Last
Tuesday night (super-early Wednesday morning, in actuality), I was
enjoying my last (so far anyway) alcoholic beverage, a 24 oz. Busch
Light as I recall, doing some reading and making some observations.
It isn't often that I've decided to really pay attention to the
manner in which I read – especially considering, until recently, I
haven't really spent much time reading at all unless it was in a game
of some sort. I noticed that, not only was I reading more slowly
than I had earlier in the day (before work), but I was re-reading the
same passages three and four times in order to properly grasp the
meanings of the text.
This
isn't as simple as not comprehending the words – I found myself
skipping words; entire lines. I found it rather disconcerting that
after consuming only 12 -16 oz of alcohol my ability to read was so
seriously impaired. I imagined that all methods by which I could
take in information were similarly compromised. I think this
observation is what brought me to the conclusion that I needed to do
something different.
After
sleeping it off, I spent some time before work Wednesday reading
about quitting drinking. Obviously, there are a great multitude of
differing opinions on the best method, and no one particular source
was any more helpful than another. I finally decided on a simple
“cold turkey” approach, which seemed the most logical and has
worked for me in the past. Maybe this doesn't work quite like smoking for most
people, but I can honestly say that the easiest way to quit something
is to simply quit.
As
a result of quitting, I have noted an increase in my attentiveness at
work and at home (during our home-schooling hours); at times I
wouldn't have been drinking anyway. It is clear to me that the
alcohol's effect on the brain, while most pronounced immediately
after consumption, is still present many hours after the more
immediate effect has worn off. These effects, I'm guessing, are
cumulative over time, and seem to reduce over time much like the
half-life of a radioactive isotope. I imagine I have some time ahead
of me before fully realizing the benefit of this choice, but already
I have had friends come to me and congratulate me, and, in one
particular instance, open up to me about how unhelpful I had been on
certain past occasions as a result of my heedlessness. Of course,
I've also had some skeptical attitudes thrown at me, but all these
words (positive or negative) have only strengthened my resolve, and I
am thankful for them.
So
I've gone seven days without so much as a sip of an alcoholic
beverage, a feat I have not so much as tried to accomplish in over
ten years. Am I terribly impressed? No, not really. There are
other areas of my life in which much improvement is needed, and I've
only truly started to reap the rewards of this particular change.
That said, the rewards already have indeed been significant in the
form of improved mental concentration in general, including extra
“willpower” so-to-speak against the other various negative
influences in life. I am hopeful that readers of this blog (however
few of you there may be) can find something helpful or uplifting in
this commentary. We each have struggles to overcome in life, and,
quite clearly, one must admit that an issue exists to ever truly hope
to address it.
Be
well, friends, and thank you.
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