upworthy

alcohol

Health

People share the moments they felt the most joy with no sex, drugs, or alcohol involved

This is just so wholesome.

Photo credit: Canva

Sometimes happiness is right at our fingertips.

Historically speaking, sex, drugs, and alcohol have been humanity’s go-to dopamine spiking refuges, a short-lived opportunity to feel pure, unadulterated pleasure, in spite of Mother Nature deciding it plays second fiddle to survival and procreation. However, we know these pleasure sources often aren’t as pure as they seem inherently, since they can lead to addiction.

And yet, judging from the truly wholesome answers to this Reddit question:

“What's the purest joy you've ever felt without intimacy, substances, or alcohol?”

…we are offered the reminder that maybe joy isn’t so elusive after all. And in fact, it comes to us, in the simplest of ways. Which can be a bit of a relief for those of us still convinced that happiness lies just on the other side of that goal post.

Below are some of our favorite answers. You’ll definitely notice a few major themes, but hopefully the biggest takeaway of all will be the reminder that in many ways, happiness is waiting to be felt by us. And maybe feeling a bit happier is only one hug, laugh, or sunset away. .

The wonders of nature

happiness, sex, drugs, alcohol, sober living, sobriety, psychology, psychology of happiness, ask reddit A person basking in nature. Photo credit: Canva

“Seeing the sea for the first time.”

“For me, it was watching a sunrise on a quiet morning—just the colors, the stillness, and knowing the world was waking up. Pure, simple joy.”

“When I first saw a desert, it was honestly depressing. But then night fell and I saw the bands of the milky way galaxy.”

“I had never seen fireflies in real life but got to see them when my daughter was five. I wish I had a picture of my daughter’s face when we had one flashing and crawling up my shirt…We got to experience it together for the first time. If my memory starts to fade I hope that one is last to go!”

“When I was 24…I had just gone through a lot of BS…and was dealing with severe abandonment issues. I was casually seeing a guy and a friend of ours was moving to Washington and needed a ride. So we offered. Very long story short, shit hit the fan. We ended up penniless with nowhere to go…and randomly stumbled on this alpaca homestead that also provided camping…we spent the next few weeks working for them during the day…I mainly worked on the lawn…weeding this plot of land in front of their big log cabin.Every day I worked on the land and just thought about all the things that used to torment me…I eventually became grateful for every single thing that happened in my life, I was grateful for the good and bad. I just felt complete peace and acceptance. I was content for the first time in my life.

Things started randomly coming together…Every single thing we needed was provided in the most insane ways…Before, it was impossible to be alone with my own thoughts. After…I knew that there was something bigger than me…I knew beyond any doubt that true gratefulness connected me with it…I don't think that would have happened if I wasn't so immersed in nature, either. It was like the physical and spiritual connected to allow me to find myself. I swear I'm not a hippy 😂 I just think that radical love for yourself and radical gratefulness leads to some very incredible places that you can't reach otherwise.”

“I was snorkeling alone in a bay off a small Greek island. Suddenly there was a huge shoal of sardines all around me. There must have been thousands of them. I kept taking huge breaths and swimming underwater amongst them for as long as I could hold my breath. It was incredible, like a dream. Almost as if I was flying with a flock of birds. I swam with them as long as I could until they headed for deeper water.”

Second chances

happiness, sex, drugs, alcohol, sober living, sobriety, psychology, psychology of happiness, ask reddit Two people hugging.Photo credit: Canva

“When my parents were on the verge of separation I was very sad for a whole week and I was just trying to process how our lives are going to change forever. One evening my mom, my sis and I were talking about this whole mess and at the exact moment my father opened the door and there was awkward silence because mom and dad weren't talking at all. Suddenly everyone laughed at the awkwardness of the situation and that's when it hit me that ‘this is probably the last time we are laughing as a family of 4…’While laughing I burst into tears because I felt pure joy and peace I was missing for the past week and that day I understood the value of having a loving family. Luckily my parents didn't separate and things are better now.”

“Riding a horse again after being wheelchair-bound for five months.”

