Creekryder

A lot of us keep track of the days that we stay sober. And seeing those days go by and staying committed to chucking the bottle feels good, right? The more days that pass are moving us closer to a fuller life without addiction.

Something that I don't see a lot of mention and is equally rewarding—all that hard-earned cash staying in your pocket. If you figure your actual savings by not drinking, it becomes amazing. Not just the cost of alcohol, but all the fringe benefits that tag along, like pain medicine for the hangovers, wages lost because of calling in late, or not making it at all, fines for those of us who drive under the influence and get caught, things we break out of clumsiness and have to replace, and I'm sure you can add a dozen more to the list.

To give an example of my addiction support funds, I will list just the cost of sustaining my liquid intake. On an average day, I would drink 8 to 10 beers a day, and usually throw in a pint of something hard, usually brandy or whiskey. So a conservative estimate of my daily fix is somewhere around $10–$20 USD a day, depending upon how picky my choice of drug was for the day. Let's split the difference and say I spent $15 USD a day on booze. That equals $105 USD a week, or $450 a month! And that is not taking in account of those parties that upped not only the alcohol consumption, but I usually bought more expensive booze. We can't have ourselves looking like cheap drunks, can we? (However, when by myself, I'd drink a snake if it would get me high.)

So how does this calculate with my sober date of December 15, 2014? I have saved over a thousand dollars from not buying booze. Isn't that incredible?? And like I said, that is just the cost of booze, not the other incidentals.

Now you try it. Take an honest evaluation of how much you spent on the average day for alcohol. Multiply that by your days sober and the savings just keep going. Even if you only spend $20 a week, that's $86 a month. That is cash you can use on other things a lot more rewarding than pissing in down the drain. (literally).

Why in the hell would we want to go back to drinking?

least

I drank between one to three bottles of wine a day. No wonder I never had any money to pay bills.

FreeOwl

booze has cost me well over a million bucks over the years....

yes. This is a HUGE benefit of not drinking.

DuhDave

Big factor for me !...in addition to making big money bets on Super bowl games...and losing !...It got me drinking again !


DD

Hevyn

So true Creek. At my worst I was drinking up at least $25.00 per day, to say nothing of the bar & restaurant tabs. Multiplied by 25+ years of heavy drinking.... Scary.

Jen73

Drinking at bars can be really scary if you actually remember how much you spend that night. I know I can spend 80.00 dollars at a bar just for me. Yes, I know I am saving money not drinking there.

I would probably spend about 40.00 bucks a night if I stay home and drink.

Just thinking about it even makes me sick.

Good post though, Now we can spend money on things its worth spending

FreeOwl

I remember getting an overage check from my financial aid in college one year for just over $1500.00

I went out with buddies and the next thing I remember was waking up on the floor in the entry way and all I had left of the $1500.00 was the half a pizza that I was using for a pillow.

Alcohol.... awesome stuff.

tnman1967

Yeah it depressing to think about all the wasted money over the years but enlightening and motivating to keep going after reading your post.

sleepie

Well... I would save money except I stopped drinking and started going to the doctor... so that took care of that!

brynn

I thought I was the only weirdo () busy calculating my 'I quit booze' savings!!

So, my sobriety date is 12-6-14. Since that day I have put aside the money I would normally spend on booze and as of today, I have a little over $1600!! Woohoo!

Great thread!

SDH73

...antacid, painkillers, Gatorade, red bull, delivery food (mostly tossed in the trash a couple days later because I was too drunk to eat), eye drops, gum/mints, new Xbox 360 (I peed on my previous one while in blackout and destroyed it), all manner of perishables because I never knew what I would want/be-able-to eat while I was drunk (again, throwing most of it out a few days later because I'd been too drunk to eat), coconut water, access to for-pay internet sites, lost income from missing work while hungover.

Geez, I could go on but you see where this is going.

