New public health guidelines in Britain are expected to advise drinkers to reduce their consumption. When a panel of Guardian opinion writers discussed their relationship with alcohol, a similarly considered response was elicited below the line.
We heard from readers considering giving up alongside those who had never indulged in the first place. Moving tales of growing up in an alcoholic family appeared alongside those who felt their drinking habits were entirely unremarkable.
Below are 10 reader accounts – you can share your own in the comments below.
‘If you don’t drink you are tacitly excluded’
‘My son vowed never to touch a drop after seeing me blind drunk’
like the last writer in the article, my son vowed never to touch a drop after seeing me blind, dead drunk far too many times in his childhood. I've now given up alcohol as a couple of units doesn't do that much for me, and any more makes me ill because I can't stop once I've had 4 units. Wine is a funny drink though - I've always been a spirits/cocktails drinker and found that just one glass of wine makes me more 'drunk' than a 3 unit cocktail made with spirits. So I've never really been a wine drinker - I think it's probably harder to give up than spirits, since wine is often a meal accompaniment and is a more socially acceptable drink because of that - you can drink wine at home with a meal, whereas downing half a bottle of vodka at home alone would seem a bit dodgy by comparison. Consequently if I buy wine I buy only a mini bottle - then I can't get carried away. If I buy spirits I usually pour most of it down the sink, having had 3 units and craving more - quickly pour it down the drain before it goes down my throat - and then the waste of money puts me off buying it again. Alcohol in moderation is so boring I can't see the point in it now at all - rather buy a good dvd for a bit of escapism these days.
‘I’d drink a bottle of gin on a Saturday night before going out’
I was a massive drinker in my teens and 20s. I'd drink a bottle of gin on a Saturday night before going out and easily got through a bottle of more of wine at night when I was a student. I went through a period where I drank before work for hair of the dog.
I always got terrible hangovers but they didn't stop me because everyone else was drinking around me and I was essentially oblivion seeking. Now aged 37, I've pretty much given up drinking even though my hangovers are much better than my 20s.
I've sorted my head out and no longer need booze to self medicate and I've stopped hanging round with big drinkers. I drank over Christmas and enjoyed it but my body did not like it. A recent brush with hepatitis A has made my liver rebel and I want no more than a Guinness once a month or so now at most.
I managed to knock smoking on the head and go from 20 a day to forgetting I'd ever been a smoker without turning into a born again smoker. I hope to hell I manage the same about booze. Evangelists either way are dull as shit.
‘I enjoyed the night at the pub followed by a wobbly walk back home’
I went through a phase of heavy drinking from mid-twenties to mid thirties before I stopped. It helped cover up emotional issues i faced and an inability to relax which is why I enjoyed the night at the pub followed by a wobbly walk back home and stabbing the door with my key until I got it into the lock before falling onto the bed like a collapsing tombstone.
When it got as bad as literally experiencing being 'blind drunk' I acknowledged I had a problem and got help. After therapy, I can now acknowledge my emotional issues which become more real and painful but I find I've become more 'real' myself in the process and as I don't have much money to spare 'wasting' £3.50 on a pint is out of the question anyway.
perhaps if our culture offered people real fellowship and connection we wouldn't need to get 'out of our heads' so much?
‘I used to enjoy booze rather more than was absolutely healthy’
I gave it up about fifteen years ago, and can honestly say I would no longer enjoy it, neither the taste nor the effects and quite definitely not the aftereffects. I did try it again for a night about seven years ago, in a spirit of pure research, and I found I didn't enjoy any of it. And no, life is definitely not duller without it. If you need to be drunk, or even a little bit tipsy, to enjoy life, there's something not quite right.
Moderation has never been my thing. I used to enjoy booze rather more than was absolutely healthy. Now I have more hours in the day when I'm feeling sharp, I enjoy whatever I am doing, with intensity. Plus it's nice to have a bit more money to spend on whatever the current project happens to be. Life's very good, actually.
Social situations are amusing, though. Some groups are quite embarrassed that I don't drink at all, and find it really hard to cope with. Other are quite cheerful and matter-of-fact about it. The latter are much more fun, but there's no telling in advance which way a new group is going to be.
