LESS Alcohol ~ November 2025 ~ One Day at a Time
Replies
-
To all who celebrate….
Today was ok, but let's just say…it definitely was NOT about the food…I really learned to appreciate my cooking and the very little that I do from a "box". I felt bad for Julian (the 5-year-old) who was commenting…how do I make this taste better….
I'm cooking tomorrow, and my son will be here with the boys….so, yum! The turkey is prepped, cornbread dressing is marinating :) and desserts are made. Tomorrow, while the meats (Turkey and Ham) are in the oven, I will complete some collard greens, mac n cheese, yams, and homemade (my Mom's recipe) rolls…. gravy if I feel like it… I eliminated a few things since it's a smaller venue. I'm going to eat a little bit of everything and probably not going to be a tracking day!!
I had water only earlier today but did come home to a couple glasses of wine.
5 -
Yesterday was a good day. Everything turned out delicious and there are plenty of leftovers for the week while I’m in Houston.
In full transparency… The alcohol was flowing yesterday, and I did have a tiny sip of a mixed drink my BFF made herself because she said it tasted like Christmas. But, I did not have a drink. It was good, but I chose not to fix my own. Though there were a variety of alcohols and wines, I opted to stay away from all of it. Keeping my streak going.
I weighed in this morning and though I’m up 0.4 lbs, I’m not upset about it. I’m just taking it as whatever at this point. Next week will be better.
A-0
AF-276 -
Did we all survive Thanksgiving OK? Mine was delicious. How many extra calories do I have this morning to burn off? OOOF!
I bought a variety of highly rated half bottle size red wines for Thanksgiving and don't care for reds so didn't have any and my grown kids took the remainder with them.
The good news is I did not drink wine. BUT I was in the mood for something sweet-ish and so had a small bottle of Cointreau. Yes it's a sugary orange syrup type of thing and you've supposed to use it for baking but I drank it all. OOPSIE.
A=4 days for Nov
Going out for a hike now. Today I start a 7 day abstinence (low cal diet plus no alcohol and no chocolate, no joke).
4 -
Hi all,
Happy Black Friday! I hope you were able to stick with your best intentions for Thanksgiving. I'll catch up on the chat later today. I've been trying to push back the holiday blues with more = longer walks and jogs, and what my therapist calls "behavior activation." (That is - house cleaning, ugh!) One holiday down, two more to go, then the birthday season begins in January. Too many happy memories with loved ones, now dead. Yes, I sound like "Debbie Downer." But I'm climbing out of bed every morning with the really good coffee, my DH brings me, eating a good breakfast, and heading outdoors. To misquote the Beatles, "life used to be so easy, now everything is hard…"
I share this, because I know it's temporary, and it will get better, so if you drink to self medicate, don't! It only prolongs the misery.
Happy Advent, if that is your thing. All the best,
Nancy
AF 20
LA 5
A 24 -
@nbruns83 Sorry you've been feeling blue. I haven't been a fan of the holidays since I was young living at my family home with my mom, dad and brother. And, all of the aunt's, uncle's, and cousin's. Growing up, I was very close to my cousins. But, after my mom passed away, we eventually stopped keeping in touch. I knew that would happen…my mom was the matriarch of the family. I try to avoid the holidays every year…but, it's everywhere!
I'm still doing well with LA (only 1 A day this month). I didn't drink yesterday. Yesterday evening, I thought that I wouldn't have minded a couple of drinks. But, I can't do that on Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter, since the liquor store is closed in these parts. I would have to stock up the day before. And, that's not conducive to a "Less Alcohol" lifestyle. Besides, we didn't have any company, so nothing was special about Thanksgiving for me. I can have a couple of drinks any day, if I wish.
BTW - "Life used to be so easy, now everything is hard…" was actually a lyric from a song, "Our House", by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young 🙂
Have a great day everyone!
November (thru 11/27):
AF - 26
A - 13 -
Already Black Friday - whoosh this week went fast.
I had a truly delightful Thanksgiving day with my grown children, their spouses, and my precious grandchildren. My mother made it on the train (missed the first one) so she is able to stay just one night. I believe it was a blessing in disguise and I mean this in the most sincere way.We hosted and cooked up a storm for what seems like two full days. 14 lb. Brined Turkey, 10 lb. ham, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, sausage stuffing, fresh green beans (recipe from Food & wine mag), rolls from my local bakery, baby greens salad with fresh pears and candied pecans, DD made a scalloped sweet potato dish and DS made a cake from scratch and DDIL made a pumpkin pecan praline pie. Everything was delicious! I didn’t track and really savored the time together.
