Alcohol Substitute for Alcohol in Social Situations?

[herbavore]

I tackled the social anxiety at its root and it worked well back then and still does 40+ years later. Social anxiety is faulty thinking that got solidified along the way into your perception of reality. Social anxiety, when bared looks like this: "I don't look good enough, I say stupid things, I'm stupid, I'm awkward, I'm unworthy, I'm different from everyone else for whom it is easy," and on and on with more layers of unhealthy crap than a billionaire's wedding cake. Tackle the root--it's not as hard as you may imagine. You don't need a drug, you don't need plastic surgery, you don't need money , you don't need to fit into anything other than your own clothes. Be yourself and like yourself. Enjoy who you are and others will too. If I sound like an old person its because I am.

 

[SS373dOH]

I tackled the social anxiety at its root and it worked well back then and still does /QUOTE40+ years later. Social anxiety is faulty thinking that got solidified along the way into your perception of reality. Social anxiety, when bared looks like this: "I don't look good enough, I say stupid things, I'm stupid, I'm awkward, I'm unworthy, I'm different from everyone else for whom it is easy," and on and on with more layers of unhealthy crap than a billionaire's wedding cake. Tackle the root--it's not as hard as you may imagine. You don't need a drug, you don't need plastic surgery, you don't need money , you don't need to fit into anything other than your own clothes. Be yourself and like yourself. Enjoy who you are and others will too. If I sound like an old person its because I am.

Qft

 

[squaticat]

Qft

It's a great concept. Truly, there is no better solution. However, it's a lot easier to type the words on a keyboard than it is to tackle a lifetime of built up self-perceptions. Rationally, I can sit here and say that social anxiety is all in my head. Practically, it's a little more difficult. Props to you guys for figuring it out, but I haven't yet.

I'm really not worried about the concerns regarding W/D and comedowns. I've been experimenting with benzos and similar classes of drugs for a while now, and I'm confident that I can self regulate. Famous last words, I know. It's definitely something I'm aware of, and I'd like to think that I'm not being overly reckless.

Thanks a bunch for the suggestions thus far.

 

[SS373dOH]

I'm confident that I can self regulate. Famous last words

Yes it is easier to type a solution to your social issues, than actualy overcoming them irl, but at the sametime ^ this is easier to type, than to actually do too.
It's a slippery slope, that many people have endured! Some people can maintain it for months, sometimes years, but eventually it grabs ahold of most people, so proceed with caution! I think it would be quite beneficial to work on the root of the problem, also as I was saying before if you do find a drug that works, your psychological dependency will occur almost immediately, and depending on what drug you use, physical dependency will be right behind it..

I would see a psychologist, so you can work on the root cause, and they will be able to prescribe you drugs that may work, essentially you're getting 2 birds stoned with 1 rock! Seeing a professional will have a higher success rate, opposed to self medicating unregulated..


- 7nos SS373dOH

 

[Mycophile]

I would be really careful with many of these suggestions. I don't mean to minimize your social anxiety- I have it too. But I want to let you know that a great many members here are addicted to benzos and pseudo benzos (like phenibut) . Phenibut is also easy to over dose, and for many people is very moreish.

If alcohol works well aside from the hangover, try having a glass of water or other alcohol free beverage for each drink you have, alternating them. A hangover comes from dehydration. I have hangovers when I don't alternate bevvies. I think it's potentially the most effective (aside from benzos) with the best risk- benefit ratio.

I personally think alcohol is more dangerous than benzos.

I have been using Klonopin for 12 years now and had barely ANY side effects other than some sedation.

I know everyone bashes me for saying it, but I believe there's a "war on benzos" too in addition to a war on drugs.

Like any and all drugs, benzos have their negative side effects and it is true they are one of the more addictive substances BUT if you do NOT use them recreationally and stick to LOW doses of the benzos with long half lives like Klonopin and use them for anxiety only then they can be very helpful.

And lets not forget that alcohol withdrawal can kill you for the EXACT same reasons benzo or phenibut withdrawal can because they are all GABA drugs if we want to get into harm reduction, but unlike alcohol, benzos and Phenibut will not destroy your liver or make you gain lots of weight which is also bad for your heart.

I think benzos and to a lesser extent using Phenibut NO MORE THAN 2 days a week at UNDER 4,000mgs a day are FAR safer than being an alcoholic.

 

[Mycophile]

I was saying stick to beer opposed to drinking hard alcohol.. you know to avoid hangover.

