how to give up drinking

LegacyUser

Ok, I know it might seem easy to give advice on this topic but I have a medical condition which advises that I should not drink....ever...

I'm 21 years old and have been going out/drinking since I was about 16/17 and hadn't any conscience about it until I was told when I was about 18 that I shouldn't drink anymore, because it would lead to irreversible consequences that could necessitate a liver transplant when I am in my mid/early 20s.

Now, it is so easy to read that and say, "what the hell are you drinking for?" but in reality it is entirely different. Trust me. I've tried like hell to stop drinking. And I'm not talking about major binging - but maybe 1 night a week at MAX being drunk.

I'm a college student...every thing relies on being a drinker/drunk. it's so hard to say that you're not drinking. I've tried it. I've tried saying, "no im not drinking" and then they look at you saying, oh are you drivin or on antibiotics or whatever. And when i reply going, no, im just not drinking tonight, they look at you.

maybe it's a self confidence issue, but i am a pretty confident person overall, and i do have friends who are non-drinkers, but people have known me as a person who will drink and its hard to overcome that opinion.

Does anyone hav advise as how a drinker can become a socially-accepteble drinker? it's easy to say no to a pint, or 2, but on a night when its a 'piss up' how do you say that your not drinking? please help...

Victor

Tell them you have a medical problem - they'll understand.

And to be honest, with a liver transplant probably costing in the order of several hundred thousand euro, cop on or the doctors will refuse you one.

Sinfonia

i often dont bother goin out to clubs with my friends, (mainly cos i have a girlfriend, dont like the music, and dont find them to be very social places) but i like goin to gigs pubs peoples houses etc.
so, medical issues aside, if people ask me if i'm headin out to a club, i often decline and it didnt take long for people to stop calling me a bottler and so forth. even when they did, i didnt really care, saved myself from wakin up with an empty wallet and a hangover.
so there's a lot of positive things to it too (including saving your liver!!).
and i'm still a college student too, so i know where ur comin from.
and if ya do wanna still go to clubs to meet girls or sumthin, its a lot easier when ur not hammered, so long as u have the nerve to talk to them.
in other words, i like to drink, but i could find it quite easy to give it up, weighing out the pros and cons, and in your case youve got some BIG cons...

(now if i could just kick the smokes...)

also i know two people who don't drink at all, and they'll often talk about great nights out that they've had, etc. so i think you should be able to get on fine.

anyway hope that helps, and good luck

RDConfoosed

hard to do it wrote:

Ok, I know it might seem easy to give advice on this topic but I have a medical condition which advises that I should not drink....ever...

if you've got a medical condition then that should be the end of it. anyone who cant understand that or pressures you to drink then isnt your friend. i was much same as yourself, drinking from 16/17 but i had a health scare when i was 21 so i had to stop drinking full stop at the time. initially friends made fun etc but once they knew i couldnt drink for health reasons, they stopped . in fact my mates ended up being protective about it and would always make sure i wasnt drinking when i was out. cos there's huge temptation to drink. after a month or two of going out i got used to not drinking and found going out enjoyable. i didnt drink at all for about 10 months until i got all clear. since then i have odd drink here and there but no way as much as before.

bottom line - dont risk your own life to please other so called friends. do your own thing and you'll be respected for it - if not then find some new friends.