I don't have a large audience here, but here this goes anyway. I am 100 days sober today. I made the decision to go AF in January following a descent over the last year during the pandemic. For my personal relationships and my health I needed to end

my reliance on alcohol as something I needed to get through the day/week. Drinking 2/3 of a liquor bottle every night wasn't sustainable, despite being high functioning at work and with family. I tried 'moderation' multiple times and it always failed me in the end.

Within 2-3 weeks I would be back to my old habits at home. In the latter half of last year I even started to sneak bottles into my office to drink alone at night. I never considered myself an alcoholic, and to be honest, I still don't.

Reading @ThisNakedMind and Quit Like a Woman showed me that you don't have to be an 'alcoholic' to have a problem with alcohol. And let's be real, I know there are other factors that contributed to me increasing my use and dependence - I get help for that, too.

Alcohol only made those problems worse for me. I never truly felt better drinking after a bad day at work. Celebrating a good day with a beer wasn't satisfying in the end either. Drinking during these times only dampened my mood. Since I quit, I have lost 20lbs,

slept better, been more productive, much less agitated, I read more, I'm more focused doing any activity. Going to my first soccer game sober was something new. I actually enjoyed it more. I could recall the entire game afterwards and didn't have to pee 13 times during a game.

Finally, to be clear, this thread isn't about pushing anyone else to quit either. I know not everyone has had the same experience with alcohol as me. If anyone wants to explore their relationship with alcohol, check out the books I mentioned before and @JoinTempest