My life without alcohol – FOCUS online

First of all, it should be said that even after two alcohol-free years, I am still a long way from playing the moral high ground. Everyone should find their way and decide freely whether they want to drink alcohol and how much of it.

After all, the negative effects of the cytotoxin are well known and
scientifically proven.

Die Abzweigung: Old ways won’t open new doors

When I turned to the “alcohol-free path”, I was not yet familiar with “Longevity”. After a corona vaccination, I didn’t feel particularly well and was therefore happy to avoid alcohol. I had already noticed many months earlier that my tolerance for alcoholic beverages was getting worse and worse. The negative consequences, even after small amounts of alcohol, such as headaches, dizziness and feeling unwell have been overshadowing the enjoyment for some time.

In this first phase I started to read testimonials and books on the subject of “living without alcohol” and I liked what I read more and more and encouraged me to keep at it for another day.

With Susanne Kaloff’s humorous book
“Soberly, drunk wasn’t that exhilarating”
and Nathalie Stüben’s moving bestseller
“Without Alcohol: The Best Decision of My Life: Insights I Wish I Had Had Sooner”
the decision was finally made, because I could already clearly feel the positive effects of permanently abstaining from alcohol.

I lost weight on my own, without changing my eating habits. I slept better, woke up more refreshed. I felt fitter than ever and mentally strong and clear. Stress could suddenly affect me less than before. All of these changes are permanent and I still appreciate them to this day.

Die „Durst“strecke: Fake it, until you make it

Of course, I also occasionally faltered. Especially in situations where drinking alcohol is “part of it” in our society. Here I concentrated on non-alcoholic beers or non-alcoholic sparkling wine, just to “hold a drink in my hand” like everyone else. The pressure from society was not without it, but I persevered because I knew I was doing it for the sake of my health.

In the meantime I had also gotten an app to which I had revealed my previous drinking habits. This app motivated me to keep going every single day by showing me the improvements in my health.

I could see at a glance how many weeks and months I hadn’t drunk, how much money it had saved me, how my organs were recovering and my risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer was slowly but steadily reducing. And the best: The app showed me the hours and days by which my lifetime was statistically extended.

To overcome alcohol cravings, she kept a game of online memory as a distraction. At some point it was so far that I actually no longer felt like drinking alcohol in any situation in life and it has remained that way to this day. Occasionally I take a look at the app and am happy about my health successes. I have already “worked out” almost 18 days of additional lifetime. The result is impressive, isn’t it?

On the way to your goal: This is how giving up alcohol affects you

I have learned that after just one day of abstinence, the body is free of alcohol and blood sugar returns to normal. And that’s just the beginning, because:

• Regeneration in the brain, which leads to an improvement in cognitive abilities, begins after just three days.
• After two weeks, the first improvements in the immune and digestive systems are noticeable, while the quality of sleep also increases.
• After four weeks, dry and reddened skin is a thing of the past for most people. The eyeballs also become whiter, by the way.
• After eight weeks without alcohol, the ability to concentrate improves.
• After four months, your own fitness will have improved significantly. After about nine months, you will also notice that you have given up alcohol on your hair, as the body can now store moisture better.
• The liver, our detoxification organ, should have fully recovered and returned to normal functioning after a year without alcohol because it no longer has to flush out additional toxins.
• After two years, the risk of developing cardiovascular disease also decreases, and it can take up to ten years for the likelihood of alcohol-related cancer to decrease.
  (Quelle: EasyQuit Drinking)

The times given are approximate and should be considered depending on the individual’s state of health, drinking behavior and the previous duration of alcohol consumption. If there is critical or pathological alcohol consumption, a doctor should always be consulted.

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