On the 13th March 2011, I chose a sober life.
I asked myself 1 question, “Why are you drinking?”. I had no response.
So the drinking stopped, just like that.
I could go on about the journey and blah blah blah, the truth is, it was in quitting that i reaped the rewards. I did not look for the benefits of quitting, I just found no benefit in continuing.
10 years later, here are 10 reasons that may help you ditch the bottle as given by the Aviary recovery center.
1. Danger of Overdose
Even for people who are not addicted, there is always the danger of an overdose if excessive or binge drinking is taking place. An alcohol overdose can be fatal, and it is not an optional red flag. Quitting drinking is truly the only sure-fire way to entirely prevent an overdose.
2. Save Your Liver
Due to alcohol’s direct irritation of the stomach’s lining, the scarring, or cirrhosis, of your liver occurs after years of drinking. You do not have to be drunk for this damage to take place.
3.Save Your Heart
Excessive and binge drinking can result in high blood pressure, cardiomyopathy, and heart arrhythmias or irregular heart rhythms. Your heart and liver are two of your body’s most essential organs. Do not take their health lightly.
4. Improved Sleeping Habits
While it might feel like you are getting a good night’s sleep after drinking, the type of sleep your body gets when you are drunk is fragmented. Even if it feels deeper, your body will not be properly rejuvenated. In the long run, this can have serious repercussions.
5. Improved Focus and Concentration
In addition to alcohol decreasing your alertness and impairing your discernment, the accompanying fatigue and lack of proper sleep will also result in poor concentration. This consequence of drinking is more than an inconvenience. It can affect your education, career, your income, and your general perception of life.
6. Say Goodbye to Hangovers
Your weekend mornings do not have to be miserable. While there are many purported “hangover cures” (from drinking more alcohol to cold showers and coffee), the reality is that there is only one scientifically proven way to avoid a hangover: avoid excessive drinking.
7. Be Natural
Learn how to celebrate life without the counterfeit buzz of alcohol! Be 110% present and alert in every moment. Can you imagine how grateful your body would feel if you only put into it things which were natural and healing?
8. For the Sake of Your Offspring
Addiction can be hereditary in that those with a family history of the disease can be more susceptible to also having it themselves. Additionally, some people can also inherit the increased risk for diseases like cirrhosis of the liver.
9. Quit While You’re Ahead
If you continue drinking excessively, there is nowhere to go but down. Since alcohol is a substance many people can quickly build up a tolerance against, it is inevitable that the amount of alcohol it took to get to a desired level of intoxication will just continue to increase over time. Even if you are already at a low place, if you were to quit today, you would still be preventing whatever further, more dangerous drinking might have lay ahead of you.
10. Get Your Autonomy Back
As mentioned at the beginning, addiction is a disease in which you lose control over your own body. Becoming sober is truly the only way you can overcome this battle once and for all.