Abstinence

Abstinence is the practice of self-enforced restraint from indulging in bodily activities that are widely experienced as giving pleasure.

[1] Because the regimen is intended to be a conscious act, freely chosen to enhance life, abstinence is sometimes distinguished from the psychological mechanism of repression.

Abstinence may arise from an ascetic over indulgent, hasidic point of view in natural ways of procreation, present in most faiths, or from a subjective need for spiritual discipline.

In its religious context, abstinence is meant to elevate the believer beyond the normal life of desire, to a chosen ideal, by following a path of renunciation.

[3] Catholics distinguish between fasting and abstinence; the former referring to the discipline of diminishing intake of bodily pleasures, and the latter signifying the discipline of completely restraining from bodily pleasures, most notably meats on Fridays (for example, there is the Traditional Catholic practice of fasting from food and liquids from midnight until the reception of Holy Communion).

Mormons also fast one day a month, for both spiritual and charitable reasons (the money saved by skipping meals is donated to the needy).

In India, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs and Hindus abstain from eating meat and fish (basically, all living animals) on the grounds both of health and of reverence for all sentient forms of life.

In addition, lay and monastic Buddhists refrain from killing any living creature and from consuming intoxicants, and bhikkhus keep vows of celibacy.

If the individual is in an environment where they are in contact with the drug, they may feel compelled to engage in drug-taking behaviour (for example, someone who is practicing sobriety that finds themselves in a bar and re-engages in drinking alcohol).

Vegetarianism is the practice of a diet that excludes meat (including game, marine mammals and slaughter by-products), poultry, fowl, fish, shellfish and other sea creatures.

Contemporary and colloquial usage has somewhat expanded teetotalism to include strict abstinence from most "recreational" intoxicants (legal and illegal, see controlled substances).

A general abstinence from pleasures or leisure, either partial or full, may be motivated by ambition, career or general self-respect (excluding the point of view that even the latter examples may be regarded as sources of pleasure).This systematic review highlights the effectiveness of caffeine abstinence for improving sleep quality.

"Woman's Holy War. Grand Charge on the Enemy's Works". An allegorical 1874 political cartoon print by Currier and Ives , which somewhat unusually shows temperance campaigners (alcohol prohibition advocates) as virtuous armored women warriors (riding sidesaddle), wielding axes Carrie-Nation-style to destroy barrels of Beer, Whisky, Gin, Rum, Brandy, Wine and Liquors, under the banners of "In the name of God and humanity" and "Temperance League". The foremost woman bears the shield seen in the Seal of the United States (based on the U.S. flag), suggesting the patriotic motivations of temperance campaigners. The shoe and pants-leg of a fleeing male miscreant are seen at lower right.

Purity rings are worn by some youth committed to the practice of sexual abstinence . ^{[

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