On the wagon...

Actually you do have something there in Egypt...
http://alcoholrehab.com/international-rehab/

Not a problem! We have tons of international patients who go home often.. Egypt one of them. I remember reading about that facility in some documentation while I was doing an appeal with the insurance plan. The patient did work-related travel and wanted to continue with his recovery but had no clue what to do when he went overseas.... This place has several locations world-wide... and Ive heard great things!

8-)

Find a healthy activity to replace drinking when you have cravings. The only way someone can be successful at ditching a bad habit is replacing it. This is why a lot of people that give up alochol become "addicted" to AA meetings. So, find something you
BTW, just wanted to tell you that I work with mental health patients with drug and alochol issues, so I'm not just some random person spouting junk, I have learned the replacement method throughout my time working where I do. Good Luck!

Well hello fellow healthcare worker! 8-D

I had my last drink the night of January 8th, 1993. The night ended in the local police station, and I was ordered by the court into treatment. Best thing that ever happened to me. I agree with the poster above who says the real "power" of AA is that it gives someone whose life has revolved around alcohol and hanging around fellow drinkers something else to do. I was required to attend AA meetings as part of my treatment ... went for about a year and a half, but found the disease model, the notion that you must forever label yourself an "alcoholic" (a disease that's nowhere to be found in the DSM-IV, by the way) and the emphasis on the "program" being the only way to get and stay sober problematic. Relapses were explained as people not "working their program" 100%: this is BS, relapses happen because getting and staying sober is difficult. Many or most people changing an addictive behavior will relapse, and relapse multiple times (this pattern should BTW sound familiar to all of us who struggle with our relationship to food).

Alternatives to AA include outpatient treatment, Rational Recovery (if you can find it) and the mindfulness approach to recovery. You can find books on mindfulness and recovery as well as Rational Recovery on Amazon. People get sober and stay sober with and without AA, and the evidence doesn't suggest AA's track record is better than other approaches to sobriety. See:

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=does-alcoholics-anonymous-work

For those who are in AA and it's working for you, that's great ... just be aware that it's not the only path to sobriety, and it's not for everyone. What keeps me off alcohol?

* I've grown to know myself over the years. I know that if I have a drink, I may get away with it, but in a short period of time there's a good possibility I won't be drinking reasonably any more. Same thing with smoking (which I stopped in 1979).

* The memory of being handcuffed that night to a metal post at the police station, and the knowledge of the personal and financial cost of my dependency on alcohol. That's why I'm unwilling to take the risk of having "just one".

* The knowledge of how much better my life is now without alcohol. Yeah, I was high functioning but my life is immensely better without drinking in it.

I stay away from events that involve a lot of alcohol, and won't hang out with people who would try to get me to drink or "just have one" (and frankly, being around drunks isn't enjoyable or entertaining any more). I stay out of bars. If i'm in a situation or place that doesn't feel right to me, I leave. It probably took a good two years for the thoughts of alcohol to leave ... for a long time, I'd think "I really want a drink" when I was stressed out. I still get stressed, but I have healthier ways of dealing with stress than numbing my circuits. Bottom line is, I decided to stop BSing myself about my problem with alcohol

Can you change your relationship to alcohol and be a controlled drinker? Some people can, but many can't. I cook with alcohol, and have no problem with it ... but that's not a suggestion for everyone. But I stayed completely away from alcohol in all its forms the first year.

I also have a background in a mental health field, BTW, and worked with many chemically dependent folks over the years.

Hi there,

I don't know if this will help, but I too went on the wagon, began on Ash Wednesday this year. Like you I couldn't just have 1 or 2, my background is as a mum of 3, work part-time with little time to myself. I didn't and don't consider myself as having a drink problem as such, but it became an issue in that it was the only way I could relax. I would put the kids to bed then down a bottle of wine every night, maybe two on a weekend.

The first thing you have to do it figure out what the drink is giving you. For me it was instant relaxation after yet another busy day, one glass I was chilled, it was so much more convenient and quicker than having a bath or reading a book.

Once you know that, you can begin to replace it, for me I used lent as a good excuse and gave up cold turkey, but to help relax I started going out for a walk (but without my purse so i couldn't nip into the off licence), I forced myself to sit down and read a chapter of a book the minute I put the kids to bed, before going in the kitchen and being tempted to go in the fridge for the wine. I also let everyone know I wasn't drinking so they wouldn't keep offering me one, and it also meant that the kids would remind me I was doing it for lent.

I hope you can figure out why you drink, if it is just a bad habit, let everyone know your giving it up for a set period of time so that they can support you, but also so you have an achievable goal, so maybe set a goal of a month to start with and see how you feel and find what works for you.

Good luck, sobriety isn't so bad, but after 40 days of lent I did enjoy a drink and I have found it much easier since having some time off from it, to just drink socially and in moderation.

All the best,


Cheryl