Less Alcohol ~ SEPTEMBER 2022 ~ One Day At A Time

sarah7591

Checking in...
17 AF
6 A

I am a work in progress.

joans1976

I love this group ❤️
I have greatly reduced my drinking since June and had a great month in August with 26 out of 31 AF days. This month I am trying to be mindful and make self care a priority.

9/1-9/7: 7 out of 7 AF
9/8-9/14: 6 AF out 7
9/15-9/21: 7 AF out of 7

9/22: AF
Well I didn’t end up taking a mental health day but I did end up seeing my therapist who forced me to set up some hard boundaries with work notifications (on my computer and phone) and I also punched out an hour early. Obviously, a different job needs to be found. This makes my stomach hurt to think about. But the job I have now makes my stomach hurt too.
Away from work today, helping my parents unpack. They are out of the hotel and in to the condo, all limbs intact thank god. This should be the downswing of the stress of the move
Thanks for listening ❤️

Breathe57103

globalhiker wrote: »

For those of us under extreme stress of any sort, we owe it to ourselves to balance that out with self-care. There are many solutions: outdoors, long walks, massage, spas, calling your best friend and ranting for an hour, unplug, even calling sick and doing a "movie" day or consulting with your medical professional..we are all humans and need to relieve that stress.

I am going to book a massage this weekend and if I can get in a Yoga class, I will. Looking forward to a state of bliss.

Thank you for all of these suggestions. All things I am working on myself. I forgot to mention in my earlier post that I have deactivated all of my social media accounts (except MFP of course) and it has been so freeing.

joans1976

@Breathe57103 Thank you, thank you, thank you. I have many support systems in place and many coping mechanisms. I see a therapist once a week and a psychiatrist every six weeks. Currently, my medications are off which is causing a chemical imbalance in my brain and then throw in the stress of a job with no work/life balance, moving my elderly parents and my car dying, I get overwhelmed. Thankfully my therapist is on speed dial and I have medications I can take in truly panicked moments.
I am so sorry for the tough times you are going through. If it helps, I view you as Theresa, a strong woman who is trying to drink less and conquer a Diet Coke habit at the same time!

@lmlmrn You must be exhausted! It seems like this fair has been going on a long time!

@globalhiker You speak the truth. My September goal was to be more mindful and that has not been practiced. I am definitely taking some time out for self care this weekend, even if it’s just to read.

@dawnbgethealthy How ya doin down there? Hope you had a good birthday!

dawnbgethealthy

@joans1976

Your work life sounds awful. Get your niggly agitator there dealt with by HR, or change jobs. Life is too short for an all consuming horrible work situation. We spend whatever we make, so even if it is a better job with less pay it is well worth the change. Change is scary for sure, but without change there is no improvement.

@globalhiker
I have a massage booked for this morning : - )
Not that I am feeling any sort of stress here in Zhihua, but I also have not come to the Zen that I am seeking...yet. Maybe an hour of not being able to move will get me there. I have accepted that perpetual motion is my "way", and have also accepted that it is not necessarily a bad thing. Baby steps. Body, mind, spirit right?
My mantra for the trip was to be joyful, free, alive, and in tune. Stopping a busy brain is never easy for me, I have had a few moments here and there to just breathe though. In 20 minutes I will be laying on a table to the sounds of the waves : - ) I will take photos of the massage spot on this property.

@Stockholm_Andy
An unripe orange!?! That makes sense. I didn't know that oranges were green : - )
No wonder that it makes such a good addition to a Margarita, since I don't have any triple sec in my home away from home kitchen : - ) This place came with a citrus squeezer in the fully equipped kitchen lol. Margaritaville indeed.

@Lilylady3k
I like the choices that you are making. Why waste a drink on something that doesn't taste good.

