Less Alcohol- June 2018- One Day at a Time
Replies
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Had an unplanned AF night last night. I just didn't want a beer. That makes 6 for the month of May. Granted I was sick for 4 of them, but that's still a lot for me.7
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I am back for June for sure! I really feel like I am starting to make some progress (I've been cutting back a lot more than I used to), but I want to get better.
I went out last night with my husband and brother and I did have two. But when we got home, they continued drinking until late in the evening and I just had water! Also went to bed earlier. I am proud of myself.
I think I am going to try to go AF until June 16 - so that's a little over two weeks. I need a boost but want to allow myself to have one or two that day (it's my anniversary). This will be the longest I have gone in a VERY long time.
Best of luck to all! We can all do this. We can all be better!7 -
I did a quick scan of May's thread for things to bring forward. This is hardly comprehensive since there was a lot of good stuff in there but I wasn't going to re-read it all especially since there is this Novus guy that never shuts up...
Credit to @JulieAL1969 for this general tip list:- Make it through ten days Alcohol Free and you will be feeling so good!
- Annie Grace (This Naked Mind author) has a free 30 day program on her website called the 30 day experiment. You can join even anonymously and you get a facebook type page for you to post on your wall. But the whole site is only for people who join (and it's not on facebook).
- Arm yourself with alternatives: tea, find some mocktails, for those cravings. They say cravings last for 6 minutes so you need to find something to do for that six minutes.
- For the die hard who really wants to quit, go to youtube and check out the videos by Craig Beck; he scares you straight about alcohol. He also has a program you can join.
- Find some books to read; treat this like a college class. You will put in a lot of work but you can do it.
We are here for you; we care about you. Check in with us when you have time and let us know what you need!
Guided Meditations:
http://marc.ucla.edu/mindful-meditations
Summary of Book on Addiction:
https://drgabormate.com/book/in-the-realm-of-hungry-ghosts/
6 Reasons I don't drink anymore:
https://thisnakedmind.com/6-reasons-i-dont-drink-alcohol/
To the Mom questioning her drinking habits:
http://www.scarymommy.com/questioning-drinking-habits/
Videos:
https://youtu.be/VB5WyBeFc8U
https://youtu.be/Qiueo1nVyF8
https://youtu.be/T3eIiS-Rl4k
8 - Make it through ten days Alcohol Free and you will be feeling so good!
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^^ I wish there was a 'pin' function, where every time we logged in, this is what we see! Good stuff.2
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Hi friends. I am going to try this again this month. After doing a good job of drinking moderately Jan-March, I decided to go for a dry April, or at least dry until the last week when we were going on a mini vacation and I was allowing myself to drink. So that worked out real well, but then I went and made up for it in May. After my marathon on May 6th, I flew totally off the rails. I even had my first hangover of the year and that was not fun, but it didn't stop me from drinking more than was necessary for the rest of the month. Sad and embarrassed to admit this, of course, but I know that if there is anyplace I can vent about it without judgement, it is here.
I think I learned from April, that if I restrict myself too much, I end up rebelling against my own self and over indulging. So my goal for June is to get back to my habit of mindful moderation. I think that is when I just feel the best. At least for right now. My goal is to average no more than one drink per day and no days with more than 3 drinks. I am glad to have the support of this group to help me along the way.
Thanks again to @JulieAL1969 for keeping this thread going. Also thanks to @NovusDies for consolidating those great resources from past threads. I agree that post needs a sticky!9 -
I started drinking beer last summer and have packed on some pounds. If I don't drink it I can lose it, but it's been so hot I've been having a couple with dinner or watching the game and then I go back up again. Enough is enough!!!5
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First challenge. I just want to be aware of exactly how much I’m drinking. I know that over the past year, it has dramatically affected my weight. I am looking for ways to deal with my stress without feeling that wine is gonna be the answer and to learn how to celebrate have fun with friends without alcohol needing to be at the center of it8
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Started “only social drinking” day after Memorial Day so I went 3 days AF. Planning on going to a neighborhood party tonight so I know I will have a drink or two. It’s always tough the first few days of this, I do so like those first few sips of wine when I get home from work. But honestly, it doesn’t take too long to get out of the habit of going for that drink after I get done working.
