The Sober Squad- Alcohol Free Living
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Hello Sober Squad.
I know many of you from the less alcohol.....one day at a time thread. I started over there January 23, 2018 (with some speed bumps along the way) and have never looked back at getting to my goal. I felt like I owed many of you thanks for posting your hearts on there and also for being super supportive to me. I wish all of you a happy and healthy last day of 2018 as well as the new year of 2019.
CHEERS to all of us with the beverage of your choice.🍾
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someone help me!!!! so tempted....went to run an errand and the demon said i need a whiskey drink...stopped at the liquor store, parked the car, started looking at highball recipe....started walking toward the store....midway something stopped me....OMG it was so excruciatingly close...i am on thin ice today....the NYE is making me crave a drink on my last day of Dry December13
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You've got this Norm! Stay strong!
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someone help me!!!! so tempted....went to run an errand and the demon said i need a whiskey drink...stopped at the liquor store, parked the car, started looking at highball recipe....started walking toward the store....midway something stopped me....OMG it was so excruciatingly close...i am on thin ice today....the NYE is making me crave a drink on my last day of Dry December
Norm- you worked so hard for this - distract yourself.5 -
Norm you can do it---I looked at the store myself more than usual. It is the 3rd leg of the Bermuda triangle. Tomorrow you will be soooo upset if you cave. Yes you were close, BUT YOU DIDN'T DO IT. I was closer than usual myself today. You are always better at home once you get there, maybe get there quick. Order food in if that helps--do something special if you want. I got sweets and eggplant parm.....etc. No alcohol. You will be so happy tomorrow.....Plan the rest of the night with something fun or go to bed if that helps early. Prayers for all of us.4
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Check back in Norm and let us know how you are doing when you can. We all care!!
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Yes thank you @JenT304. You said it so well, that I wished I could have said it, lol. Thank you for beginning this group. This group has had my back and been there for me. Thank you to @RubyRed427 also for starting the less alcohol group where I joined last January. This last year has changed my life because of you all!! Happy New Year!!
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You've got this Norm! Stay strong!salleewins wrote: »Norm you can do it---I looked at the store myself more than usual. It is the 3rd leg of the Bermuda triangle. Tomorrow you will be soooo upset if you cave. Yes you were close, BUT YOU DIDN'T DO IT. I was closer than usual myself today. You are always better at home once you get there, maybe get there quick. Order food in if that helps--do something special if you want. I got sweets and eggplant parm.....etc. No alcohol. You will be so happy tomorrow.....Plan the rest of the night with something fun or go to bed if that helps early. Prayers for all of us.salleewins wrote: »Check back in Norm and let us know how you are doing when you can. We all care!!
Thanks for the support. I went to Target next door instead and bought some zero calorie root beer, chips and ice cream....heck that is still better than alcohol.....crisis averted for now.13 -
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RubyRed427 wrote: »someone help me!!!! so tempted....went to run an errand and the demon said i need a whiskey drink...stopped at the liquor store, parked the car, started looking at highball recipe....started walking toward the store....midway something stopped me....OMG it was so excruciatingly close...i am on thin ice today....the NYE is making me crave a drink on my last day of Dry December
Norm- you worked so hard for this - distract yourself.
sorry forgot to quote you3 -
You've got this Norm! Stay strong!salleewins wrote: »Norm you can do it---I looked at the store myself more than usual. It is the 3rd leg of the Bermuda triangle. Tomorrow you will be soooo upset if you cave. Yes you were close, BUT YOU DIDN'T DO IT. I was closer than usual myself today. You are always better at home once you get there, maybe get there quick. Order food in if that helps--do something special if you want. I got sweets and eggplant parm.....etc. No alcohol. You will be so happy tomorrow.....Plan the rest of the night with something fun or go to bed if that helps early. Prayers for all of us.salleewins wrote: »Check back in Norm and let us know how you are doing when you can. We all care!!
