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Firing at the hip here - I would say it's the opposite of a problem, yeah. The reason I say that tho, is I'm the sort of person that booze will completely take over. I stay away from it entirely now as well.

Have some complicated thoughts on drinking. Going to rehab was good for me tho. SOMETIMES I miss it, but usually it doesn't bother me at all.

Alcohol can absolutely taste good. However, it takes time to figure out what you like and the good stuff is often quite expensive or takes skill to mix (cocktails). If you don't want to spend time and money figuring out what you like to drink that's totally fine. I might have one drink every three months these days. A lot of people need alcohol as a social lubricant to get over their anxieties and talk to people at parties. If you don't then that's cool too! To paper over awkwardness it's good to stand around with a beverage in your hand anyway, like a fizzy water.

Recovering alcoholic here: You're not missing much.

I feel like people here are focusing on the alcohol part of the post and not what I believe to be the primary issue: social life.

I felt the same way as OP. I got around it by asking the bartender to make my drinks without alcohol on the sly and tipping really well. Usually he'd ask if I was an alcoholic or in AA, I'd just answer vaguely. Never met a bartender yet who wasn't happy to accommodate. He'd also put water into a red solo cup instead of a drink once the bar ran out of glasses. By that time if I was asked what I was drinking, I'd look at my cup confused and then laugh I don't know.

It's not a perfect system, it was actually quite expensive. Sometimes you'd get a different bartender because it was busy and I'd get an alcoholic drink. I'd sip on that until I could slip back to the bar and leave that drink and reoder from the bartender I had arrangements with. Sometimes he'd let me swap the drink at no charge.

Once the night got going it was easier to say things like "no this is my sixth drink" even if it was only the second or third. The trick here is not to stay with the group the whole time. Wander off to the bar, pretend to go hit on someone, and go to the bathroom to keep things moving.

Aside from thoserecommenddations, I'd suggest looking into other forms of social gatherings. You can usually find some group that goes dancing (not bar or club but actual dancing), board games, hiking/running/biking, swimming, etc. Even if you're only slightly interested the social aspect can be the relief you may be seeking.

Most everyone doesn't like the taste of alcohol at first, it's an acquired taste. You just have to be peer pressured into drinking beer you hate like 25 times and then it just clicks, and suddenly it's good.

I hate drinking and people who drink in the same vein I despise people who smoke [mostly people who smoke shitty tobacco] indoors or in communal public spaces. It's also a huge turn off for me for any romantic partner/s.o.

You are much better off never getting into it. I had a father and grandfather that were abusive, sadistic alcoholics, I have an alcoholic brother in law that pisses away 300 dollars a week at bars. it destroys families and lives.

I hate drinking too. Unfortunately, that's never stopped me.

I hate being addicted to it for sure

Always hated it myself, basically a teetotaller and haven't drank anything in literally years. It tastes bad, and it always seemed like the amount of booze you needed to drink would quickly outpace the capacity of my stomach, making for a poor experience.

Yeah, I'm straight edge.

My girlfriend hates the taste of alcohol aswell. She enjoys being drunk but the process of getting there sucks ass. Recently she tried jello shots and those seem to be easier to get down

I've tried alcohol and it just tastes bad

Yes that's the point I think, but you get used to it

I come from a family of alcoholics so I've tended to avoid it too. I occasionally have a drink here and there if I go out because of peer pressure, but I don't really care for loud bars or getting hungover. My parents similarly never had alcohol in the house very often, just some beers once in a while during the summer months.

Can't say I've really enjoyed any of the drinks I've had either. I don't think there's anything wrong with not drinking.

A part of my upbringing was influenced by hearing my maternal grandfather shout back-and-forth at his new spouse he got with after my grandmother passed away. Every night I spent at his house was like this. They got drunk so damn frequently. My father who also treated me terribly had a major problem with alcoholism. His grandfather (or my great grandfather) literally died to alcohol poisoning.

As you can see, alcohol isn't a pretty thing for me. I'm repulsed by it, and I don't go to bars because I know the environment's gonna be terribly awkward. One time I went to an LGBTQ-themed night club, and I couldn't even order a Shirley Temple from the bartender without feeling awkward. Obviously, I agree with @[email protected]'s point about socializing. I know you don't have to drink in those kinds of settings, but socially speaking, it's still very uncomfortable to go there if you are non-alcoholic.

I now live a straight edge lifestyle, and I prefer socializing at cafés and everything because the only "drugs" I consume are caffeine and the prescription meds I take every day. For me to say I "hate" drinking (as strong as that word is) seems like an understatement at this point. Alcohol itself is something I can't cease to see as a poison, and the culture around it isn't any better.

