Did you replace alcohol with something else in early recovery?
 

Ice cream, Gatorade, cheese cake, Popsicles... ? Of course a support system is extremely important. I'm asking about the oral fixation and time alone in the beginning.

Cookies, cake, donuts, ice cream . . . . .

Ice-cream and coffee :)

I didn't replace but I had a bad craving for ice cream, ice cream and some ice cream with a side of Coke Zero.

But when things got really bad I ate ice cream!

Ice cream and SoberRecovery.

I'm still quite early in (day 6) but so far it's all about fresh potts in the morning, water later in the day (avoiding club soda though - bad association).
I'm also trying meditation - even if it's only 30 seconds long it really helps me to level my emotions. I'm actually really surprised how much it helps.

Binge eating.

I've noticed that I get really hungry right at bed time. I assume my body is used to having a huge influx of calories late at night. So I snack in bed while watching netflix. It's something I'll have to work on, but first things first.

I also drink A LOT of water. Constantly peeing. Sorry for the TMI.

Coffee and Cheese.

I ate a lot of good foods and some junk as well. Sometimes I had two full meals for dinner because eating worked very well to alleviate alcohol cravings for me, and I had lots of intense cravings. Long walks and running.

And SR while eating :)

Ben n jerrys & Haribo

Alcohol contains a lot of sugar so I craved that. I used hard candies.

i had no cravings for anything. but i was desperatly looking for relief from anxiety etc... as such i tried various supplements vitamins and herbal teas that first year or so.

maybe i shoulda just eaten more ice cream? lol.

Like everyone else the sugar cravings I had were impossible to satisfy. Ben & Jerry's on a daily basis in the early goings was my go-to.

coffe and diet pop

Skinny cows and milky way bites ---> me rationalizing not eating a whole milky way candy bar - even tho 12 pieces = a bar ;)

Switching addictions is quite common.
I saw it in oldtimers who would hit the casino and blow their welfare/disability checks on gambling. Or would see it in workaholics who work 16 hours a day. I would also see it in those who would work out at the gym everyday for 4 hrs. Most commonly I would see it in over-eating, eating junk food because the body craves that sugar that alcohol had in it. I would see it in people who would like to have sex all the time.

Alcoholism has nothing at all to do with alcohol, and everything to do with the mind. So if one sleeping pill is recommended by the doctor, yet you take 2 or 3, thats an issue. Just the way our brains work. Its the way we think that needs to change.

Sobriety is about balance. Balance in life.

Me too with the sweets. :) Even lollipops (preferably Tootsies) that I hadn't eaten in decades. It settled down though. Except for the ice cream. :) Ice cream's still a problem.

I eat A TON right before I fall asleep, but I've never put it together. It makes sense though, my body was constantly taking in massive calories right before bed, so now I just eat those calories, instead of drink them.

ice cream and Lindor truffles

lately I'm really liking hot chocolate right before bed

LOTS of sweets and ice cream. For several weeks, it was the biggest decision I allowed myself.......Rocky Road, butter nut pecan or cookie ice cream????

When we stop drinking, it's natural to crave sugar - now that we've removed a lot of it :)

Glad you're here,
Keep coming back!

In the early days, I ate mainly sugary things, ice cream, chocolate, sweets, etc. That went away after a few months. Nowadays, i do still eat a lot at night but try to stop before it gets late.

15 months in and still can't/won't put down the Ben and Jerry's;)

As far as drinks go- to satisfy the oral thing, it's coffee or seltzer (w/ various mix-ins).
Like a lot of people who replied, I have craved sweets or the first time since I was a kid. I used to never even think of eating sweets. Now I'm buying candy, cheesecake, other sweets. Nothing crazy or overboard- just a treat I. The afternoons and evenings after dinner.
I fish after work I relieve stress, or sing/ play guitar. Exercise as well. They say you shouldn't change one addiction for another, but in my case if I have to choose between booze and sweets, I'll go with the sweets.

I don't remember having an oral fixation, more just finding something to do with all my anxiety/energy. I used to walk the dogs a lot.

I guess I did go overboard on coffee...

Tootsie Pops, lots of them. I haven't had one in three years now and I still never want another. I also smoked lots of pot and I haven't had any of that for over nine months. Thank God I quit cigs twenty years ago. I stayed away from sodas. I still love my coffee and green tea. Good chocolate in moderation.

Mine was shopping. To the point of near financial ruin. I am still not completely debt free even after many years. I have learned that it's exactly the same as booze: it changes the way I feel; it gives me the buzz, albeit short-lived. I've recognized my behavior/sickness in loads of things I do & love. It's actually quite selfish & I have to work on myself constantly.

I have to admit that I took up smoking again (in Vapour form) after 20 years as a none smoker. I have such an addictive nature and just wanted something "naughty" something "not allowed". I went completely cold turkey stopping alcohol and one evening about a month into sobriety I was out socialising and came so close to picking up a drink. It was in that moment that I turned to a friend and used their vapour e cigarette and felt satisfied. So I swaped one bad habit for another but I reason with myself that my new bad habit does not affect or hurt other people just myself. I don't give myself a hard time over it I just except it.

Reese's. Lots of them.
I still can have a problem with them. Can't eat just 6 or 7.
But they haven't made my life unmanageable.
Yet.:dee

Reading through this thread, it's striking how we all binged on sugar early on.

It's also interesting how how commonly we ran to ice cream.

I banged Baskin-Robbins Jamocha Almond Fudge!