Being able to afford all your needs…because money does buy some happiness

“Last night, I went to Target, bought only what I needed, came home to my one bedroom apartment, changed into comfy clothes, lit a candle, and opened the window to a complete downpouring thunderstorm…I sat on the couch, watched a romance movie, ate dinner, my cat crawled her way into my arms and just purred next to my ear while I held her. I vacuumed, folded my laundry, put it away. Brushed my teeth and got into bed, and realized that not only do I have my own apartment to myself, I could still smell the aroma of dinner around and it smelled like HOME. After all the years of shitty roommates and being broke and working two jobs, I make enough to afford my own apartment…and have enough time to spend time enjoying it. I almost cried for joy.”

“I was in an accident and got a decent settlement when I was younger…For a couple years I was able to buy everything I needed, a lot of stuff I wanted, and spend money on my friends. Genuinely those years were the happiest I’ve ever been.”

Residual joy from someone else’s win

“I’m a software developer. During COVID, a close friend of mine got laid off from his job at a catering company.…I offered for him to live with me and my family during the pandemic rent-free and teach him how to code.For the following year and a half, I worked closely with him every single weekday; helping him through tutorials, projects, bugs, frustration, and moments of exasperation…After living with us for a year and a half and applying to over 600 jobs in the last 6 months, he finally got an offer as a software engineer, not only paying more than he ever made at a restaurant, but also with full benefits so he could get dental work done…getting this job meant that he was essentially set for life…The day I came home after he got the offer, we just laughed and cried and bro-hugged forever. It was one of the proudest moments of my life and I’ll never forget that feeling of truly lifting someone else up in a way that affects the rest of their life. This month marks his 3rd year into his engineering career and he is still killing it.”

“Hearing my wife was cured of cancer. Those words will forever be engraved in my memory and associated with pure joy”

“Watching my little boy ring the bell last week after beating cancer ❤️”

Kindness from strangers…especially in times of struggles

happiness, sex, drugs, alcohol, sober living, sobriety, psychology, psychology of happiness, ask reddit Two kids enjoying a milkshake. Photo credit: Canva

“Me and my brother were dirt poor, but we saved up enough money for a McFlurry. We were at the McDonalds door counting up our coins to make sure we had enough. I went in, payed for the McFlurry with exact change, the person at the register saw my brother waiting outside by the door, she handed me two. It felt like Christmas.”

Being the recipient of unconditional love

“The day my niece, who had just learned to talk, saw me walk in the door and screamed my name before running up to hug me. Zero agenda, zero conditions.. just pure joy from someone happy I existed.”

“Being with someone I truly could be myself with. It lasted for only a few months, but I can't remember anything that comes close since.”

“I would have to say the private last dance at my wife and I’s wedding…We had a whole song just to ourselves and the emotions of the day overwhelmed me. I didn’t cry at the first look, but I cried then. I may have been a bit buzzed but the happiness I felt was profound.”

Earning the love of an animal

happiness, sex, drugs, alcohol, sober living, sobriety, psychology, psychology of happiness, ask reddit A sweet doggo. Photo credit: Canva

“The day my rescue dog laid her head on me to fall asleep after 2 years of work to help her”

“That feeling when a rescue finally trusts you is just unreal. My most recent cat hid under the bed for a few days and one night just randomly decided to come onto the bed and plop down right between my husband and I. I could've cried.”

“I had a rescue parrot…You could not look at him without him visibly trembling…And yet, I could see he wanted so badly to love and trust…I will never forget the first time I offered him my head, since he looked like he wanted to touch it, and he very roughly preened my hair…Once that particular threshold was crossed, he was the most love hungry member of our flock…You could not give him enough loving…I’ll always be grateful to have known and helped you, my dear Smudge.”

“I recently went back to Italy after being gone. The people that I thought would come to see me didn’t, and I was feeling a bit unwelcome. I went to my favorite bar/cafe/restaurant…After I sat down for about 5 minutes the bar’s cat was frantically meowing at me and trotting over to greet me. She remembered me :) I was so happy and the beginning of my stay was a lot better because I was feeling a bit alone and forgotten.”