^But the above poster is right, most of the "legal" stuff you can get will create their own problems, as I was alluding to with phen'.. Also Kratom causes dependecy and wd symptoms, benzo's cause rebound symptoms ect, ect,..

I know OP just wants to enjoy senior year, but if they do find that miracle drug, they will be hooked. They'll become so acustom to experiencing social situations with it, that they will not be able to function without. I say first world problems, suck it up, and enjoy the party..



- Hopeless

Once again, I think alcohol is overall worse for you then benzos or Phenibut and WAY more dangerous than Kratom.


I DO agree however that these drugs are mostly more addictive than alcohol, but addiction and physical harm are two different problems.

But Kratom addiction is really not all that serious unless you let yourself get into dosing every single day or multiple times a day.

It took me 2 years to finally get MILDLY addicted to Kratom and even now I know that when I stop using as planned for AT LEAST 6 months after I run out of what I have now that it will probably not take me more than 7 days max of some mild unplesantness to quit again.

To simply say someone "will be hooked" is to completely leave their will power out of the equation.

It IS possible to use certain drugs in such a way as to not really have a bad daily dependency.

Sure, EVENTUALLY if you REALLY love a drug, like how I love Kratom, sooner or later there's a good chance you'll experience at least SOME withdrawal.

It's all risk vs benefit.

I can tell you one thing though, so far what Klonopin has done for someone with real anxiety like me has been a GODSEND and I don't care what people say, I'd rather have access to it than not.

 

[Mycophile]

if you can't handle the hangover wait til you get you're first comedown. ever heard of rebound anxiety? a lot of the suggestions others have suggested will give you madddd anxiety on the comedown. i would say try weed and xanax, but don't make a habit of the xanax, cause if you find hangovers to be that bad wait til you're in ​withdrawal

That shit CAN happen IF you do it WRONG.

To this day I've never experienced Benzo or Phenibut withdrawal.

I haven't experienced Phenibut withdrawal because I won't let myself get addicted because that's WAY too dangerous so I never have used more than 2 days a week and never will: problem solved.

I've never had Klonopin withdrawal cause I've never stopped, with the exception of one time I DID stop for 9 months and was this bizarre rare exception of someone who never got any withdrawal symptoms.

Other than that, I made my mind up 12 years ago when I realized that Klonopin got rid of my crippling anxiety with very few side effects that I didn't care if I was addicted, and I'll be honest I have been addicted under doctor supervision for many years now and yet I've still never experienced withdrawal and it's been a godsend for me.

I HAVE experienced a Kratom comedown, but Kratom is mild (as long as it's not an exract).

 

[Mycophile]

I tackled the social anxiety at its root and it worked well back then and still does 40+ years later. Social anxiety is faulty thinking that got solidified along the way into your perception of reality. Social anxiety, when bared looks like this: "I don't look good enough, I say stupid things, I'm stupid, I'm awkward, I'm unworthy, I'm different from everyone else for whom it is easy," and on and on with more layers of unhealthy crap than a billionaire's wedding cake. Tackle the root--it's not as hard as you may imagine. You don't need a drug, you don't need plastic surgery, you don't need money , you don't need to fit into anything other than your own clothes. Be yourself and like yourself. Enjoy who you are and others will too. If I sound like an old person its because I am.

But let me ask you, did addressing the "root of your problem" involve only talking to a therapist, or did it involve addressing some kind of neurological cause in the brain??

Cause with my anxiety I've talked it to death with therapists and it does no good.

I have Nonverbal Learning Disability and Generalized Anxiety Disorder and believe that my anxiety has a neurological cause like faulty nerve firing or the wrong brain waves flowing or too much serotonin or dopamine.

When that is the issue no amount of a nice therapist telling you "you are great just the way you are!!" will work.

I would get worried about how much eye contact I was or wasn't making and it would have an OCD component when I'd have a panic attack.

For these kinds of issues I don't believe talk therapy is effective and in the past few years I've lost faith in it.

I think when you have a neurological component to your anxiety you need either a drug and/or things like neurofeedback, biofeedback, meditation, hypnosis, auto hypnosis, yoga, maybe even experimental techniques like use of isolation tanks, and also good old exercise.

Things that will ACTUALLY change your brain waves and/or your brain chemistry and not just trying to rationalize why you worry about something that is supposedly silly.

No amount of being told I don't have a reason to worry will help me.

Taking Klonopin immediately made my worrying lessen but of course I realize I am just masking a problem which would still be there without the meds BUT I think if I could use neurofeedback it might really help.

