Stang

I've noticed that during sober periods my self confidence grows. On the job and in my personal interactions it gets better and better even after only brief periods of sobriety. Has anyone else noticed this? Just curious.

PurpleKnight

Yeap, I think it's because the weight of drinking finally lifted from my shoulders, the regrets of the night before, the constant planning and obsessing over my drinking the next evening, the worrying about driving and being at work over the limit, and the continuous feeling of simply surviving most days though an awful hangover.

I used to consider myself "functioning", but I was merely existing day to day!!

Sobriety has lifted the burden, made me feel more free and confident in life, alcohol did nothing in the longterm for my self confidence, it created a person who liked to be alone with a bottle in front of the TV, I would pass up going out and going to "social" events just to be alone drinking!!

RecklessEric

I suspect it's because our minds aren't fogged with either booze or the need for booze.
Whatever, it's a wonderful feeling.

Soberwolf

im seconding both posts (ireland in the house woo)

Carbonized

I actually have the reverse.

Alcohol at least allowed me to participate in gatherings and such. Now sober a year, i'm completely unable to do so. Socially, i'm at one of the lowest points in my life and it's going to take a massive and rather involved (and expensive) effort to be able to function as normal people can. Hence, my searching for some kind of pill that can control rather severe anxiety issues.

Confidence is non-existent.

Arbor

Oh yes. I agree. Confidence way up when sober. I've spent so much time recovering from the many of nights before that confidence was virtually non existent.

Hope2014

Yes! Because that is the real you
While we are drowning ourselves in alcohol, we are burying our pride and confidence and living in a constant state of fear, regret and anxiety.
Life is SO much better without it.

risingup

Totally......drinking gives me horrible anxiety. The ironic thing is when I first started drinking at age 15 I got sucked in because it made me more confident, less shy and better at conversation....and slowly everything changed......now at age 48 it makes me feel self conscious and anxious....especially the next day.

MiniBK

I had the shakes, so would hide my hands or wouldn't pick up anything to delicate in front of people, in case they saw my hands wobble. Most of the day at work I would sit at my desk, quietly trying to sober up. I would be to anxious to talk to anyone in case I sounded drunk or came across confused. It was crap coming to work, I would just get on by through the day. The only time I started to pick up, was the drive home, at which point my next dilemma would be which Off License (Liquor Store) I could go to, where they have't seen be in a few days to notice I have a problem.

Arbor

Same here. That's what I always used to love about alcohol. It did the exact opposite of what it does now. I'm not sure how this happened. Abuse over time I suppose. I guess I should be glad in a way that I got my fill and am moving on (even though that's easier said than done.) Some people never do.

Stang

We're the same age and I too started in my teens for the same reason. 30+ years makes a world of difference.

sthlondonab

I have a mixture of both.

Early in sobriety - but now I am focused on honesty that makes me more confident. I am not carrying around the anxiety of lies, cover ups and bad behaviour anxiety.

The flip side is I find social occasions awkward, but I used to have that before drinking until I had guzzled enough that I didn't care. I thought I was confident and centre of attention but I bet I looked and sounded like an idiot most of the time. Social stuff will take time but time is my friend.

Fly N Buy

No Doubt! For me some of this is a reflection of others new belief in us. It just gets better and better.....

We then start to trust our sober instincts - the drunk ones were more wrong than correct in my experience.

Good point!

waynetheking

With a clear head and alcohol not on your breath I think its much easier to come across as self confident.
just another benefit of beating this dreadful disease one day at a time.

Gottalife

I was the same. The only thing that thrived was fear. To fix that I had to find a way to deal with past baggage, haunting memories, fear of people I had crossed, fear of being found out. It is possible, but it didn't happen without some effort on my part to address the causes.

sickofthiscrap

I've noticed this too. For me it's in the respect that I never thought I could cope with life without alcohol, and I'm actually doing it. It builds emotional muscle and that builds confidence.

Socially, I am not doing so well. I've always been socially anxious and booze masked that for me, but no more.

anattaboy

I was just thinking yesterday how there was always a self loathing that accompanied my drinking for a long time. I knew I was wrong but did it anyway. Once sober for a bit the first thing I noticed was I didn't tolerate disrespect from others as I was not hurting myself- others couldn't either. It's still a process but yes, I feel better about me and with that comes change.

zjw

sobriety never brought me confidence other then confidence i might beat this diseas at least directly. For me after i sobered up I made other better choices and those things gave me more self confidence. The real kicker I find is there are many in my life that knowingly or not like to try and kick me down a notch. Since I sobered up there rarely ever as successful but that being said they are still out there and I've had to learn how to not let it get to me or avoid these folks all together.