As part of my plan, I opened the NA Prosecco by Josh to share with appetizers and had a full wine bar stocked with NA beverages — everyone liked! I executed my plan to stay present in the moment and limiting wine - had one small glass with dinner (waited until 5:00) and one small glass afterwards about 1 1/2 hrs later while playing games and visiting - football and baseball on in the background. Could not have asked for a nicer time together and after all of that I slept so soundly.
Countdown to LA in December….5 -
Hugs to you Nancy, life can be hard and I commend you for starting your mornings off on a positive note! Excellent stats too :).
2 -
@nbruns83 You are doing exceptionally well in spite of your blues. Interestingly enough, house cleaning or organizing does work for me!! This time of year used to be a favorite but it isn't anymore….for some of the reasons you state. You are focusing on the positive and that's half the battle.
@Michieb125 you described a wonderful day and wonderful menu.
I did cook today as I mentioned and it was nice. I get a little stressed out at the last minute trying to get everything to the table at the same time and still at a somewhat warm temp. My Mom's rolls turned out the best that I've made in 27 years… while not perfect…close enough! I had a little of everything but will enjoy the leftovers even more tomorrow…then it's back to plan, a plan, someone's plan 😂
My DS did come over with the boys and Julian was on his best behavior. Must have had something to do with Dad being right there!!!
@globalhiker good luck on your 7 days!
@NonnieDoiron Way to master the day!! I love it.
Lots of snow is expected tomorrow… we shall see…..
6 -
14 AF
4 LA
10 A
Today I made Shepherds pie with the leftover mashed potatoes. Soooo good!
5 -
BFF’s family is still here. Today, we lounged and played games with the kids. It was a lot of fun, a lot of laughs, and not a drop of alcohol in sight.
We have had a slight problem though. The husband brought in some wood in preparation to start a fire, and we ended up with termites all over our living room! Fortunately, we have some diatomaceous earth that he sprayed all over, and it seems to have killed them all. Unfortunately, he got quite a few bites, and they are really swelling up and look bad. He may have to go to urgent care tomorrow if the swelling doesn’t go down.A-0
AF-28 (2 more days and I’ll be at 120 total!)3 -
Hi everyone,
11/24: 024 AF days completed since 10/31/25! (Last alcoholic beverage: 10/30/25.)
I dedicate today to the memory of my brother, Phillip, who would have turned 65 today. Sadly, he committed suicide before age 60, and alcoholism played a major role.
Have a nice night,
💞Carole
4 -
Hello,
True confessions: I finally broke my streak. (Boy, DID I!) Holidays are really tough for me, as they are for many people. It was the day before Thanksgiving (11/26). So sadly, here I go again. (I didn't drink at all on Thanksgiving or the next day; so I'm fully recovered now.)
I will reset my Sober Time count for Sunday, November 30th, even though I will not drink alcohol today, either.
[What's even worse is that I even ended up in the ER this time and I haven't done that in months; so it's a rather severe setback for me.]
That's all I have for now. (Hope you all made out better than I did!)
I had Thanksgiving with my son and his wife and it was very nice. We also did a 5-mile walk before dinner. I made a roast turkey breast with vegetables yesterday just for me and it was wonderful.
Enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend everyone!🦃
💞Carole
8 -
@Walela617 Sorry to hear about your brother…so sad! The holidays can be tough for some. And, in your case, the memory of your brother makes it so much more difficult.
I hope you're doing OK after having to go to the ER. You mentioned that you haven't ended up in the ER for months. I don't know why you have been visiting the ER and I don't want to imply anything, but it sounds like your situation might be similar to mine.
Back in 2020 & 2021, I was a frequent flyer to the ER. Most of my trips weren't really necessary. I was just intoxicated. One time, the nurse said that my BAC was near death…I believe it was over 0.4 (not good!). I had been drinking very heavily and I guess I was hoping to be medically detoxed. At one visit, the ER doc told me that they don't detox there. And, the insurance I had at the time, wouldn't cover any other treatment options in my area. I later had a major episode related to drinking and I haven't been back to the ER since. I stopped drinking for about four months afterwards, but later I started drinking again. I guess I've just been lucky. That's why I'm trying to quit or at least drink very moderately.
