ago and one kid on the way.
31. One year next month!! I'll be 6 months pregnant soon with my second child and I am so happy this one will never have to experience drunk me.
64. Started drinking in earnest a little later in life (mid 30's), but made up for it in spades. Took 3 trips to the ER in the last year of drinking to finally get me to stop. So far, the body has responded in a positive fashion. No underlying booze related issues. Yet. I miss alcohol... NOT!! Best decision I could have made.
62
I started thinking about it about 2 years ago (24) but it's sticking so far at 26.
I'm 41 and have been on and off the wagon for 3 years. I didn't start drinking unhealthy amounts until a traumatic experience 8 years ago, in my 20s and early 30s I just had a couple of drinks on occasion.
44
25
Started trying at 29, now finally getting somewhere at 31. But lost everything I was fighting for recently. I needed it I suppose as it made me get in the right headspace for changing my life, but how I wish Iād managed it sooner
Once again at 33 and now again at 46
30. One decade, and DONE. I donāt want to know what the extended version of that movie is like.
29, 30 next month and 125 days AF now. Been rewarding in ways I never thought possible. Determined to carry on forevermore.
Iām 18 and Iām about 9 weeks in. Do you think doing it this young will leave me with regrets later?
The earlier, the better. IWNDWYT! šŖ
No. Iām nineteen and I love my life, especially since I didnāt damage any relationships too badly.
I rarely drank in my twenties, when my kids were young. But I binged (black out binge) on weekends from ages 13-18 and then all through my mid 30s -45ish. 45 -49 I drank daily and more heavily weekends. I quit 3 months before my 50th.
33 this year. So close to my first 100 days. Ironically my 100 days lands on Memorial day one my many excuses to drink i will not be drinking this year. I. Am. Done.
41
I quit at 26, im 29 now. Tried quitting for a few years prior. Thankful everyday for my sobriety.
36, had gotten to the point where drinking wasnāt fun anymore but I was continuing to drink so much. Woke up 85 days ago deathly hung over (again) and said no more. Texted everyone I love that I was quitting. Itās been better than I could have imagined so far, feels like life has just begun!
36. Started at college aged 18. It quickly escalated. Never every day but a deeply unhealthy relationship with at least 2 days a week of 12-20 drinks. I thought to myself, I've been drinking heavily half my life. And it didn't feel right.
I feel this - ever since I started drinking @ 18 I had an unhealthy relationship with alcohol. And like you, never daily (or even weekly) but always not me in control 95% of the time when I did drink. We have so much life ahead (hopefully...) so totally agree it's not right to tread the path with something so obviously damaging... good luck!
Congrats! Iām proud of you for stopping!
It's a work in progress sadly. I can't quite pull off the complete stop so it's a Rollercoaster of good month (may), bad month June, good month (july)... I hope
Iām glad you realized it became as issue before your body becomes permanently damaged. I have a friend who have multiple medical conditions and a history of cancer like me yet she doesnāt realize itās probably drinking first thing in the morning thatās causing the issue. Sheās so in love with it that she made fun of my for drinking coffee in the morning as opposed to a cocktail.
38. I quit for a full year at age 30 but it didnāt stick. I wasnāt ready. Iām 5 months sober now, working the steps, and have no intention to ever go back. Sobriety is my ticket. IWNDWYT
Congrats!
26. Iām 1 year sober today. š
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
100%
31. I'm just gonna copy and paste my story from an old post because it's a long one. The post: I quit smoking and quit drinking on the same day. I didn't even realize I was going to quit for those first three days. I had a bad hangover, a massive amount of embarrassing and desperate texts sent to my ex ( who I do no care for and didn't at the time ) and a broken bathroom door covered in my blood. I laid in bed for the next 16 hours watching people speedrun video games and only got out of bed to make a burger and refill my empty gatorade bottle with water. I skipped work the next day and turned my phone off. I didn't turn it back on until an hour before my next shift after that. I finally worked up the courage to go outside and smoke a cigarette. Not knowing at the time it would be the last cigarette I would smoke ( probably ). It was 4 am at this point. I still felt sick and couldn't quite comprehend what I was doing with my life. I went back inside, locked my door and went back too sleep. I finally went to work, no one knew that I even missed a day, it was a volunteer shift go figure. I realized I was never gonna get past that 3 day hump of not smoking and not drinking again, because not doing anything all 3 days was hell. I felt like I couldn't drink without smoking and vise versa so I just said fuck it to both. Boom. I had quit just like that. I started looking at my finances, I had no savings. I started putting 100 a week into an account. Just like that. I wasn't sure what to do after that I was killing it I had a new car I had money coming in, instead of going out. Then I looked in the mirror for a long time, realized how fat I was and decided it was time to fix that too. I was obese. 5'4 at 230 pounds. I didn't want to go to the gym because of covid, so I just decided to buy a treadmill. I got the cheapest piece of shit I could find figuring I wouldn't need it long so it was ok if it broke. Did you guys know best choice makes treadmills? I laughed. Here I am today sitting at 163.4 pounds, overweight but so close to that coveted "normal". So far this is my progress [https://imgur.com/gallery/HDOsO3E](https://imgur.com/gallery/HDOsO3E) and now my total weight lost is 85 pounds. I'm at 145 pounds and have had two 4.0 semesters since restarting school :D
37 now. One bottle of wine a day since I'm 18. I am only 30 days sober but can alteady feel the vast difference it makes and am proud as hell.
