Originally Posted by tootsl1

Hi guys, good to see so many of you doing so well, and posting seeking and finding support on life issues.

Glee, perhaps you have done nothing wrong. Sometimes a group of women who like to gossip over a few drinks, find it difficult including ing one who is not only non-judgemental of others but sober at the end of the evening.
Because we tend to think others share our values, they may well feel that you sit there in judgment of them and it may make them feel uncomfortable in that scenario. If these women matter to you as individuals, then spend time with them that way.
I used to love getting drunk with hubby on days out in town ( about every 2 months) now, the situation is not the same. I would go out with him and stay sober, but he wouldn't enjoy getting his Normie drunk on. So now he goes out with mates. I am glad he has fun with them, but I miss the cameraderie we shared on those occasions.
Like it or not, when we are sober it not only changes how we interact with friends when they drink, but it changes how they interact with us.

BF, before your last post, I was going to comment to say make sure that you get plenty of sleep and eat a balanced diet. This helps to ensure your energy matches your challenges. I ditto on 'bothering' your friend, far better to go over something more than once than be getting it wrong, we all have to start and learn, so be patient with yourself.

KIR, I did a coursera course called 'The Addicted Brain' it was fascinating to see how various chemicals affect our brains, actually changing the way they function, and how long those changes go on for after we stop using. PAWS may sound like an excuse to get snotty in recovery, but it certainly is real. It doesn't affect us all, or all the same way, or at the same period of recovery, so it isn't something easy to document and prove.


I recommend looking up this course. coursera is an online learning facility that allows you to access courses on everything for free. I found my way there when someone else recommended the Addicted Brain course here. Since then, I have done several other courses that interested me. I found in my recovery I don't want to attend formal education to improve my mind, and have no need for specific qualifications. This is an interesting way of stimulating my thinking, and there is something for everyone there.

Dizzy, I know I drank and drove a lot when I was young and 'invincible' I was extraordinarily lucky not to have either been stopped or had an accident. Recently someone close told me of someone she knew who drove a busy route, drunk, twice a week. I got their registration from my friend and the time they usually left their drinking hole, and passed it to someone I knew in the police. I felt no guilt whatsoever. I would however, felt devastated if I had done nothing and this person killed a child playing on the residential streets he drove.
I would do it again. Sometimes all it takes for bad things to happen is for a good person to do nothing.

I probably would have hated anyone who did that to me when I drank, but I would have had to deal with the consequences of my actions.

Have a good start to the week folks, keep strong.