Also on a food logging kick. Makes it a lot easier when I’m not adding alcohol in!6 -
@pismodiver - welcome! I get it - when I look back at some of those "incidents" in my own life, I just cringe or break out in a cold sweat. Great the way you're looking ahead and making a plan for yourself.
@JulieAL1969 - cannot wait to hear how the fast goes. I've messed around with intermittent, which for me mostly means just not eating between around 7 p.m. and noon the next day and found that it gave my WL a boost.3 -
Happy June 1! Day 1 of AF June for me. I drank champagne last night to celebrate the close of a work chapter after 20 years. This morning making a smoothie was a slog. Making my bed was a slog. Washing my hair was a slog. Planning my day was a slog. I did all these things, but it was like doing them through molasses. I realized that going AF is not really depriving myself. It's giving myself the gift of living life with energy and joy. My lying brain tries to tell me otherwise, but I know that's true. I also know that in a day or two AF that "slog" feeling will be gone. I'm looking forward to that!7
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@kittybenn and @JulieAL1969 For the last 2 weeks, I've been doing 5:2 IF. I love it! The 2 is rough, no lie. But I actually get more calories on the 5 than when I was doing a straight 7 days deficit. Also on those 2 days, there's no way I can be anything but AF. I'm not sharing my precious 600 calories on those 2 days with alcohol.
Here is the link for the group that I am in. They are very supportive people. Almost like this thread. (we are special.)
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/100058-5-2-fasting3 -
lporter229 wrote: »Hi friends. I am going to try this again this month. After doing a good job of drinking moderately Jan-March, I decided to go for a dry April, or at least dry until the last week when we were going on a mini vacation and I was allowing myself to drink. So that worked out real well, but then I went and made up for it in May. After my marathon on May 6th, I flew totally off the rails. I even had my first hangover of the year and that was not fun, but it didn't stop me from drinking more than was necessary for the rest of the month. Sad and embarrassed to admit this, of course, but I know that if there is anyplace I can vent about it without judgement, it is here.
I think I learned from April, that if I restrict myself too much, I end up rebelling against my own self and over indulging. So my goal for June is to get back to my habit of mindful moderation. I think that is when I just feel the best. At least for right now. My goal is to average no more than one drink per day and no days with more than 3 drinks. I am glad to have the support of this group to help me along the way.
Thanks again to @JulieAL1969 for keeping this thread going. Also thanks to @NovusDies for consolidating those great resources from past threads. I agree that post needs a sticky!
I don't like coming in here and admitting when I didn't live up to my expectations/goals either. It is helpful though and talking through it helps too (at least for me). There are times when I make a post like that is actually directed more at myself than all of you.
I think it also sets a good example for newer people who may not want to come back after they declared their goal and slipped. I am singling you out but there are many who have done this kind of thing recently in one way or another.
I also singled you out because I have recently suffered from being ambitious before I was ready too. I rebelled against myself for declaring no hard liquor for the month of may and abstinence on my normal drinking day on the 6th. The resulted in me going off the rails. But like you I have proven I have the wherewithal to moderate and just because I slipped doesn't mean that goes away.6 -
lporter229 wrote: »Hi friends. I am going to try this again this month. After doing a good job of drinking moderately Jan-March, I decided to go for a dry April, or at least dry until the last week when we were going on a mini vacation and I was allowing myself to drink. So that worked out real well, but then I went and made up for it in May. After my marathon on May 6th, I flew totally off the rails. I even had my first hangover of the year and that was not fun, but it didn't stop me from drinking more than was necessary for the rest of the month. Sad and embarrassed to admit this, of course, but I know that if there is anyplace I can vent about it without judgement, it is here.
I think I learned from April, that if I restrict myself too much, I end up rebelling against my own self and over indulging. So my goal for June is to get back to my habit of mindful moderation. I think that is when I just feel the best. At least for right now. My goal is to average no more than one drink per day and no days with more than 3 drinks. I am glad to have the support of this group to help me along the way.
Thanks again to @JulieAL1969 for keeping this thread going. Also thanks to @NovusDies for consolidating those great resources from past threads. I agree that post needs a sticky!