Creekryder

Hevyn, I added an additional 10 bucks a night to my "expenses" at the local pub on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays just to support the establishment, of course. I didn't figure that into my weekly totals above. I don't know how I afforded to drink like I did. I'm not a wealthy man by any means. Addictions are that way, you know.

bigsombrero

Good post, Creeky. I spent quite a bit on booze, beer, and wine myself over the years. In my late-20's I thought I was a high roller and I bought the fancy stuff. Near the end of my addiction I was jobless and resorted to buying big gallons of bottom-shelf vodka in plastic bottles. Either way it was more than I can afford. Today I can live comfortably, travel frequently, and pay all my bills on an average salary. Sobriety has many gifts to give: health, peace of mind, personal growth, and plenty of extra cash! It's a great way to live!

strategery

Nice post Creekryder!
Something also interesting to think about is how much money you are saving on health care costs by not drinking booze.

Shamal

I was drawn towards boutique craft beer often, at $20 per 600mL (21 fl/oz) bottle. Sometimes two packs of cigarettes during a binge, at $25 a packet**. I would blow in excess of $100 per drinking session ! In my inebriated state I would often venture out to a late night pub, and blow my bank balance on poker machines, keeping enough only to get home by taxi. So drinking for me has been a very large financial burden on my life. To take a guess, I have probably blown half a million dollars on booze and booze related vice in my life. I could have owned my own house, but instead I rent, and am in debt up to my eyeballs to the tune of about $100k. I am in my 40's and don't even own a car. Finding money to pay rent each month in a constant worry, as I have destroyed any chance at a career.

For those people entering recovery in their 20's, I applaud you especially. Many of us have destroyed our young lives, both emotionally and financially. We all have a bright future ahead, no doubt, but those younger members reading, listen out to the older guys and girls who have lost everything, and give yourself a gentle pat on the back for wising up while still in your youth.

**Those figures might seem a lot of USA folks, bear in mind that in my country the exise and other taxes on booze and cigs is astronomical, at over 70% of the retail price going to the government. Communist Cuba? Totalitarian China? North Korea? Nope, that's the price of vice in Australia.

nymets86

Ugh, I don't even want to know....It's easy to blow over $120 a night on cabs/bar tabs in NYC (if Im sober I take the subway, which since I get a monthly pass from work, means it's free). That probably happens twice a month. Then I drink at home two or three nights a week and that costs me $10-$15 in bottom shelf vodka, $8 in cran-Apple (my chaser of choice)/Gatorade (for the hangover), and often $30 worth of delivery food. Then Prilosec, eye drops, painkillers, etc.

I'm hoping I can make this sobriety thing work and start saving more money. I have a good job that pays well and manage to save and pay my way through grad school. If I can stay sober, I'll be ale to build up some nice savings and just make my life easier in general. Having to work full time and then go to class at night is a tough day when hungover

MelindaFlowers

Saving the money is HUGE. My credit rating is also improving because I am remembering to pay the bills on time. Credit improving, more extra money for everything.

Saving the money is definitely a top 5 benefit of sobriety.

nymets86

Oh, and I've gone to the hospital once a year for the last three years. That's cost me $650 the first two times and waiting on the bill for last week so I can submit it to my insurance company. This really needs to stop.

Shamal

Now might be a good time to mention, for those who recognise the money they are saving, how about chipping in more than pocket change when you're at a meeting? Or giving 20 or so each week to a charitable agency, even donate to the upkeep of this forum? I see unemployed people, recognizing that they would be spending much more on booze if not for being helped in their recovery, drop a fiver into the bucket, and older sober members who are doing well financially (nice car, good job, well dressed) who throw a few nickles in. Sure, there's no obligation, but be reasonable. There are many expenses that a recovery group, the CSO and the GSO incurs that you may be overlooking.

MelindaFlowers

My drinking indirectly cost me thousands of dollars in dental work. I brushed my teeth every night and every morning but I am certain that the enormous doses of sugar every night from alcohol caused the problems. And who remembers to floss in a blackout/drunken stupor? And there certainly were nights when I passed out and forgot to brush. Just think of that stale alcohol sitting there all night.