Day 30!
Today is Day 30 of my 30 day commitment to abstain from alcohol! A few thoughts:
1) I was a Saturday binger, which means I have at this point stretched the recovery time after a drinking sessions from 7 days to 30 (and counting).
2) My body was used to going a week, so I didn't go through the perils of days 3 & 4 like most. That first Saturday night though was a lot of "Okay I'm bored, what the hell do I do with myself?" I made a plan to hang with my parents so I wouldn't drink any, watched baseball, and went to bed. I slept a good 10-11 hours that first Saturday night.
3) Sundays, Mondays, & Tuesdays - amazing! I was used to feeling like **** for these days, recovering from the 12-18 beer binge on Saturday night. It would take until Wednesday morning to feel normal again. Every Sunday, waking up after a few hours of sleep, still reeking of alcohol, getting dressed & going to Mass. LOL. I remember waking up the first few Sundays, expecting to feel like crap - because I always did on Sundays - but I didn't! So great to wake up not hung over with only a few hours of sleep. I just got up and could go do stuff, didn't need the routine of water, coffee, ibuprofen, a greasy breakfast, and then force myself to do something besides lay there in misery. So good to show up to work on Monday drinking coffee b/c I love it, not because I'm trying to conjure up some energy. I was always very functional - I still did the "Dad thing" on Sundays, albeit feeling miserable, still went to work on Monday, albeit tired & not motivated at all. Not binging on Saturday night has basically added 3 good days to my week.This has been, by far, the most pleasant aspect of not systematically binging anymore.
4) I never felt shakes, anxiety, etc - but boy did I want to sleep. I could - and still can - sleep 10 hours a night if allowed to. By 8pm, I'm yawning & tired. I'm an avid lifter/runner, and I noticed that I ran out of gas much more quickly during the workout. I did not expect this; before I'd go lift with a hangover and hit a new max. This energy drop was a surprise to me, and I'm glad I found this forum b/c it taught me that this is normal. My workouts are back to intense all the way though again - but I still like to sleep than I did. I hope this phase ends soon, 8 hours should be plenty.
5) When I committed to the 30 days, I did not say a word to my wife about it - I just did it. I don't know if she doesn't know what to say or what, but she hasn't said a thing to me. I'm sure she has noticed the lack of "my beer" in the fridge (she drinks Bud Light - I didn't drink that crap - lol). She still drinks however, and more than she should. Odd.
6) Today I committed to another 30 days!