Engaging the senses

“Fresh cool sheets on my bed with the windows open in the fall for a mid-day nap!”

“Playing live music. Being emotionally connected to a room full of people is an amazing feeling. And of course everyone likes being clapped at.”

And last, but certainly not least—seeing the world

happiness, sex, drugs, alcohol, sober living, sobriety, psychology, psychology of happiness, ask reddit Someone seeing the world. Photo credit: Canva

“Traveling. The pure excitement of being in a new country, taking everything in and seeing what kind of adventure unfolds. Especially true for my first solo trip 10 years ago when I had wanted to travel forever and finally did, despite people telling me not to.”

May we all find one simple thing to bring us pure joy just like this today.

From Your Site Articles
life
HealthMental Health
Health

Anthony Hopkins gave up alcohol 49 years ago. His celebratory message may help others.

"I've had more fun these 49 years than ever."

Photo credit: Elena Torre from Viareggio, Italia

Anthony Hopkins has been sober for nearly five decades.

With the popularity of Dry January rising over the past decade, the new year is now a many people to experiment with sobriety. For some people, giving up alcohol for the month is a temporary break, but for others it's the start of a lifelong lifestyle change as they trade in beer, wine and cocktails for mocktails and non-alcoholic drinks.

Anthony Hopkins knows a thing or two about living life without alcohol, as he quit drinking nearly five decades ago. In a video shared with his fans just two days shy of his 87th birthday, the legendary actor celebrated his 49th sober anniversary and his message may help others who are on their own sobriety journey.

"Forty-nine years ago today, I stopped [gesture indicating drinking]," he shared. "And I was having such fun. But then I realized I was in big, big trouble because I couldn't remember anything and I was driving a car, drunk out of my skull. On that fatal day, I realized I needed help." Hopkins realized he wasn't unique and formed a group with others who had a problem with alcohol use. "And that was it, it was over," he said.

"I've had more fun these 49 years than ever," he added, countering the common perception that a sober life means a boring one. Alcohol is synonymous with fun in many people's minds—even Hopkins himself said that drinking was fun—which makes giving up alcohol seem like a big bummer. But Hopkins found, as so many do, that going alcohol-free doesn't mean missing out on life's pleasures. "I got sober—it sounds a dull word—but I've had a wonderful life," he said.

People who give up alcohol or other drugs do often miss the "high" they provide, which is why it's important to be aware of how "euphoric recall" can pull people back to dependency. “Euphoric recall is the act of remembering only the pleasures associated with stimulant use and not the adverse consequences," according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA). "Euphoric recall is a potent relapse risk factor because it minimizes clients’ perceptions of stimulants’ danger, promoting an ambivalence about quitting.”

Though a sober life isn't boring, it might seem boring at first. Writer Chelsey Flood has shared how she handled the perceived "agonizing boredom" of early sobriety and what she recognized as the alcohol-driven reasons for that feeling five years later:

1. You are used to being able to change your mood in seconds.

2. You falsely believe you need alcohol to do certain things.

3. You are not used to the way you feel.

4. Everything else takes more effort than drinking.

"Alcohol makes you feel good immediately after you drink it," she writes. "It gives you a rush and quietens the part of your brain that worries about everything. After you quit, you have to learn ways of doing this without turning to beer. At first, every alternative seems to take a lot longer to create the same effects to a lesser degree. This sucks. And there is no way around it, except to stay on the path of sobriety and learn new coping strategies and relaxation techniques."

The effort is worth it, according to Flood. "Now I’m almost five years sober, the idea of not drinking being boring is laughable," she writes. "Life has improved ten times over since I quit drinking."

People are taking the opportunity to share their congratulations as well as their own sober success stories on Hopkins' Instagram.

"Congratulations on 49 years sir! I just celebrated my first year sober this past month and I wouldn’t give up my sobriety for anything in the world."

