Originally Posted by
Dls2041 
I really love this and you kind of read my mind today. This is something I'm certainly struggling with. A few things though - what if your husband, your best friends, your parents, etc...drink. They're all amazing people and I love spending time with them, and it would be merely impossible for someone not to be drinking at any one event /party. My husband is a daily drinker. I don't expect him to change, but I also can't avoid it. i guess what I'm saying is it's hard to find that balance between avoiding people/situations who drink when you're surrounded by it. Suggestions welcome
Thanks for taking the time to write this though. I've really spent so much time being grateful for 2 weeks sober, while bitter and anxious at the same time. Please tell me this too shall pass!
It's not impossible to be the only one not drinking at a gathering. It's just harder to do early on when you're convinced alcohol is the only thing anyone thinks about because it's certainly top of mind for you.
The fact is,
no one really cares except you. The only people who would ever make an issue about it are those who are concerned they might have a tiny little problem of their own.
Bexxed is right...if the primary reason any group is getting together is to ingest alcohol, then maybe it's not the warm, congenial affair we're thinking it is. It's not about the people...it's about the booze.
I've attended several family events since sober, most of them high-stress as we have negotiated moving my parents into assisted living. I was repeatedly offered alcohol, but 30 seconds later, it was totally forgotten about. I didn't get on any soapboxes or announce my sobriety, I just turned it down. It's a lot like turning down milk, as I have been lactose intolerant for 40 years and my mother never remembers that, either.
So it IS possible.
It's just the addiction telling you it isn't.