professional detox
 

Hi everyone. I just had a 10 day professional detox but lapsed for 2 days on day 11 and 12. Today is day 13 and Im not drinking but i was filling in a diary counting my days sober.

im just wondering if i have to start from day 1 again or can i carry on from where i left off? like day 11, it would have been day 13 if it wasn't for the 2 day lapse.

It doesn't really matter how you count, as long as you stay sober. :) You're getting back on track now, right?

For me, counting days involve days of continuous sobriety. If you drank in the meantime, how could you be on Day 13 of not drinking? Dont beat yourself up. You did this once, you can do this again. What kind of recovery plan do you have? I found that being in touch with other people in recovery who understood what I was going through gave me hope, strength and inspiration.

Thanks. Yes i know i messed up but im staying sober and getting back on track. i feel awful for lapsing for 2 days.

im attending aa meetings and following the 12 step program.

Have a chat with your sponsor about it. Part of the first step is recognising the different aspects of the illness. You got through 10 day detox which got you past the physical aspect of alcohol, the (phenomeon of craving), so that wasn't what made you drink. In AA our experience suggests the main problem is in the mind, which is why we have the steps.

The argument goes, ok once I start drinking I cant stop, so the soltuion would be not to take the first drink. But we have an inability to do that, a mental blank spot, a memory failure, whatever it is, it is in the mind.

This lapse of your has brought some progress for you. You now know a little bit more about this illness. And that is what step one is, identifying the problem.

Thanks, I'm still on step 1 part 1. I'm not classing today as 13 days sober, what I meant was if I didn't drink yesterday and the day before I would have been 13 days sober.

I'm filling in a diary and instead of starting from day 1 again I'm going to class tomorrow as day 11, because I've been sober 10 days and lapsed on day 11 and 12.

For me, if I drank, I started the count over again. Sobriety is days sober in a row.

It is up to you. There are no rules. This is your life. I personally hate the idea that if you have a lapse all of the hard work you did before counts for nothing - so I reject that. That is fantastic that after a lapse you went right back to sobriety. Find what works for you.

to thine own self be true.

personally, if i were to drink for 2 days at this time i wouldnt still have 10 years of continuous sobriety.

....a manner of living which demands rigorous honesty.
....do recover if they have the capacity to be honest.
For he knows he must be honest if he would live at all.
This is not to say that all alcoholics are honest and upright when not drinking.

That was something that I found very distasteful at AA. I got to 28 or 30 days on three occasions then drank a night or two. My sponsor forced me to stand up and take another white chip. I felt like I was getting a Scarlet Letter! I was so disappointed and that was one of the reasons I left AA. I was not trying to be deceitful - but they were so smug about it. It was a set back to me.
You've gone 13 days without a drink. End of story in my book.

I lapsed for 2 days but I'm now on day 12 because I was sober for 10 days.

By that thinking, I probably had 30 years sobriety when I entered rehab. :)

I'm not starting again from day 1 after 10 days sobriety and only lapsing for 2 days.

Yeah. And I just had my one year of sobriety. That means 365 consecutive days without a drop of alcohol. When I first tried to get sober, I relapsed many times. 15 days sober, one day of drinking, one week sober, one week drinking, one month sober, one day of drinking, two weeks sober, three days drinking.. And on and on it went. By that logic I would have 2-3 years of sobriety LOL

It is actually harder to stay sober that way. You keep waking up your addiction even if you drink for one single day only.

Entirely up to you, but I think the reason many people will emphasize being honest with yourself is because splitting hairs and creatively redefining "sobriety" is exactly the sort of thinking that many of us were masters of as addicts. I didn't drink last night becomes, well I didn't get plowed last night and that's what's really important, therefore I didn't drink last night. And that's what we say, because we're ashamed to admit the truth, and that's exactly what the addict voice wants us to do, keep hiding stuff. ;) As long as we keep our drinking secrets and hide things, we're not making much real long-term progress.

Ok, im starting again from day one. Had another slip last night, not good.

Has anyone taken anti craving medication? I paid $4000 for a 10 day inpatient detox and lapsed for 5 days.

I can't believe it.

Yes. I took Naltrexone. I didn't like it but it definitely helps.

Are you in any kind of out patient program? Going from detox to nothing is very very tough.

Just AA and im on a waiting list to see a counsellor for relapse prevention.

im trying my hardest and halway through reading the big book. On page 23 it says alcoholics can't just have one because the cravings come back full blown just like you never stopped. And its true for me.

Seems to be the best place for a restart date -- day 1

Mountainmanbob

wasted money on detox
 

$4000 for a 10 day detox and im back on it. the cravings and withdrawal symptoms are back after just 6 days. 6 bloody days?

I don't think you wasted your money - unless you mean something different by detox, all detox usually means is getting you through withdrawal safely.

If you're alive and well, detox did its job :)

If you want to learn how to live sober - and SR alone has not been enough - I really think you need to think about things like rehab, AA or another recovery group, or addiction counselling?

I assume while attending you received counseling, did you come up with a plan to stay sober before leaving? I know where I live it's a requirement prior to leaving.

Andrew

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but while a 10 day detox is a good thing it is just the beginning of the road to recovery.

Make a plan, get support, and make systemic change in your life. These are the things that will keep you sober

I actually kind of get this. The advise others have given is right on track. Sometimes what they do in detox doesn't really lead to a real plan...depends on the place. Some truly are just money churners ... (although the staff usually does care).

Your anger and frustration are NOT without reason. That said, in the end, YOU are the only person who can change this. Even if you were the victim of a BS program .... you are the only person who can change the direction of your life.

Hopefully you only drank a short time. I suggest you try very hard to have someone stay with you a few days to just put a bit of pressure on yourself to not drink (even if it is the mom, sister or son you hate).

After a few days .... start looking at a plan you think will work for you. It doesn't matter what it is other than it NOT be the same as what you tried before (doing the same thing expecting different results). Look at what works what doesn't and suggestions.

As my councelor told me last week .... Having a plan only works if you follow through. So make a road map and follow through. If you misstep once .... get right back on the plan.

Please take care (hug)

doubter, detox is supposed to be only the beginning. its not a miracle cure whete after ten days you miraculously have symptoms of drinking and the craving gone.
detox is to help people get through the serious withdrawls that can be fatal, then its time for the real footwork to begin.
i remember hearing early on it can take a year or longer for all of theeffects of alcohol to be gone.
and dam greatful i did a lotta trudging and fighting the craving,compulsion, and obsession.

Lots of good advice here Doubter. It's not entirely clear to me - are you actually drinking again or just having cravings again?

wasted money on detox

No, the money you're wasting is on drinking.

Detox is but a beginning. The idea is to get someone sober enough to start on a program of recovery. Without know what the particular detox you were in offered it is hard to make any judgment of it.

I can say that detox needs to be followed with a program for living a sober life or it will usually lead to a return to drinking.

Lot of great advice here. You're posting here on a message board devoted to sobriety and recovery (two very different things, by the way), that's a positive. You really don't have to drink anymore. One day, one minute at a time, lasting sobriety is possible for all of us with a little work on our parts. You can do this!