@Breathe57103
You are going through so much. I really don't know what to say. I am glad that you are here with us at least. Becoming Theresa, the lead role is on the horizon of your next chapter. Huge hugs.

dawnbgethealthy

I am Dawn. I live in Cranbrook BC.
I joined this thread in November of 2018 as a daily drinker.
I have found a sweet spot for myself, 16-20 AF days per month.
I had 18 for August.
I will be in Mexico for a good chunk of September and will definitely be having some Margaritas and possibly Cervezas.

I post in the mornings to MFP, so the next day for this thread.
Diary style.

Sunday Sept 11 - AF - Planned AF for Monday and Tuesday. I arrive in LA at 3pm on Tuesday and staying there until Wednesday morning, where I depart for Zhihuatanejo. I may have a Margarita at a beach bar on Wednesday, we'll see. Packing up my laptop after this post, I will check back in on Thursday.
Monday Sept 12 - AF - I have to get up at 2:30am to be at the airport for 4:30
Tuesday Sept 13 - AF - Arrived in LA for the day and night. Met a very nice young man in the pool and had a good conversation
Wednesday Sept 14 - 1 Margarita. Flight delay and forever getting through customs so I was late to the property. Turns out the beautiful cobblestone street that I thought that I would be living on was torn up and muddy with construction. Pretty much impossible for the cabby. Somehow got into my "bungalow" and back down the hill in the mud to a little place where I had a drink and took two containers to my room, one of rice, one of beans. (I see that the rest that I typed didn't go through because of wifi)
Thursday Sept 15 - Cocktails on the beach
Friday Sept 16 - Takeout cocktails - very very busy at all of the places because of the holiday, no seats
Saturday Sept 17 - 2 Margaritas at a not busy little spot that I found on day 1 here, just a muddy hill to get to it. Brought some more containers of rice and beans back to my place from there.
Sunday September 18 - Homemade Margaritas with my lime/orange thing. Pretty good. Planned AF for Monday so that when I wake up Tuesday for my birthday I will be raring to go and my belly will be flatter for spending the entire day in my bathing suit.
Monday September 19 - AF - Not looking good for hitting my 16 this month. Planning drinks and dinner on the beach for my birthday if it isn't raining too much. Oh, no earthquake here btw, and I am up on a hill and in a cove if a tsunami does form. The quake was north of here. Once I got wifi lots of people messaged me to see if I was okay, I hadn't known that there had been a quake and didn't feel anything. Sunny and blue all day today, walked very far and also visited another beach, but took a micro (van sort of bus) back at 1pm too hot for such a long walk (only a few miles, but up and down very big hills in the sun), stopped in town for cash on hand for my bday, walked back from there, grabbed an awesome iced espresso then went to the pool until 4:30. The big rain started just after I got back to my room. Love it from my covered terrace.
Tuesday September 20 - My bday. Drinks late afternoon, then Montezuma's revenge an hour later. Ice cubes? All good though, had a great day wandering, and then just the one bout that was over very quickly.
Wednesday September 21 - Drinks (Margaritas), made by me with ice cubes that I made from bottled water.
Thursday September 22 - AF - For no particular reason. - 6 more AF days in 8 days is doubtful, but I am actually okay with that. I hardly ever drink Margaritas, but they are so good with Mexican food that I don't feel like resisting at this point.

Rolling total: 10AF days out of 22 days.

pezhed

@globalhiker it's so true. I'm a big time "obliger" of Gretchen Rubin's 4 personality types. I'm great at getting stuff done if it's for someone else, but not so good when it's for me. I have an "I can wait" mentality but it hasn't served me very well. I've been moving myself off the backburner now that the kids are growing up. I even took 20 minutes yesterday evening during what we call "showtime" in our house to do a Peloton ride yesterday evening, which is something I very rarely do, and saved the kitchen cleaning for later while my husband worked on our 3 year old's bedtime. That decision was completely aided by not drinking, also. If I'd cracked a beer at 5pm I certainly wouldn't have gotten that bit of exercise!