"I shall be a year sober tomorrow and I’ve had the best year!! I’ve tried before but this time is different and I LOVE sobriety ❤️"

"Amazing. I'm 15 yrs sober now.We are so lucky to be living our best lives. ❤️"

"Thank you for this important share! 😊 I have been sober 3 years and 7 months 🙏 I am so glad that I can share this path with one of my favorite actors ❤️"

"Congratulations! Thank you for the post. It’s 32 years, 6 months and 5 days here! Forever a challenge and I am staying vigilant!"

One person wrote, "If I’m doing the math right, I was also 38 when I quit alcohol. I have two years now, I can only hope to be so lucky and look back on 49. Congratulations!" Hopkins himself responded, "Congratulations on 2 years. One day at a time. You will find a life beyond your dreams. Wishing you a healthy 2025."

As Hopkins said, there are lots of resources for people who are looking to change their relationship with alcohol. SAMHSA has a National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) or go to findtreatment.gov. Alcoholics Anonymous also has a self-assessment quiz that can help you determine if you might have a problem with alcohol.

As Anthony Hopkins, Tom Holland and others share the joy of sobriety and more and more non-alcoholic alternatives become available, there's never been a more opportune time to experiment with giving up alcohol—even if it's just for Dry January.

From Your Site Articles
healthy living
HealthWellness
Health

Why Tom Holland launching a non-alcoholic beer brand is actually a big deal

For one, others may see themselves in his journey.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore (left), Canva (right)

Tom Holland has launched BERO, a non-alcoholic beer brand.

Actor Tom Holland has launched a non-alcoholic beer brand, BERO, and the response has been…interesting.

Some people question what the point of a non-alcoholic beer is. These are real comments from people reacting to the news:

"What is beer without alcohol?"

"Can you even call beer, beer, if its non-alcohol?"

"If it's non alcoholic then isn't it just soda?"

"Wouldn't it be better to just have a Coke or something?

There seems to be some misunderstanding of why someone would want to drink a non-alcoholic beer, which is a little surprising considering society's shifting views about alcohol, especially among the younger generations. But that misunderstanding is exactly why Tom Holland's BERO is such a big deal.

A lot of people might see themselves in Tom Holland's journey

Holland shared with Jay Shetty how he recognized he had an unhealthy relationship with alcohol after deciding to do a "Dry January." Having a drink was all he could think about, which scared him. He decided to extend his not drinking to February to prove to himself that he didn't really have a problem.

"Two months go by, and I was still really struggling," he said. "I felt like I couldn't be social. I felt like I couldn't go to the pub and have a lime soda. I couldn't go out for dinner—I was really, really struggling. And I started to worry that maybe I really had an alcohol problem."

So he decided to wait until his birthday, June 1st, to have a drink again, thinking that if he could make it six months without alcohol that he didn't have a problem.

"By the time I got to June 1st, I was the happiest I'd been in my entire life," he said. "I could sleep better. I could handle problems better…I had such better mental clarity, I felt healthier, I felt fitter. And I said to myself, 'Why am I enslaved to this drink? Why am I so obsessed with the idea of having this drink?'"

While he says he doesn't want to preach to anyone about drinking, he's loved being sober.

"It's been amazing. I can't believe the difference that I feel from not drinking."

Other people may see themselves in Holland's story, at least the first part of it, and it may help them to hear how much he has enjoyed being sober. So often, people think that sobriety sounds boring or painful or awful, so hearing someone like Tom Holland—a popular celebrity who is beloved by multiple generations—speak positively of the experience could be just the push someone needs to recognize their own problem and do something about it.

Having non-alcoholic 'real drink' alternatives is helpful for sober social stigma

People may choose not to drink for many reasons—addiction, health, religious belief or simply hating the taste of alcohol. But there's a strong social culture around drinking that people may not fully appreciate until they find themselves outside of it.

It shouldn't make a difference, but having drinks that aren't just soda or juice to order when you're around people who are drinking makes everyone feel a more comfortable. It's nice for non-drinkers to be able to order something that doesn't feel like it came from the children's menu, and having a beer to order can feel a bit less like a violation of the "grab a beer together" vibe, even if it doesn't involve alcohol.

As Holland's message to early supporters of BERO, having a non-alcoholic beer provides "a way to celebrate and connect without compromise."

