Went to a bar...
I'm here to learn!
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: I'm on it!
Posts: 2,038
Went to a bar...
Hey all --
I'm now at almost 10 months. Got invited out to "happy hour" after work with some new coworkers. One of them knew I was in recovery and the others didn't, but I told them know ahead of time that I don't drink; they asked me, actually. BTW, I always advise others on SR that if they uneasy in these situations to skip out, but I didn't feel like it would be much of a high pressure situation at all. I let my counselor and step-group buddies know ahead of time as well, just so they would ask me the tough questions afterwards -- always a good plan.
It was a blast! There was one point where someone offered to buy me a drink and I just said "No thanks, I'm just having Coke". This was my first time in a bar setting since I quit drinking. What really struck me as odd was noticing how others drank -- every one there had one or two beers and then called it good. It was really incredible and really showed me how I just look at alcohol differently than most people do. I didn't envy them at all, because I knew that I wouldn't have been happy just having the one or two beers they did; that if we had gone out one year ago before I quit drinking that I would have been the last person there, stumbling out of the bar having dropped probably $80 on booze at least.
After walking out of the bar I was getting into my car and I got waved down by someone on the street. I ran over to him and saw him stooped over someone who had collapsed and was unconscious on the street. He said that he didn't know the guy, but just happened to be walking by and saw him lying there. He was barely breathing and very ashen in color, probably mid twenties, and his eyes had rolled back in his head. We thought he was dead at first because his pulse was very weak. We called an ambulance, which showed up about 5 minutes later. As they were wheeling him away on a stretcher they mentioned that it looked like he had OD'ed on something.
All in all it was a very sobering night (pun intended). It was a great reminder of how far I have come and conversely where I could be right now if I wouldn't have made the decision to get sober nearly 10 months ago.
I'm now at almost 10 months. Got invited out to "happy hour" after work with some new coworkers. One of them knew I was in recovery and the others didn't, but I told them know ahead of time that I don't drink; they asked me, actually. BTW, I always advise others on SR that if they uneasy in these situations to skip out, but I didn't feel like it would be much of a high pressure situation at all. I let my counselor and step-group buddies know ahead of time as well, just so they would ask me the tough questions afterwards -- always a good plan.
It was a blast! There was one point where someone offered to buy me a drink and I just said "No thanks, I'm just having Coke". This was my first time in a bar setting since I quit drinking. What really struck me as odd was noticing how others drank -- every one there had one or two beers and then called it good. It was really incredible and really showed me how I just look at alcohol differently than most people do. I didn't envy them at all, because I knew that I wouldn't have been happy just having the one or two beers they did; that if we had gone out one year ago before I quit drinking that I would have been the last person there, stumbling out of the bar having dropped probably $80 on booze at least.
After walking out of the bar I was getting into my car and I got waved down by someone on the street. I ran over to him and saw him stooped over someone who had collapsed and was unconscious on the street. He said that he didn't know the guy, but just happened to be walking by and saw him lying there. He was barely breathing and very ashen in color, probably mid twenties, and his eyes had rolled back in his head. We thought he was dead at first because his pulse was very weak. We called an ambulance, which showed up about 5 minutes later. As they were wheeling him away on a stretcher they mentioned that it looked like he had OD'ed on something.
All in all it was a very sobering night (pun intended). It was a great reminder of how far I have come and conversely where I could be right now if I wouldn't have made the decision to get sober nearly 10 months ago.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Singapore
Posts: 737
Originally Posted by eJoshua 
After walking out of the bar I was getting into my car and I got waved down by someone on the street. I ran over to him and saw him stooped over someone who had collapsed and was unconscious on the street. He said that he didn't know the guy, but just happened to be walking by and saw him lying there. He was barely breathing and very ashen in color, probably mid twenties, and his eyes had rolled back in his head. We thought he was dead at first because his pulse was very weak. We called an ambulance, which showed up about 5 minutes later. As they were wheeling him away on a stretcher they mentioned that it looked like he had OD'ed on something
Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Between Meetings
Posts: 8,997
That's pretty wild....Hope the guy's alright...Nothing happens in God's world by mistake. Sounds like you got a complete education in one night. Congrats on 10 months...I'm right behind you.
12-Step Recovered Alkie
Join Date: May 2010
Location: West Bloomfield, MI
Posts: 5,797
eJoshua.....
It's amazing to watch "normal" drinkers drink, isn't it? I'm with ya, my idea of normal drinking for me bears little resemblance to what they do.
Kudos to you for letting your co-workers know your plan ahead of time and bigger kudos for letting your AA group know ahead of time. It shows you were going on "good grounds" by not trying to hide it from everyone. Rigorous honesty, right? It works.
Even cooler that you were in a position to be helpful to TWO people. 1. the kid passed out obviously needed some help and 2. the guy who waved you down needed the support of another person so the two of you could handle the job at hand rationally and calmly. Had you still been in the bar drinking (as most of us probably would have been) you wouldn't have known it happened in the first place and things may have turned out differently for that kid.
.....and I'm glad you went. Getting sober doesn't mean "we" have to avoid everything that has alcohol involved with it. I'm glad you were able to have a good time and it's really cool that you were able to see some more truth along the way (about how you drank, how others drank, and about how you're different in that regard).
It's amazing to watch "normal" drinkers drink, isn't it? I'm with ya, my idea of normal drinking for me bears little resemblance to what they do.
Kudos to you for letting your co-workers know your plan ahead of time and bigger kudos for letting your AA group know ahead of time. It shows you were going on "good grounds" by not trying to hide it from everyone. Rigorous honesty, right? It works.
Even cooler that you were in a position to be helpful to TWO people. 1. the kid passed out obviously needed some help and 2. the guy who waved you down needed the support of another person so the two of you could handle the job at hand rationally and calmly. Had you still been in the bar drinking (as most of us probably would have been) you wouldn't have known it happened in the first place and things may have turned out differently for that kid.
.....and I'm glad you went. Getting sober doesn't mean "we" have to avoid everything that has alcohol involved with it. I'm glad you were able to have a good time and it's really cool that you were able to see some more truth along the way (about how you drank, how others drank, and about how you're different in that regard).
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
