The Sober Squad- Alcohol Free Living
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14. Stopping drinking DID change me for the better, but I found it hard to deal with being this different person. Again, change can be scary, the familiar will feel comforting.
@Up_n_Running I like all of your statements but especially this one. During Covid, there were no outside get togethers, so it was easier to just sit at home and not drink. I also changed from not drinking and found it difficult to just sit with my feelings.4 -
LilyFlowerMFP wrote: »Hello I’m new here and am on day 1 AF. I couldn’t afford to go to a rehabilitation for detoxing and have decided to do it on my own. A little background about myself ….. about maybe 2-3 yrs ago I got back into drinking after 5 yrs of AF. It started off with a shot glass of wine then soon shot of liquor and then wine became my go to. I would say I drank pretty much daily half a bottle to a bottle of wine until it started to made me feel no good. I switched over to hard seltzer like Truly or White Claws and it was low in calories plus nothing like beer. For a bit I felt good til now. I was a social drinker that became a solo drinker. There’s always all kinds of excuse for me to have a drink. I’ve been waking up in the middle of the nights with a racing heart and sweaty feet and palms. Not sure if it was due to drinking but I kept telling myself I have to cut back. I joined MFP to stay fit but how is drinking helping any I asked myself. It’s really hard to just go cold turkey. I finally got put on bp med but still the heart is racing here and there. So now I’m on day 1 trying to not drink. I feel irritable and very uncomfortable. Not sure if it’s because of cutting it out. I hope to stay AF and not let it continue to take over my life. Thank you all for listening
Cold Turkey is hard and you do have to be careful. The brain is use to drinking and that is its equilibrium. When we quit, our brain is probably confused and uncomfortable. One day at a time, that's all we can do.5 -
Good morning all AF friends!
I have been AF since December 25 2019. It's a decision I have taken heavily. In my youth I would drink a lot (as there was nothing better to do) yet since a year of changes in 2019 I feel I now have more respect for myself and don't want to drink alcohol again.
I tend to have awful symptoms afterward - racing heart, anxiety, sore skin, bad headache and feeling listless and no energy for 2-3 days afterward no matter what alcohol it was. I am so glad that no alcohol makes me feel so much happier in myself!
It is difficult not to drink with friends around, and due to the Pandemic I have not been out in social situations with friends for nearly as long as I have not been drinking. So, as socialisations happen later this year, I will face a new challenge in keeping on with juices and mocktails but with friends who are drinking around me. I don't feel this will be a difficult challenge but it will make my life different!
Just want to wish you all well whatever your choices are today, and hope that your day is good. It may be a long road in front of us but it will be a healthier and happier one!8 -
Good morning!
Today I feel pretty good. Day 4 AF and my face looks better / eyes clearer. What a difference a few days make.
@Up_n_Running REally cute gif!
@lozingitslowly Thanks for sharing!! It always helps!4 -
I too am feeling better since my crazy wine soaked weekend reunion with my old college pals. I agree with Ruby Red, what a difference a few days makes. Still not sleeping which is really pissing me off. At least I feel well enough to walk in the morning before the high 90's return during the days.4
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GOOD MORN
I am uninstalling my Easy Quit Drinking app on my phone. I'm needing more space so I decided that I really do not "need" to have this on my phone any longer. I rarely consult it so there is no further purpose for it to be taking up room on my phone...SO, having said all of that, here are my current stats before they are no longer. $$ saved $8,272 Total Healthy 94.17% Drinks Passed 4,963.3 Time Sober 1158 days & 3 hours (3 yrs 2 months 1 day & 3 hrs) AND that's all folks...onward & upward with 3 more days off to enjoy in freedom!!
I seriously feel like I've just been released from prison after being in captivity for the past several years. WooHoo, I'm still in the honeymoon phase and am enjoying my new-found lease on life.
I'm hoping everyone has a great weekend
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lorrainequiche59 wrote: »GOOD MORN I am uninstalling my Easy Quit Drinking app on my phone. I'm needing more space so I decided that I really do not "need" to have this on my phone any longer. I rarely consult it so there is no further purpose for it to be taking up room on my phone...SO, having said all of that, here are my current stats before they are no longer. $$ saved $8,272 Total Healthy 94.17% Drinks Passed 4,963.3 Time Sober 1158 days & 3 hours (3 yrs 2 months 1 day & 3 hrs) AND that's all folks...onward & upward with 3 more days off to enjoy in freedom!!
I seriously feel like I've just been released from prison after being in captivity for the past several years. WooHoo, I'm still in the honeymoon phase and am enjoying my new-found lease on life.
