Six months ago I poured what would be my last drink for a while. To be clear: I didn't have a problem. I never drank to get drunk. I never blacked out, hid bottles, or woke up regretting the night before. But, I was using alcohol as a kind of a stress relief at the end of a difficult or emotional day.
I was reaching for it the way some people reach for the remote or for their phone. It was the off-switch for my mind. That quiet reliance started to bother me more than the drinking itself & I didn't want that to morph into something more serious.
The push came from hearing Charlie Kirk talk about why he doesnβt drink. He wasnβt preaching. He was making a performance argument: the highest-performing people heβd been around thought clearer, remembered more, had more energy, etc. That was hard to argue with.
So, I set a 90-day challenge. I wasn't making a forever-commitment β more like I was setting an experiment for myself.
I was surprised how easy it was to say "no." What was more difficult was sitting with the stress I was looking to dull/erase with a glass. So, what did I turn to instead? I started replacing it with prayer & exercise.
Sleep got better. My mornings were a little more energetic. I was less anxious (which seems backwards, right?) Nothing was super dramatic because, like I said, I didn't have an addiction. It was a quiet reliance. I think there's a difference. π€
Ninety days came and went, and I didnβt celebrate with a drink. That told me the experiment had turned into information. It meant I never needed to rely on it in the first place and that the alternative of Scripture, prayer, & exercise was always a much more effective stress reliever. Duh! (seems obvious in retrospect)
Iβm not sayign Iβll never drink again. I may toast at a birthday dinner or at some other celebration. I may have a glass at dinner some day. I just donβt want it to be a reflex.
Next goal is one year. I want to see whether this is a streak or a new baseline. If I drink after that, I want it to be a choiceβnot the thing I use to tell my mind the day is over.
I feel strong & that feels good. π₯³π