Take care of yourself!
1 -
@Walela617 - my very sincere condolences for the loss of a brother. Such a nice dedication today. I miss my little brother who struggled with addition as well. And, we all fall down on this path sometimes, but it’s how we stand back up that really matters. You’ve been doing so well and I just know you’re going to get back up and be stronger for it. You’ve got this!
I wanted to thank you @GGinCA for acknowledging my comment - caregiving can be very taxing from a two hour distance. As the oldest daughter here in CA, I’ve been helping my mom with more and more this year. She has anxiety and depression so her moods fluctuate. It can be extra challenging for me.
Sounds like lots of yummy eats and drinks happened for everyone this week!The holidays can certainly evoke a lot of extra emotions, both good and not so good.
My intentions are to stay mindful and balance exercise and rest when I can this month. I am in control of only myself!3 -
15 AF
4 LA
10 A
2 -
It sounds like a lot of you had some really nice times and some great food! My Thanksgiving day was fine, but meal time didn't work out as planned. The diner that we were going to go to was closed - along with everything else. We went into a bar (the bars were open) and I didn't really care for it. It was less than desirable. And, they were just serving Thanksgiving dinner. I had my mind set on a patty melt. So, we left. We called a nice pub in town and they were only serving Thanksgiving dinner also. Anyways, we decided to stay home. Fortunately, I was able to save the day. I had some homemade spaghetti meat sauce in the freezer. So we had spaghetti with some garlic bread.
I didn't drink on Thanksgiving eve or Thanksgiving. But, yesterday, I felt like having a few. Of course, I was feeling a little under the weather this morning, so I bought some more. And, since tomorrow is Sunday, I bought enough to last me until tomorrow. So, @itladyee if you're still looking for a plan, anybody's plan? Well here it is…Start Fresh in December! LOL We can do it!
November:
AF - 26
A - 34 -
Tomorrow I leave for the week, and I think I’m ready. I’ll be working from the airport and on the plane as much as possible because once we land and get to the office I won’t have the chance to work on what I need to do. I am a little nervous about this trip because of the drinking at dinner or after work; but I’m going to call an Uber this time or just claim exhaustion and not join them for happy hour at the hotel lounge. We have to attend a banquet on Thursday evening, and I think they offer an open bar. I’m really hoping my former project manager is there. He’s AF (goes to AA). If he’s there, I can hang with him and not feel like anyone is pressuring me (which they aren’t… it’s just in my own head).
Like I said before, I’m only really AF for the calories. So, it’s not like I can’t drink if I want it. It’s just I know I can’t drink on this trip because I’m probably not going to have time to exercise to burn the calories. Once I leave the office after all day meetings with working lunches, I’ll have to catch up on my regular duties which will be difficult if we end up all going to dinner together too. We only have 1 rental car for the 4 of us that are traveling for the meeting, so I have to rely on that ride. I also may end up being DD for everyone else if I do go to dinner with them because they all drink like fish, and I will not ride with them but will feel bad if I leave them to drive themselves. I guess we’ll see what happens.
This trip feels much different than the last, and I’m not sure if it’s because of my wanting to be AF, the husband not being there for support, or just the nature of the trip and my roles/goals/responsibilities for it which are daunting to say the least.
I’m sure over the course of the week, I’ll be rambling on here about my feelings and how it is going. And, I’m probably making a much bigger deal out of this than I need to. (I’m a complete over thinker.)
Anyway, going to declare today AF because 1) I don’t have any wine and won’t be getting any, 2) I don’t want to fly in the morning feeling icky, and 3) today marks 3 months without!
A-0
AF-30 (120 days total)😁8 -
@Walela617 I really hope you are back home and feeling stronger. Perfect to look forward to a fresh start.
@WestCoastGirl_1 look at your amazing stats, how cool is that?
@NonnieDoiron great you have someone on your work trip who does not drink. Not sure if you completed 120 AF days or 90, but you earned it and well done!
@Michieb125 it may well be time to stock some emergency NA prosecco for those times I get worn out and low blood sugar and need a holiday "mood lift" of sorts. Good idea on the Josh NA, never tried it but would buy it if I can find a small size one.