Yesterday was Day 10 AF for me (out of my goal of 15 days). I've decided to drink tonight, tomorrow, and Sunday, then be AF the rest of the month just based on our social plans. I have my reunion starting on Friday but it's a high school football game so not exactly a drinking activity anyway! And we have no childcare so we won't be able to attend the afterparty. Then Saturday will start a new month to challenge myself

joans1976

@dawnbgethealthy There is no HR. She IS HR. She is the owner of the clinic, so she answers to no one and she knows it. So, the only option is to get out.
Enjoy your massage! I’m planning Sunday as a “me” day!

dawnbgethealthy

The massage spot on the property where I am staying:








I had my hearing aid in so that I heard the sound of the waves the entire time. She even did my face and head, basically every inch of me. Glorious.

20 minute walk now over to the pier to catch a water taxi over to Playa Los (Las?) Gatas, only accessible by boat.

Low energy today, but all good. Hot and sunny here. It usually rains later in the afternoon.

Adios for now : - )

Breathe57103

AF today. I quit beating myself up about the Diet Coke this week since I wasn't sleeping and was struggling mentally. I need to work on that and the ridiculous carb loaded diet I've been subsisting on.

My self care for this weekend includes: a manicure after work today, my granddaughter's birthday party tomorrow, watching my grandbabies tomorrow night and a massage on Sunday afternoon.

I also have an event called The 437 Project Sunday morning. Our mayor and 11 others are taking turns running the 437 miles across the state of SD in 72 hours ending in Sioux Falls on Sunday morning. They are raising money for suicide prevention programs. The mayor rented space in one of our buildings when he was young and starting his digital marketing business. He was a friend to my husband and has really taken on championing mental health initiatives during his time in office. Our company is one of the finish line sponsors for the event. Hopefully after Sunday morning I can begin to push away the incessant talk about suicide and start healing.

9/1-9/13 AF
9/14 A
9/15-9/19AF
9/20 -9/21 A
9/22-9/23 AF

Sept totals AF - 20 A - 3

May you all have a blessed weekend of less alcohol, self care and self love.

Womona

Breathe57103 wrote: »

I feel like I'm regressing in my grief. I suppose it isn't linear and I should expect to take 1 step forward and 2 steps back for awhile. I just want my person back. I drank alone tonight - not proud of it.

9/1-9/13 AF
9/14 A
9/15-9/19AF
9/20 A

Sept totals AF - 18 A - 2

Oh big Internet hug to you! Grief is absolutely not linear. I’m so sorry you’re going through this.

Womona

@dawnbgethealthy what a lovely spot for a massage! Happy birthday by the way! Sorry to hear Montezuma stopped by but at least it was a short visit.

Ah, work/life balance. Seems to be something we all struggle with, no matter what stage of life we are in. I’m happy to see some great self care and fantastic insights in this thread!

I played 9 holes today, it was really windy. I had a glass of wine at lunch, and my friend ordered us vodka sodas as we golfed. I had maybe a quarter of it. I just couldn’t drink much after my one wine. Nothing tonight with dinner.

Speaking of which, I’m trying to not only cut down on alcohol (which I’ve actually been quite successful at this month), but also counting macros for the first time in my life. I need to up my protein, big time. I was hoping my husband would grill some salmon I defrosted, but instead he made homemade tomato sauce with pasta! It was delicious, don’t get me wrong, and I appreciate his efforts. But my carb macros are off the charts today! Ah well…

globalhiker

I am so inspired about what you all wrote. I swear I must work for the same company @joans1976 works for.....!

Thank you Dawn for showing us what a real weekend should look like...glad you are having a lovely time:)

Balance is everything in life. Social media is great for connecting with friends but it's necessary to balance it out with movement in nature...and travel to experience different perspectives. All in balance and moderation.

If I can only apply this one simple principle to work, I can fix me.

I am in learning and in transition like some of you -stress management is huge....I feel for me, it makes or breaks my success in all I do....relationships, happiness, coping mechanisms (drinking and eating are those!!). IMO I do feel that some of these simple things mentioned here - taking a time out, get a massage, consulting a therapist, setting boundaries with others (I am a miserable failure here), this is what i need to do.

