Hi George, welcome. You sound like a fairly spiritual person. Could you use your spirituality to carve a new life for yourself ?
Who are the drinkers you hang round with ? Are they part of your lifestyle ? I'm newly sober myself , but have told friends I won't be going to the pub with them. Mixed reactions, but this is my life, not theirs.
I 've come to realise that pub culture is something that I 'm not interested in any more-I like going to see bands, and I'm in a band, but then there's something to do other than drink,and lots of venues which are not pubs.
A lot of my friends have suggested alternatives, too-we meet for lunch etc, rather than in the pub. But true friends will support you, and drinking buddies will not. A lot of people here have said that they found out who their true friends are when they became sober.
I think your fear of not being thought of as interesting is unfounded anyway -in the pub, no one cares whether you're interesting because they are all drunk ! Perhaps try going places where they find you interesting because THEY are sober !
Because I play in a band, even when I was drinking, I spent a fair bit of time in the pub being sober, still do, but it's my job. I like to leave pretty quickly before people start talking to me, when the gig is over.
I am beginning to see that pubs are not a fun place for me any more. There are many more things to do in the evenings other than drink, so many constructive and enjoyable pastimes waiting to be explored.
One thing I have learnt in my short time here is that all of us with any kind of drink issue must protect our sobriety at all costs. There is no middle ground.