Sugasnaps

I have my wine refridgerator stocked with Martinelli's now. Heck it's sittin there in my kitchen I may as well use it! Martinelli's is awesome as it is festive like champaigne and it comes in grape, regular apple, apple cranberry! A color for every occasion.

If it has any alcohol in it then it isn't listed on the bottles. I haven't had any issues with it bringing up any triggers or feelings of wanting to down the whole wine fridge full. I have my toast at special occasions just like everyone else and amazingly I can stop at just a sip! lol

jimhere

That's not what I meant. Sorry if I implied that. I drink Martinelli's on ocassion. What I meant is that if the mere sight of Martinelli's stirs up the kind of thinking that gets me back to a drink, the alcoholic mind is still predominant.

fraankie

I do not drink near beer, because I do not want to be near sober.

Patsy

that's the best
and
then
well, 10 near beers is a beer, isn't it


best
fraankie

doorknob

The same could be said for other beverages containing trace amounts of alcohol.

divinedesign21

Haha! That's funny. I used to say that I wished I could get a hold of a "crack patch" (like a nicotine patch)

But seriously, I drink n/a beer because I like the taste. I never drank to get drunk in the first place. I was a crackhead. For some very strange reason I never got addicted to alcohol or cigarettes but I did get addicted to crack adn heroin. Isn't that strange?

McGowdog

No, I guess it's not strange. You're not an alcoholic.

I'm not a drug expert either. I did some drugs, but didn't become an addict.

But to be true to the thread and the OP, which posted this almost 5 years ago, isn't drinking near beer (for an alky or potential hard drinker) like snorting sweet n low?

huntsober

I guess I learned differently. My disease does not know the difference in alcohol, drugs, sex ,gambling, food ect. If I put a mind or mood altering substance in my body I have relapsed. PERIOD. I just dont play with my disease. I have the type that kills. If I use I will die if I do not get into a program of recovery. I was tought that the 12 steps are for my behavior also. So carring out using behavior while not using.....is a behavioral relapse and or a dry drunk. Sure manytimes I have fallen short of behaving the way a recovering person should but I did not use. Staying clean from everything is the main thing. As long as I dont forget the main thing I will be ok.

Gypsy Feet

I miss the taste of a good dark beer. If I thought an NA would taste as delish I would totally have to try one, but I am pretty sure they taste like coors, so I'll pass=)

nelco

absolutely!!


For me, ...... non -alcoholic beer is for non- alcoholics!!

joedris

This is a debate that will go on forever. I first got sober in 1988. I drank O'Doules Amber because I like the taste of beer. It never led me to want a real beer, nor did I ever think I'd get a buzz from drinking a lot of it. I don't drink it often anymore because I find it to be very filling, so I prefer Diet Coke now. I may have an O'Doules on a rare occasion but I've never considered it to be a relapse. But that's me. If you don't agree, then you're entitled to that. If you don't want to drink O'Doules, then don't. If you think it may lead you to want a real beer, then by all means stay away from it.

flutter

lol.. here we go again. This post was from '04..

my only opinion;

When I got sober, I stopped drinking beer.

Rad44

I will occaisonally drink NA Beer and don't feel that it is a threat to my sobriety (alcohol is). I like to use bottles of O'Douls as "props" if you will in social drinking situations (Superbowl Parties come to mind) You get all of the camaradrie and none of the drunkenness.

sfgirl

The "alcohol level" doesn't bother me. In fact it says less than 0.5% which basically means trace because it is slightly fermented. I drink Kombucha drinks which also have the same thing on them (0.5% alcohol) because they are slightly fermented. I am no chemist but I am pretty sure that some foods I make at home and leave lying around and then go back to as left overs probably ferment slightly. Whatever, for me it is splitting hairs. I have never felt a buzz from NA beers and when I was dry for four months a couple years ago I downed them like no tomorrow.

That being said I actually do not recommend it and this is why. When I drank them I was a dry drunk. I was going out, partying, all my thought patterns were the same, carrying on with my life exactly as it had been, but sober. It was this sort of crutch that now I know I didn't need. What it prevented me from doing, and I think this is extremely important for true recovery, was mourning alcohol. You have to really get it through your head and heart that alcohol is a thing of the past. And how can you do that if you are replacing it with a poor substitute? You can't. Now almost 8 months in to what feels like true recovery I would never want a NA beer. It is not against my principals. It just seems gross.

But I also respect everyone is different. If you are weighing the two choices though as to which is better for recovery I hope you choose to abstain. I think it will serve you better.

sfgirl

I just realized this post was from forever ago. Oh well.

tsukiko

:rotfxko Had to quote it...no matter when it was said!

TTOSBT

Now THAT is disgusting.

TheChangingMan

I am only 16 days sober and for the first week I drank NA Beer. I found it helped initially but I agree with others that it is the psychological side that bothers me more than anything.

I was fortunate that the NA Beer I was drinking was one of the few that contained no alcohol at all in the brewing process (Bavaria Regular Malt) but even then I started questioning why I was drinking it.

By drinking the NA stuff I was subconsciously telling myself I wanted alcohol.

CarolD

Hi Everyone.....
This thread is too confusing.....members being quoted
are not here to explain.....and it's years old.

Sooo...I am closing it.
If anyone wants to discuss their experiences
with N/A beer another thread can be started.

Thanks