hard 8. I have only been a member here for 11 days and have been sober that long. I too found this site 11 days ago after a two day bender in which I spent over $600 on booze and "clubs". I feel so much better today than I did 11 days ago. I am a mere infant compared to most of the people in here but I have already seen marked changes in my personality.
The thing that has helped me the most with quitting is I finally realized that all of the positive's I thought alcohol provided was/is a lie. Also, I will never, ever question my decision. I am not a drinker. The reason I am not a drinker is because I am choosing not put myself through the pain, misery, embarresment, emotional rollercoaster, and financial mess alcohol creates. It does not make me funnier, happy, or any other positive thing.
Alcohol is a drug that 90% of Americans use/abuse. Here are a few things that I am constatly saying in my mind.
1. I am finally free - and now I am choosing what I do at every minute of the day and not booze!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2. Booze has not one positive factor. Not one at all ever. Nothing good comes from it ever, ever, ever!!! It does not make me happier, in fact I am happier when I don't drink that poison.
3. I have been thinking back to all of the guilt filled mornings and ask myself what is more fun. Feeling like that, or feeling like I did this morning - rested, positive, happy, etc.
4. Embrace the cravings for alcohol. Think of it as a little devil living inside of me and when he wants fed (booze) I tell him to **** OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!! He is no longer getting fed. The only thing that keeps him going is more booze. No more booze = no more monster inside of me!
5. Enjoy breaking ******** associations. Football = beer. Golf = beer. Good day at work = whiskey. Baseball = beer. Christmas = whiskey. Vacations = drinking all day. Stressful day at work = shots and beer. Movie at home = beer. and so on and so on and so on. Bottome line. My life = beer, whiskey, and shots. That is who I was. It wasn't that I couldn't picturing doing these things without drinking, it was i couldn't picture life without drinking.
I hate booze!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Best of luck to you. Sorry for the rant. I am letting out my inner anger for how I've acted for 14 years in an effort to help both you and me!
Best of luck!