I don't like coming in here and admitting when I didn't live up to my expectations/goals either. It is helpful though and talking through it helps too (at least for me). There are times when I make a post like that is actually directed more at myself than all of you.
I think it also sets a good example for newer people who may not want to come back after they declared their goal and slipped. I am singling you out but there are many who have done this kind of thing recently in one way or another.
I also singled you out because I have recently suffered from being ambitious before I was ready too. I rebelled against myself for declaring no hard liquor for the month of may and abstinence on my normal drinking day on the 6th. The resulted in me going off the rails. But like you I have proven I have the wherewithal to moderate and just because I slipped doesn't mean that goes away.
Thank you for this. There is a lot of truth in your post. I read the post upthread from @donimfp that giving up alcohol is not depriving oneself but giving oneself a gift and I would like to agree. In fact, I have even expressed that sentiment myself before. Unfortunately, I have that alter-ego that is constantly trying to tell me otherwise. I suspect that's true of most of us, or this group would not exist. The internal struggle is real, but if there is one thing I have gained from this group, it's self-awareness. Understanding myself and how I am going to react to certain situations is half the battle. I am where I am on this journey and I am okay with that.8 -
I totally agree with that. I am significantly more self-aware than I was. I may not have figured it all out yet but I am closer than when I started. Sometimes this thread just shows me how I am different. The video I reposted of the young woman who quit for instance. Even though there are some similarities (probably the common stuff among all of us) she and I are not alike in the big stuff.3
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Got through last month with little to no problem! Here is to an AF June next!3
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I’ve been AF for 5 days now and today is the first day of strong cravings. It’s nice patio weather here and my two kids have been a bit trying tonight. The old me would have given in easily but tonight I’m really trying to sit with the cravings, acknowledge them and then let them pass. It’s truly a mind game isn’t it?6
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4 months AF!
When I told my psychologist I'd quit alcohol and gone this long, she said she was amazed. That felt good.
She said alcohol is usually a form of avoidance.
We drink to ease the stress of the working day, to avoid it.
We drink to avoid anxiety in social situations.
We drink to avoid making decisions about not drinking.
Our problems don't go away if we avoid them. We need to learn to face them.
I've learned that not drinking makes the problems often go away (e.g. drinking out of worry about drinking).
Having a clear head makes our problems seem much smaller.
Having a clear head makes problems easier to solve.
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Yes! Actually with the amount of calories I can have, drinking more than 1 glass a day isn’t an option for me. I can cut out all together and save those calories for chocolate or something else better.6
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Thursday night I failed, I took my bottle of sparkling water to the bar, had my dinner, but then a glass of red wine led to the bottle and then a few cheeky Chivas chasers... didn't help that I knew even with all that I was still under my calories for the day. It meant I missed my 4am run yesterday and then had the sinus pain I get from red wine.
Still, I refuse to beat myself up about it, it is what it is. So last night, again, bottle of water to the bar, a Venezuelan colleague had brought in some nice rum and was offering me to help myself. But I turned all offers down and stuck to my water, early to bed and up at 4 am today with a clear head. Smashed my run and rewarded myself with an extra cold shower, complete with ice cubes. Feeling good now! Tonight is a leaving party for one of the guys, I will try not to drink. I will make myself drink the full 1 litre of sparkling water first, as usually after that I don't feel much like drinking anything else.
Have a great weekend, especially those working
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Hello,
In my opinion this is a rule quite easy to follow. Just drink alcohol during the Week-End with Familly and friends.
And never be drunk. I think is more difficult to avoid alcoholm for a month.
Regards
James4 -
i've had issues with alcohol in the past. there's been a great deal of alcoholism on my paternal side of the family. sometimes i drink alone when i'm sad, but i really prefer only to drink socially. i'm in a swimsuit fashion show at the end of the month. even though i'm close to my ideal weight - i've still got the *blubby bloat* around my waist that i NEED to get off so i can feel more confident. i know drinking less booze will help. the great thing about MFP is that it forces me to put my alcohol in my daily data so my VICE is staring right at me in the face *btw i don't drink daily but i sure could* LOL
i'm IN for less alcohol and only drinking socially!4 -
My husband and I thought this was funny. This used to be our liquor cabinet. It was filled to the brim with liquor bottles and most of them were emptied within a week or two of buying them. When I quit drinking my husband quit too because he mostly only drank when I drank. Unlike me. I drank whether he was with me or I was alone (he works nights so I was drinking alone the majority of the time).