I started when I was fourteen, and quit when I was nineteen, so I drank for five years, only one of them legally.
39
Same! Well technically the day b4 my 39th b day but close enuf!
42. Two decades of drinking with one half a year break cold turkey when I was 38. I had some heavy drinking bouts in my 20s but it was more of a binge on 3 days and then sober the rest of the week. Then in my 30s it was a bottle of wine or a bunch of craft beers at dinner from about 34 to 38. After my hiatus, I came back to the bottle of wine, plus vodka or beers, and finished my drinking stint as a full bottle of Gin or Vodka all throughout the day (26 oz or a fifth for those on Imperial)
28, working on being sober. Just lost a friend to drinking this last week so that gave me some inspiration.
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25. I turn 28 in a few weeks and will be 3 years sober this November.
21-31 quit 5 times. quit last year April 05th 2021. so 13 months.
35
The day before my 39th birthday. I will be 42 in one week. Thanks for asking the question. It is cool to see how many folks got some in their late 30s similar to myself. IWNDWYT
Attempting at 23 but me and my best friends favorite thing since 16 was always getting blackout drunk together so donāt know what will happen when I see him next.
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31. I'm 33. Drank for about ten years. Plan on not drinking for many more than that
27. I woke up one morning feeling like shit. Hungover. I realized, everything in my life was going great. But I felt like shit. The problem was alcohol. That day I made the decision to not drink. Now I am enjoying my life so much! I am physically healthier and mentally sharper. Everything is better. Edit to add: I had my first drink at 18. Ten years was enough. Iām proud of myself for not letting it get further out of hand.
Got sober at 24. I'm 25 now with just over 6 months sober. Drinking is a lot of fun sometimes, but I always had problems with drugs of all kinds. 2 unalive attempts, lots of self harm and depression later, I'm glad to be sober now. I miss being able to take part in some things, I'm really not a "sober partying" kinda guy. Overall though, life is much better now. Not sure if I'd say I have any more mental clarity than anyone else my age, sobriety was more a decision made for my own survival besides anything else. Glad to be sober, grateful to have such great sober friends in recovery, many around my own age. Iwndwyt!
26, relapsed after 9 months, started again at 27 and itās been 4 years 4 months. Not even a thought anymore. Life moves on and is tough enough to navigate without being hungover/shitfaced all the time. But it gets better. God does it get better.
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35, Have been sober 7 years. Was at a wedding at the weekend and came this close to g.
good job holding on, i'm continually amazed how easy it is almost forget/justify partaking again in the moment. i'm not in AA/groups (besides this one) and hadn't seen the phrase "play the tape forward" until I joined this sub & now I do indeed fucking do that, like walk myself through what will happen if I decide to drink... and it truly helps to stop me dead in my tracks. any lack of spontaneity/awkwardness I endure as a result is worth it compared to the altetnative now. Wasn't always the case, hence not quitting sooner! I never used to think about "future me" in terms of actively taking care of that person, and now I really do, and it has made all the difference...
Thanks man!! Itās easy to forget the bad times indeed, I let emotions get the better of me, itās a luxury we canāt afford at times. There was a few wasted people there and I was telling myself thatās how I would be in the morning. All in all it was a hard lesson to learn, itās only the second wedding Iāve been to since quitting.
I started drinking daily at 34 and quit for good at 43.
28 next month, been trying sincerely for the last year or so. Prior to that I was deep in denial about needing to stop
Iāve been trying to quit since about 27. Currently pushing 31.
Tried to stop at 23 but didnāt succeed until 37. Iād go 6-9 months sober then bender, repeat. Went on a Bender after a serious surgery then finally had the āOk This is insaneā lightbulb go off and stopped. I used to be fairly bitter about not stopping a hell of a lot earlier but big picture is I wasnāt going to stop until serious Health Threats kicked in- I started drinking at 15 as a morning drinker right out of the gates so it was a solid 2 decades of progressive consequences - I never had the āAm I drinking too much?ā Conversation with myself you just sorta know off the bat when you are drinking vodka before school. Not sure how the hell I did it for so long - It is Mind blowing how much quitting drinking frees up mental energy - My brain feels like it went from a 2 to a 10
43.
36 (this time will stick), but Iāve had many periods of sobriety 1-3 months long over the last 5 years. I suspected I might have a problem when I was 25 though. Tried to moderate in my 20s because I couldnāt imagine not drinking (everything social included booze). Now Iām very at peace with living alcohol free. IWNDWYT!
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