Less Alcohol ~ DECEMBER 2022 ~ One Day At A Time
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Hello all! I’m still Amanda, I’m from Michigan. I am still a crazy cat lady and work for a veterinarian. This will be my sixth month with this group and it has helped me cut back on my drinking so much! I am not ready to say I am 100% sober but last month I had 30 days alcohol free 😃
12/1-12/7: 7 out of 7 AF
12/8-12/14: 7 out of 7 AF
Rolling total: 14 out of 14 AF
12/15: AF
My dad always buys a giant bottle of Baileys over the holidays and we put it in coffee and top it with whipped cream (if you want) or pour it over ice. I just perused the interwebz a bit and I don’t see AF Baileys. You can make it but it looks like such a pain in my behind I think I’ll just skip it this year or just have one.
So proud of everyone for their AF streaks, especially during this season that can be tricky.
12/16: AF
Back to my pre-surgical weight today! I gained 5 pounds with that surgery. I’m still not anywhere near where I want to be but any loss in December for me is a win!
12/17: AF
I did way too much yesterday and am paying for it with soreness today. 12 days out from surgery and ready to be back to normal!
I made like 4 million cookies with my mom yesterday, a tradition. She did not start drinking before noon which helped the process go smoother. My dad got pretty toasted before dinner which is odd and I didn’t necessarily like it. I’m kind of at a cross roads with saying something about their drinking. For one, they are going to keep drinking if they want to. And they are still getting used to me not drinking with them. However, they are already unsteady on their feet and adding alcohol makes their fall risk go up. I know a lot of you deal with partners drinking but have/did/are any of you dealing with an elderly parent drinking?
12/18: AF
I am at day 51 AF. It surprises me when I actually count it up. I still get cravings (?) but they pass. I always think of the whole movie I guess. I was actually waking up in the middle of the night, suddenly, and vomiting, even on nights I had not drank anything. Scared me. One of many reasons to stop and/or cut back.
12/19: AF
I received news from the tumor board yesterday that they are having pathology review the slides from surgery again to decide on my treatment plan (chemo, radiation, more surgery, hormones.) I am frustrated to say the least. This likely means waiting until after the holidays. I wanted to have a plan in place so I could research my options. I am still grateful this is at an early stage, things could be much worse.
12/20: AF
The tumor board has referred me on to medical oncology, which means no more surgery! One thing off the list. I am very, very tired today. I have 2 more days of work then I am off for 3 days. Is it horrible I am looking forward to sleeping?
12/21: AF
Took the wine twins (parents) out to dinner for my dads 76th birthday. My dad is an AMAZING backseat driver lol6 -
Day 23. We finished the series Animal Kingdom on Amazon Prime last night. I highly recommend it if you like crime family dramas. I'm squeamish and have to look away sometimes but it is really really good. I had trouble sleeping last night as it actually invaded my dreams and my heart was pounding as if I had been drinking. Haven't had that since Nov 30th, the last time I had any alcohol.
Even though the next 8 days, until Jan 1 are usually heavy drinking days of the year, I feel like I can get through them now. For one thing, my sister, her husband, and 14 year old daughter will be staying with us and I don't see them very much so I want to be as "present" as possible. Wine makes me forget conversations and say embarrassing things so that won't happen. That's a relief. Also I am hosting Xmas eve and have to have my wits about me. These kinds of things don't tempt me. My trigger is when the party is over, everyone has left and I just want to put my feet up and have a glass (or 5) of wine. I am a mainly "drinking alone" or just with my husband kind of drinker. This is why the liquor warehouse, or even the bartender giving me a free Xmas martini did not really tempt me. It just isn't my usual "thing". I waffle between dread of Jan 1 and looking forward to it. A month is a long time to give up drinking. Do I want to end my streak or keep it going? I am not sure. I'm certain to engage in some self reflection about this.
To those of you affected by this treacherous incoming weather here in parts of the US, safe travels and keep warm!
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@lmlmrn Will you keep the lifting up at home while you are off a week from the “program?” I can’t remember, is your DH lifting too?
@bover145 That jury duty situation sounds brutal! I’m glad you lived to tell the tale! (As much as you can tell it.) Looks like you’re keeping on track with your A intake.
@mfowler883 A few pages back you were talking about being kind of tired (I don’t know what you’re exact wording was) of going hard all the time with logging and exercise. I used to spend a lot of time lurking the forums trying to glean info and I’ve heard where people take “diet breaks.” I think you just basically eat in maintenance for however long you think you need to give yourself a mental reset. It’s not permission to eat all the things and become a couch potato but I’ve read it works for some. I did it in August for 10 days and I actually lost some weight. I think there’s threads under the maintaining group. Just a thought
Nice to meet you Mike 👋7 -
December accountability: 7 days AF
Alcohol: 13 days (36 drinks)
Goal: Limit 2 glasses per day; 12-16 AF days per month.
12/21 - 5 wine ; planned 5 course wine dinner with friends. The food was fabulous! The wine good. And the evening out with very old friends we don't see often at all ... made for a great evening.