Thanks for the support. I went to Target next door instead and bought some zero calorie root beer, chips and ice cream....heck that is still better than alcohol.....crisis averted for now.
Exactly. Had the same thinking today! GREAT GOING!5 -
You've got this Norm! Stay strong!salleewins wrote: »Norm you can do it---I looked at the store myself more than usual. It is the 3rd leg of the Bermuda triangle. Tomorrow you will be soooo upset if you cave. Yes you were close, BUT YOU DIDN'T DO IT. I was closer than usual myself today. You are always better at home once you get there, maybe get there quick. Order food in if that helps--do something special if you want. I got sweets and eggplant parm.....etc. No alcohol. You will be so happy tomorrow.....Plan the rest of the night with something fun or go to bed if that helps early. Prayers for all of us.salleewins wrote: »Check back in Norm and let us know how you are doing when you can. We all care!!
Thanks for the support. I went to Target next door instead and bought some zero calorie root beer, chips and ice cream....heck that is still better than alcohol.....crisis averted for now.
YAY!! You did the absolute best thing asking for help here & you got some great suggestions!! YES, pop, chips & ice cream are way better than alcohol. You will be SO happy tomorrow when you wake up & feel clear headed & thankful that you took control of your craving & won!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY again!!!
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This helps me a lot again, too and thought that if anyone didn't know about these phone meeting, I would pass them along. Meetings at a lot of different times.You don't have to identify yourself as alcoholic or even consider yourself one. In the beginning I used to just say my first name or a fake first name and not say that I was an alcoholic. Helpful to remain consistent with whatever you choose, so people get to know you. You don't have to talk even. I do find it most helpful if after awhile I try to participate somehow.Most of them you can dial *67 and remain anonymous before you dial the number and access code for the meeting you want. I used them a ton in the beginning, too of getting sober. Sometimes when I am not home,even, I call one. I keep the numbers on me and access codes with times. Just can be one more possibility of support for the tool box to stay sober. You can select to hang up if you want and don't like a particular meeting or a particular personality,I sometimes mute. There have been times I have spoken up at these meetings and said that I felt like drinking and what was going on with me at the time. Very helpful, just like being here in this group. http://aaphonemeetings.org6
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I almost got the pineapple coconut juice blend by Knudson, I think, for tonight. It is really good and creamy. Instead I got the Martinelli sparkling apple cider with peach, since I hadn't tried it before. I like the sp. apple cider with pear better. Had that one at Christmas. I also got my usual diet cherry Pepsi as a back-up, but having fat free sugar free vanilla ice cream with it that I got at Wal-Mart. I also noticed the health store here has a lot of Zevia flavors that I haven't tried yet. That I am storing up in my mind for the future. Thought I would pass them along.6
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GOOD MORNING EVERYONE
I was in bed by 10 last eve & woke at 6:00 this morn & took my pup for a snowy walk down my street towards downtown feeling clear headed and thankful . VERY quiet today 
My canine companion is snoozing in my bed as I drink coffee....LOVE having a day off!!
@JenT304 Thank you for that article. There is also a supplementary article at the end entitled, "What's the Difference Between Being An Alcoholic and Just Really, Really Liking to Drink?" Her lead into the article states, "Why I decided to give up drinking even though I never considered myself an alcoholic." I think many of us here could relate to her. I know I can. I could have written her story, as many us us likely could. I thought of you @RubyRed427 in particular. She talked about coping with the same things you have shared here. Hope you read it and share your thoughts. I actually saved it to re-read when I need to...good reminder for me.5 -
I have shared before about Melanie Beattie's daily affirmation book I read entitled, "The Language of Letting Go." Today's blurb was not about making resolutions, but goal setting (there is a difference between the two). She shares how goals give us & our life direction & put a powerful force into play on a universal, conscious, and subconscious level. Write it all down as an affirmation of you, your life and your ability to choose. THEN let it go.
Does anyone want to share what some of their goals are this year?4 -
Good morning friends ! I was doing perfectly until about 10 p.m. and then......