I'm hoping everyone has a great weekend
An emotional prison is harmful - so yes, you are feeling elated. I'm happy for you! congrats on your amazing 1158 through it ALL. You are doing so well!3 -
Still sober for four days. Loving it. Feel so good. Sleep is not good but that's menopause's fault. Nothing beats mornings when you didn't drink the night before.7
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RubyRed427 wrote: »Still sober for four days. Loving it. Feel so good. Sleep is not good but that's menopause's fault. Nothing beats mornings when you didn't drink the night before.
I admire your determination to continue fighting for sobriety. When I made my life-changing decision recently I briefly thought, "25 YEARS of my life" but then my next thought was "Nothing is wasted if I learn the lessons" Your journey is helping you to know yourself in a much deeper way, and it WILL lead you to your goal in your own time and in your own way...You have always been an inspiration to me and I hope that you realize how true that is for many others in this group. No matter what, you keep on keepin' on AND being so supportive of the rest of us ~ thank you!!
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Hi All! Love those quotes- that is the truth!
I am on vacation for a week with my kids, so I don't drink when I'm with them; they're young adults. We just drink water or soda at dinners, etc. So, this will be an easy sober week for me.5 -
Hey Everybody..............check it out, today is my 4000 th day and my 1225 days of being alcohol free...........kinda cool........just wanted to say hi and also that I think of everyone daily and know how hard it is and how great you all are going to feel when you leave it behind you.............take care, and Ruby, keeping you in our thoughts as well...............6
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Sooooo…. I did a thing
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Must remember this if I'm having a wobble.
No regrets here! 🙂 Sober since March 28, 2011. 11 years, 4 months and 13 days since I made the best decision of my life. I applaud all of you. It's difficult in the beginning, but it gets a tiny bit easier every day. If you can take it one day at a time, one hour at a time, 10 minutes at a time if you have to. You can do it! And @Beka3695 Yes girl! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽One day at a time. Read the book, go to 90 in 90 and get a sponsor. It works if you work it! ❤️8 -
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I really don't know if the information I am going to share will contribute to this group -- I'll be honest and tell you that I've only read the last few posts here. But, this is my story. I have never been alcohol dependent, but I did enjoy a glass or two of wine nightly, and of course, socially I would have gin and tonics or beer (Guinness was always a favorite). On Superbowl Sunday this year (Feb. 7th, 2021) I was walking our dog (a very large black lab) with my husband, my 24 year old son, and his girlfriend. There were four of us, and a large dog, in a crosswalk on a street in a very nice neighborhood, in the afternoon. An "inattentive" driver (driving too fast, btw) HIT ME and ALMOST KILLED ME! For the next two months, I was in a very wonderful trauma hospital, and I had a broken pelvis, and traumatic brain injury. After two brain surgeries (a craniectomy and a cranioplasty to repair the craniectomy -- they call it 'reshelling' when they put your skull back together!) and lots of physical therapy, I am on my way back to normal.
Here's the "sober" part of this post -- I have been told that I cannot drink alcohol for 18 months -- that puts me at October 2022, btw. And when they (the medical community and neurosurgeons) tell you that drinking alcohol could cause your brain to hemorrhage (and cause death), that's the only thing that matters. Now, following the cranioplasty, I am told that drinking alcohol could cause a seizure. I go out and order club soda with fruit, or sparkling water, and I always tell the waiter or waitress that I cannot have alcohol -- I sometimes mix in some fruit juice, and truly, I have not missed drinking. Not because I "chose" sobriety, but because of this really awful life-changing experience, I do not think alcoholic drinks will ever be a part of my life again (I am 64 yrs. old, btw). Here's what I now know and truly believe -- alcohol, in ANY form, is bad for the brain. It just IS. The way cigarettes are bad for every one of our organs, alcohol is just bad for us too. Like someone above posted, no one ever regrets getting sober. There is freedom in NOT drinking, and I embrace the feeling of health and getting back to normal that I have now.
If it helps you at all, think of me if you are tempted by alcohol. Think about the fact that it could end up in brain hemorrhage or seizure. Read about alcohol and the brain -- this has been truly informative for me -- and I hope you do it for yourselves! My mantra now is to LIVE! LIVE WELL AND STAY WELL. My doctors say I am a miracle, and I tell them THEY are the miracles! Love to you all -- I hope this helps in some crazy way! 11 -
@juliemargaretkim Your story is terrifying but than you so much for sharing it. I am praying that you make a complete recovery. How traumatizing this must have been for you and your loved ones.
I have been thinking how much brain damage alcohol causes us. Our liver is the only organ that can truly regenerate, IF it has not gone over the top. The rest are damaged for good. I try to bear this in mind when tempted.
Again, thank you for sharing your experience with us. Best of luck to you. Please keep us updated.6 -
@juliemargaretkim I'd also liked to add you have helped someone..at least one person I am sure, to completely stop drinking today. We have many silently following this thread.6
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Hi Friends, I'm back on MFP. I was on vacation for seven days and didn't have a second to check the thread. Sounds like we are doing well. @juliemargaretkim That is a horrible accident; such a tragedy. But thank you for sharing about your experiences and how alcohol affects the brain. @Beka3695 Bravo, girl! I'm so happy for you!!