Here's to a good weekend of relaxation, less alcohol, connecting with nature and an overall "re-set".

globalhiker

@Breathe57103 I agree with you, if the diet coke gives you something that you want and need now, why not keep it. Too many AF days in a row and I need my chocolate, I love it and it's OK.

It's so much better than drinking which can result in anxiety and depression and nobody needs that. I think you are doing great and glad you are engaged with others. It's not easy and everything in life is challenging...you and the rest of us owe it to ourselves to keep up and find strength.

globalhiker

Thank you @pezhed, I have been on the "backburner" my whole life, putting others in front of me. What you said sounds like me.

We are smart people with sound goals and we need to just prioritize ourselves.

Think about it...I prioritized my kids, they met their goals , I prioritize husband (he's fed, happy, and in bed), I prioritize work (still employed and the leader of the team, of course the cost is too many work hours), and then there is no energy left for me and I am left....unhappy.

Sorry for the rant, I need to read this back to myself Saturday to reflect on what it is I need to change.

Stockholm_Andy

Just a quick check in as I've been very busy this week with work onboarding 2 new hires.

I caught up with all your post and I really hope you all have a chance to relax and recalibrate this weekend. A lot of posters seem to be going through a lot this week so it's amazing seeing all the mutual support in the group. (Sorry I've not been a very big part of that!)

I'm still on the wagon (much to my surprise). 34 days AF now.

joans1976

I love this group ❤️
I have greatly reduced my drinking since June and had a great month in August with 26 out of 31 AF days. This month I am trying to be mindful and make self care a priority.

9/1-9/7: 7 out of 7 AF
9/8-9/14: 6 AF out 7
9/15-9/21: 7 AF out of 7

9/22: AF
Well I didn’t end up taking a mental health day but I did end up seeing my therapist who forced me to set up some hard boundaries with work notifications (on my computer and phone) and I also punched out an hour early. Obviously, a different job needs to be found. This makes my stomach hurt to think about. But the job I have now makes my stomach hurt too.
Away from work today, helping my parents unpack. They are out of the hotel and in to the condo, all limbs intact thank god. This should be the downswing of the stress of the move
Thanks for listening ❤️
9/23: AF
Funny story: my parents each have 2 glasses of wine starting at 4:00 everyday. My mom mixes hers with Diet ginger ale (🤢) and each glass is definitely under 2 Oz of wine. My dad’s glasses are more like 5-6 Oz each. He spills his glass every night. Every. Single. Night. So I’ve got him drinking out of a plastic tumbler but they just moved into a new, clean, beautiful condo. Last night I threatened him with a sippy cup.

joans1976

@Stockholm_Andy Yes! Way to go! I was thinking about you since you had not posted, glad things are going well, if busy.

@globalhiker Balance and boundaries, yes. I took almost 90 minutes setting up notifications on my personal phone so as not to be bothered by “urgent” work questions outside of working hours. Then yesterday when I was off and getting notifications, realized I set it up wrong 🤦🏻‍♀️Whatever, reset it. BUT setting those notifications up was a big step for me. I’m hoping for some self care tomorrow, to actually unplug. I don’t envy you being a leader at work, that sounds like added stress. I wish some self care for you this weekend!

MissMay

Hi gang.
Well it is official. We left our home yesterday and hit the road towards our new home destination /Florida.
No booze in my future as I am doing all the driving.
Not as much stuffed into the car I thought there would be. YAY.
More check-ins and updates as I get to hotels.

tmbg1

9/1-9/4 - A
9/5-9/6- 9/7 - AF
9/8-9/9-9/10 - A
9/11- 9/12-9/13 - 9/14-9/15- AF
9/16 - 9/17 -9/18 A
9/19 - 9/21 - AF
9/22- 9/23-9/24 A