Didn't even want a drink tonight!
 

I made it 3 days! I worked an eight and a half hour shift bar tending tonight and I didn't even want a drink. That had to be a first for me. I really just wanted my sobriety so much more than I wanted a drink that I felt no desire to. It was just so awesome.

I don't have a plan or anything for maintaining my sobriety. It's something I'm working on. I have been taking some steps though, to keep myself busy and happier with myself. I'm returning to volunteering at my local animal shelter every Sunday. I saw the woman I used to volunteer with in the store (I volunteered every Sunday with her from the age of 10 until I left for college), and we got to talking then she invited me to go with her to see all the animals Wednesday. It was just... incredible. I helped with a little cleaning and got to love on some kittens. My inspiration for sobriety the past two days has been a little mustached kitten that liked belly rubs. It feels so good to do some good again.

Tomorrow, I will be taking my dad out of town to get some good food and do some shopping. I don't work tomorrow, so I really wanted to make sure I keep busy so that boredom doesn't lead to temptation. I really feel like I've got this this time!

Congrats on 3 days Sdi! Sound like you have some good activities planned for the weekend, that will be helpful for sure. Regarding not having a plan yet, what have you explored as options? Are their meeting of any kid available locally?

There are some meetings in town, but I live in a very small town. I won't go to one of them for the same reason I won't go to a doctor in town. I have found some that aren't too far away, but I'm just not sure if they're for me. I'm pretty shy. I hate talking in front of more than just a couple people at a time. And how would I go about finding a non-religious meeting?

You won't be sure until you've tried them. Do why not try them for a while then make up your mind. AA is not religious. When they talk about God, it is not in a Christian sense. It is a ' higher power of your own understanding '. Some people use, Love, or Nature or Science, or Group Of Drunks (as in the power of the fellowship) - anything that is stronger that yourself. In my AA local AA meetings I'd say only about 5 - 10 % of people are religious, depending on the particular meeting I'm at. But that probably depends on where you live.

I think the volunteering and spending time with animals (always a feel good factor with kittens) sounds great, but please consider thinking through a daily plan as well. Even if it's just HALT based for now (ie planing how to avoid and get over HALT triggers - Hunger-Anger-Lonely-Tired ). Those things are more powerful than we sometimes realise, so it's a good and simple place to start. You might want to think about what your slippery people, places and times would be, and how to deal with those (or avoid them completely if possible ).

Good luck, and well done with the animal work.

Well, I guess I'll have to give them a try then. :) Thanks for the advice.

I managed to plan out my night tonight to avoid anything triggering. I was a little bit worried about boredom getting to me, but I had a great day out of town with my dad and finished the nights watching movies with my mom. It's hard to avoid anything triggering when I'm a bar tender, but I'm working on that. I'm looking into other jobs and volunteer programs.

I tried AA many years ago but it is not for me.

I feel completely dedicated to my sobriety (first time ever), but do not attend AA. Some people really like it, others don't. It is not the only option.

I just come here, and work on improving my life. So far it's working. Volunteering sounds great.

Congratulations on 3 days sdi!

Thanks! 4 days now!!!!

Keep it up man. ..Trust me, it's worth it!

Way to go, man! We're pulling for you!

Grats on day 4