22 - What is the best thing about not drinking?

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Full Transcript:

Like the rest of my family, I basically grew up expecting there to be a bottle of wine or two waiting for me every evening, plus some whisky or cognac afterwards as a night cap.

Most of my adult life, that’s how I lived.

From about age 20 to 45, I drank a bottle of wine every evening, plus some spirit. I thought it was what distinguishes a good life from a bad life, not because it was so much fun, but because there was a sense of sophistication and accomplishment that came with it. It had snob appeal.

Enter my Chinese wife, who realised I tend toward sleep apnea, and it freaked her out. You can only do so many nights of attempted resuscitations, thinking your husband just died in his sleep.

So I decided to go off it to see if it helped, and we got ourselves an overload of tea cups, tea pots, and tea varieties to fill the beverage gap.

The result was amazing.

Not only did the sleep apnea disappear, but I also slept vastly better, my stress levels plummeted, as did my weight, and my bills. After a year, I couldn’t believe how much money I had saved drinking tea instead of wine. We started flying away on holiday like we had not done before.

And I no longer wake up with a sad soundtrack on my mind every morning. For decades, I had believed that that’s what waking up is simply like. Instead, I actually wake up full of bright ideas and good thoughts now.

Now, I still like wine. But I see its downsides. So, on weekends, with family, I will have a bottle of wine. But it’s not a bottle a day anymore, and I can truly recommend the effects it has to give your body a respite with some proper sleep.

Vocabulary

1. nightcap: A nightcap is a drink taken shortly before bedtime. For example, a small alcoholic drink or glass of warm milk can supposedly promote a good night's sleep
2. sophistication: the process or result of becoming cultured, knowledgeable, or disillusioned
3. apnea: transient cessation of respiration

downsides: the negative aspect of something otherwise regarded as good or desirable.