What are your opinions on alcohol? (Questions)

[Mr. Stevens]

Very interesting to me how many non-drinkers or former drinkers there are responding here. I admit surprise and also a great deal of comfort. No judgements on those who choose to drink, but I’m heartened to be among so many people that do not value alcohol.

I agree. Years ago, when I was seeing a therapist, he was a little surprised that I didn't drink at all (I hadn't for a few years). But, then he said, "You like control." Which is true. I imagine a lot of Autistic people avoid alcohol because it gets rid of inhibition and numbs, so we don't notice the sensory stimulation as much. But, you do pay for it later.

Coffee seems to be extremely popular with us, and I've noticed with ID individuals too.

 

[Atrapa Almas]

I've seen that part of the appeal of coffee and tea was that they involved boiling water, making them safer than water with alcohol.

Exactly. Also, for people doing intense physical labours, like an ancient farmer, alcohol get burned almost instantanely. We have the metabolism to burn alcohol, as we do with sugar. So people who is running can drink some alcohol without noticing it or some sugar without having sugar spikes.

The big problem comes nowadays when we no longer do physical jobs. We get drunk and diabetics.

Sorry for the oftopic.

 

[NB79]

I drink a beer or something only in events like christmas or new year, some birthday, but it can pass months between drinks, i try to avoid alcohol, i don't want to get addicted, but it seems to be good for my stomach, so i wish i had good self control, and drink more, but i won't do it.

 

[Magnus]

I've drunk a lot in the past. I mean a lot. I just read Matthew Tinsley's 'Asperger Syndrome and Alcohol' book.

I was suprised to hear statistics like "30% of alcoholics have ASD" type of thing. On reading the book I realised that I used it to help me with social situations and that my dependency and amount have been damaging in the past.

I was happy travelling in Thailand, and although I didn't stop drinking, it was much reduced, particularly when riding a motorscooter (don't want to have curtailed awareness on Thai roads!).

So I have been consuming much less when back in UK, but have experimentally stopped. It's a bit easy when you understand what the underlying cause is. I've been drinking zero alcohol beer and sparkling water instead.

 

[1ForAll]

Our father often told us when we looked anxious, scared or bored, "Have a drink. Be a man." That is all I needed to hear to never want to try it, as I did not want to become like him and that then. But my sister played her part too when she said, "You know it is Ok to drink as we cannot help it if it is in our genes." Neither had the wisest words for sure.

So growing up I associated alcohol with harms, not anything good. I am sure it helps some though, if an occasional or responsible use of that, but in my case it became instinct to internally rebel against anyone else who told me either to try it, or if I saw others talk of some benefits with that, as my keen senses and observations said it was bad for me.

 

[The Pandector]

My extended family all drank socially, no exceptions. I’m not a social person and alcohol can loosen me up a bit.

My drinking was private; wife didn’t drink but I would drink beer after work. For a few years, I was drinking a tall sixer every night, moving to mixed drinks for social occasions.

I drank for obliteration; each day was a tremendous load and at the end I wanted to quit feeling, quit analyzing, quit worrying.

For no particular reason, I just quit drinking. It’s a [email protected] life and I was needing better. For years I didn’t drink at all and bought into the current doctrine that, once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic.

Eventually, I learned that the popular wisdom was no more than just popular wisdom. For me, at least, alcohol is a choice that some people just won’t quit making.

I really enjoy a good glass of wine, but a second glass often makes me want to lay down when my digestion needs me upright. I suspect autism has something to do with the fact that I have little interest in run-of-the-mill wines, and wines I do enjoy cost more than I’m able to comfortably afford, so I find occasional joy in a self-limiting interest.

Beer repulses me usually. I keep a tall Bud in the back of the fridge for those rare occasions when I’m in the mood for a tomato beer, for which I actually use V-8, about 3:1. I enjoy it and then the bloat reminds me why I rarely do it.

My sons drink socially, but I never see them tipsy. A big hurdle for me was getting used to hanging out with them without a drink in my hand. Nowadays it is a non-issue for me, though I admit that I’ll nurse a single drink for an hour, signaling that Dad is in a party mood.

Even partial drunkenness is an ugly place to be, even the mildest hangover a convicting sermon on overindulgence.

But I strongly suspect that if alcohol were introduced today as a cleaning solution, it wouldn’t take two shakes of a lamb’s tail for the off-label benefits to be discovered. Human nature.

 

[AprilR]

My family and i drink only on weekends. I like to drink one or two glasses of beer or wine also after work

 

[Metalhead]

I like my virgin screwdrivers in the morning with bacon and pancakes

 

[Ritchie Aprile]

I love alcohol and it helps me socialize more. I'm not an alcoholic but when I drink I do so to intoxication. However, I've drank too much in my life and have slowed down significantly due to health concerns. While I'm glad I don't drink anywhere near as much as I used to, my social life has dwindled and I feel uncomfortable in social situations where I choose to be sober. It is what it is.

 

[BrokenNeedle]

I was doing the whole "straight edge" thing for most of my life because my family doesn't have a good history with alcohol. But for reasons I won't get into right now, I decided to finally give alcohol a shot (pun?) around 7 or 8 years ago. First off, I only drink it at BBQs/parties with the family and it helps me socialize more. Unfortunately it sometimes turns into this whole thing where they just hand me drinks (I'm not picky, while I don't really like the taste of most alcohol, I'll chug whatever is handed to me) and then very few of them can go shot for shot with me. I end up so drunk and I do dumb things, but at least it makes the rest of them laugh and makes for fun memories (that I barely remember once I'm sober). Some relatives would invite friends to the BBQs/parties and next time I'd see them they'd be like "hey, aren't you the one who jumped into the pool fully clothed in the middle of a thunderstorm last time I was here?" But hey, there are much worse things to be remembered for, right? Without alcohol I would just be sitting there not talking to anyone, which is what I did for years and why I grew to not look forward to any type of gathering like that.