Unfortunately neurofeedback is quite expensive but if or when I can afford it I am going to try.

 

[white55]

ghb is the best alcohol substitute ever

 

[SS373dOH]

I personally think alcohol is more dangerous than benzos.

I have been using Klonopin for 12 years now and had barely ANY side effects other than some sedation.

I know everyone bashes me for saying it, but I believe there's a "war on benzos" too in addition to a war on drugs.

Like any and all drugs, benzos have their negative side effects and it is true they are one of the more addictive substances BUT if you do NOT use them recreationally and stick to LOW doses of the benzos with long half lives like Klonopin and use them for anxiety only then they can be very helpful.

And lets not forget that alcohol withdrawal can kill you for the EXACT same reasons benzo or phenibut withdrawal can because they are all GABA drugs if we want to get into harm reduction, but unlike alcohol, benzos and Phenibut will not destroy your liver or make you gain lots of weight which is also bad for your heart.

I think benzos and to a lesser extent using Phenibut NO MORE THAN 2 days a week at UNDER 4,000mgs a day are FAR safer than being an alcoholic.

Yes, but lets put this into context of how and why the OP wants to use. It isn't for daily use, It's only for social lube at parties on the weekends. If they had crippling social anxiety that affected every moment of their lives, I would agree with you. There is nothing better than alcohol to loosen up during social functions. Sure it can carry it's own risk of dependency and subsequent withdrawal symptoms, but with amount of use, I don't forsee this an issue.

I think his/her's best bet is to learn how to drink without getting hangovers the next day, I had a few suggestions before. I'll state the main 3 again. 1. Eating meals before and after drinking. 2. Staying hydrated throughout the night. 3. Limiting your consumption to one type of alcohol, preferably beer. If they follow these 3 rules to drinking, they will cut down their hangover chances dramatically!


- Hopeless Soul

 

[squaticat]

Yes, but lets put this into context of how and why the OP wants to use. It isn't for daily use, It's only for social lube at parties on the weekends. If they had crippling social anxiety that affected every moment of their lives, I would agree with you. There is nothing better than alcohol to loosen up during social functions. Sure it can carry it's own risk of dependency and subsequent withdrawal symptoms, but with amount of use, I don't forsee this an issue.

I think his/her's best bet is to learn how to drink without getting hangovers the next day, I had a few suggestions before. I'll state the main 3 again. 1. Eating meals before and after drinking. 2. Staying hydrated throughout the night. 3. Limiting your consumption to one type of alcohol, preferably beer. If they follow these 3 rules to drinking, they will cut down their hangover chances dramatically!


- Hopeless Soul

Believe me, there's nothing I haven't tried. It's weird; I don't get headaches, I'm not tired, I don't have any of the "standard" hangover symptoms, except the puking. And I get a lot of that. An effing lot. It's not at all uncommon for a night out to translate into 12 hours of vomiting the next day. My record's 19 times, caused by killing a case of Redd's Wicked. Admittedly, that was a poor drink choice, based on the sugar content, but still. I could deal with a headache and the symptoms of dehydration, but I don't think that it's a lack of fluid that causes my stomach to attempt a violent coup d'etat. Please, correct me if I'm wrong.

In all honesty, the best thing I've found is straight liquor, especially light drinks. Vodka and white rum are slightly (really, only slightly) less incapacitating, while whiskey and pretty much any sugary drink is a recipe for wanting to kill myself.

 

[SS373dOH]

Are you male or female? I don't ask to be condescending or anything, but females are more effected by alcohol than males.. It sounds like your stomach doesn't like high volumes of alcohol. Are you urinating frequently while drinking? I have had so many hangovers I can't even count, but one 'trick' I learned is that if I think I'm going to puke the next day, I try to puke the night of drinking, and get it out of my system right away, I felt like if it sat in my stomach over night, it would brew more, and make it 10x worse.. But if it's something neurological, you might want to stay away from the other gaba encentric drugs i.e. Benzos..

