Day 19: April 19, 2024

Day 19: April 19, 2024


What are My Thoughts Today?

Trying to do some liminal thinking right now about acquired taste. The only other food that has a similar trajectory to me is coffee, which is also obviously an addictive substance. I remember with alcohol I definitely had to train myself to like wine, starting out with the very sweet stuff like prosecco and moving in towards red wine over a period of a couple of years. I never got into whiskey on the rocks, but I loved Manhattans. But of course that was after many years of drinking.

My first experiences with drinking were a lot like you'd expect, grimaces at sips in childhood. Beer was repulsive to me as a kid. I didn't drink in earnest until after senior year of high school, we went to a cabin and drank peach schnapps and Mike's hard lemonade (sufficiently sweet to tolerate) and one of my friends barfed. I don't remember being drawn to the taste that time, but we definitely got drunk.

What's interesting is I wonder if the dopamine kick made me keep going right from that very first night at the cabin. I remember wanting to like coffee really bad but I hated the flavor, so I would add a lot of hot chocolate powder to it until I could tolerate it. Since coffee is also addictive it makes me wonder. The only other acquired taste I have forced myself to really try to like is olives (my husband loves them so I wanted to like them too), and even though I DO like them now, I don't crave olives like I do coffee or alcohol! πŸ«’

Now I would say I do genuinely like the taste of the beverages I got used to, but that's where nonalcoholic equivalents have come in really handy since I started trying to be AF. I have grown to like the non-alcoholic Guinness and even look forward to it, just like I used to get excited about the real thing. It still feels like a relaxing treat, and while the flavor is not a 100% match, I am noticing the difference less and less throughout the weeks. The NA drinks do taste good, but there's a little less of a pull to have multiples of them, likely because they are not addictive. So I think there is something to this addictive quality discussion...

Drinks since April 1st: 0

My Why: To help my days feel more vibrant!

What's One Awesome Thing that Happened Yesterday because I Chose Not to Drink? I didn't feel deprived at dinner and I don't feel super groggy today!

Daily Affirmations:
1) I choose to live Alcohol-Free.
2) I respect and honor myself.
3) I am worthy of love and care.
4) I give myself patience to heal.
5) I have compassion for others.
6) I create beauty all around me.