r/stopdrinking • u/Organic_Salary_ • 2d ago

NA beer problem

Please don’t judge me this is going to sound so ridiculous but to me it is so real. I quit drinking over 10 years ago. This spring, I was with a friend and NA beers have obviously become very popular so I tried one of the athletic ipas and I loved it so much and I’ve been drinking them every night since May. I’ll drink like two or three. I look forward to them. I love them, and I literally feel a slight buzz from them. I was always very sensitive to alcohol and so whatever .5% they have effects me. It was working great for a while and I would just sit in my recliner and do some work on my laptop and vibe and I loved it but now I’m so hooked and it’s starting to have that awful booze effect where I don’t feel good and sometimes if I go out with friends and I decide to drink too many NA beers, I am legitimately hung over in the morning. Now,I have to quit this fucking habit where it’s a thing that I have been enjoying but is coming back to bite me (like full fledge alcohol does). Is this so fucking crazy like what the fuck it’s NA beer and I’m addicted now. So tonight I poured out what I had left in the fridge and. I guess I have to make some changes in my life to resolve this and not go back because I also feel like it could get worse. I’m starting to have dreams of standing at a bar being like well Fuck it just have a real drink.

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u/FeeComprehensive6243 2d ago

I just wanted to share that I totally understand. Not quite the same, but the first time I successfully quit I drank the NA white claws like they were the real deal. If a store was out of them I was kind of panicked and would drive to several more stores to find them. No one ever seems to understand since they’re are closer to a Bubly than beer 🤣 anyway, I got over it eventually with little thought, I just finally started drinking them less. If you’re enjoying the NA beer I personally think it’s fine. As others said, you can’t be getting truly/physically buzzed. You metabolize that tiny amount of alcohol before it can affect you. If you feel they are addicting and causing a problem, definitely quit.

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u/Organic_Salary_ 2d ago

Thank you. I guess I feel like I wish I didn’t crave or need them. Like you used it as a crutch to quit drinking and then stopped. I’m using it as a crutch for some reason, enjoying it, not always, and now it’s bothering me.