Originally Posted by RecklessDrunk

I get a lot of that comfort that I would seek from drinking by running. A good, hard run gives me a little bit of that soothing feeling I would get from a beer buzz.

A big difference with a run is I pre pay. I push myself out the door when I don't feel like it. I push myself hard when it's not always comfortable. With a beer buzz i pay later and there is more to pay than a bar tab. It never ends with a buzz. There is the headache and anxiety the next day. The did i act like an idiot. The drugs and other trouble it leads to. That buzz from running makes me more content. I dont feel the need to keep running all night. With drinking I'm still never happy, its never enough, all the comfy buzz does is make me drink me more.

Originally Posted by joe801

I don't think your true happiness is tied to a substance, it's a false removal of a perceived negative feeling. There is no positive feeling to substance/alcohol abuse it's a temporary removal of a negative feeling to a temporary neutral feeling with no way to reach the positive until you quit the substance.