Sub4_2018 Member

Happy Monday, everyone! My weekend was good, stayed dry on Friday and then had 2 glasses of wine Saturday and 2 beers yesterday. I am honestly shocked at how well I'm doing. I used to have 10 drinks on Saturday alone and now I'm nowhere near that. It feels so good to have control over what I'm drinking! I'm still being…

@nicolajw00 - I had a dry streak of 37 days before re-introducing alcohol back (the cravings went away for me after a couple weeks). Moderation was always something I struggled with, but I will say, something about those 37 days changed my view and it has been easy to keep alcohol within limits I'm comfortable with. Since…

I'm in for March, too! February went well. I re-introduced alcohol after a dry month in January and ended up drinking 11 days and staying dry 17 days (with the assumption I'm staying dry tonight and tomorrow). I'm happy with this, especially since I did not get drunk any of those days and was able to actually moderate.…

Another weekend in the books! So far since adding alcohol back, I've been able to stick to 4 AF days a week, and no more than 3 drinks in a sitting. This coming weekend will be my first real "test" as one of my closest girlfriends is coming into town and spending 3-4 nights with us. My plan is to drink Fri/Sat but to take…

I had 2 glasses of wine last night, slept through my alarm this morning, and woke up with a bit of a headache. I had the best night last night and was so proud of sticking to two glasses, but waking up this morning was frustrating. I joked with my husband that the wine gods are punishing me from taking time away, lol. No…

@mabelsdaddy - Going to bed earlier helped me out a ton! During Dry January I started consistently going to bed at 9, and then getting up between 5-6 to run. Not only did it make my morning runs so much better (and more consistent), but it cut out a significant amount of hours that would normally be spent with a drink in…

@WinoGelato - Thank you so much for sharing! This is really what I'm trying to get to, as well. Last year I drank pretty much every day, usually more than 3 in a sitting (definitely more than 3 if it was a weeknight), and was hung over wayyy too many mornings. So far this year I've only drank 3 times (thanks to the Dry…

After reading This Naked Mind I'm very much starting to agree with this! I haven't totally cut out alcohol, but my previously held mindset of alcohol being relaxing has been completely overturned. If alcohol is so relaxing, then why the hell do I stress over it so much?

I'm back from my work trip! My goal was to stay AF until I got back home on Friday. Our last night there was Thursday and we went out to a wine bar for dinner. We had such a productive (and tiring week) and I was so proud of myself for flying completely sober (twice!) that I felt fine breaking my streak a little early. I…

Managed to stay AF this past weekend which I'm incredibly proud of! I'm on a work trip this week with lots of team dinners and outings but I'm planning on staying AF. It was amazing getting off the plane yesterday totally clear headed and then able to get up and run this morning even with the time change. I'm normally hung…

@Orphia - Thanks so much for keeping the thread going! I'm in for February! I stayed AF for all of January and feel so good that I don't plan to add it back quite yet. I don't know what my overall goal is, but I'm taking it one day at a time and have a short term goal of staying AF until Valentine's Day. Happy February,…

@Lilylady3k Congratulations!! Such an exciting time. And great job on keeping it to 1 glass!

Happy Jan. 31, everyone! I made it the whole month and feel pretty darn good about that. Dry January sent an e-mail suggesting we write down all the ways we feel better after taking some time off from alcohol, and that was a super helpful activity for me. I have a date night with my husband tomorrow, dinner with my family…

Glad to hear everyone is doing well as we near the end of the month! I'm on day 30 AF over here and feeling great. I finished This Naked Mind last night and it really re-shaped how I view my relationship with alcohol. I don't know how I want to proceed in February, but trying to moderate seems exhausting. To constantly be…

Day 25 AF over here! I'm feeling so good these days (and happy! I notice alcohol really negatively affects my mood). I'm going to a girlfriend's going away party tonight and am bringing sparkling water to have. I also started reading The Naked Mind last night and am really loving it so far... I might even leave the party…

Double agree!

So far I'm at 9933 calories saved so just about there, too! The first week and a half of Feb has a lot going on - a date night with my husband before I leave for a work trip Feb 3-8. I plan to take it easy but not fully abstain the entire time, and once I get back I *think* I'll strive for at least 4 AF days each week, but…

@springsweet Awesome job!! I have a part coming up next Friday - hoping to have a similar experience!

@BuffMom84 - I used to keep Advil on my bedside table, too. It took up until very recently for me to wake up and not wait for the headache to hit. I was so used to being hung over that the first couple weeks of dry January, I would wake up EXPECTING to be hung over. I'm not jumping out of bed ready to take on the day,…

@Fitness327wk I've never tried them - ordering now. Thanks for the tip!

@cathipa Yes! I really want to keep this going into February, but I'm traveling the first week of the month and I'm an anxious flier. I almost always fly with a few drinks under my belt to help calm my nerves. So I'm going to try my best to keep my streak alive but I know that is going to be a huge struggle for me. I'm…

@springsweet It's only been a week and a half since January 3rd; 2-3 pounds is a fantastic loss in that amount of time and should be celebrated!

I made it through the weekend! I had cravings on Friday night and today but was able to improvise with mocktails (sparkling water, bitters and lime is my go-to). On to day 14!

Good luck to everyone going into the weekend! I have around an hour left at work and the cravings for Friday night wine are in full force. Hoping those lessen as the evening goes on.

@VeggieGirlforLife I don't have any advice but wanted to say I totally understand this! Especially after I have been dry for a bit and start feeling better, I get frustrated that I "can't" drink. I have cut a few past attempts at dry months short for that reason. Not this time! I have a list of reasons why I want to…

I was so happy when I received this e-mail this morning, too. I haven't been sleeping well and also been having weird dreams - I was glad to see that's normal. Definitely feeling the other benefits of clearer thinking and waking up with more energy, though (despite not sleeping well). Day 7 AF went very smoothly and I was…

@kittybenn Yes exactly! My mind was racing and it wasn't until (after two hours) when I finally said to myself "you are not drinking tonight" that I was able to quiet those thoughts somewhat. Thank you so much; I'm so glad to hear it gets easier!

@MonkeyMel21 Thank you! That's so true. At the end of the night, I just felt emotionally exhausted. Trying to break habits (and form new ones) is hard work!

Post-weekend check in! My husband and I were planning on having a low-key weekend at home, but we got invited to a party on Saturday night that he really wanted to go to. I managed to stay dry, but it was harder than I thought it would be. I wasn't very present the first couple hours because I was "negotiating" with myself…

@lporter229 - I feel like I could have written this post! I constantly analyze my relationship with alcohol, worry that I drink more than I should, but know that (at this point) I don't want to have a completely AF life. For now my goal is just as you said - to have more AF days in 2019 than not (I could probably count on…