So, today me and my headache will regroup and make it a Dry January. Hugs!9 -
Hugs Ruby!! We love you!!3
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lorrainequiche59 wrote: »Does anyone want to share what some of their goals are this year?
Happy New Year, everyone! I’m a year into being AF and wow this feels good! I started this journey spontaneously a year ago as we were headed out for vacation, and I’m so thankful for that spur of the moment decision. I spent the first weeks of 2018 allowing my body to heal, and I spent the rest of the year healing my mind.
I definitely had my challenges here & there, but I found tremendous strength and resolve in the ‘Less Alcohol’ threads. Annie Grace’s book The Naked Mind, which I read in the first few days of vacation last January, gave me such wonderful insight and really helped me as well.
This year, I am going to work on forgiveness. For others definitely, but mostly forgiveness for myself. Acknowledging the past and then, finally, moving beyond it. It’s taken me a year to get to this point, and I’m ready
I hope you all are staged and ready for an amazing year ahead!8 -
Happy New Year!! Hope everyone had a nice time I was Queen Boring and went to bed early,,I just couldn't summon any excitement for NYE,makes me feel kinda sad and it's totally not even about the alcohol,I just reflect too much on the year,year's past,the year ahead etc,Normnlv,great job for coming here first! Thats the whole point of a support system like this,talk first not after,fab job Ruby,dust yourself off,NYE is a hard night! My son in law left about 3 inches of beer in a mug when he left and when I picked it up to poor it out my lizard brain was saying"chug it,chug it"! Wtf is that?!? Outta nowhere so weird,grrrrr,my goals this year are log more accurate,cut more sugar,pay my credit cards mostly off,save money,have a better,happier more positive outlook,oh and try to find a part time second job in a different salon,should be doable! I would love to read what others are gonna do,alrighty wishes for a fab AF NYD! 4
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Morning pals, dry December in the bag.... Came so close to messing it up...
Now the goal is to do dry January, put together two months back to back...
Lets do this12 -
Good job Norm! We are going to an open house at 2:30 and I am determined not to indulge! Losing some weight and staying AF go hand in hand for me. I hope everyone has a great first day of the year 8
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Going on Day #3! This time of year is hard and I let it get the best of me. But my Bday (12/30) was Sober Day #1. Happy New Year everyone! Stay strong!12
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Happy and Healthy New Years to all
This is over 10.5 years AF for me and the benefits are too numerous to list. I mostly lurk here and read all the posts and find that after a post that I might respond to there are multiple posts from everyone here expressing most of the feelings and thoughts I was having
So Kudos to all of you for the level of caring and support you bring to the posts
I wanted to express the need for patience in our lives. We deal with stress and or family members who discount what we do or still drink and it can require patience to deal.
A quick story, we have a cousins group that gathers at least once a year for a dinner. They mostly found in the beginning since I drank so much all the time this was going to be a passing phase for me and I would be back drinking soon enough and didn't hesitate to tell me so. They eventually accepted and no comments after awhile. In November we gathered in downtown NYC at a great restaurant for dinner and I noticed one of my cousins who drank heavily wasn't drinking at all. When I had a chance I asked what was going on, and his wife told me. They had been at the club the prior weekend where he was drinking as usual and all of a sudden he found he was become disoriented and felt very ill, they feared it might be serious. They layed him down on a couch and after awhile he started to feel better. Got checked out the next day and his Dr. intimated the way he drank at his age he was surprised it hadn't happened sooner. He hasn't had a drink since and surprise surprise he told me I never understood how you just stopped, but I can do this and I feel much better and still enjoy myself as much as I did before if not more since I am in control of myself. Granted its a few weeks only but through the holidays he has remained AF and he benefits from the fact that I have done it for years and so for him no questions or comments.
So stick to your goals and choices as this is for YOU and no one else and have a happy 2019 AF9 -
RubyRed427 wrote: »Good morning friends ! I was doing perfectly until about 10 p.m. and then......
