5 Reasons to Live a Drug-Free Life

Alcohol is a diuretic, which means it causes our kidneys to get rid of salt and water through urination. This is why we tend to have to pee more after we drink, and can benefits of living an alcohol and drug free lifestyle quickly become dehydrated. Now that I have cut out alcohol, I’m better hydrated and naturally find myself drinking more water, sparkling water, and fruit-infused water.

This article discusses the health risks of drinking and the many benefits of quitting alcohol. Stopping drinking isn’t always easy, especially if you’ve misused alcohol for years. However, there are many benefits of quitting alcohol, so it is essential to take the steps needed to stop alcohol use. It can ruin relationships and families in the blink of an eye. It also can be very bad for both your mental and physical health.

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I was terrified that a life without alcohol would be boring and deprived. Now, after five years of sobriety, I know this couldn’t be further from the truth. Getting rid of alcohol was the portal to living my best life, the complete opposite of what I was expecting. I am so excited to share a few reasons why I love living an alcohol-free lifestyle.

• There is a lie that too many people have bought into that drugs or alcohol are a necessary way to have fun.
• Instead, focus on things, experiences, and activities that will support your new, healthy lifestyle.
• Alcohol abuse often leaves a person isolated from their friends and family, and it takes a lot of effort and time to restore the relationships they have lost to their drinking habits.
• Dr. Volpicelli notes that the relationship between sleep and drinking is complex.
• The term ​“sober-curi­ous” is used to describe the deci­sion to decrease the amount of alco­hol you con­sume.
• Your relationships are important so being alcohol-free can have a significant impact on them.

Alco­hol boosts the sero­tonin lev­els in your blood stream, caus­ing you to expe­ri­ence tem­po­rary feel­ings of hap­pi­ness. How­ev­er, your sero­tonin lev­els quick­ly return to nor­mal lev­els, which could lead to feel­ings of depres­sion. Lim­it­ing your alco­hol con­sump­tion can help sta­bi­lize your sero­tonin lev­els and pre­vent dras­tic shifts in your mood.

Your relationships may suffer at first.

When not tanked or hungover, being able to spend quality time with friends is a valuable benefit that comes as a result of being sober. In fact, the sober lifestyle, once adopted, can broaden friendship possibilities, as it’s easier to engage in conversation with people and be fully present. As for existing friendships with people who appreciate a sober lifestyle, those personal interactions and bonds will likely https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/sober-life/ be much enriched and deepened. One of alcohol’s negative side effects is how it disrupts sleep. Furthermore, after about a month of not drinking, abstainers are less irritable and less prone to feeling anxious. Reduc­ing your alco­hol con­sump­tion not only helps to low­er your blood pres­sure and heart rate, but it may also reduce your risk of devel­op­ing sev­er­al oth­er heart-relat­ed health con­di­tions.

And there are numerous other alcohol and drug-related policies and laws to know, (e.g. fake ID, open container, public nuisance). For many students, breaking the law goes against their values and carries more risk of getting into trouble than it’s worth. You may also experience what is commonly called sobriety fatigue, which refers to the overall exhaustion that may occur as a result of the emotional and physical stress of staying sober. So, it’s extra helpful to have a support network available to you when you need it. A therapist can help you learn new coping skills, develop new thinking patterns, and address any co-occurring mental health conditions that may make recovery more difficult. Research shows that if you maintain these types of toxic relationships, your chances of relapsing are greater.

Maintaining a Healthier Diet and Weight

Decreased activity in excitatory neurotransmitters can lead to sedation and sleepiness. It can also trigger the release of endorphins and increase dopamine levels, resulting in a burst of energy and euphoria. These initial effects, while sometimes pleasant, are short-lived. You will find everything you ask is now kinder, more understanding, and more understanding. That won’t happen overnight and may take a great amount of patience and determination.

Alcohol consumption can cause both, unhealthy weight gain and weight loss. Depending on what a person is drinking and how often they drink, alcoholic beverages affect everyone differently. On the other hand, drinking alcohol can also trick the stomach into thinking it’s full and cause stomach acid to occur.

Make no mistake, people who are in recovery are not only survivors, they are conquerors. Calls to numbers on a specific treatment center listing will be routed to that treatment center. Calls to any general helpline (non-facility specific 1-8XX numbers) could be forwarded to SAMHSA, ARK Behavioral Health or a verified treatment provider. Calls are routed based on availability and geographic location. If these symptoms are not treated in time, they can also lead to a person’s death. It’s an episode that shouldn’t be missed if you are a woman over 40 fighting the struggle of letting go of alcohol and drinking.

With a clear head, though, the sober individual can better identify solutions to problems before they get out of hand, and find no need to chase stress with alcohol. Explor­ing an alco­hol-free or ​“sober-curi­ous” lifestyle is one of the lat­est health and well­ness trends. There are many rea­sons to con­sid­er an alco­hol-free lifestyle. It may help to pick a quit date, or a day when you choose to discontinue use of alcohol or drugs.

However, research suggests that while 12-step groups are effective, people often don’t continue their involvement at beneficial levels over the long term. However, the word is often used in different ways in different contexts. Many 12-step programs suggest that sobriety means total abstinence—never using the substance ever again. How many times have you fallen asleep on the sofa, fully dressed – or gone to bed with makeup still on and your teeth unbrushed?