@nbruns83 good point - drinks don't work well for self medication - I self medicate or control my mood level through lots of exercise (I get myself worn out so I sleep soundly and wake up relaxed). I try to focus on the living ones around me and practice gratitude.
My "A" days were 4 this month and I will be AF today.
LAST AF DAY OF THE MONTH!
5 -
@globalhiker it’s a typo… I meant to say 4 months/120 days.
2 -
@globalhiker Thanks! At first, I was a bit disappointed that I wasn't 100% AF in November. But, in reality, only four A days in a month is very good. If I were moderating, I would be limiting my A days to 8 days or less. I've been doing fairly well. And I really can't expect perfection. That would just set me up for failure and disappointment. Although, I really would like to go 90 days AF (just for the heck of it!)…I just have to do the best that I can. I've been drinking for a long time and I can't expect to change overnight. I have some alcohol in the house, so I'm claiming today to be an A day.
@NonnieDoiron All I can say is that you are totally AMAZING!!! I may be mistaken, but I seem to remember a time where you were struggling just as I was. Keep it up! I know you don't want to go on this trip. But, I have a feeling it's going to turn out better than you're thinking. Have a fun and safe trip!
Final November Stats:
AF - 26
A - 43 -
16 AF
4 LA
10 A
3 -
Tomorrow is December….let's get on board!!
I'm already challenged as tomorrow is book club…..but the goal is Less Alcohol…I will have Less Alcohol.
5 -
Nov:
I had no AF days in November - December will not be a repeat of this month!
See you all in December
4 -
Final November stats.
AF - 18
A - 12
Cheers!
Bring on December! :)
2 -
Wow. Lots of support to @Walela617, @WestCoastGirl_1, @Michieb125, @itladyee, and well EVERYONE for getting through the holiday weekend. I also really struggled the last five days, two were AF but none were healthy.
@NonnieDoiron you are amazing!!!
I’m joining the fresh start in December club. Already noted that I am happy it is a new month in my gratitude journal for today.
Final tally for Nov:9 A days (goal was 5)
21 AF days
3 -
Greetings: it’s December 1st and a Monday too! Great way to kick off the new month and first week of Advent.
According to my tracker, my November stats showed improvement from October. Mission accomplished. Now to make LA December a month of staying present and finding more unexpected joy. Less is more!AF - 1
A - 0
0 -
@WestCoastGirl_1, Thanks for your understanding, I can't believe I messed up that song. I think of the lyrics a lot these days since we have four, not "two cats in the yard." Next time I want to quote old rock songs, I should consult DH; he paid more attention to who sang what than I did. He still has a huge LP collection stored in the basement. I'm so happy that you got through the disappointing restaurant hopping on Thanksgiving without giving in to a "consolation drink."
@Walela617, I'm so sorry about your brother's alcohol related death. Those griefs never leave us. I hope you're recovered from the ER trip and back on your path to AF.
@NonnieDoiron, I hope you handle the stress of the work travel and are able to stick to your AF intentions despite the surroundings and peer pressure. Yikes, termites are not fun! As a long time renter, I dealt with too many "bug infestations." I hope never to again. I also hope your husband's health issues will soon be on the "getting well" side of life again.
@itladyee, thanks for your supportive comments and for facilitating this discussion. You're a truly good and giving person!
Final November Stats:
AF 23
LA 5
A 22 -
Before I hop to December just have to say I love seeing the support in this group - zero judgement, just understanding and great advice.
Didn't quite wrap November where I wanted to…I did go back to compare to last November and I was pretty similar in drinks, AF days, etc. What I did also notice was that last December was WAY off - going into this month with a better motivation to not repeat history!
Final November numbers:
A on target: 15
AF: 7
A Over: 7
3
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 398.2K Introduce Yourself
- 44.7K Getting Started
- 261K Health and Weight Loss
- 176.4K Food and Nutrition
- 47.7K Recipes
- 233K Fitness and Exercise
- 462 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.7K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153.5K Motivation and Support
- 8.4K Challenges
- 1.4K Debate Club
- 96.5K Chit-Chat
- 2.6K Fun and Games
- 4.8K MyFitnessPal Information
- 12 News and Announcements
- 21 MyFitnessPal Academy
- 1.6K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 3.2K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions