Hi, ive just achieved my first weekend without alcohol in years. What are poeples views on alcohol free beer etc? I’ve had alcohol free Becks and also non alcoholic Pimm’s this weekend. They have helped me with craving an alcoholic drink. But I also feel like I’m cheating. Do others think it’s a slippery slope to alcohol use or a good way of staying sober?
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I have them now and again, I stick to the ones that have 0% alcohol in them as some have 0.5% and so on…
I’ve found that soda water and lime goes down well when I’m out with friends or out for a meal, it lasts longer and is pretty cheap 
A lot of places have mocktails nowadays, I had a non alcoholic mojito recently and it was delicious!
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NA Becks is my favourite!! As long as it doesnt trigger you then what’s the harm? well done on your first sober weekend…
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You could probably search the web and see if there are any studies. For me, not going there.
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There is non alcoholic beer? 
how does that work?
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For me becks blue etc helped in the short term but in the long term i think they lead to yearning “the real thing”… planting the seed… then you start romanticising the drink… then boom, boozing every night again. At least that was how it was for me.
I even tried convincing myself that hey i like the taste of beer so becks blue it is!.. in reality i hated the disgusting chemical type aftertaste it left.
So that all being said… id advise you to just drink plenty of water… or a diet coke when out. Start to train your tastebuds away from our horrible affliction.
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It depends how you treat it.
Anything can become an addiction, if you begin needing to drink them in social situations it may be something you need to ponder more.
I will mention my buddy was drinking na beer so that he could still hang out at bars with friends and it worked well for him.
Nonetheless, I’d rather you drink non alcoholic beer than relapasing.
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@Surfin_Bird. That is my BOC and usually do not get charged. I think club soda and lime is code for I am an alcoholic so dont serve me alcohol. I am not sure but I have been given a knowing look 
from servers. And they’re quick to make sure my glass is always full.
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No chance in the UK 
we don’t get owt for nowt! (Anything for nothing).
Do you like soda and blackcurrant cordial?
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That is my go to drink now! Love the non alcoholic mojito. I recently looked up a recipe for a raspberry mojito and made it today. It was delicious! ️ I love mocktails because I still get to drink something delicious and don’t have to worry about all the negative consequences of a real cocktail. 
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Eh? Haha cordial in the UK is just squash that you dilute 
no alcohol.
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I think fake beer is for fake alcoholics. At least for me I don’t drink for the taste, I drink for the effect.
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The each his own thing, but I don’t like the idea of fooling myself with non-alcoholic beer. Some drink it and feel no pull back into the real thing, but many relapse in the blink of an eye. And chances are, if your alcoholism is real, you will either end up relapsing or getting addicted to crappy-tasting beer.
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I’ve just spent the last weekend drinking a LOT of non-alcoholic wine. I did it because the cravings were bad and I needed to get through and stay sober. Usually I suggest finding new drinks but when cravings get bad go non-alcoholic if it help you keeps you from reaching for the real stuff. But as of today, I’m back to club soda.
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Never had non alcoholic beer, but I do buy a probiotic drink at Whole Foods called Kevita. One of the flavors is Mojito Coconut and it is bubbly and refreshing, and tastes like it should be an alcoholic drink. At home I put it in a fancy glass after work. To me, it helps me to do something fancy that tastes good… while knowing it’s much healthier than alcohol ever would be. I think you have to decide if it’s a trigger for you. For me, it helps to have something tasty to drink when others are having their alcoholic drinks.
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@Surfin_Bird. I do have a lingonberry juice concentrate that I get from Ikea. I mix it with club soda. Would you consider the concentrate to be a cordial in the UK?
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Yes a fruit concentrate is cordial here. I love soda water with blackcurrant cordial, or lime.
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“Fake beer is for fake alcoholics”?? I don’t get it. I think we can safely assume most people who searched out this forum are not “fake alcoholics”. Yes, I mostly drank for the effect, but I also was a craft beer reviewer (reviewed beers for a friends blog) and I find that a NA beer once in awhile curbs the craving for the taste that I miss. I don’t think there is anything wrong with having one from time to time, and I think that kind of language can be detrimental to people who are just starting out on their journey. No, it’s not for everyone, but I don’t think we should be discouraging or talk down about things that some people might need to get by.
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I’m not talking down or discouraging people from trying to be sober and using the tools that they find helpful. I am simply stating my opinion. And in experience I have seen more people go back to drinking from non-alcoholic beers then beat the craving by drinking non-alcoholic beers. And it is in my opinion, that because we don’t drink because the taste of it, or because we simply need something to drink that is refreshing. I think the fact of the matter is we drink because of the effect that it brings. When we drink we are looking for an escape, and the craving that we get is not for the taste of beer, it’s for the effect that it brings. So in my opinion, drinking non-alcoholic beer does very little to take away that craving for the effect. Please forgive me if my last post was short and inarticulate. My intention was not to offend anybody, I am here to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. I’m not here to belittle anybody, or discourage anybody from what they have found that works for them. I understand that I only know a little and there is a lot more that I will learn in my journey of sobriety. And again, this is only my opinion based on my experience.
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