21 days. Complete inability to enjoy any social activity. Brunch with friends? Sit glumly without drinking. Trivia night? Sit glumly without drinking.
Quitting drinking has felt like quitting society, and it’s making me depressed and self-isolating.
When do the benefits come?
Can relate. Remember the benefits come quickly for some and slowly for others (like us). It takes a biological 
realignment for enough pleasure of doing normal fun things gives us enough dopamine to enjoy them.
I think this might be a great time to find new hobbies, things to do or even branch out to a meeting to be surrounded with others that aren’t drinking?
For me personally being outside & doing something productive to truly embrace & enjoy the perks of being clear minded was/is essential. Try listening to a podcast that’s recovery based (Recovery Elevator) or even a great audiobook (I’ll Start Again Monday by Lysa Terkeurst) while you’re on a walk with some fresh air.
You got this!!! & reaching out when you’re in a rut is a huge step. Proud of you!!!
I’ve been sober for many years my sobriety date is May 27,1996.. but as time goes by those cookouts seem more boring than they used to.. I didn’t want to drink but I sat there for 3 hours and almost fell asleep.. got my belly full and I was ready for a nap.. had to get out of there.. but I made a showing.. and it was one more day I didn’t drink..
I had the most fun I had ever had at a family cookout on the 4th. Running around with water guns. Playing corn hole. I used to use alcohol as a crutch to socialize. After the first month I started feeling better and things got easier for me.
For me it’s around the middle of the second month when better thoughts and even happiness started leaking through the depression. Bars and Brunch probably aren’t going to be fun any time soon, though. Sadly.
I found that if I really looked at it, I wasn’t really bored. I realized that I had very little in common with most of my drinking friends when I quit drinking. I looked for and found new friends and interests that didn’t revolve around alcohol. Today, I have more to do and get more done than I ever imagined.
Hang in there, it gets better.
Some people may or may not agree with me but..... I drink fake beers at times when you are social and such. For me beer was never my thing only when I was young and it was cool. So now I may have 1 or 2 fake ones and enjoy things. But that also doesn't mean I'm going to a bar. This is just hanging out or dinner with friends. I've tried fake wines and mocktails but that's to close to the real thing. Just an idea that's all. For me it's fine others not.
Go 
to a meeting
Wow, such thoughtful advice.
Exercise and a well-balanced diet should help with the dopamine. High impact cardio, boxing and/or kick boxing. Screaming at the top of your lungs... Truth is, a sober life is often very different socially. Personally I get my social on at church, meetings etc. My social life is a lot more lonely, but I don't get to make friends behind bars anymore because I don't get in trouble with the law. That alone is a HUGE benefit.
Write him off all you want, but Micheal O offered the best advice. No one single meeting will give you all the answers but that Big Book will; in time. It’s a profound text and hard to unpack and understand in solitude or self reflection. Especially for an alcoholic. Enter: Meetings & Sponsorship. People have been flipping those pages for decades and still find new nuggets of truth and hope. A.A. doesn’t teach you how to NOT drink, they teach how to live a life worth living. Sobriety is a side effect. You said you’re desperate enough to try something different. I felt the same way when I walked into a meeting I had previously (and incorrectly) concluded wasn’t for me. So quit listening to your own bright ideas and try something that WORKS.
Its tough. I spent so many years under the influence 24/7, I couldnt imagine doing ANYTHING sober. It comes with time, the mind takes longer than 3 weeks(keep it up btw) to heal. My life is still a disaster because of drinking, but even so I started to enjoy doing things sober. What keeps me going is knowing that this is my life and being sober is ultimately my choice. I know if i start drinking, i wont stop and i wouldnt be around much longer to enjoy anything sober or not. Does it suck we cant drink like a "normal"" person? Absolutely. But liver failure sucks a lot worse.
Ya you wonder why, with all these holier than thou AA members on here, that people are apprehensive about it.
Change your people, places, and things. Hangout with other fellow alcoholics. Don’t go into the night expecting it to be lame because you are sober. Be mindful and live in the moment and soak up the laughter and joy
Living is the biggest benefit to be honest because death from alcohol is brutal. Watched once with my brother and my friend bled out in his car on the side of the road. It’s not an easy journey. They glamorize drinking everywhere but not the true damage it does. They should show reality. I watch so much on utube and I had 33 months on July 3rd. Easy nope worth being alert and dealing with the health issues I have been having to deal with is priceless. Go to meetings, expand your recovery team. For me going to hospital to be medically detoxed was the best move ever. I left there with IOP meetings then from there Early Recovery meetings. I have made the most amazing sober friends. Don’t give up but try to build a sober group of friends. 
I’ve been in the program for over 10 years, and I’m always bummed when I see comments like this. One of the founding principals of AA is “attraction not promotion” and if ANYONE on here wants to get sober without AA they have my full support. Tried once without AA, failed, trying again without AA, still have my full support. Sobriety isn’t a contest, we are not on “teams” that win or lose. Interested in AA, great, happy to share my experience in it with you. Not interested? Not a problem, still very much rooting for you and the peace and stability you are looking for away from the abuse of booze or other party favors. Within almost ANY organization, you are going to have the curmudgeons and “let me tell you how you are doing it wrong” crowd. All I will say, with full confidence, is that I have found these types to be the minority in AA. Best of luck on your journey, no matter what paths you tread along the way.
I'd suggest seeking more friends in recovery. Build that network. Pray for strength and comfort