I was never a "drink alone" type until Covid. Not to say I didn't have the odd glass of wine or beer by myself on occasion before then, but when the lock-down happened I was good for a tallboy a day in the afternoons. Plus trying new beers gave me something to do and to look forward to.
I've liked beer a long time, and find it to be predictable, controllable, and varied enough to keep things interesting, so wasn't too worried about the increased consumption, which had a sort of placebo friend-replacement effect in the absence of an actual social life. But after a few months of no sports, no commute, no gym, and a beer a day, I was up about 15 pounds. Had to kybosh that particular habit over the latter part of the summer.
Now that it's dark all day again though, I'm back to a beer or couple of glasses of wine every other day or so. No regrets - I enjoy it, and now have a home gym to help fight off the weight gain. Plus it still serves that social placebo function.
Never been interested in other substances, since I've been lucky enough that alcohol is something I've never had trouble controlling, and it has so much variety, availability, and social normalcy. I've got a friend or two who aren't so lucky when it comes to keeping the booze in check though, and its destructive potential for them is pretty obvious. Sounds like others here have recognized this in their own experience (the first step in solving the problem, as they say).
One day I'd probably give something like shrooms a try, just because of the perspective and in some cases life-altering experiences I know some folks have had with it. Now that I'm on the back nine, gotta do something to keep the game interesting after all.
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