sissy07

Well, today I am seven months sober. I just had to post that - no one else in my real life knows that I relapsed for 3.5 years after 9 years of sobriety and I just have to tell someone that understands. I relapsed after having left Atlanta to escape an abusive husband after divorcing him - I knew no one here besides my adult daughter. I drank alone, however I am sure my daughter and friends back in Atlanta wonder what the hell was wrong with me in that era! You guys are all that I have got.

Lately every once in awhile the thought that I don't know what would be going on in my life (if I was still alive) had I not quit drinking pops into my mind. I was on the verge of losing everything. Actually I got sober not only for myself but for my animals. One of my dogs - the creature that I loved more than anything on the planet - died last July, and three weeks after she died I got sober to honor her. (I know that sounds wierd.)

Yeah, parts of my life still suck, and I don't have everything all figured out. I have a lot of rough edges still and damage to undo - but at least I am sober now so I can start to handle things with dignity and some semblance of intelligence.

The biggest thing that I have learned these seven months - and I learned it from this forum - is that when you quit drinking you also have to learn to start living. It sounds like a no-brainer, but now that I am older and stuck in my ways, and I left the familiarity of Atlanta and moved somewhere new, it is a challenge. I am slowly getting there though.

I have yet to start a formal recovery program, but SR has been invaluable to me. I am confident I would not be sober now if it wasn't for this forum and you understanding, unselfish friends who have helped me more than you will ever realize. Thank you so much. Much love and hope to all of you.