Two drinks before dinner problematic?

[Anonymous]

Are two drinks a day is not a lot. However, what you're looking forward to is your ritual and habit. I think another poster suggested changing the drink in your hand during the ritual might help. Instead of having a glass of wine, have a really nice sparkling water with the spritz or some thing.

I was a one drink a night person for many, many years. Post menopause those empty calories started catching up with me. Like you, I was concerned that there might be a problem because I really looked forward to that one drink, but then (surprisingly) I had no problems stopping. I quickly realized that it was a habit and like all habits they're hard to stop sometimes. I was looking forward to sitting down in front of the TV with a glass of wine after my evening was done. Like that poster suggested, I changed from the glass of wine to a sparkling water and a small piece of chocolate. The new ritual was established. Yes, chocolate is another empty calorie, but it was a small piece and has not hurt me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's not about how many, people. Its about the reason why. If you depend on it for XYZ emotion, it's an issue. That doesn't mean you're an alcoholic, but it does mean you're alcohol dependent.

No it's means you are bored not dependent.

[Anonymous]

I don’t think it’s a big deal. I was doing the same but would pour a large glass of wine while making dinner, then most of the time having another with the meal. When I went for my physical the Dr asked about alcohol consumption and she said 14 drinks a week was a lot so I stopped and cut back to weekends. Made me look at it differently.

[Anonymous]

14 drinks a week is going to be roughly 3000 calories. Alcohol is almost all sugar. It's a lot to inflict on your body.

You have to ask if the brief dopamine hit is worth the physical toll. Alcohol is extremely toxic. Two drinks a day is not problematic, but it does come with a significant cost

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you are an alcoholic if you feel you need the alcohol. You should go to an AA meeting to talk with people there about it. I am very serious.

Two drinks a day is NOT alcoholism. I don’t care what the teetotalers preach about how “if you want a drink you’re an alcoholic.” That is absurd and unhelpful. OP has an unhealthy habit.

OP, there are lots of reasons to quit or cut back. Do so for a couple months and you won’t miss it anymore.

You don't understand that everyone has a different tolerance and so alcoholism should not be measured by how much you drink. Instead, it how much you NEED to drink.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:14 drinks a week is going to be roughly 3000 calories. Alcohol is almost all sugar. It's a lot to inflict on your body.

You have to ask if the brief dopamine hit is worth the physical toll. Alcohol is extremely toxic. Two drinks a day is not problematic, but it does come with a significant cost

Yeah. Agree with this. I find this forum overly pearl-clutchy about alcohol consumption but I am easily hung over by small amounts so it's often not worth it. For the ritual aspect I like tea.

[Anonymous]

My friend read and participated in the Naked Mind and has been alcohol free for over a year. Has lost about 20 lbs too. I bought the book but have yet to get past the first chapter.

[Anonymous]

Not healthy, but does it mean you're an alcoholic? Probably not. But I would be concerned about the long term health risks if doing this for a long period of time. I would also be concerned about weight gain related to this.

At the end of the day only you can determine if you should cut back. I would assume your partner has expressed concern, if there is any.

[Anonymous]

Is it a huge deal? No. Is it a healthy habit? Also no. That's in part because you may well be drinking more than two standard drinks per day, depending on your pours, and drinking at that level daily, over the long run, can have negative consequences for your health. There are also criteria for diagnosing alcohol use disorder: https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/tools/TLA900/TLA928-1/resources/step-2/AUD/RAND_TLA928-1.diagnostic-checklist_AUD.pdf

Also, if that's your minimum daily habit, and there are weeks you drink more while out or whatever, then you're drinking even more. Also, not ideal.

Ultimately, alcohol is a crappy coping mechanism. Work on finding new habits that help you relax. That doesn't mean foregoing alcohol entirely, but making it a part of your daily life in the way you describe isn't great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not about how many, people. Its about the reason why. If you depend on it for XYZ emotion, it's an issue. That doesn't mean you're an alcoholic, but it does mean you're alcohol dependent.

No it's means you are bored not dependent.

Your only way to quell boredom is drink?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend read and participated in the Naked Mind and has been alcohol free for over a year. Has lost about 20 lbs too. I bought the book but have yet to get past the first chapter.

I was not a fan of Annie Grace but really loved Quit Like A Woman by Holly Whitaker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend read and participated in the Naked Mind and has been alcohol free for over a year. Has lost about 20 lbs too. I bought the book but have yet to get past the first chapter.

She must have been drinking a ton to lose 20 lbs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My friend read and participated in the Naked Mind and has been alcohol free for over a year. Has lost about 20 lbs too. I bought the book but have yet to get past the first chapter.

She must have been drinking a ton to lose 20 lbs.

DP: I assume this weightloss came from the decreased appetite due to not drinking, along with the additional calories + sugar that alcohol provides.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not about how many, people. Its about the reason why. If you depend on it for XYZ emotion, it's an issue. That doesn't mean you're an alcoholic, but it does mean you're alcohol dependent.

No it's means you are bored not dependent.

Your only way to quell boredom is drink?

Some years when kids have you tied down, yes. Not now that my kids are older I play piano, cook for hours, play pickleball, hike, golf, go boating, kayak, rock climb, bike, read, paint.

But I couldn’t do that when I had toddlers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My friend read and participated in the Naked Mind and has been alcohol free for over a year. Has lost about 20 lbs too. I bought the book but have yet to get past the first chapter.

She must have been drinking a ton to lose 20 lbs.

DP: I assume this weightloss came from the decreased appetite due to not drinking, along with the additional calories + sugar that alcohol provides.

Interesting most people that stop drinking end up, adding a sweet in the evening so it all evens out.