Intro post
 

Hello Everyone,

I've been drinking heavy over the past 10 years. I didn't start drinking regularly until my late 20's. Once I moved away from friends and family is when things slowly got out of control.

I've never been in major trouble from drinking but I've dodged many bullets. At this point my wife is really getting upset because of me drinking so much.

Now numerous things in my life are going down hill and of course I'm turning to Alcohol even more. When I'm drunk and wake up the next day it's like I've forgotten all of my problems and I feel balanced. Now it's time to give it up. Alcohol is keeping me from achieving my goals especially getting back in shape and getting more education.

I know it's going to suck but my first step is posting here to admit I have a problem and trying to overcome. Thanks for reading!

good job. its worth the battle to sober up life is much better on the other side.

Welcome. And you've taken a great first step. It's amazing how much better life is when you're not drinking. This is a great place for support as we've all been there.

Welcome to the family. :) You'll find lots of support and good ideas here. :)

Welcome

Welcome to SR MartinGX! You've made a great decision, congratulations on realizing the issue and making an effort to change. You'll find a lot of support and understanding here, we were all where you are at some point in our lives with drinking too .

You may want to consider reading the follwing link regarding sobriety plans -you'll hear a lot about that. There's many ways to go about it but all of them involve a daily commitment from us. You might also want to consider joining the class of May over in the newcomers section, it's great to be part of a group with similar goals.

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...at-we-did.html

Hi Martingx, Great job on step 1..admitting you have a problem! Do you have any idea for Step 2? How much have you been drinking?.....you might need to detox first. Going cold turkey is not a good idea. This is a great site to ask for advise...welcome aboard.

Welcome to SR. Yes, alcoholism is progressive and is like a ball and chain around your foot. It will prevent you from achieving goals. Congrats on a great decision.

Welcome, Martingx. Congratulations on taking that difficult first step of posting the truth. You'll find a lot of support here.

Thanks for the questions.

I haven't been drinking every day but when I do I binge for about 3 days. Up to 18 in one day. Usually wake up the next day puking. Never had the shakes but I do get cravings for about a week. I usually give up drinking for 3 weeks to one month 2-3 times a year kidding myself into believing I'm not an alcoholic because I can give it up for 3 weeks. The reality is I've done so many stupid things while drunk I can't believe I haven't seriously hurt myself or someone else nor gotten into major trouble.

I really don't want to go to AA but I realize I may have to. I have doubts about religion and I'm also worried listening to stories of other people drinking might actually cause me to relapse. When I see people drinking on TV's and movies that really influences me to drink.

Of course I can make excuses all day . I'm considering therapy and will read through all of the suggestions on the link.

There are 2 anti-craving meds out there, Campral and Naltrexone. They are both very safe and non-addictive. Maybe you can ask your Dr. about these to reduce cravings. I had to become very proactive with my recovery and needed this help. It seemed that once the cravings hit me , it was too late to stop that 1st drink. Of course these meds work better with some sort of face to face support. Best Wishes

Welcome to SR, Martingx! And congratulations on choosing a better way of life in recovery.

Give AA a shot--it's not people drinking on television, it's people from all walks of life not drinking in real life. I don't practice the 12 steps myself but I have definitely incorporated many parts of the AA program into my own life, especially step 10 (keeping my side of the street clean in all areas of my life) and step 12 (staying sober by helping other alcoholics.) I go to meetings fairly often but also use SR as a primary source of support.

Welcome!!

Welcome Martin - you'll find a lot of support here :)

D

It's so good to have you with us, martin. We all understand what you're going through. You never have to feel alone - you have us. :) You can do it!

Well I'm 16 days in. Wow first 4-5 days I had bad cravings.

After that my sleep was really messed up. I've been working out and can already see & feel changes in my body. Over the past 3 days I notice I can really take life in. Everything seems really vibrant and authentic.

Of course the nagging voice says "hey man see you don't have a problem you just gave it up just like that you could go back to having a few"...

I'm on the fence but I can tell you I'm not going to drink today. I have to admit my problem was/is binging. Not sure if I could ever honestly get that under control without hard rules that I'm not sure I can stick to.

Reading the horror stories on here really helped me to put things into perspective. Thanks again everyone for your input and help.

If you're like me, not drinking is so much easier than trying to control it. Controlling worked for a day or two but that was it. Just do what you're doing, not drinking today.

Hi martin, im wayne. Welcome to SR. Stay strong and don't drink. Just remember alcoholism is a progressive deadly disease. See it for what it truly is. Were glad you're doing well.

Welcome Martingx. We're all in your corner. One day at a time.... You CAN do this.

:welcome

I'm so glad you joined us- this is a wonderful support system!