The Sober Squad- Alcohol Free Living

lorrainequiche59 · May 2019

Having said the above about not counting days, my drinking app alerted me to another goal achieved 7500 hours sober...NOW when I think of it in those terms, that is A LOT of time to buy back and not waste slowly killing myself.

The number of drinks I have passed is 1,272.4 and IF my liver could talk it would say something like this; "THANK YOU, thank you, thank you for giving me a much needed break!!!"

Another interesting stat is "Lifetime Regained" which is 17 days 16.1 hours ( I think this is an update cause I don't remember seeing that feature & when I click on it it gives me a repeat of total health benefits that is part of another feature of this app)

I also noticed another new, improved feature called "Relapse Assistant" Hmmmm....When I think about it, relapse is actually a normal part of recovery. MOST people relapse, it is the exception who do not. This round of being sober I haven't had a relapse, but I have had many, many attempts at stopping drinking previous to this time where the"relapses" were planned by me. All the previous attempts to stop drinking were only attempts to prove to myself that I didn't really NEED to stop drinking. It wasn't until I realized, if I keep on going, I will not be able to stop and I wanted to quit before I got to that point, while I still could make the choice. AND I realized that I really needed to quit the insanity (@RubyRed427 has a great definition of insanity)

I've decided for the next week I am going to pick some journal entries that I have accumulated to record my lows & highs of sobriety...I wrote tons in the first 6 or so months, but don't feel the need so much now. I think it is good to remind myself how it really was for me in those earlier days so I have extra motivation to continue as a non drinker.

Hope everyone is well and I hope that if any of us do have a relapse that we come back here to get the support to dust ourselves off and keep working at what we truly want, health, happiness & hope for a better way of living.

Best to all

whitpauly · May 2019

Morning all, Lorraine I have that same app but I keep it on my old phone that g-son uses to watch his YouTube videos,that way I know it's counting days but I'm not obsessing on checking it daily,woke up with a terrible stomach bug,both boys have been throwing up and other stomach issues this past week and I made the mistake of sharing a Kool aid tube drink with the one year old last night,it was bound to attack me I guess, feels like booze belly but thank goodness it's not but work is gonna be rough! Have a great AF day all

Sunshinelinzee · May 2019

Afternoon everyone

Thanks for sharing that app! Going into a long holiday weekend (taking an extra day off tomorrow) is on my mind. I don't actually feel like I want to drink at all - but I know I'm going to get into a 4 day stretch off and be thinking about it. I've got about 75,000 yard and garden projects planned to keep my hands and my brain busy straight on through and thankfully we are suppose to have ok weather. All of that energy I had yesterday has kind of petered out today - I honestly can't tell if I'm coming down with something or if it's just spring allergies moving in and setting up shop. I'm hoping it's just allergies. Anyway hoping everyone is having a wonderful AF day!

lorrainequiche59 · May 2019

@FeelinFooFoo YES, no beating yourself up, that will just create a spiral and you have done awesome. Focus on all the days you didn't drink, but more importantly it's good to focus on what you are learning through the AE. Like you said it begins with our thinking. Acceptance is the beginning of true change. SO glad that you are here & helping us to learn from your experience too.

lagoscarrie · May 2019

@FellinFooFoo First of all, congratulations on your good news! I am a bit of a broken record on this, but have you tried the alcohol removed wines? Seriously, they are not bad. The champagne has tons of bubbles, the red has a nice deep color to it. I keep them in stock. Last night, I had something rather major to celebrate as well! I dressed up, put on high heels (in my house!) came downstairs and told my husband it called for a celebration. He opened an AF bottle of champagne and I toasted my success.

My point is that some rituals ARE important and I would feel deprived if I didn't get to participate. So I keep this stuff on hand and am ready to celebrate at a moment's notice!

lagoscarrie · May 2019

@FeelinFooFoo Oh! I absolutely would swap them out if you feel like it. I had a big party on my patio two weeks ago. I had regular champagne, AF champagne, and sparkling cider for the kids. No one knew which I was drinking -- and it was none of their damned business! Maybe it's just me, but having a champagne flute with something bubbly in hand when everyone else is drinking makes all the difference.

salleewins · May 2019

kevinrfletcher wrote: »

@DCRunnerGirl78 Happy AF Day 1!!! Prayers, thoughts, and good vibes going out for you and your family.

@heatheramoure Congrats on the 2.5!