Shit man we don't drink because it tastes good we drink because that's how you get drunk. If they invented a way to do it with a pill or nasal spray or a dermal patch I'd be game (boofing is a hard pass tho). Straight alcohol tastes like ass especially beer that's why I mostly drink sweet wines like moscato or a cocktail with lots of mixer.

I am extremely anxious, insecure, inhibited, self conscious and antisocial so I basically can't exist in a social situation unless I get at least a little tipsy. I consider it a necessity for socializing. If you don't have that problem then no reason to force yourself to drink. Lots of people don't drink. I also don't know any violent alcoholics and I don't get hangovers so I don't have a lot of the negative associations with drinking that many people have.

And there's a huge leap between bar hopping and drinking alone in your room. You can have a romantic evening sharing a bottle of wine with your partner, you can have share a few drinks with friends around a campfire, you can treat yourself to a little can of something after a day of yard work or a long hike. All nice enjoyable little moments. People have been drinking wine forever for a reason. It's just nice. But if it's not your thing that's okay and you shouldn't feel bad. Some people might try to make you feel bad about it but that's just their own insecurity about how much they themselves drink more than anything I think.

nah it tastes bad.

if you mix it with enough sugar and stuff it can be tolerable but at that point just have a soda

yeahhhh there's significantly too much expectation that many/most adult social/recreational events will revolve around drinking. I enjoy drinking like, a good chunk of the time, but the other half of the time I just wish it wasn't such a thing.

Do bars not do freebie sodas for designated drivers anymore? I'm decades past pub life, but I can't recall ever visiting a bar that didn't give the DD unlimited diet coke or whatever. It's a way for them to skirt around over-serving laws.

I guess that could be a problem if you're going out alone, though.

I don't drink because it tastes bad, it's bad for you, and it's too expensive. Bars, parties, and concerts are all literally hell as far as I'm concerned, so there's no pressure there for me. Really the only issue is when I go to a boardgame night (well, went to a boardgame night, COVID's still largely putting a stop to that) and somebody starts drinking, because it means we have to start playing lighter games and I don't generally find those fun.

I'd say it's not a problem.

You can get used to it, but don't force yourself either. If you feel really uncomfortable there are also a growing number of zero alcohol beverages which should taste something like their alcoholic equivalents. You can also try mixing alcoholic beverages with sodas or seltzer water. But more than anything Just do what you are most comfortable with.

If that means not drinking at all that's cool. I've been there as well where I've had friends egging me to get blackout drunk and most of the time I just don't drink much. Luckily I've also had other friends who know me well enough to take some of the pressure off when someone is trying to get me to drink too.

I wouldn't say I "hate" it, but I've definitely never really understood it. like I bought a bottle of crystal skull vodka a month ago, drank exactly two vodka and cokes, and its sat on my shelf completely untouched ever since. The few times I've drank enough to get buzzed I didn't really enjoy it either.

As far as social situations go, I've never been on a pub crawl or anything like that because I've just never had those kinds of friends, but the times I've been at parties where people are drinking I've literally never gotten so much as a glance for sticking with soda. If someone asked I'd be like "I gotta drive/ride home" but they never have.

As a teen lots of good friends started drinking regular. Over time they changed their personality and behaviour, hobbies im bad ways. We lost contact and somehow couldn't connect again. Their lifes were too focused on taking drungs and don't missing out on life, yolo.

Later, I found new friends, the nerd faction and connected easily. 7 Years later and we see each other regularly during the year.

I researched the topic and found out that drinking during teen and young adult hood can change the psychologic structure of your brain and theirfore I hesitated each time someone offered me a drink, i stayed by my alcoholoc free beer and most of the time didn't feal preasured into drinking alcohol. I have enough problems and don't want to be addicted to anything. Jogging and swimming is far better in relaxing my brain after the normal stress during the week.

For me, the party, dancing, talking about a shared topic, singing(karaoke) is the main part of the party atmosphere. If the main goal of the event is to get drunk and do shit, it's not interesting to me because I get bored. Also, I'm a bit introvert but if I'm around my friends, I get a lot more active and don't need the alcohol to socialize with new people. I would never visit a party where I know nobody, there should be at least a hobby or topic that I can relate to.

edit: My tl;dr is, don't underestimate the psychological consequences of a few drinks and inform yourself on these. You should never feel pressured into drinking!

