for ME it is....except somewhere between 8 and 9 years i lost track of whether it WAS 8 OR 9 years.
i never saw it as a competition, i saw it as acknowledging the DATE i committed to changing, and my own track record for holding on to that commitment. also because in early addiction (first couple of YEARS) there are certain periods of time when one might find themselves MORE susceptible to cravings and thoughts of relapse, it helped ME to know where i was on the continuum. and there was something pretty damn special about hitting the ONE YEAR mark.