I think today is day 65 for me... Mother's Day went well. My dad brought his bottle of scotch over, brother-in-law brought beer, I stuck with water. Apparently I'm not the conversationalist that I am when I'm drunk. People didn't hang out as long as normal....

Oh well.

Day 65(?) Good day. Y'all hang tough!

Good job!! Remember it is not you and not being as much of a conversationalist, but those that are having to drink.

lorrainequiche59 · May 2019

Good Morn to All

Back at my dog sitting digs for a few days.

Hello @salleewins Good to hear from you!!

AND a reminder to me that @kevinrfletcher has been missing in action for a bit...although, perhaps he's away again. I cannot recall, but I'm vaguely thinking that....

I was writing an email this morn & my laptop FROZE, tried escape and all kinds of tricks but couldn't even shut it off. The battery is screwed in and to access it I would have to unscrew the entire bottom cover and didn't want to mess with it that way...if I could have just pulled the battery out, that would have been my solution, but would need a precision tool for the 10 wee screws which is at my house too far away. Even when I plugged the power cord in, it didn't register that it was plugged in. Waited for 30 mins then called support and they offered to fix it remotely for $85 and then $14 a month for a service agreement. It was tempting, but not big on remote control...trust issue with having Joe Blow, who I don't know, having complete control over & access to my stuff. Plus the ongoing fee forever and that is only for service, not replacement parts etc.

Anyway, was thinking of taking it to a local fixer, but tried one last thing: pressed escape AND the power button for a few secs and POOF it went off. Left it for a minute and voila, it is working once again. It's only a year old, but I am old-school forgetting there is no integrity in products anymore, and the level of service sucks usually...most companies just want to continue to get $$ from you for pretty much nothing...just cause!

HEY, I just thought of something, the Techno-tard just "fixed" her laptop...WOOHOO.....!! You GO girl

It is RAINING here AGAIN r-r-r-r-!! But, hey, it isn't frozen rain so I suppose I will be grateful!!

Have a great AF day to y'all

PS The support chick told me that any computer should be tuned up every 6 months....HUH???? Has anyone heard that or does anyone do that???? Just curious....

lorrainequiche59 · May 2019

@JenT304 It must be hard for you with your daughter so far away. It's great to have Skype etc but not the same. Glad you had a great visit!

donimfp · May 2019

Good morning all. Well, the entire faculty (There are only 9 of us) headed off to Happy Hour after our last full Friday yesterday. Next Friday is a half day. I didn’t go but happily headed home to watch Jeopardy James cross the 2 million dollar mark.

Yay me. THEN at about 7:30 they texted and said they were coming to my house to beg me to return to my job next year. So 8 people descended and met my husband who of course offered them beer or wine. They weren’t really out of control. Just “kids” out on a Friday night. It was really funny because they are convinced I’m “rich” because they are all still living in the places you live when you’re 25, and we’re over 60.

Anyway I have to confess I had a glass of white wine and it tasted pretty good. But I’m sticking with the Naked Mind intensive and not throwing out my 56 days to start counting again. I still count March 30 as my new beginning despite this “slip” or whatever it was.

Still not returning to juvie next year but it feels nice to be appreciated by my sweet colleagues.

SunnyDays930 · May 2019

@donimfp congrats on your 56 days AF and I agree, do NOT start from one again. Just say out of 57 days I was dry for 56. That sounds much better to me! Onward! Happy Memorial Day weekend to All!

donimfp · May 2019

@JenT304, thanks! I think you’re right. The “all or nothing” thinking has derailed me before. 56 of 57 days is nothing to throw away. Still, I do regret having the glass of wine. But I think I’ll do better next time.

whitpauly · May 2019

Hello friends, I get the emails from Annie Grace and she had a great article about starting the day count over,I don't remember it exactly but kind of like if spring has begun and it happens to snow again for one day that doesn't mean spring is over,we don't go back and start winter all over again,we let the snow melt and move on,I like that

CarvedTones · May 2019

I haven't checked in here for a while. Day 700!

SallyLuvsFitness · May 2019

Hi everyone! I also have not checked in awhile! I have been on vacation. Hope everyone is doing great and will catch up on the thread.

Yellowstone1983 · May 2019

Hi everyone! Hope you're all having a safe and fun long weekend.. This will be a long post.. So this marks our first weekend trip of the season to our camper in wine country, which was the time I thought would be most difficult for me since joining the group in January. Friday night was fine, got up here and out for dinner at 9pm- ordered water-tasted like crap- got a diet soda instead- also tasted like crap as I quit that awful habit years ago, but no alcohol.. Made my newest mocktail once we were hunkered in for the night.. Then comes Saturday..

