What Not Drinking Alcohol for 30 days Taught Me: Are We Living in a Drug-Addicted Culture?

Everywhere I go I see drug dealers everywhere. They come in many different shapes and sizes and some are a lot subtler then one may realize. When you leave your house and walk or drive down the street. What do you find?

You probably are not to far away from a coffee shop, or a gas station selling tobacco. When we go to eat we consume food laced with sugar, or drink beverages that contain synthetic chemicals.

I mean Starbucks is your local drug dealer. Have you ever been there at peak time? Whole bunch of addicts standing around in line looking anxious. I know because many times I have been one of them.

Everybody seems to be addicted to some sort of drug whether it be a simple tea, an alcoholic beverage soda or a pharmaceutical grade ‘medication’. It’s a vicious spiral too. I once became aware of a routine where I would consume large amounts of caffeine regularly. I would then suffer terrible withdrawal in the form of fatigue and migraines. The answer? To drive to the local store and pick up some painkillers usually in the form of ibuprofen or aspirin.

Sell Addictive Drugs Legally and become a Multi-Million Dollar Corporation.

Some of the most successful companies on the planet sell addictive harmful drugs and get away with it.

I sympathize that not all drugs being sold and consumed are so terrible. Being British I admittedly love my tea and don’t see myself ever parting with it.

I can only speak from personal experience here but every major regret I have in life is alcohol related. The nature of the drug is hilarious. If you ask me what life is about it I would say it is trying to make the best choices. Alcohol is a drug that lowers ones ability to make good decisions. Not only that, it is highly addictive and toxic to the body.

My aim here is not to judge or slam alcohol or anybody who chooses to drink it. I understand it can be fun at times but so can other drugs that are just as addictive and dangerous such as cocaine, amphetamine and meth. What im trying to get at here is the bigger picture. Why is alcohol so glorified worshipped and mass produced while other drugs (especially the useful healing kinds) are criminalized and demonized?

It just has to make you stop and think about our culture sometimes. The toxic poisonous things are all around us while the things that can help us heal are banned.

I mean replace the word alcohol for meth. Imagine everybody just went out every weekend and just done a bunch of meth. “Whats wrong with Jimmy?’ Oh don’t worry he just done waaaaay to much meth last night, lost his phone, broke his nose vomited and passed out. We have become so well adjusted to this being normal when we use the word alcohol.

I’ve personally had a love hate relationship with this drug for quite some time. I like to explore different modes of consciousness so I have often partaken in drinking but in all honestly having tried better things that are actually healthy for me I’ve become quite bored of it.

I can no longer deal with the hangovers, or next day regrets. Its possible to not wind up in the gutter each weekend and still have an alcohol problem. If one finds it difficult to socialize or interact with other humans without alcohol then this is surely a problem.

But please don’t take this article the wrong way. Everybody is different and some people can tolerate certain things better than others. We all react differently to the world around us.

I just like to write to make you think about things a little bit differently and to share my experiences with you.

If you unsure if you have a problem with a alcohol or any particular substance I challenge you to try doing a 30 day challenge without it. This is a great way to observe your self for a while without making any definitive commitments.

I tried this with alcohol and was absolutely shocked at just how soon it was before I had a beer in my hand. I also did this with coffee and let me tell you this was one of the hardest things I have ever done, which taught me just how addicted to it I was.

Another 30 days challenge I attempted was giving up meat, dairy and eggs and before I knew I had been vegan for many years.

It is crazy what we can achieve in just 30 days. I think it is because of how habitual we are as human beings. We are very routine creatures and the only way to break or begin habits is to commit to them for a short period of time. If we find the experience to be negative after 30 days then it is not exactly the end of the world. At the very least we learn something.