Recovery is the backdrop of my life, as I call it. It's not about alcohol - that's something I only think about in the abstract, sometimes, or when working with another alcoholic getting sober- and in that case, it's to share my experience that it's not about the alcohol.
I set about re-creating a sober life, and at first, sure, that meant making literal choices about when and where and with whom to even be around alcohol. I always erred on the side of "no" to such, for a long time. Not out of fear but out of wanting to keep going further from a drink rather than closer to one.
Relax isn't really the right word - I work every day for a life in recovery, using my AA program, and it's just what I do. That's freedom.