Biggest Buzz in the World

The biggest buzz you will get from alcohol is when you no longer have to take it. The feeling is one of elation; a true mental and physical boost that is yours to recapture whenever you wish. This feeling will happen for you, if it hasn’t happened already at some point during the adjustment period. I had the sense of joy and freedom even before I finished my final drink but the biggest buzz was yet to come. During the first few weeks after I had stopped, everything became so clear. It was at this stage that I realised alcohol did absolutely nothing for me. I was going out, having fun and most of the time I wasn’t even thinking about drinking. When I did think about it I became happier and happier each day as I knew I never had to drink again. I could see this fairly clearly before I’d actually had my last drink but during the first couple of weeks I frequently experienced (and still do today) the biggest buzz in the world from not having to drink.

I must admit that I did suffer some physical pain when I stopped drinking including bruised legs when I kicked myself for not seeing it earlier. That, for me, was the most frustrating part. But it’s like that damn Rubik’s Cube; it only appears difficult if you go about it the wrong way. Once you have the solution everything falls into place. The reason for my frustration was that it was as though I had been locked in a prison for years then suddenly realised that I’d always had the key.

In the end I realised that I was my own jailer. I kept myself trapped by believing that there were genuine benefits in drinking alcohol and that alcohol was somehow different from any other drug. Realise that you are your own jailer as there is only one person who can make it difficult for you to stop drinking and that is you. The key is in your mind and this book is about showing you how to turn back the clock to the time before you even started drinking.

The moment of euphoria or ‘the big buzz’ will happen at some point during the first few weeks, if it hasn’t already. This has nothing whatsoever to do with alcohol leaving your body but simply the adjustment I talked about. Do not sit around waiting for anything to happen , just get on with your life and enjoy purging the disease from your mind and body.

To be honest, it is very hard to describe just how wonderful it is to be free without coming across as evangelical. I just want to show the world that what they have believed for so long about alcohol is wrong. It is just one big illusion. I want everyone who is hooked to realise that they are. I want the world to see that alcohol creates insecurities while giving the illusion of courage. I want the drinking world to know that they are being conned.

If you are concerned that social gatherings, meals, birthdays, parties, holidays and lunches will not be the same without alcohol, then you are correct, they are not the same:

THEY ARE INFINITELY BETTER.

I feel alive again, awake again, clear headed again. Do you remember what it was like to be a child at a party; that sense of excitement and fun? That is what I feel like when I go out now. I just want to be social, to dance and have fun. When I felt dependent on alcohol, the number one priority was to make sure I had a drink, everything else came second. I even rated a party by the quality and quantity of drink available. Now I don’t say things like, ‘I will talk to you in a minute, just let me get a drink.’

My only question now is not why was it easy for me to stop drinking but why did I ever think it needed to be difficult? With an open mind and a few instructions, it’s easy. Does this mean that all social gatherings are going to be brilliant from now on and there will be no low points? No. This book is about dealing with common sense and reality. Were all social occasions fun while you were drinking? No. Did you ever have bad days when you were drinking? Yes, of course. I am not saying that you will never have a bad time from now on. What I am saying is that, because you will be physically and mentally a lot stronger than you have been in years, any highs are much higher and any lows that do come along are not going to seem as low as they once were.

So, let yourself get excited. You are reclaiming your freedom and becoming free. When I first stopped drinking I used to hide the fact that I had stopped, such is the stigma around non-drinkers. I used to tell people that

I was driving or that I didn’t feel like it at the moment or that I was taking medication. Now I want to tell the world and so should you. There is no need to be embarrassed about the fact that you no longer want or have to drink. How have we reached a stage in our society where we have to justify not needing a drug anyway?

Remember that the poor drinkers always have to justify their intake to themselves and everyone else. You no longer have to justify anything, so don’t.

Every time I go out, I get a buzz from not having to drink. I think ‘What a relief I don’t have to do that any more.’ You will too and you won’t be able to help yourself . Although one part of you will feel genuinely sorry for drinkers, another will feel a sense of achievement, a sense of pride and of being slightly different and rebellious, a sense of exhilaration and one of real and genuine freedom.

Some people have described it as one of the best feelings they have ever had. Oh, the joy you have to look forward to. Don’t wait for it to happen, the minute you finish that final drink, you cut off the supply and you are:

FREE AT THAT MOMENT.

Why wait to celebrate? If the whole object is to say ‘Isn’t it wonderful, I don’t need to drink any more’, then why not say it from the start? John McCarthy didn’t wait to celebrate and neither did Nelson Mandela, so why

should you? When I passed my driving test, I didn’t avoid telling anyone in case I couldn’t drive next week. I knew that by next week I would be a better driver than I was when I first passed. That is why, if anybody asks why you aren’t drinking, you should tell them the truth from the start. Tell them ‘Because I don’t want to any more’ or, more importantly, ‘Because I don’t have to any more.’ If you do this then you can help me with my vocation in life which is to help every drinker in the world see alcohol addiction for what it actually is, so that we can finally …