- Hopeless Soul

 

[Rambo!12]

Jesus christ guys what the fuck is this advise? People are advising cocaine, adderal, benzos, etc. to replace social anxiety........shes at college parties. You guys are offering addiction opportunities, not harm reduction. I may be in the wrong place, I was under the impression this was HARM REDUCTION. If anything smoke some pot. Thats it. If you can't handle booze, I can assure you you cannot handle these substances. Even Kratom is very dangerous referring to addiction contrary to popular belief. You go into any of these, especially in college, you may very well have a great time. Until one day your dependent on it and your life goes to shit. Your at a point unlike many of us where you can't take a substance because the side effects are too severe. Take advantage of it and consider yourself lucky. Partying for four years is not worth the rest of your life in hell. Just do your school work and have fun without it, many people do. These legal options are bullshit too. Just because they are legal does not mean they are good to advise for people to take. Fuckin meth was advised for people to lose weight....look how that turned out. Can't believe the answers to this poor girls question. Smoke some pot drink less beer than you do now and keep lowering your dose and see how much you can handle. Nobody gets that bad of a hangover from feeling just tipsy. Go to your doctor and have them check you out. You may have digestive issues etc.

Experience: College ruined my life

 

[burn out]

ghb is the best alcohol substitute ever

I very much disagree with this, I had high hopes for ghb as I can not tolerate alcohol well but I did not find it like alcoohl at all. Instead I found it a very strange drug with the euphoric body effects of MDMA combined with light dissociation like a bump of ketamine might bring.

It did very little for social anxiety and worse still, it pretty much removed any desire to socialize as I felt dissociated from the situation. I remember having a conversation with a friend and getting no enjoyment out of it as I just felt dissociated and instrospective. It didnt even lower my inhibitions or cloud like my mind mcuh like alcohol either. In fact it didnt even do much for social anxiety.


ANyway for anxiety I recommend the following:

phenibut
kava
valerian
mulungu bark
skullcap
yerba mate

kava is great for chill situations best if every one is drinking kava. the downside to kava is that it makes me so relaxed and chill that I dont wnat to go anywhere or be around loud noises/unchill people. valerian and skullcap both take the edge off anxiety and mulungu is quite interesting but gives me hangovers.

i have tried this yet but ive read that combining phenibut with caffeine enhances the effects.

 

[SS373dOH]

Just do your school work and have fun without it

Haha x) Love this advice! It might be the most rainbow and unicorns, candy coated advice ever given on bl. lol but I love it!

'Be a good little girl, do your homework, brush your teeth, and say your prayers before bedtime.'
She's going into her 4th year of college, not grade school lol.


- Hopeless Soul

 

[mike.vick]

You are going down the wrong path, young one. Look to avoid the sheeple and discover philosophy.

 

[bomber]

Hey all,

So, as a college student, social situations and parties are a huge part of campus life. Obviously, so is drinking. As someone who has moderate social anxiety, I have a very hard time being in these kind of situations while sober. I usually end up standing against the wall watching people have fun. I'm going into my senior year, and I'd really like to be able to get out more, so I'm looking into other options.

Don't get me wrong: I love drinking. I love being drunk, as it kills the anxiety and I get to have a good time. What I don't love is the hangover. It's unfortunate that the only way for me to enjoy myself in social situations comes with a price-tag of a day of sitting in front of a toilet. I don't usually drink to excess either. By the time I drink enough to be tipsy, I can pretty much guarantee that I'll be miserable the next day. My hangovers are far worse than anything I have any right to expect.

Anyway, I'm looking for a social lubricant that has similar inhibition-reducing properties without the debilitating side effects. Weed is great for nights where you just want to chill with friends, but it doesn't really do it for going out and meeting people. I can't say that I've tried taking nothing but Xanax and going out, but that'll probably be my next shot. Things like Klonopin are also an option that I'm exploring.

Any other ideas? There's literally nothing I can't get my hands on, so I'm not worried about that. Not so much worried about price either. Thanks as always for the suggestions.

I think ecstasy would do great work, but perhaps you would have similar problems next day. You could face the hangover by drinking again next day(absynth would do great work) but only if you trust your self enough not to become an alcoholic.
If you are not a smoker, try not to smoke while drinking and if you are,try to smoke very little. Nicotine is what makes hangovers real bad. Also, nicotine greatly reduses the good effects of alcohol so you have to drink much more than you would have to if you didn't smoke to achieve the same effects, which leads to a worst hangover.
So avoiding nicotine while drinking would solve most of your problem.
Also consuming energy drinks(carefully) while drinking will increase the good effects of alcohol so you will need less to be equally happy. Less hangover.

Generally, for most heavy drinkers there is a point that we are in the perfect state, but we just drink more for no reason. If you control this kind of behavior, hangs will stop being a problem.

 

[kleinerkiffer]

Sorry, but we are not here to tell you what drugs to take
Closed

But you could make a thread in Drug Culture and ask what drugs people are taking when going to a party