I believe that the mindset that says that sobriety is something that needs to be compensated for, something that needs some external reward for its maintenance, is not a sustainable one. Not for me, anyway. If being sober were some hardship, I would be back inside that bottle of Smirnoff in a flash.
I've come to understand that each sober day is a reward in its own right. I have done my time, and now I am free.