Outsider

I don't drink alcohol.

Started cleaning that up in 2009 (with a bump or two along the way). Fully off the sauce since 2017 and I have not looked back since. 🙏

Alcohol was one of the more problematic drugs that I have ever interacted with. Multiple hospitalizations, encounters with police (& then some).

While I believe that alcohol can be incredibly harmful, it's still not my enemy. Just because a relationship is bad, doesn't mean the person is. Alcohol softens social anxieties & can facilitate really lovely, connecting experiences. Sharing a bottle of wine with an old friend, enjoying cocktails on the beach, nerding out over craft beer options at a barbecue, on and on.

Is alcohol more damaging than most of the other drugs on the Schedule 1 list? Absolutely. This is not up for debate. #science

Do I think there are healthier ways to loosen up and get a buzz than alcohol? Sure.

But that doesn't mean there isn't a place for alcohol, even if safer options exist. Everything has a price. The key is to understand the cost before you buy and once you do, decide for yourself if it's worth it. But it should never be for anyone to decide what you do with your body.

When I gave up alcohol and went to my first AA meeting, I was 21. Cali Sober wasn't really a thing yet (to my knowledge) & everyone I knew drank, hard. I felt like a freak, an outsider from society. Alcohol is so deeply engrained in our society's social fabric, there was no way to avoid it. I felt weird, different, broken.

As cannabis & psychedelics become more accepted across the U.S.,I hope we can avoid "othering" those who choose not to participate. There is a tendency to get a bit overly evangelized in these movements and proselytizing runs rampant. It comes from a good place, but I worry if unmanaged, we may leave people behind.

While we work so hard to remove stigma, I hope we can also avoid creating new ones in the process.