Much like the push for mocktails, having non-alcoholic beer options allows non-drinkers to participate in the culture of "going out for drinks" without feeling as much pressure to drink alcohol.

Some people actually like the taste of beer but don't want the alcohol

Several commenters asked what the point of beer without alcohol is because "beer doesn't taste good" and people basically only drink beer for the alcohol. But there are actually non-drinkers who like the taste of beer and enjoy having non-alcoholic alternatives.

There are already non-alcoholic beers, of course. Anheuser-Busch launched its non-alcoholic beer O'Doul's in 1990, and for a long time that was basically the only option for teetotalers who wanted beer. Now the market for non-alcoholic drinks is increasing, so we're seeing more and more options.

Holland shares that one of his goals with BERO was "to bring all the sophistication and flavour of the best craft beverages," which will appeal to people who like beer but have discerning tastes. Beer drinkers have lots of options and their own personal preferences, and there's no reason non-drinkers can't have a wide range of tastes to choose from.

If people don't want to drink non-alcoholic beer, they certainly don't have to. But there's no question that having more non-alcoholic drink options is a good thing for people who don't want to or can't drink alcohol.

From Your Site Articles
health
HealthWellness
Health

Woman 'spikes' all of her friends' drinks at  party to make a serious point about safety

via Shiraah Benarde (used with permission)

Shiraah Benarde spikes drinks at a party,

A new video by TikTok user Shiraah Benarde is a fun way of exposing a serious problem that countless people face when going to bars, nightclubs, or even a friend’s party. It’s a lot easier than most people think to have their drink spiked, especially when you’re not taking any precautions.

Benarde is the CEO of NightCap, which makes products that prevent people from having their drinks spiked.

In the video, Benarde has several gummy candies and Pixy Sticks at a house party. Throughout the video, she drops them into people’s drinks when they aren’t paying attention without getting caught.

“Pregames and private parties are a false sense of security. You don’t expect anything to happen, but it does,” she captioned the video.

@shiraah

With everything going on with #diddy right now, this is do important to remember. Do not let your guard down even at a private party. #diddyparty #drinkspikingprevention #spiked

Benrade’s experiment is even more eye-opening because it happens at a friend’s house, a place where most people wouldn’t assume they’d have their drink spiked. However, it often occurs in places where people feel like no one would ever tamper with their drink. In this type of situation, the person who spiked the drink could fall victim to someone they trust to take of them in a drugged state.

There are many reasons why people spike drinks, the most common being to render the victim defenseless against sexual assault or robbery. Drink-spiking has also been tied to abuse or dangerous pranks.

It can be tough to know the difference between the effects of alcohol and a doctored drink, but here are some warning signs, according to NBC News.

  • You may feel drowsy and nauseated
  • Your cheeks may feel flushed
  • You may feel like your body temperature has gone up
  • You may feel sexually aroused
  • You may feel like you've had many more drinks than you've consumed
  • You may start staggering and have an unsteady gait



Given that many people don’t tell the authorities that they’ve had their drink spiked it’s hard to know how often it happens. A 2016 study of 6,000 students at 3 American universities found that nearly 8% thought they had been slipped something in a drink at one point in their lives. Another 1% admitted that they had spiked someone’s drink.

Benarde says that she made the TikTok video to remind everyone of the dangers of having their drink spiked at a time when sexual assault is making headlines. “With everything going on with #diddy right now, this is so important to remember. Do not let your guard down even at a private party,” she writes in the video’s caption. Sean Combs, a.k.a P. Diddy, was recently accused by over 120 people of sexual assault, some of whom claim they were drugged.

Many of the 200,000-plus people who’ve seen the video thought it was a great way to show how easy it is to have your drink spiked and to encourage people to be more cautious. “This is a good video. You really don’t think it’s this easy! Especially when you trust someone. I got roofied by someone close to me who I trusted,” one commenter wrote. “Honestly, this is a fun way to teach your friends to pay attention to their drinks,” another added.

From Your Site Articles
sexual assault
HealthPublic Health
Trending Stories