Less Alcohol - MARCH 2021

ducky133

@mainelylisa thank you for taking over the thread! I read daily but rarely post. It is super helpful and I appreciate those of you who post regularly. I have not had an AF night in a long while but in the last few weeks have found that if I cut the size of my drink down it makes a huge difference in terms of no fuzzy memories of the previous night, etc. I want to be consistent with pouring a smaller drink and work towards some AF time.

tiptoethruthetulips

I joined the Feb thread in the hope of going AF at home as I was drinking more and more at home. Open a bottle of wine I was getting to the point where I didn't stop until the bottle was finished. I did reasonably well, had a couple of slip ups, not slip ups at all though really, I stopped at the bottle shop and bought the wine with the intention of drinking it, so not a slip up at all.


For March my goal again is to be AF at home and look for ways to distract myself. I have joined a gym, I will be going to the gym three times a week, go for a walk the other days, do puzzles, read books, connect with some friends. Another goal for the second half of March is to start a clean out of my home in readiness for some renovations or sale.

Lilylady3k

Started to type 2 glasses of wine then realized that I only had 1 tonight LOL!

Stressful day yet again. DD's 1st anniversary party (married during covid shutdown in April 2020 to 10 or less people at the time down from 150) is coming up. The photographer just bailed (after confirming in June and Oct that she would do it) and I'm weeks away needing to now find someone again. Lots to follow up on but the whole idea of invitations, responses, outfits, etc ... I know I'll make it through this but it is a lot to reorganize again.
Glad that it was only 1 glass and not a bucket of bourbon + a bottle of wine. Drinking my water got to shed those pounds I lost and then gained this year. Almost there!

Womona

Love the posts so far!

@Lilylady3k what a drag to have to scramble to find a replacement photographer. Ugh! Hope it all works out. Big events are a part time job to organize, but worth it!

AF again tonight. A little surprised I had no alcohol because I have something to celebrate.... finally getting a sailboat!!! 17’ cat boat on a trailer, but she is beautiful and easy to manage. Put the deposit down today. So excited!!!! Yet I didn’t need a drink! Woo hoo!

lmlmrn

hello to all
AF last night, which was super stressful.. I had interviewed for a p/t job last week, the interview went fantastic and I really thought I would be offered the job before I left the building. Monday I got the email saying they had chosen someone else who had the same level of skills I have but one difference, they had experience with the proprietary software. What a kick in the teeth for me. The urge was really really strong last night and tonight.

I feel the stress devil knocking at my ear, saying get up and just get your drink(s) what's one day out of 31?.....I am struggling and it may or may not happen. We went to Total Wine N More and I bought some new flavor of bitters to put in tonic water. That seemed to help in the past and I am praying it will tonight

dawnbgethealthy

Happy March!

I am continuing with my goals that I have mostly been following for a year:

16-20 AF days per month
Don't drink 2 days in a row
Try to keep 2 AF days in between drinks days

I choose the diary style so that I check in every day, keep myself accountable, and can see at a glance where I am at.

Monday March 01 - AF - Had to start the new month off with an AF day : - )
Tuesday March 02 - AF - Needed to wait 6 minutes many many times, I really felt like having a couple of drinks tonight. I know that I (and my waistline) will be happy tomorrow that I resisted.

Rolling total: 2AF days out of 2 days.

mainelylisa

I'm on generator power and on roaming cell due to tower outage, so not posting much, but so glad to see so many people here!

Goals:

• 20 max drinks in Mar
• No consecutive drinking days
• Exercise 6 out of 7 days

0 out of 20 drinks so far! (But I did start out the month eating Cheetos for breakfast because of 3 drinks on Sunday.)

Womona

lmlmrn wrote: »

hello to all
AF last night, which was super stressful.. I had interviewed for a p/t job last week, the interview went fantastic and I really thought I would be offered the job before I left the building. Monday I got the email saying they had chosen someone else who had the same level of skills I have but one difference, they had experience with the proprietary software. What a kick in the teeth for me. The urge was really really strong last night and tonight.

I feel the stress devil knocking at my ear, saying get up and just get your drink(s) what's one day out of 31?.....I am struggling and it may or may not happen. We went to Total Wine N More and I bought some new flavor of bitters to put in tonic water. That seemed to help in the past and I am praying it will tonight

So sorry to hear you didn’t get the job that seemed like the perfect fit. That really stinks. Nothing worse than that gut punch feeling combined with abject disappointment. I hope you find the perfect one soon!

Whether you drank last night or not, just recognizing your disappointment as a trigger is huge. Beats blindly reaching for a drink.

SLuv0710

dawnbgethealthy wrote: »

Happy March!

I am continuing with my goals that I have mostly been following for a year:

• 16-20 AF days per month
• Don't drink 2 days in a row
• Try to keep 2 AF days in between drinks days

I choose the diary style so that I check in every day, keep myself accountable, and can see at a glance where I am at.

Monday March 01 - AF - Had to start the new month off with an AF day : - )

I lurk a bit in this group, and I really like your thinking around not drinking 2 days in a row and two AF days between. I am going to try that this month as well!

vvlucky

Thank you @globalhiker. Yesterday was Day 1. I've done this before and realize the first few days are easier than the next few. But I'm proud of myself. I stayed within my calorie count.

I appreciated all the advice you gave me yesterday. Especially when you said there are so many people working towards similar goals - and being successful. Part of this - for me - is being private about it because I carry shame.

It was hard to fall asleep - I had a big day work-wise and parenting-wise (all good, though) - but when I did, I slept like a rock. And woke up rested and proud of myself. Through a series of really difficult events in our family, I have kind of lost myself. Spring is the perfect time to start radical self care.