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This group really helps me hold myself accountable, plus everyone is absolutely great. My monthly goal is 16-19 AF days (3A days max weekly) for weight loss and overall health. I post in the mornings about the previous day.
12/19: AF
12/20: AF
12/21: AF - We made it another day without opening that gift bottle of wine. I was satisfied with the one Clausthaler NA beer with dinner and successfully saved half of my meal for today's lunch (tracking food). Today is a planned A-day. We will try the wine tonight, new to me, a Hungarian White Wine - Gal Tibor Egri Csillag. The label is in Hungarian, which is fun.
Heading to work (which a walk from living room to office) to finish up my (ugh) self-eval. My goal is to get 'er done this morning. I am very tempted start work late and read everyone's updates but I'll have to do it later. I also have trouble sleeping and had trouble getting out of bed this morning.
Rolling Total: 13 AF Days out of 216 -
Alcohol and treats are killing my eating plan. That, and I just love cold cereal, and made the poor decision to buy a giant box of my favorite from Costco. I’m not replacing it once we get through this weekend with my sister and brother-in-law here. Which, BTW, I’m completely not prepared for! Need to shop, clean, etc.
Patients have brought in a ton of yummies for us, and last night we had a mini party at work to kick off the holidays. I woke up in the middle of the night a little queasy, and of course the two glasses of wine meant poor sleep. My weight is creeping up. At least I’ve been good about working out. I am going to drag myself to tomorrow’s workout because this fat isn’t going to go away by itself.
There’s an old saying in wellness circles, “you can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet.” Well, I know I’m slipping up on my
eating. I mean, I know exactly what to do, but for some reason I’m just justifying my way to a larger dress size. I’m frustrated with myself. I think I’m going to do that 21 day sugar detox in January.
@mfowler883 (Mike!) I totally hear you!
@joans1976 (Amanda!) glad no more surgery in your future. That’s great news. How is your original surgery healing? Hope you’re out of pain. Nap away! Your body has been through a lot!
BTW my name is Laurel8 -
Ugh, have caught a cold and have a naggy right ear thing going on.
I thought some nyquil would do the trick. IS THAT STUFF EVEN LEGAL IN THE U.S. ?
After I took it I did not get up until 10:45AM the next morning. And my mind lingered in a fog ALL DAY. I could not process simple tasks.
It seriously reminded me of a giant hangover and trying to crawl up out of it. Not fun, not fun at all.
Irony is: moving 1600 miles South to escape the Winters in Maine just to have a forecast this weekend on the Florida gulf coast of temps in the 20's. Ya gotta laugh, right?
🌴🥶
🤪
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I am Dawn, I live in SE BC Canada
My primary motivation for drinking less is weight loss.
I throw up if I have more than 3 drinks, so moderation on drink days is rarely an issue for me lol.
My recurring goal is 16-20 AF days per month. I squeaked to 16 last month.
I like to do this diary style to keep track.
Sunday December 18 - AF - I have a very light workweek this week, but the weather is too cold to do much outdoor activity. Sunny and blue, but minus 20 here. Minus 5 to minus 10 is perfect for winter activities. Keeping the option open for a drinks evening some time this week, we'll see because my weight is up almost 5 pounds after being sick and not eating. I need to get that back down and don't want alcohol to interfere with that goal.
Monday December 19 - 2 drinks. I got my grey roots died out after work, came home and mixed a cocktail. Planning AF until Friday.
Tuesday December 20 - AF - Minus 25 here this morning. I woke up Tuesday morning with a cold and had to take Dayquil to get through my workday. Just got over the flu, so I guess that my immunity was ripe to catch the next thing. I was more interested in a hot bath and a Neo Citran than anything last night, so AF won out.
Wednesday December 21 - AF - Got through a split shift with Dayquil and then Nyquil to stop my running nose and get some sleep. Minus 35 this Thursday morning. Yikes. I will drag myself to work for another split shift. Yes, Nyquil makes me groggy all the next day, but I really needed the relief and sleep.
Rolling total - 14AF day out of 21 days6 -
@Lilylady3k THANK YOU for posting that menu. It brought back so many great memories of Christmas Eves in Miami with my second husband. He insisted on a traditional "Feast of the Seven Fishes" every year, which we shared with another couple {Italian, of course !!] . He was a wonderful cook, and when he took over the kitchen I never minded being the clean up crew afterwards. Too fat & happy to care....And he "let" me make the Cannoli...
My ancient Radio Flyer wagon gave up the ghost a couple weeks ago...why did a metal wagon have plastic wheels, that the manufacturer doesn't make anymore ?? My new woodstove wood hauler arrived quickly....in about a million parts, requiring tools I don't own. SIL #2 volunteered to put it together & I finally got it last night, just in time to bring in enough fuel to last through the expected power outage we're getting for Christmas.
Counting my blessings.
As I feared, my wine consumption has slowly crept up, as in number of A days and number of glasses. Time for a reset. It's mid-afternoon and I'm already craving a wee glass. Maybe that menu was a bit of a trigger ?? Concentrate on the lobster ravioli, NOT the Pinot Grigio.