So, today me and my headache will regroup and make it a Dry January. Hugs!
It's a great day for day 1. Love you friend!!! You've got this.
@ke22yb love your post!
Here's to an incredible 2019 friends!
@norminv congrats on making it through last night. I know NYE and holidays in general are TOUGH.
My goal for 2019 is to be more active in this thread. I've been sober since 08/13/12 and I love the sober life and I LOVE the suffering person who's struggling with alcohol. That was so me. I still struggle some days.
Last Saturday I was at a party over at my parents house. I was the only person not drinking. Someone left a full glass of big beefy red wine and I'd be a liar if I told you that I didn't think about taking a drink. Red wine was my love before I went AF. My first thought is who the hell leaves a full glass of wine behind.... then I realized it was someone who doesn't have an issue consuming alcohol and yes I still have a drinking problem even though I don't drink. I had to go to the bathroom and ask my higher power to take the urge away from me and help me to get out of my head and see how I can help someone else. Thankfully the urge quickly vanished and I was able to be there for another family member who's kind of having an emotionally hard time right now. I just got to listen to her, love her and just be there for her. That's a higher power at work in my life today! Of and by myself I don't do these things.
For me how I combat my desire for a drink is I go to AA and follow the principals outlined in that program.
With it being Christmas and became lax in my recovery program and didn't go to my usual meetings. I only went to 2 meetings that week and I'm usually a 4 to 5 meetings a week kind of gal. Still even at 6.5 years sober.... So it was no shock when the thought of taking a drink last Saturday hit. I am so thankful that I pulled out the tool kit and used them.
For those who did drink and break their days of being AF please go easy on yourself. You're not a failure, you're human.
For me I think about my weight loss journey. I've been trying to lose weight my entire adult life (I'm almost 46) and not until I went into remission from breast caner was I really willing to be serious about weight loss to help avoid a reoccurrence of cancer. I'll have 3 years in remission on 01/11/19 and in that time I've only lost 60 pounds. I have another 40-45 pounds left to go. The weight loss journey is not perfect and neither is being AF. The only thing that this kind of life requires is a willingness to try, be willing to take direction from someone who's gone before you, expect failure because no one is perfect. When you do fail...feel the feels for a minute but don't live in that head space. Be willing to pick yourself up and try again.
I love you all very much. Seriously I do...I don't know you but I love you. I do want to be more active here in 2019. I've read every post in this thread and I have only responded a handful of times.
Here's to a great 2019 and to really be kind to yourselves and love your self like you love your kids, parents, other family, best friend, etc. Talk to yourself the way you would talk to your best friend.
HUGS friends
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I've been considering AF living for awhile. These posts are so supportive and uplifting to one another. Reading them has encouraged me to turn down several opportunities for alcohol this holiday season. Being sober has helped kickstart a new workout routine and improve at my job. Thanks for the knowledge!8
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KristaFIRE wrote: »I've been considering AF living for awhile. These posts are so supportive and uplifting to one another. Reading them has encouraged me to turn down several opportunities for alcohol this holiday season. Being sober has helped kickstart a new workout routine and improve at my job. Thanks for the knowledge!
Welcome to the group. It is by far one of the most supportive group on here.
thanks @tifano7 -
I will post goals once I write them down. I have them in my head, but I may come up with a few more. I find writing them down and making a plan on how to exactly accomplish them helps a lot. Of course goal setting can change as the year progresses, but I find it is easiest to start looking at the past year and the current year to make a new set.I could never have accomplished what I did last year if I was drinking regularly like I was. Heck I wasn't even getting the basics done a lot of times. Last year I spent cleaning up the rubble of things not done and my appearance looks so much better. I can never go back there. I was made for more than that. So were we all.
@Norminv YOU DID IT! You must be so proud of what you were able to do! We are proud of your accomplishment, too!
Welcome @KristaFIRE!4
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