Thoughts on Non Alcoholic Beer
 

I'm on day 14 of no drinking and have developed a taste for non alcoholic beer. It gives me the same satisfaction at the end of each day I got when drinking alcohol except no bad side effects. I only have a couple of bottles an eve but it's enough to take the edge off this curse.
I noticed the non alcoholic beer I drink actually states on the label 0.5% alcohol, did you know you fresh orange juice can contain the same alcohol content?
Anyway, main reason for my post is whether people believe using non alcoholic beer/wine is a slippery slope back to drinking the real stuff. Should beer in any form, alcoholic / non alcoholic always be avoided an alcoholic? Interested to know people's thoughts.

Never understood the whole concept to begin with. I drank beer to get drunk.

This topic comes up a lot here at SR. The general consensus is that it's best to avoid it as it may lead back to the "real" stuff.

Red flag for me

Dangerous territory for me! The AV is SNEAKY! And so is the brain, be careful!

"I noticed the non alcoholic beer I drink actually states on the label 0.5% alcohol, did you know you fresh orange juice can contain the same alcohol content?'

then why not drink OJ?

non alcoholic beer is for non alcoholics

I drank NA beer early in sobriety, but soon came to feel that it didn't have much taste, so I stopped.
I like Pellegrino flavored sparkling water, plain water with a little lemonade flavoring and lots of ice, soft cider, sparkling apple cider, and the occasional ginger ale.
They are much more flavorful to me than NA beer.

Psychologically it makes me feel relaxed in the same way a real beer does, socially I feel more comfortable drinking it than a coke, OJ or such like. It's not just the physical feeling of being drunk that I'm addicted to it's the culture, taste, habitual process of cracking open a beer after a hard days work. For me, if it has psychological benefits that keep me from drinking real alcoholic drinks it's worth it. Respect anyone elses opinions of course.

I understand.
I felt the same way.
I also used to put non a beverages in a pretty wine glass because it made the drink special.
Over time, I just felt less and less of a need to do this.
Drinking has a lot of ritual about it.
Do what works, I say.

I know for me, once the physical effects fade what is left IS psychological. That's really the hardest thing to get past. Changing habits, changing ways of thinking, acting, expectations, what people think of me. If I don't change all those it's really only a matter of time before I start drinking again.

If it's a stepping stone to help you along the way, then go for it.
We all have tools to step away from the alcohol, but make that transition fairly quick, you don't want to get the taste for "the real stuff" to creep up on you,..

It's weird, I actually hated the taste of all alcohol, I literally just drank the stuff to get drunk but mainly spirits. I couldn't stand beer at all luckily, so obviously it's not even crossed my mind to try it and I won't. I wish I never saw that comment about OJ though haha, it's going to pop into my brain every time I drink it now.

Ahh sorry! It's the same with a lot of foods so don't be too concerned.

I hate the taste of the real stuff, so why would I drink fake real stuff? yuk.

Beer of any kind was part of my old life not part of my new

I don't like the taste of the NA beer. Too sweet.

best of luck to ya and i hope it doesnt lead to worse, which ive read and heard happen much too often.

I'm really starting to get into lemonade as it's cool and crisp, very satisfying.


PLENTY of beautiful soft drinks out there :)

So many reasons to just say no here, not the least of which is that there is actually alcohol (not fruit alcohol, say) in NA beer.

Not for me....lemonade or anything cold with real fruit, nothing overly sweet.

I loved beer. I didn't discriminate when it came to alcohol, I would drink any thing, but beer was my go to. Beer is the vehicle that brought me to the rooms of AA. Alcohol was the driver, but beer was what it drove.

I honestly didn't think I would ever find any beverage that would ever taste as good, cool me off as well, refresh me as well, blah, blah, blah.

Needless to say I tried the non-alcoholic beer route first because after all it was alcohol that was the problem...right?. It didn't work for me, it was a gateway back to the real stuff.

I have been sober over 14 years. It has been years since alcohol even entered my thoughts, and I am not talking about thoughts of drinking, just my thoughts period. Even so, I know good enough to never consume a non-alcoholic beer, because for me, it would open the flood gates of justifications and permissions.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Your mileage may vary.