Do I wait til January 1st to start behaving responsibly and just enjoy the next week or so ?? Then join the hordes of people locking up their booze ?? 😈😇 Will consult with my wine-hating Catpuccino.6 -
15 AF days of Christmas and the last 4 consecutive. Woo-Hoo. That's thanks to the leaders of the pack who are killin' it: @MissMay, @RockinRobyn672, @mfowler883, @Joans1976 and anyone else I missed. Your progress keeps me going.
Slept fine, no insomnia or nightmares. I do have a nervous stomach and it would be a thought to self-medicate with wine still under the tree, ten steps away from me, but I would wreck my progress and likely feel down. Better to push through until the feeling goes away.
My name is Sandy.7 -
For anyone (like me) that is trying to stay sober for Christmas, this is good.
https://thesoberschool.com/10-things-i-love-about-being-sober-at-christmas/4 -
I was just THINKING about alcohol yesterday and my liver, or something in my upper right side under my rib cage, started aching, like it did when I was drinking daily. It had basically gone away about 2 weeks after I stopped. I think it is saying, "Girl, PLEASE! Don't start that *kitten* again!"
@Lilylady3k That menu looks outstanding! Yum!6 -
Hello all! I’m still Amanda, I’m from Michigan. I am still a crazy cat lady and work for a veterinarian. This will be my sixth month with this group and it has helped me cut back on my drinking so much! I am not ready to say I am 100% sober but last month I had 30 days alcohol free 😃
12/1-12/7: 7 out of 7 AF
12/8-12/14: 7 out of 7 AF
12/15-12/22: 7 out of 7 AF
Rolling total for December: 22 AF out of 22 (!)
12/22: AF
I can feel myself wanting a drink on Christmas Eve because it’s a holiday. I just want to hold and sip a warm cup of Baileys and coffee in front of the fire. Is that stupid?
Day 55 AF
On a “positive” note I did my final grocery store run last night and didn’t murder anyone. Now I can stay in all day. The weather outside IS frightful!6 -
@joans1976 Or Baileys in hot chocolate. I have bought both for company but now my sister is no longer coming and here it sits, unopened and tempting me. I know if I open it, it won't be long until I jump into a wine bottle. I'll take it with me to the next event and leave it there.8
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@Womona Thank you for asking, I’m still sore but everyday gets better. My lymph node/armpit area is crazy sore and I do exercises and massage twice a day to help relieve that. I try to go without pain relievers but the longest I can go is 8 hours. Still tired. I’m not sure if this is cancer related or could it be stress/work/holidays/winter gray weather/depression/general laziness? I am back to working 10 hour days but will likely start radiation after the first of the year and I’m not sure how that will affect work.
@SunnyDays930 You are a rockstar! 🤩 Thank you for posting that list of 10 things. My favorite is being able to drive home (ie leave) whenever you want! I want you to think about those 10 things too as you consider your month long streak or to break it. It sounds like you have a plan in place but it’s always good to have something to fall back on!
Everyone else: I am sorry some of you are sick, I hope you can get some much deserved rest! Sending warm hugs and comforting NA soothing drinks to you!
I hope everyone affected by this weather is able to stay safe and warm and doesn’t lose power. I am sorry for all in the Southern states experiencing cold temps, you all must be traumatized unless you’re snow birds!6 -
@SunnyDays930 Ugh I just wrote that you had a plan because your sister was coming! Did she cancel because of the weather? That’s a GREAT plan for the Baileys!5
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Right, she is not coming because of the weather. It's too far to drive in this mess.
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SunnyDays930 wrote: »For anyone (like me) that is trying to stay sober for Christmas, this is good.
https://thesoberschool.com/10-things-i-love-about-being-sober-at-christmas/
@SunnyDays930 - Thank you for sharing the article. Good list and reminder.6 -
December accountability: 7 days AF
Alcohol: 14 days (38 drinks)
Goal: Limit 2 glasses per day; 12-16 AF days per month.
12/22 - 2 wine; Not my plan but then DH opened a bottle and I went along. DD & family (hubby, baby & 2 large golden doodles) moved in for a while … their sewage line from house to street collapsed. Tis the Season to get things fixed with freezing weather it will be a while before they can get a plumber out to address.8 -
I know I was absent yesterday, but I had been cleaning/organizing for DD+family visit. They arrived by 2pm yesterday. I was so thankful they got on a flight before the cancellations started out of chicago.
The second plus was they rarely drink so bringing out the alcohol was really a non issue. Yeah AF last night. They really have a healthy relationship with alcohol. Special occasions or a meal out with a good stout is more there speed. The funny thing is my SIL use to be a bartender in his college years.
Ok my posting will most likely be scattered over the holiday so I want to wish every one a safe and happy Christmas.
@MissMay hehe try and stay warm. Years ago we got stuck in AR on NewYears eve because of severe cold and ice. Had to hunker down at a hotel next to the airport. No one was going anywhere. It was awful.
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