Today Is Day 2
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 5
Today Is Day 2
Hello everyone. Today is the second day of my sobriety. I made the decision to stop drinking for a number of reasons.
Firstly, I came to the realization that it wasn't fun for me anymore. I'd drink at home by myself and just watch TV and pass out. Then I'd wake up with a hangover and it would be difficult to help my wife with our 3 year old.
The second reason is that when I did go out and drink with people from work or with friends I'd have hard time facing them for fear of what was said or how I acted. I also have had several unprovoked altercations with people in bars recently and that concerns me. These are people I never spoke to or even looked at.
Next up is health. I enjoy working out in the gym and when I'm healthy and on my game I can spend 3-4 hours there daily between training, massage, tanning and socializing and love it plus it pays dividends in self esteem and body image results. Being drunk and hungover keeps me from doing this. Aside from gym time everyone knows the effects of alcohol on our health.
The last reason is the need for focus on family and goals, cost savings and time management in my life. This will strengthen my home life, help me become more fiscally sound and allow me to devote myself to the things that truly matter and not invest my time drinking.
Why did I start drinking in the first place? Peer pressure really. I started working for my current company at the age of 19 and had been drunk only a handful of times in my life. I wanted acceptance among my peers who were all 3-4 years older than me and drinking is what 22-25 year olds do. Fast forward 18 years and I just never grew out of it, in fact I'm sometimes the oldest guy in the room. Do you know how that feels?! Either I'm the looser that never stopped or I'm the survivor. Maybe a little of both? I haven't figured it out.
I've been fortunate though. I've prospered, finished my education and built a beautiful family and home so on June 9 I decided not to push my luck any farther, grab the bull by the horns and do what deep down I've always known I would have to do to be truly happy and fulfilled.
Firstly, I came to the realization that it wasn't fun for me anymore. I'd drink at home by myself and just watch TV and pass out. Then I'd wake up with a hangover and it would be difficult to help my wife with our 3 year old.
The second reason is that when I did go out and drink with people from work or with friends I'd have hard time facing them for fear of what was said or how I acted. I also have had several unprovoked altercations with people in bars recently and that concerns me. These are people I never spoke to or even looked at.
Next up is health. I enjoy working out in the gym and when I'm healthy and on my game I can spend 3-4 hours there daily between training, massage, tanning and socializing and love it plus it pays dividends in self esteem and body image results. Being drunk and hungover keeps me from doing this. Aside from gym time everyone knows the effects of alcohol on our health.
The last reason is the need for focus on family and goals, cost savings and time management in my life. This will strengthen my home life, help me become more fiscally sound and allow me to devote myself to the things that truly matter and not invest my time drinking.
Why did I start drinking in the first place? Peer pressure really. I started working for my current company at the age of 19 and had been drunk only a handful of times in my life. I wanted acceptance among my peers who were all 3-4 years older than me and drinking is what 22-25 year olds do. Fast forward 18 years and I just never grew out of it, in fact I'm sometimes the oldest guy in the room. Do you know how that feels?! Either I'm the looser that never stopped or I'm the survivor. Maybe a little of both? I haven't figured it out.
I've been fortunate though. I've prospered, finished my education and built a beautiful family and home so on June 9 I decided not to push my luck any farther, grab the bull by the horns and do what deep down I've always known I would have to do to be truly happy and fulfilled.
SR Fan
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 7,910
Great post, Tony.... Welcome to SR!
I can relate to a lot of what you said, and you're very wise to get out now. This forum helped me turn things around and I know you'll find the same great support and information here that I have.
Congrats on your decision!
I can relate to a lot of what you said, and you're very wise to get out now. This forum helped me turn things around and I know you'll find the same great support and information here that I have.
Congrats on your decision!
Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Posts: 383
Welcome Tony - it sounds like you are a lot like me in that controlling your life is very important to you. Just a vibe I'm getting. My experience has been that alcoholism is one of the things beyond our control. Countless alcoholics just like us have watched those things we hold most dear drain away, and no matter how hard we try, it keeps falling apart. After every binge we say "this is stupid - what's wrong with me?!" and we beat ourselves up and we swear we will quit "this time." What I found was that I was unable to achieve that release from my obsession with drink until I did what does not come naturally to me: I had to let go of trying to control my alcoholism, and quit trying to control my recovery. At least what's working for me today is simply admitting I am an alcoholic, and that I can't do it alone. If there's anything I would encourage you to do, it's to seek out real support in the form of fellow drunks who will hold you accountable, who care if you drink today, and who can take the control for you a while, so that you can begin to focus on what they suggest you need to do to stay sober today. For me it's AA that works, but whatever you do stay active in searching out others, and remember that if you do what you have done in the past to try and stay sober, you will get the results you always got. Do it for you - God bless.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: CT
Posts: 189
Glad your here and congrats on day 2! This site can be really helpful and you will find that sobriety really strengthens your self esteem and really helps all other areas in your life. I too remember waking up, worried about who I called/what I said or did, it is so nice not to have to worry about that anymore!
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