But again, like I said, I only drink it when I'm around family at parties/BBQs and those happen less frequently these days, so I barely drink anymore. I never allowed myself to reach the point where I felt like I needed alcohol as a crutch to get through daily life, which is what I was worried about and the reason why I avoided it for so much of my life because I've seen what it does to some family members (especially older ones during my childhood).

 

[AspiAngie]

I have not gotten drunk since New Years 2000. I am not an alcoholic, but it was a choice I made when I got so drunk I tried to pick a fight with a guy and don't remember anything and puked in a vase in a friend's basement. I realized that I am not a good friendly drunk, but all my negative feels from childhood and abuse come up and I no longer have a lid on it. However, I do not have any issue with anyone else drinking. My ex-fiance who is still my friend never drank because of his experiences with his uncle who died of alcoholism. My best friend drinks a lot of beer and can be hilarious with his jokes, but when he starts slurring I get a little annoyed as he is already a slow talker.

The funny thing is when I was in my 20s I did get accused of being an alcoholic because someone looked in my fridge before a party, and it had all beer bottles. They then told people that I was. Funny how some people are.

I now mainly don't drink because I am on so many different medications for a kidney transplant so ... ya, medications and alcohol don't mix too well. Oh well.

 

[Metalhead]

I wish there was a non alcoholic drink that I could hold on my hand while smoking a cigar and still look like a distinguished gentleman of mafia boss. You don’t see those people drinking Diet Dr Pepper.

 

[AspiAngie]

I have had virgin Iced tea (is that what it is called?) when I first got on the medications I am on. You could probably look up cool drinks that look cool but are free of alcohol that are typically served in bars perhaps?

 

[Metalhead]

Ah, yes, iced tea, which I prefer unsweetened and full of ice cubes.

Long Island Iced Tea does not count. Most bartenders can’t even mix one of those properly.

 

[Judge]

Long Island Iced Tea does not count. Most bartenders can’t even mix one of those properly.

Not surprising, that was the worst mixed drink I ever had. Twice in two very different bars.

The second time was definitely my last. Yuck.

 

[Magna]

Not surprising, that was the worst mixed drink I ever had. Twice in two very different bars.

The second time was definitely my last. Yuck.

If they're mixed properly they're a dangerous drink because the high alcohol content taste seems to magically disappear and thereby having the covert power to knock a person on their derrière.

 

[Metalhead]

If they're mixed properly they're a dangerous drink because the high alcohol content taste seems to magically disappear and thereby having the covert power to knock a person on their derrière.

Yeah, they pack more of a punch than a certain rapper who named himself after iced tea.

 

[Progster]

I sometimes have alcohol free beer. Without the alcohol, it's a nice cool drink to quench your thirst in summer.

 

[Shevek]

1) Do you drink socially with your friends? Do you have any friends/family members who drink socially?
2) What things have you heard about drinking (along with certain factors like medication) that made you not want to try alcohol?
3) Would you ever want to try alcohol once you turn 21 or if you're 21+ and haven't tried alcohol yet or took a break from it?

I don't drink with friends now, and my close friends seldom or never drink, but I know some alcoholics who I try to interest in sober pastimes.
Heard about? I have observed wrecked lives. For years, before I knew my troubles were hard-wired, I went to self-help groups, and sometimes Al-Anon was the only option. There are as many people trying to recover from dealing with alcoholics as there are in AA.
My parents were careful to drink responsibly, and they let me taste alcohol before it was legal. I didn't like the taste, and I didn't get close to feeling an effect. In my 30s, I went to parties where I'd usually have two drinks, but I didn't like the effect of three.

 

[Steve A]

My experience with alcohol started in college...

However, I didn't start partying/drinking right away since I was getting adjusted to my new college lifestyle (living with a roommate, coursework/studying, and working a couple days a week at my college's dining hall for some extra money)

After my first semester of my freshman year, my first college friend group introduced me to the "party" scene, even though I already made some new friends during my first semester.

My first alcoholic drink was "jungle juice" at a house party and even though I only had 3 cups (red solo) I didn't get drunk, despite me getting drunk (at the same house party) the following week when I had 5 cups. Jungle Juice is when you mix different types of liquors and fruit juices/soda all together in a cooler with ice and various fruit pieces.

I also only had one issue with alcohol during my time at college. The link to my story is below:

https://www.reddit.com/r/drunk/comments/bgdh4n

Furthermore, since I only drank at parties over the weekend, I never had an issue with missing class or having my grades being affected because of alcohol. I prioritized my coursework during the week and enjoyed Friday and Saturday evenings with my friends, even though I was still productive over the weekend before I went out.

On an extra note, I'm kind of picky when it comes to drinking: For example, I don't like beer at all, but anything made/mixed with liquor, or any fruit/seltzer beverage is fine by me. I only drink until I feel buzzed/tipsy, and I never drink until blackout.

In my opinion, I think I'm a responsible social drinker since I've learned my limits, even though I only drink whenever I hang out with my friends/cousin, which mainly includes birthdays, Halloween, and New Years Eve. As of today, we don't drink every weekend due to lifestyle changes (after college) including our various work schedules, along with saving money as well.