I had awful cravings from about 4pm until 9pm last night.. So much of these trips in the past have centered around wine tasting, dining outside with wine etc. Both my husband and I have a favorite restaurant up here that's a microbrewery and we both say once we sit down there is when it feels like vacation starts.. Well, toddler in tow, we go there.. Had my mind made up that I was going to have my usual bubbly wine... It started pouring so by the time we got there, all the people who were outside had moved inside, thus no tables. Then a group of 20 somethings took a table we were eyeing up. I was way more pi$$ed about this than I should've been, but decided to leave.. Didn't have anywhere else I wanted to go so told the husband to decide.. Knew I wanted my bubbly wine though.. Stopped at the liquor store got a bottle.. Drove 30 minutes away to another restaurant.. Cravings subsided a bit.. Nothing I was nuts about on the drink menu so I stuck with water.. Food was not what I had in mind equals disappointed with dinner.. Then got back to the camper 40 minutes later in pouring rain so no campfire.. I know I sound like a childish spoiled brat.. This is not at all my usual temperament. I'm relatively easy going.. But I was irritable as all get out.. I get downright annoyed with people who are inconsiderate and when I have a full day of that with tourists on a holiday weekend, there's no patience left..

But I came back and took a nap.. I had even started to chill the bottle.. I wrestled in my head for almost 5 hrs.. 'You hit 71 days already. If you only have a slip every 70 days that's not bad' but 'You said you were doing 90 days, so you'll feel like crap about yourself if you do' but 'Screw it people annoy me' .. These types of thoughts played back and forth in my head for 5 HOURS!! But I settled on a nap.. Bottle is still unopened in the fridge..

I can't believe I didn't cave to that.. I'm trying to figure out what's going on with me emotionally, be it a death anniversary or other anniversary time of the year.. Still haven't figured it out.. But if I can battle that kind of craving when I'm that irritable anyone can.. Sorry this is so long winded but I thought it could be helpful to others..

Yellowstone1983 · May 2019

And to add one more thing.. My first line of defense was to take @lagoscarrie 's suggestion, but we couldn't find the alcohol free bubbly here.. So I think I need to be better prepared with some of that on hand

EvenSneakier · May 2019

Great thread - booze has always been my weakness but like many here, in order to help me achieve my goals, I have given up alcohol, which is particularly difficult as my job involves a lot of travelling and networking , which always means evening drinks receptions!

So far I have gone 5 weeks without drinking, even on a recent holiday to Crete I refrained from the booze. Despite my profile pic showing me enjoying a beer in Portugal, that was 6 weeks ago, I made the decision to change my life for the better.

So feel free to add me, always welcome further support and wish everyone else on this journey the best of luck. I must say I’m really feeling the benefits of cutting out the alcohol and weight loss is going well. 😁

donimfp · May 2019

@Yellowstone1983, good for you! I'm sure you are so glad you resisted those cravings under such difficult circumstances. Having just caved in for one glass of wine, I'm kind of happy that I'm not beating myself up as I usually would but am back to day 58 AF. However, I have an upcoming trip to a winery my sister-in-law bought and now runs. She'll obviously want me to taste "her" wine, and that will be a huge test for me.

Anyway, a year or so ago, I posted on the "Less Alcohol" thread the foolproof, delicious iced tea method I learned from the Splendid Table podcast. I just made my first pitcher of the year today, and I love that tea, so thought I'd re-post the link.l I use tea bags, not loose tea, and I use decaf--today I used half ginger peach and half decaf black tea. It really is a great method for making tea if, like me, you prefer your tea without the bite. I know some people like the bite, but I don't. Happy AF drinking. Oh, I also discovered a place in CA that makes and ships AF stout that tastes to me just like Guinness, which I love.

Here's the tea link: https://www.splendidtable.org/story/you-can-cold-brew-iced-tea-while-you-sleep

Yellowstone1983 · May 2019

Thanks @donimfp ! I'm glad you're not beating yourself up! Earlier this yr when I caved to cravings I let the beating myself up take on a life of its own.. It's great you had 1 glass and got right back on track.. My cave would have been 4 glasses of wine..

The Sober Squad- Alcohol Free Living

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