‘I have not been noticeably drunk for 30 years or more’
My attitude to/consumption of alcohol during my lifetime has steadily changed. I am now 71. I have not been noticeably drunk for 30 years or more (though as a young man I often was). I have certainly not had a hangover for at least that time. I now no longer enjoy alcohol without food (except the occasional beer at the end of a long walk in summer), but I no longer enjoy evening food without alcohol. I used to drink at lunchtime. The thought now appals me (except on special occasions). None of these changes has resulted from any conscious 'decision', just as I never actually decided to give up listening to pop music. It just happened.
‘Starting at 13, my mate’s Dad would take me and him to country pubs on Sunday lunchtimes’
Like many alcoholics, I was first given alcoholic drink many years before I had the adult capacity to give consent. Indeed, underage drinking was encouraged by my parents, like those of my friends. Starting at 13, my mate's Dad would take me and him to country pubs on Sunday lunchtimes. The game was to "sink" as many pints of Guinness as possible. It still gives me the shivers to realise what was done to us. We were being inducted into a lifetime's addiction to an extremely dangerous recreational drug. This addicted lifestyle falsely represented as normal and even respectable. At real risk to our health and happiness, by irresponsible addicted adults. And this was done deliberately before we were old enough to appreciate what it was we were doing, the risks we were running and the trap we were led into.
If anyone were to extol the virtues of giving heroin or cocaine to five year olds, the storm of rightful objection that would meet them would be something indeed to witness. There is absolutely no difference whatever in giving five year olds the killer drug booze. But the Law allows it, it happens very widely every single day, and hardly a word is spoken. And there are thousands of minors in NHS hospitals, today, because alcohol put them there.
‘I suffer from depression and I found drinking was the wrong way to deal with it’
I gave up on drinking in September 2014 and am glad I did so.It was affecting my mental health because I suffer from depression and I found drinking was the wrong way to deal with it.I actually feel much more happier with myself since I gave up and my family are proud of me.I just found that I was self medicating and it made things far worse for me.It was hard giving up at first but I found new hobbies and things to do to occupy my time with.I don't get preachy about it because if people want to give up drinking they are the only ones that can do it.It is more of a case that I know what works for me and there just was no enjoyment in alcohol for me anymore.
‘I now watch my parents drink their retirement away’
I grew up with drinkers from across the spectrum, some died young, some lived long fulfilling lives, so I can see all sides. I now watch my parents drink their retirement away, my father, hands trembling from the DTs, barely able to remember which of his two grandchildren is which, his foul temper having ruined countless family occasions, my mother, depressed her entire adult life, and still always a drinker, and consider my situation. I've had many a great evening, day, weekend, with booze taking centre, but I can't justify the risk. So, with booze and all it entails for me: depression, the cost, the regrets, I've decided to give up. My choice, but I hope you can respect that.
‘The only thing I miss are the hangovers’
I last drank alcohol in July 2011. After a few months trying to reconcile booze with my medication I decided that it wasn't worth the bother and stopped drinking. I miss it, but life wasn't working with it, so it had to go. Initially I most missed the first drink on a Friday night which signified the start of the weekend. Later I missed the celebratory drinks that are part and parcel of the year - Christmas, New Year, birthdays, weddings and so on. Now the only thing that I miss is, oddly, the hangovers. For several years now every time I have woken up that has been as good as I am going to feel all day.
I never got into alcohol, I was raised in a moderate Muslim household, but my parents were/are very liberal they never said we were forbidden from trying it. I have tried it, but I have never got beyond the taste factor, prefer a Virgin Mary any day. But I would say alcohol is an intrinsic part of Western culture and if you don't drink you are tacitly excluded. It's no fun being the only sober person at a party when most people are tipsy or on their way to becoming thoroughly hammered. The other thing that put me off was the proven fact that alcohol is a depressant, so it's been a no brainer to steer clear of the stuff. Once I had a half a glass of champagne (which doesn't taste so bad) and I got tipsy, it was a nice feeling, I understand how people can become dependent on the stuff, but the down sides are obvious. The idea of giving up eating chillies would be far more difficult than giving up alcohol. I don't think I am missing out, but when you decline a drink it can irk people, which can sometimes be disarming, it's as if they trust you less because you are teetotal.