@lloydrt Amazing man! Thank you for stopping by and inspiring me (us.)
@JenT304 Yes, this thread gives us all so much to think about and so much to learn. I know my ex always complained about brain fog and memory loss- he drinks a few drinks every singe day. I can't help but think it is because of his nightly cigarette and whiskeys.
@BeIn2day That's ok if you you drank. The next day you can start again and again if need be. Yes it is hard when your partner drinks and you want to cut back. I'm sure you are doing much better this August in general.6 -
@InkSlinger99 So happy for you and your decision. That takes a lot of effort and determination. Keep up the good work!3
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I just want to say that I appreciate the kind remarks and that I AM doing well -- I'm even going back to work in a couple of weeks (I am a college professor at a community college, and they MISSED me! My colleagues and my students! I really thought I was done, but now I'm getting energized to get back to it!) THAT'S the next step! When this happens, it's really one step at a time...just like the "one day at a time" -- good luck to you all too! I'm virtually hugging you JenT304, and RubyRed427!
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Gave myself a bit of a scare last night.
Put it this way, I'm realising AGAIN that the only off switch I have, is in my imagination somewhere. I don't know when to stop.
90+% of the time, I have no off switch. I will need to stop thinking of the small handful of times (in reality) I have been able to drink 'reasonable' amount with no negative outcomes.
Time for me to get firmly back on the wagon.
That off switch for me is broken. There are times when I can handle it and I do stop. But it's like walking a tightrope. I never know when I will go off the rails.7 -
Nothing new to report- Still sober. Just worrying about today and not the future.
I love a weekend morning when you feel good and have no headache.
Have a great day! 6 -
So the short answer to the question of why people so often drink more than they intend is that every drink creates a feeling of anxiety as it wears off, and you need another drink to replace this feeling of anxiety with another feeling of relaxation, and as you constantly chase this feeling of relaxation you become increasingly intoxicated.
excerpt from alcoholexplained website.
Here is the URL for the blog entry.... https://www.alcoholexplained.com/2018/08/26/why-you-drink-more-than-you-want-to/5 -
Hi JenT (and all other posters), I am ALL IN! I officially announce my "DAY 1" will be Wednesday, August 18th, 2021 (because it will my 63rd birthday and I would like that date to be my "Soberversary", but I actually began abstaining as of August 11th. (I guess I could call it my "detox week"!) I was never a daily drinker but a "binger", which basically means, "No 'OFF' button" after the first one! (*VERY* dangerous!) I must accept that I need to be 100% alcohol-FREE! I even made a little rhyme about it: "I'm one of the ones who can't have just one; so I have decided that I should have NONE!"
Wishing the best to everyone - we can do this!6 -
Yes we can! I am sober, too. When I told some new work friends, they all looked at me and were like: Are you serious?!?! We’re all in our late forties so I felt like we are a little bit old to question someone else’s decision to do anything for themselves 😂. Anyway, I wanted to recommend the book: Quit Like A Woman by Holly Whitaker. It finally got me to quit. Best of everything to everyone here! ♥️5
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RubyRed gave us an excerpt from the Alcohol Explained website and I would like to add, the author, William Porter's book, "Alcohol Explained" is THE best book I have read on this topic and I have read plenty of them. It is a no nonsense book about exactly what alcohol does to our bodies and it is not pretty. You come away from it knowing there are truly no benefits, any more than smoking has any.
I'd also like to add that as long as you are mindful, even if you slip up, you ARE making progress.6 -
Hi JenT (and all other posters), I am ALL IN! I officially announce my "DAY 1" will be Wednesday, August 18th, 2021 (because it will my 63rd birthday and I would like that date to be my "Soberversary", but I actually began abstaining as of August 11th. (I guess I could call it my "detox week"!) I was never a daily drinker but a "binger", which basically means, "No 'OFF' button" after the first one! (*VERY* dangerous!) I must accept that I need to be 100% alcohol-FREE! I even made a little rhyme about it: "I'm one of the ones who can't have just one; so I have decided that I should have NONE!"
Wishing the best to everyone - we can do this!
Sounds like a great "soberanniversary" date! Happy Birthday! Being sober is the best gift ever:)3 -
Yes we can! I am sober, too. When I told some new work friends, they all looked at me and were like: Are you serious?!?! We’re all in our late forties so I felt like we are a little bit old to question someone else’s decision to do anything for themselves 😂. Anyway, I wanted to recommend the book: Quit Like A Woman by Holly Whitaker. It finally got me to quit. Best of everything to everyone here! ♥️
I read half of the book but you inspired me to finish it. Thanks for the reminder! Happy you are sober too!4
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