First things first, it’s not six months sober and strength to those fighting the good fight - I’ve seen professionally (criminal defense lawyer) how it wrecks people’s lives and wish you the best. I will drink again this summer on vacation due to where we’ll be.

Alcohol and I have a weird relationship. I’m not a huge fan: early on it was social lubrication, then it was what everyone else was doing, and then it was “I don’t like 99% of this stuff but every time I don’t drink everyone asks why.” I’m the last round of us, born late ‘70s and just hitting the “I don’t care what other people think” stride.

My family also has a complicated history with alcohol. All 3 grandparents alive when I was born were alcoholics, my dad was a raging drunk and my mom a binge drinker. 3/5 of my parents’ siblings were alcoholics. This caused me to drink with awareness, but not abstain.

Then my dad passed early last year. Months later, and a week before his birthday, I bought a bottle of the stuff I liked for a neighborhood thing. I got wasted and felt like shit for days. Not blackout drunk, mind you; I remember everything, my wife and everyone else had a blast, and it was the dude down the street who passed out on a lawn. But man, I felt like death.

Took a scheduled road trip a few days later and while away, told myself “no drinking for the rest of the year (it was late October, last year).

It carried over and has kept running. I’m six months alcohol free today and I feel so much better. But please keep in mind: I averaged 2-4 drinks/week and that’s not much. The times I was drunk were few and far between. It doesn’t take too much alcohol to drag you down. The aging body does not want to be regularly poisoned, even if you’re in really good physical condition, like me.

I’m not ranting against alcohol. I’ll drink again. I’m just telling you if you want to feel better and some exercise isn’t cutting it, drop booze for a while and see for yourself.

Stay healthy, friends.