Anyway, we both started taking better care of ourselves. The liquor cabinet has now become the vitamin/medicine cabinet. It struck us as funny when we realized the change. I realize one can take vitamins and medicine while consuming alcohol, but for us it really symbolizes the changes we have made. We didn’t take care of ourselves or watch what we ate before. And he is also in the process of quitting smoking. The shift in our lifestyle is a positive one and this liquor cabinet turned medicine cabinet is a great reminder of that.
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I am definitely a problem drinker...not officially an alcoholic YET! But it's a slippery slope to developing a physical dependency once you develop an emotional/psychological dependency on booze as I definitely have.
Ditto on the above comments relating over drinking to depression & anxiety & the kicker is that is WHY I often drink, as self-medication for those two things. BUT, I have found it only increases those two things. I have gone relatively long periods, the longest two months, without alcohol but the closer I got to D-day, the more intense my cravings became to rekindle my unhealthy relationship with alcohol.
It is the same as food for me. I helps me to avoid feeling the loneliness, boredom, disappointment, sadness, etc etc. All the feelings I would rather medicate than deal with. Do not get me wrong I have done tons of reading on my issues, been in all types of counselling, self-help stuff etc etc. AND it has all been quite helpful to get me to the point I am now. There is not quick fix to mending a broken heart, but for me alcohol/food is keeping me stuck in a depressive state and is keeping me from progressing in any efforts to shed the excess weight.
It isn't only the excess calories from the alcohol itself, but the increased appetite & the lowered inhibitions so that I really do not care what I put in my mouth. Buzzing on alcohol helps me to minimize, justify & rationalize what I am actually doing to myself. I'm abusing myself. The "reason" I turn to substances is due to past abuses from others & now I have picked up where they left off....I'm tired of hurting myself. Just another long sad story that I'm certain most, if not all, on this forum can relate to in some way.
SO, I would LOVE to get some support around this from those of you who GET IT!!! My goal is to be AF for the month of June. But in reality, the AA slogan, "One Day at a Time" is what I am for...I just need 30-one day's to take me to the end of the month...Onward & Upward & may we all reach the goals we have set whether is is abstaining or moderating our consumption.15 -
Hi all! Good to see so many familiar faces with exciting new things in life - new jobs and new grandbabies serving as motivation! Also good to see so many new faces in here sharing their goals and challenges.
My goal is the same as it has been - mindful moderation. I’m trying to stick with AF weeks and drinking only on weekends but I do have events that sometimes cause me to shift the plans - what I’m not good about is making up for a drinking day with an AF weekend day. Need to try to do more of that.
And since most people have already moved over here from the May thread I will admit my slip up here - on Wednesday I slipped from mindful to mindless moderation a little too easily. We went to an outdoor music fest that a bunch of families meet up at - and as I got there and opened a bottle of Rose planning to only have a couple glasses, I ended up just refilling my glass without thinking all night. Beautiful weather, nice music, good friends - and the planned 2 glasses turned into most of a bottle without even realizing it till I got home and was putting things away. I felt ok next morning but did have twinges of guilt this was truly the first time since January that what I had been fearing really happened. I’m not too worried about getting out of control but I know social situations with open bottles are my downfall.
Really a watch out for me in June as we have several more situations like this planned.
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I know I’m a stress drinker. Had a situation with my partner that I wrote about in May’s thread and stand and ate to excess calories Thurs and Friday so three days in a row. I don’t want to get on the scales but will have to buck up and see what the damage is.
Dusting myself off and getting back to it. I love my mornings when I haven’t drank the night before.6 -
Drank and ate
Question how do you edit your post? Can’t seem to find how to do it.1 -
amberellen12 wrote: »Drank and ate
Question how do you edit your post? Can’t seem to find how to do it.
You can edit your post for only an hour after you wrote it. There is a * button on the post you made and hit it and edit.2
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