If you don’t like it, that’s cool, don’t force yourself to like it for social pressure (you know what that’s actually pretty decent advice for everything in life). Knowing what you want and what you don’t is a sign of self assurance, that is the hallmark of cool. If people don’t respect you for that, you don’t need their respect.

In alcohols favour (or drugs in general) getting a little out of control and vulnerable with a group of people is a pretty strong way of building bonds with those individuals, there are theories that that is how early societies and groups gained trust and cohesion. Re: the taste, it takes a while to develop an appreciation for alcohol, however a cold cider or beer on a hot day is unbeatable, wine accompanies food like nothing else, and whiskey in an evening after a gig or with friends round a campfire just hits right. But that’s my personal opinion. I don’t really drink with friends to get drunk any more, my life has moved past that now, however I still drink circumstantially for taste/refreshment/pleasure just I have one or two now, not as many as I can. I think that’s come with maturity (and age’s negative affect on a hangover! I used to be able to party all night and be up at 7 the next day for work, today I need a half/full day to recover from a big night!). But I have imbibed for years and will continue to for the foreseeable, it’s a pleasant activity for me and ingrained in many cultural and social events I enjoy and participate in, you’ll take my pint after a long days hiking over my cold dead body!

All this said, I’ve been in Muslim countries with no alcohol at all for months and had just as good a time. I’ve also in my youth been to alcohol and drug free raves and had wild nights.

Alcohol is literally poison, there is no safe amount, and even in moderation it’s high calorie, kills brain cells and depletes nutrients from your body. If you drink more than you can handle it encourages regrettable decisions and leaves you vulnerable. It’s also addictive, habit forming and for many it’s ruinous to health, personality and those you love. Which is to say, if you don’t want to drink, don’t. It’s probably bad, and you can do fine without it.

Most of the time a question of "does anyone else?" will be yes. As it is here. You are not alone. That's okay.

I'm not a heavy drinker. My parents don't have great drinking habits.

I go to a lot of concerts. I usually don't get anything to drink. Most people don't care. Though maybe that depends on the scene.

On dates I'll usually have one, or two if it's going well. To my mind alcohol makes you think less about the long term, and that makes it easier to take risks like asking "do you wanna make out?"

Not all bars are loud. There's semi-famously Burp Castle in Manhattan where they will literally shush you if it's too loud. My go-to bar has music playing inside and a quiet back yard. Lots of places like that exist. You don't have to go to one that's blasting music or television.

Sometimes we go out for drinks at work. No one gives the guy who doesn't drink for religious reasons shit. Nor the guy who wasn't drinking for "I'm taking a month off from beer" reasons.

Drinking at home alone is a bad idea though. Do not recommend. That way lies sorrow and poor health.

I usually get like a rum and coke or whisky ginger ale. The soda dominates the flavor. I don't really like sour beer. It often tastes like I've already thrown up, but my friend loves that shit. I don't know anything about wine but there's a range of flavor available there.

Anyway. You shouldn't feel obligated to drink if you don't want to. It has a bunch of tradeoffs that can get expensive.

You could order club soda or something. Don't they have those at bars? I don't drink at all but, I was thinking of trying that If I ever have to go to one as a social scene.

As someone who drinks too much, I strongly suggest you avoid it. Teetotalism is good for the body and soul.

I... on occasion... almost always in the privacy of my own home, will occasionally drink some home made wine.

Otherwise, I don't care for drinking or being around people who are drinking.

If you can manage to find a small pub and spend time with drunk friends there, and you can afford it (unless the bartender is super cool), tell the bartender that you can't/don't drink and to occasionally send you a virgin mixed drink or just straight up apple juice. When your friends want to go to louder places, its "handshakes, high-fives, and hugs time" and you all go your separate ways for the night.

Terrible drug, would rather stimulants be legal and hang out in a hookah bar

Alcohol is overrated and many use it as a crutch. I just like the taste of spirits.

I really liked drinking, but mostly because it allowed me to mask my autism and be social, until the alcohol induced anxiety set in, and it became a way of just staving off even more anxiety than I’d had before I started drinking. This led me pretty far down the road of alcoholism, and it took years and serious consequences for me to shake it, and then another 5 years to even get back to where I was before I started drinking, and to this day I still feel like my development is behind many others because of how long I spent drinking instead of growing.

Don’t feel bad about not liking to drink, you’re only saving yourself trouble later on. I know some people can drink “healthily”, but honestly, I don’t think there is healthy drinking. No one I’ve ever met since getting sober is enjoyable to be around when inebriated, and I shudder to think how other sober people saw me when I was in the depths of my shit.