Have a nice day.

dawnbgethealthy

globalhiker wrote: »

Today will be day 30 of my AF streak.....husband is still doing it with me....

I have really INCREDIBLE news! You can't see me but I am dancing with joy right now.....

I get to sign up for the covid vaccine today finally! Now all I need is for the vaccine passport idea to be implemented and the Canadian border to open so I can schedule a really, really good hiking experience!!! And party with @dawnbgethealthy ...!

Great job on your AF journey.
How fabulous that you will be getting the vaccine!
We are way behind in Canada due to delays in them arriving. We have 500,00 more due to arrive this week, they will now be going to 80+ people and the second dose will be delayed up to 4 months to get a first dose into more people. We are a ways away still. Hoping that the Johnson and Johnson gets approved by Health Canada soon, it is a one dose shot.

I am so excited that you will be coming here : - )

globalhiker

March day 2 AF done! Good news is I was able to get a Covid appt slot for Monday. Yippie. So stressful having to book it! Only 50k appointments and the demographic for this is about 800k not counting visitors. But we're in!

@Womona how super exciting to get a sailboat! Keep us posted on where you'll be sailing! Share pix please

@mainelylisa Cheetos how tasty....was it the flaming hot kind? Now I am craving something crunchy and salty and spicy.....

@lmlmrn I can relate to your job hunting post...I've gotten some wild reject responses so far. It's just the times - so many out of work and so many applying, etc. just requires a ton of patience. But you managed to stay AF so well done! And the universe will deliver what you seek if you keep that positive intention going.

Me, I am holding off applying for some weeks here and maybe assessing a career change. I need that job hunting stress to stay far away at least for a little bit longer until I feel a bit more resilient. I know my "current" stress limits and need to stay under max limit for a bit longer.

lmlmrn

I am going to pat myself on the back. I did not have the drink(s) I would have died to have last night. I fixed several diet tonic and bitters then with a serving (yes I measured) of salty pretzels and lily's chocolate chips I survived the urge last night.
I am not in dire need of a job, since I have not worked since November. My goal was to find something new after the first of the year. DH tells me to wait until I find something that is fun, not just a job for jobs sake.

I love my DH.....

lilann1961

Thank you @mainelylisa for keeping the thread going!!

So far, 2/2 days AF, including the last two days of February. I had to fight it yesterday, as a stressful day with nowhere to go in the evening usually leads to wine. I was SO proud of myself when I picked up dinner and bypassed everything (I don't have any wine in the house right now). We are spending less right now due to getting new flooring, so I would have beat myself up twice had I succumbed.

Annual Goals:
1) Make my bed everyday - didn't make it today because it is washing day, but aside from two other days, I am good to go!
2) Read 52 books this year - started 7/52 two days ago!
3) Move daily - this one has been a little harder with the bad weather and very dusty basement (where my elliptical lives). However, it is BEAUTIFUL today and I will absolutely get outside.
4) Stay relatively within my calorie goals - so far so good! I don't berate myself if I go over, unless wine was the main culprit.
5) Less alcohol monthly - aiming for no more than 5 days this month.

Womona

Today is my 4th AF day in a row! Big streak for me. I was going to have a glass tonight because it’s DH’s birthday, but I came in late from work, and had leftovers on my lap in front of the TV. Not really special enough to have a glass of wine, especially knowing I’m going out and will drink the next 3 nights.

dawnbgethealthy

Happy March!

I am continuing with my goals that I have mostly been following for a year:

16-20 AF days per month
Don't drink 2 days in a row
Try to keep 2 AF days in between drinks days

I choose the diary style so that I check in every day, keep myself accountable, and can see at a glance where I am at.

Monday March 01 - AF - Had to start the new month off with an AF day : - )
Tuesday March 02 - AF - Needed to wait 6 minutes many many times, I really felt like having a couple of drinks tonight. I know that I (and my waistline) will be happy tomorrow that I resisted.
Wednesday March 03 - AF - Early start for work tomorrow, so AF tonight.

Rolling total: 3AF days out of 3 days.

Lilylady3k

1.5 glasses of wine ... stress snacking during the afternoon and then gave in and shared the bottle of wine DH opened to go with dinner. Not the best day for me overall but I did get outside and walk twice and finally got on my recumbent bike again that I've been mentally & physically avoiding. Today I think I'll do more yard clean up in the afternoon to keep out of the kitchen.

globalhiker

Day 4 AF is here.

Yesterday I practiced craving prevention by having 2 mini-dinners - one at 3 then one at 6. Each protein + little fat+lettuce, tomato, cucumber or other healthy veg. It worked...

My latest obsession is spicy seafood cocktail sauce. This 5 calorie miracle gets mixed with a tiny bit of mayo and added to cold cooked fish then placed on a heaping bowl of salad (romaine, cucumber, tomato, bit of onion) with a tsp of balsamic vinaigrette. This way I get my crunchy-salty-spicy requirement satisfied!

ducky133

Second night (last night) with a slightly smaller drink. The good news is that I have no fuzzy memories of either night. The bad news is that I had trouble sleeping. I'll take it. Seems like a lot of folks on this thread are doing a great job achieving their goals. I think in the past I was hesitant to post because I was not. That did not help me.

lilann1961

@ducky133 I think all of us have been there. The bad sleep will get better and no fuzzy brain is a good thing! It's progress. Sometimes it really helps to just explain it "out loud" here, then you start to acknowledge where you can avoid temptation or adjust your routine. You may find you crave more sugar, or if you wait on your urge for 10 min or so, it passes. It's a journey.

This is a great no-judgement group. I set up a few goals, not just less alcohol, so I still see some positive changes even when I do drink (or drink more).