How to Quit Partying And Start Drinking Wine Instead
Healthy lifestyle & conscious drinking for the sober-curious millennial hipster post-raver
Just before I blacked out, I had a moment of clarity. I saw through the fog and the truth beyond was clear. Life was more than the 9 to 5 bullshit, we are not meant to work our lives away paying off college debt while working an entry-level job for a huge corporation making billions off our sweat. Life is meant for passion, art, nature, travel and experience and meaningful human connection.
At least that’s what I pieced together the next morning from my scribbled, drunken, mostly illegible note to self. And I was wrecked; I spent the rest of the day slowly nursing my aching head and beaten body and dealing with the overwhelming feeling of shame that permeated my soul. I’d made a fool of myself, I was sure, but I couldn’t remember exactly how. Luckily, no one else could either; most of them had been nearly as far gone, off booze or drugs.
It’s not like I blacked out every night. Just now and then, when I was feeling particularly self-destructive or after a breakup with my girlfriend or when I’d accidentally drink too much while trying to lubricate my joints enough to dance without dying of shame and awkwardness. Most nights, I only had a few drinks, enjoyed good conversation, and explored the exciting bar scene of midtown Sacramento.
What to do now? A wonderful epiphany, a new inspiration to live life with purpose and ambition, but also a wrecked body that would take days to recuperate. I’ll take a week off from drinking, and find health, I decided.
That week, I went shopping at Trader Joe’s, and stocked up on fruit & veggies, tofu & green tea. I read articles online about superfoods, and ordered some off Amazon. I joined another yoga studio for their “30 days $30” deal, a yearly ritual of mine. But this time it would stick, I was sure. I didn’t drink all week. But Friday was rough. My boss was an ass, and traffic was shit, and by the time I got home, I was glad to be entering the weekend.
You know how this story goes; I drink again, black out again, rinse, repeat, right? That’s the cliche, but not quite how it actually plays out. Every week, every year, I made resolutions, made changes, learned, tried my best. Week to week, change was slow, but change occurred. At 37, I live a life that is full of passion, art, health, nature, travel, experience, and meaningful human connection.
And I achieved it not by jumping from the extremity of binge drinking to the other extremity of sobriety. I found it through balance.
I fear for the extremist who jumps from binge-drinking, drugs & raving & partying, to the opposite extreme of total sobriety. That’s a very American sort of behavior, jumping around from one end to the other without stopping in between to smell the flowers. We have an unhealthy love in this country for extremism and partisanship. I hope that we can find a middle ground.
I have no great advice or wisdom for you all beyond what I can say from personal experience: Make slow, steady changes to your life. Find balance. Ultimately, if a thing is not right for you, cut it out of your life entirely. But do not give up on progress just because progress can be slow. Keep chipping away at it year after year, getting a bit better every time. That’s the funny thing about life: if you don’t fix your mistakes, life will bring it back around and you will get another chance to do it again, fix that mistake the next time. Every day is a new chance to find healthy lifestyle balance.