Lowering Inhibitions Without Alcohol

ShaggyQueen

Hey all, just wondering if people have any tips in general on lowering inhibitions? I drink but have been cutting back a lot in the last year and want to stop completely. The problem is the main reason I do drink when I go out is to lower my inhibitions. I'm naturally fairly shy and uptight. Drink enough and I can talk away to anyone and just enjoy myself. If I'm sober I find it hard to talk to people or just relax, especially in a pub setting.

Thanks

iusedtoknow

I am pretty shy and quiet as well, however I found that alcohol actually didn't allow me to open up as my real self, rather it was a caricature of what I thought people wanted me to be. Once I admitted that, it meant I had to change how I interacted with people, and why I did it.

It got me thinking, gregarious people are naturally that way, if you met them in the park or on the street, they're the same. However - naturally quiet people are that way in whatever situation they are in as well. I am naturally quiet, so now I don't try and force it - i started to see what sort of social situations made me comfortable, and which ones didn't. In essence, i started to do only the things I really wanted to do, and avoided the things that I would need to have a beer in my hand either to fit in, or to "enjoy" it.

I realized that I hated music festivals, but loved music. So now...I avoid music festivals like the plague, and either wait until the bands I want to see are in town, or travel to see them in smaller venues.

I realized that I loved talking to people in small groups so actively search out those sort of situations (never say no to dinner invites, never say no to happy hour drinks with work mates etc (even though I'll be either on NA beer or juice)

Adamantium

This is counter intuitive
I also try to think of people as shy and uptight (even if they are not) if I haven't met them and then try to bring them "alive".

Most people are terrible conversationists anyway, so I feel no shame, that I'm trying. The fact that you even intiate says a lot about you.

And people time and time again are more than delighted if somebody "rescues" them from the tension.

Also people in a pub look at all the people in the pub as sort of crazy that they have to drink, "Wow, is this really what's required for them to articulate (which they won't remember anyway)" then feel fairly godlike that you're navigating through a crowd of sedated zombies.

You just need to reframe it mentally, and it can be slow, but if you have a good imagination its faster.

ViveLaVie

I find thinking 'everyone else is drunk, sure they won't remember if I make an eejit of myself' and imagining I've had a tipple or two and dancing a little bit or having a joke or two with friends so that I get a bit hyper is very effective for me. As well as that, drinking sugary drinks like Coke etc can give you a bit of a sugar high which, when coupled with a goid atmosphere, can make you feel almost like you're a bit tipsy!