Alcohol increases your risk of cancer and after effects (depression, irritability) can linger for more than a week with some people, like me! So I don’t drink, not really worth it to me.

It depends on how it affects you. What you described matches more what I get from coffee (I don’t drink coffee). I drink fairly regularly I guess. It gives a social boost, to the point of a semi-social sober person, in exchange for some clumsiness. Hangovers are rare and I’ve never forgotten something because of alcohol, so it feels more like a short-term enhancement. Obviously it’s bad long-term but, as with everything, if you don’t hurt anyone, you do you.

Opinions? You do you. No amount of alcohol is apparently “safe” in terms of health effects, according to newer research. For a ton of people that doesn’t matter that much.

3 years sober this august. Eventually the amount of drinking you need to do increases to an unbearable degree for the same amount of “fun”.

Life is much better now. But being an addict sucks, don’t go there.

I enjoy good beer. I have one almost every day - I don’t believe it’s the effect alcohol has on my brain, but the taste. I found a non-alcoholic beer that I liked and drank it for months. Then the store ran out so I got some of my old favourites as a treat and from the very first sip it was just - better. So I’m back to drinking alcohol - one beer a day and a small Jägermeister once or twice a month.

I understand that it’s poison, but I feel like unless you’re living a totally subsistence lifestyle in the middle of nowhere then everything you do is a potential poison to some extent and our bodies will deal with it or not - we’re all playing Russian Roulette with everything we ingest, breath and touch.

I think people that aren’t just trying it out and that drink even one drink in a setting more than once a week are alcoholics to varying degrees. I don’t condemn them, but I do think that at that point, the alcohol is a habit, and you are addicted and therefore an alcoholic. Not a raging alcoholic, not a helpless alcoholic, but you have proven yourself able to be, and are, addicted to alcohol and at that point need to be VERY careful.

Also, alcohol is basically just bad for you, fully. Do whatever you want, maybe I’ll join you happily occasionally, but this is the fact of the situation.

No amount of alcohol is good for you, and considering the things that are ‘good’ for you can potentially be bad for you (e.g. supply chains making things cheaper for profit without regards to public health), it’s not really worth whatever you’re getting out of it (imo). Sure, it can be reasonable to think it can be fun or different on occasion, but there’s alternatives that are far less destructive to your overall well-being. By less risky I’m not even refering to long-term damage…I mean the potential that someone’s light or moderate relationship with alcohol can, in a single night, pivot and destroy their life or the life of another. That can obviously be applied to literally anything, but again, there’s no amount of alcohol that’s good for you.

Want a head change? Eat a CBD gummy or try some different teas- there’s plenty that can mellow you out the are far less impactful or risky to your health- chamomile, peppermint, kava, damiana, etc (though even some of those can damage your liver long-term).

Ultimately, everyone gets to decide what is worth the risk to them - red meat, lunch meats, preservates in literally everything, pickled things, too much sugar, trans fats, too much screen time, etc. Kind of comes down to the individual to decide what’s worth it. I’d rather enjoy a yummy treat a few times a week over nuking my body with alcohol every now and again.

I hate alcohol. I hate the lifestyle of alcohol. I hate that people orbit themselves around alcohol to where all they think as to have a good time, is to have alcohol. I hate drunk drivers. I hate people who’re constantly drunk. I hate people who spend enormous times at the bar or some nightclub where there will be - alcohol. I hate domestic abusers who usually cause a lot of shit by drinking alcohol.

I never liked beer. It just tastes like shit to me. I’m also not a fan of dry wine, so I don’t usually go for that. I do like mixed drinks.

I very rarely drink. My wife’s older brother was killed by a drunk driver. I met her after that, but I got to see the impact it had on their lives. So, if I’m driving I won’t touch any alcohol.

When my kids were young, and I was still in the on call rotation at work, I was always either driving the kids around or I was on call, so I couldn’t drink.

Now the kids are grown, and I don’t take call anymore, but it just never occurs to me. Very rarely, my wife and I will go to a restaurant within walking distance of our house. If we go there, I’ll have a couple long island iced teas. To give you an idea of the frequency, we’ve gone there three times in the last seven years. We might also open a bottle of wine at holidays.

I never was part of the drinking culture. My wife and I started dating when we were in high school. We’ve never been the sort to go to a bar or a nightclub.

When my kids were young and in karate, we would go to parties with the other karate parents. My wife and I were shocked by the dads who would get absolutely plastered at these parties. When we asked, they said they drink like that every week.

Drank most weekends in my twenties. Not so much now. My wife and I take years to go through a bottle of booze.

It’s tough trying to decide which reply to post this under so I guess at the top….

I do enjoy drinking occasionally, and I also drink much less than I used to. I admit to unhealthy binge drinking in my early 20s. Now, I essentially never have enough to get impaired, so that’s good. I do also respect my brain and want to take care of it. Also as I get older, alcohol is just less appealing and the hangover is harder to deal with. I’ll have a couple drinks every few weeks

I’m actually tempted to try to drink more often. It helps me socially and helps reduce stress, so why shouldn’t I have a drink or two every weekend. I do know alcohol is a sneaky bitch though, so would never actually try to drink more

And of course when I mentioned this to a buddy, I found out he had gotten up to 2/day by following that logic. Yikes

I really like it. It enhances nights out, social gatherings, music, and comedy.

It doesn’t affect my work as I only drink if I’m not working the next day. I probably get drunk 2-4 nights a month.

It’s absolutely not for everyone. Some people should never drink.

My biggest issue with it is that it screws up my health due to the empty calories and poor food choices/lack of exercise the next day.

Alcohol provides practically zero benefits to the human body and countless damages.

People who drink regularly, even if they aren’t actually alcoholics, are causing really bad long-term damage to their organs (all of them, not just the liver). Alcohol is also a carcinogen that newer studies are saying is comparable to tobacco.

That being said it isn’t necessarily an issue solved with judgement. Most alcoholics know they’re killing their bodies but can’t quit due to the chemical and psychological addicting properties of alcohol. Many who become alcoholics do so as a form of self medication for major problems, psychological or otherwise. Others are literally groomed into it by friends, family and the nearly global culture of drinking.

Thank fuck the newer generations are drinking less than ever.

I love the taste of alcohol and in social situations it sooths my anxiety. But because of that I’ve noticed it take over me for a bit. Now I may not even have a drink in a month. And not drinking has been great for my physical training even if parties aren’t as fun.

But really I don’t care about substances having an effect on my reasoning or perception. I think it’s good actually to have different perspectives. So as long as you’re alcohol consumption isn’t hurting those around you, have at it brother.

I enjoy some light drinking. It curbs my social anxiety and makes me loquacious and stimulated. Just not to the point of being sloppy, slurred and clumsy.