Thumpa - Saskia has discussed leaning in, and your post reminds me of that.
KIR - It was a challenge for me the whole first year of sobriety to separate certain events or activities from the type of alcohol I had long associated with it. I was committed to staying sober though.
With time I'm developing a sober life. Some days during that first year all I could do was white-knuckle it because I was still around all the people and places where I drank. Having an AA home group helped, as did taking on the coffee making responsibility at meetings. Also, I joined crossfit for the summer, which does not entail drinking! I made sober friends, not overnight, but with time, who I trust. What are you doing to develop your sober life?