Why do non-alcoholics find “dry January” difficult?

[Anonymous]

Because they are alcoholics. Once of the symptoms of alcoholism is denial that you are an alcoholic.

If you can't go one day, one week or one month without a drink you might have AUD otherwise known as alcoholism.

If you are struggling get to the emergency room. The doctors can give you meds to stop the withdraws.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because they are alcoholics. Once of the symptoms of alcoholism is denial that you are an alcoholic.

If you can't go one day, one week or one month without a drink you might have AUD otherwise known as alcoholism.

If you are struggling get to the emergency room. The doctors can give you meds to stop the withdraws.

This all of nothing thinking is a huge problem. It’s probably the impetus for most addictions. Look, just because someone enjoys an after work drink at a Friday happy hour doesn’t mean he has to go to the emergency room to stop withdrawals.

Why on earth are you making that giant leap? That is just plain nutty.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a casual frequent drinker - non-alcoholic and I find dry January pretty easy. Where are you getting this nonsense?

The only people who find it difficult to go a month without drinking are alcoholics (who don't think they're alcoholics).

That is not true. Some people just don’t do well with black and white restrictions. I can go months without drinking, because I’m too busy and not thinking about it. But the second you tell me I can’t drink for a month, it’s all I can think about and must have a drink. It’s also the reason I never diet, I end up gaining not losing weight. Banning something just makes me hyper focused on it. I do much better with moderation and cutting back than with trying to wholly eliminate. I am sure that I am not alone on this.

I don’t disagree with your point, but it’s worth noting that when it comes to alcohol, for some people moderation is an unattainable fantasy. Alcohol messes with your judgment. I forget the exact expression, but it’s something like “The person I am when I’m sober can easily decline a drink. The person I become after one drink will always need another.” Obviously not everyone suffers from this, but many do, and it’s why moderation is often tricky and not recommended for people who abuse alcohol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because they are alcoholics. Once of the symptoms of alcoholism is denial that you are an alcoholic.

If you can't go one day, one week or one month without a drink you might have AUD otherwise known as alcoholism.

If you are struggling get to the emergency room. The doctors can give you meds to stop the withdraws.

This all of nothing thinking is a huge problem. It’s probably the impetus for most addictions. Look, just because someone enjoys an after work drink at a Friday happy hour doesn’t mean he has to go to the emergency room to stop withdrawals.

Why on earth are you making that giant leap? That is just plain nutty.

DP. That's not what people are saying. They're saying that if you find it difficult to skip drinks after work at a Friday happy hour for 4 weeks, then you're probably an alcoholic. If you struggle with abstaining for a month, you have a problem.

[Anonymous]

If you already don't drink a lot, then you don't need dry january. It's stupid anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because they are alcoholics. Once of the symptoms of alcoholism is denial that you are an alcoholic.

If you can't go one day, one week or one month without a drink you might have AUD otherwise known as alcoholism.

If you are struggling get to the emergency room. The doctors can give you meds to stop the withdraws.

Finding dry January difficult because you're accustomed to have wine with dinner some evenings is not the same thing as having physical symptoms of withdrawal so bad that you need a visit to the ER. Like not at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I swear sometimes I think the cannabis industry is using forums like this. I mean, there are thousands of threads like this already. I drink maybe once or twice a month, so I have zero issues with alcohol. Many people enjoy a cocktail daily. Nothing wrong with that either. But for many of these people, it’s likely a very enjoyable habit that is hard to break and is missed when not happening anymore. It’s just not that hard to understand. I know many people who replaced their daily cocktail with sugary mocktails or sweets after dinner, and they find trying to quiet those very difficult. What does that make them OP? Sugarholics? Why must you judge and label?

I totally agree with this and I am 14 years sober. I seriously believe that there exists a group of people who are not alcoholics BUT find it incredibly difficult to stop drinking after they begin. And I think the same is true for eating FWIW. The people who eat according to natural hunger cues and stay thin are of the same variety in quality as people who occasionally drink and don’t have an issue.

[Anonymous]

I would find it difficult because my social life tends to revolve around bars and live music venues. Drinking with my friends is a normal part of my life, and I would feel weird drinking no alcohol at a bar at all because it tends to annoy bartenders when people just order water or soda. I am able to cut back when I feel like it, and sometimes do. It's not uncommon for me to just have two drinks in a night out. I typically do dry-er January to give my body a break after the crazy social holiday season.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was listening to some people over the holidays talking about dry January. Apparently it is becoming a thing among their circles. All of them claim to be non-alcoholics though I’m sure some are functional alcoholics. It was sad to hear how difficult some consider the challenge.

Do you participate in dry January? If so, how much of it is a challenge for you and why (social pressure, stress, …)? Has it made you think about how much alcohol you drink and/or how much you spend on booze?

I started mid-December when my blood pressure went up. It is not difficult in that I need booze or my friends won't let me socialize with them without it. I miss the actual flavors of a cocktail, though. Coffee and still/fizzy water get boring after a while.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Better question: why is there a dry January in the first place? Why a national collective need to try and dry up?

Certainly a trend started by the cannabis industry, 100%. Just look at this new trend, “California sober.” People are so gullible.

Do you have a source for that? Because the first Dry January was in 2013, and started by British anti-alcohol organization that was founded in 1984. Seems unlikely that the cannabis industry took it over at some point.

Most of the people I know who do Dry January are British.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because they are alcoholics. Once of the symptoms of alcoholism is denial that you are an alcoholic.

If you can't go one day, one week or one month without a drink you might have AUD otherwise known as alcoholism.

If you are struggling get to the emergency room. The doctors can give you meds to stop the withdraws.

Finding dry January difficult because you're accustomed to have wine with dinner some evenings is not the same thing as having physical symptoms of withdrawal so bad that you need a visit to the ER. Like not at all.

Except sometimes it is.

I know several wine mommies who suffered seizures when they went cold turkey. They certainly didn’t anticipate that happening. They didn’t think they had a problem. But a decade of heavy pours of wine each night altered their bodies.

Switching gears: anyone see the doctor on GMA this morning discussing Dry January? She noted the latest research documenting the very real cancer link and said she’s basically giving up her 3 glasses of wine each week for good as a result of the research. Basically: it’s stupid to ignore the clear science.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would find it difficult because my social life tends to revolve around bars and live music venues. Drinking with my friends is a normal part of my life, and I would feel weird drinking no alcohol at a bar at all because it tends to annoy bartenders when people just order water or soda. I am able to cut back when I feel like it, and sometimes do. It's not uncommon for me to just have two drinks in a night out. I typically do dry-er January to give my body a break after the crazy social holiday season.

If you can’t skip drinking because you worry about annoying the bartender, you probably have an issue.

Order ginger ale if you are thirsty. Or a stupid mocktail.

Trust me: the bartender couldn’t care less if you order something.

[Anonymous]

I probably wouldn't do it, because I have a total of 2 drinks or so a month - both at social events.

[Anonymous]

We don't know any non-alcoholics that struggle with dry January.

[Anonymous]

Dry January is stupid. I have at most one drink a week, I really don't need to prove to people that I can stop drinking. To me, Dry January seems like a way for people who drink to much to prove to their friends and family that they're not alcoholics. I don't need to do that, so I don't partake.