Dave H

This is my 2nd Christmas sober and I am having a blast in sobriety. Last Christmas I was only about 6 weeks sober and I was in early recovery and having a rough time. Within 5 months or so things started clearing up and I began feeling better and getting stronger. By this past summer I was feeling great and having a blast. I was strong again and even started riding my motorcycle again. Something I had given up some years before because motorcycles and heavy drinking does not mix.

In September I entered an armwrestling tournament - it had been since 2006 since I had been to one - and won the tournament!

Thanksgiving was my 2nd Thanksgiving sober and it was a wonderful Thanksgiving. My family and I have already had a wonderful Christmas and it's only Christmas eve. I am having a blast in sobriety. I have been given a new lease on life.

Get into meetings, find a sponsor, work the steps, call your sponsor or accountability partners when you need to. Stay sober no matter what and trust me, it gets better.

Relapse it not an option for me! I have ZERO desire to return to the sick alcoholic I once was.

Merry Christmas.

Thepatman

This is a wonderful gift you gave us, the newly sober!

Thanks Santa! ;-)
Merry christmas to you also

Cathryn2001

Thank you for your post, Dave! Very inspirational! Merry Christmas!

Croissant

I thought the same thing too.

Thanks for generously sharing Dave. Taking the time to make such a positive post is such a lovely thought.

May the good times keep rolling!

Hevyn

That was great to share Dave - I'm sure it'll help our newcomers to know there is life after alcohol. Sometimes it takes a little while for our 'new normal' to kick in. I felt a bit resentful my first Christmas - I was newly sober too. I wouldn't trade being clear headed for that foggy numbness. It's great to be present for the holidays, not just going through the motions.

Thank you!

TDInstall

Dave, we seem to have got clean at pretty much the same time - November 18th, 2012 for me.

Second Christmas clean for me too, and yeah, the first was a blur.

KateL

Merry Christmas x

Twinings

Awesome Dave!
Merry Christmas!

Sanantoniosober

I whiteknuckled it through last Christmas. Drank before I went to visit family, and again within minutes of getting back home. This year I've been sober 10 months, and it's so much better.

Not going to say I'm back to being "me", but it does get better. I had the thought that maybe I could have just a beer this year, and my first instinct was to snap up and think "that's not you, that's still the alcohol trying to trick you." And for the first time in a long time, I was proud of myself.