Finding it very hard to quit.
 

I quit earlier this year and lasted 3 months, it went well, I forgot alcohol existed for the most part during this time. I relapsed, ended up drinking 9 beers per night. I tapered down to 2-3 beers just before bed, per night for about the last 3 weeks. I was nearly off it the last few weeks, I've been busy. I don't feel much after those beers. But I found it difficult to make the final step to nothing.
It gets worse. I havent been feeling well the last few days. I have a flu. I am getting hit with heavy cravings to drink. Which tonight where so strong I gave in and bought beer.
I can stop drinking, but I usually end up back on it eventually. I'm worried about going to AA. It's too stressful for me. I'm afraid the people there will be much older and I would relate better to people my own age, I'm 25.

I can assure you that nearly every one of the few million people that have gotten sober in AA have had the same trepidations before walking through the door of their first meeting. Nobody wakes up one day and just decides to become an AA member because they found it easy to stay sober, and nearly all of us look for a hundred ways to 'be different' and not fit in with what we think AA is.

I can tell you in my town (pop. ~50,000), there is a very active, very enthusiastic group of young sober people in AA, and a couple of meetings/groups centered on young people in AA. Although I'm not 'one of them' I count many of them among my friends and identify closely with them in terms of alcoholism and the solution we have found.

Thanks for your reply. I am not anti-people that are older than me at all, I must mention. But AA meetings for me do carry a mental image of a crazed aging hobo with a bottle in his hand.

"But AA meetings for me do carry a mental image of a crazed aging hobo with a bottle in his hand."

OMG!:cries3:

I won't say my reactions except talk about contempt before investigation!

In perhaps 15,000 AA meetings I never saw anyone drinking in a meeting.

Iopu AA is actually pretty cool. I went for about 3 months years ago because I got arrested for drunk in public. The thing I noticed is that it can take many different groups before you find one you like. It took me close to 10 different groups. They all tend to have different themes you just need to find one that clicks. You wil meet good people and most likely become good friends..good luck to you

You might weigh this against the stress and other consequences that come with continuing to drink.

Your anxiety is perfectly natural, but far from my experience in AA for a total of about thirteen years, both in NYC and the greater metropolitan area. Have also been to meetings in other states, and enjoyed them very much.

There are young people's meetings in AA, and you can easily find them on the 'Net.

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:c008:
I can only speak from my experience, I go to meetings (AA & CA) and there are so many people under 30 who go. Friday & Saturday nights especially! BTW, my younger friends go out afterwards with each other. You can go out to places where drinking isn't the #1 activity. :dance3:

When we attend these meetings...we ARE those oldies (51, 55). If you open up to the things (addiction, game playing with IT, the desire to stop) that we all share, you'll discover that we " are not a glum lot". That means we laugh at meetings too. BTW, it took me a couple of decades before I had ENOUGH. I was absolutely ready to quit. I'm loving each day sober and alive. Go for it!!! :grouphug:
Bobbi

I am still "new" to this sober recovery/ journey thing but as MANY on here have told me in my past rambling "woe is me" posts I HAVE TO WANT IT. This time, I DO want it. Having said that, I fully expect difficult and trying times ahead. But it is a journey I am willing and excited to take. I/We alcoholics have trained our brains for so long to either be drunk or seek another drink. It became a way of life. Even when we were not drunk we were hungover/anxious/panicky or just looking for our next darn fix.

Getting and staying sober (at least for me) is a complete lifestyle and mindset change. I am and will continue to have to change everything I have known thus far since being an addict. But I know it is and will be worth it. I am finding day by day, inch by inch new things about myself. Some I like and some I don't. I cannot get better while drinking though and I KNOW life is better without alcohol.

YOU CAN DO THIS. I can do this. It has been done, it's been done by dozens and dozens of active members on this forum alone. That is enough to give me hope.

Stay strong my friend.

Good news. I didn't enjoy that beer, it was horrible and I have a killer hangover. Much worse than when I had a tolerance.

Interesting ... I always thought everyone was younger than me and drank less than I did...it doesn't matter how old or young we are....addiction does not discriminate based on age. Better to look for a common desire, recovery, freedom from addiction.

During my detox we sat in the back and observed an AA meeting everyday and a lot of the people were 24-30. It's not just old people. A lot of people would be your age and you could relate to them. I'm only 21 and could relate to a lot of people's stories who were a few years older.