Outonthetiles

That feeling of "perma-hangover" where you feel mentally and physically sluggish.

SoberHoopsFan

Couldn't have said it any better - that's exactly who alcohol made me too. It was the only thing in the world that mattered to me back then, and I would lie, betray people or do any selfish thing imaginable to make sure I could keep my drinking going.

sixtyfour

I really like this question Sweettha! For me it is:

-Avoiding an early, painful death
-Keeping my marriage intact
-Having children some day, God willing
-Being a better, and therefore sober, parent than I had
-Never having excruciating and debilitating hangovers ever again
-Not putting my professional and personal reputation in the gutter
-Not drinking and driving and risking others' lives
-Not finding myself so incapacitated that I get raped or sexually assulted
-Always being in control of my senses and not wondering "what the hell did I do and say last night and how did I get home?"

That's all I can think of now, but I think it's a good start!

Merotti

For me it would be..

-No hangovers
-No Blackouts
-The Strong/nasty taste of alcohol, and the burn after your dirst drink
-No embarassing moments I dont remember
-No DWI/DUI's
-Money saved from buying lots of alcohol.
-No more risky behaviors
-Better relationships/friendships
-Better sleep/Improved health
-The feeling of confusion

Those are the most important ones that I could think of right now. But i'm sure there are more. I cringe at the smell of alcohol now.

kathmandu

I no longer need to say in the morning "Why? Just, Why? Why did you do that? And why will you do it again tonight? What do you get out of it? Just tell me, what did you get out if it that was any good? Why are you inflicting this pain on yourself evryday? It's nothing but pain and confusion, you do know that don't you? You know it's just a pointless waste of everything. Why? Just Why? Please stop. Please just stop. I hate it. I want to die. I just want the day to pass so I can do it all again."

Now I just say "Yaaaawn. Morning. What a lovely day". Have a stretch, get up, have a cup of tea and get on with the day until I want to go to bed at night."

Panacea

The gut-wrenching hangovers and headaches.
The feelings of being demoralization and shame.
The mostly unsaid disappointment by my family.
The bemusement and concern of my friends and colleagues.
The embarrassment at remembering (or not) all the stupid things I said the night before.
The apologies and promises.
The muttering to myself in the morning when I vaguely remember how I embarrassed myself the night before.
The inability to fulfill my obligations and responsibilities the next day.
The inability to sleep or exercise.
The inability to function and be reliable.
The inability to clearly think and reason.

God, how I hate drinking.

JesseJe

The joy and fulfillment I feel out of life now that I haven't felt in the last 10 years is wonderful enough to keep me sober.

The knowledge of having missed out on so much keeps me disgusted with alcohol and what it did to me, my life and my ambition.

My joy is back and I never want to drown it out again.

Facing challenges head-on with a clear mind is intoxicatingly confidence boosting.

As a millennial, I am disgusted with my generation and disagree socially and culturally with the majority of my peers. Seeing their drunken faces in pictures all over social media is confirmation of my choice to not associate with them and to be above the cultural trends that permeate their lifestyles. It's a temporary ego boost that I will use to my advantage until I am completely over it.

God the beautiful sober mornings just keep getting better.

I feel like I am actually evolving and growing as a person. I'm becoming a better person each day instead of the opposite.

Endless energy.

Turns out I actually do have money now that I'm not spending 600+ dollars a month on drinking and partying.

Someone mentioned it above but feeling more relaxed around people was a pleasant surprise that came with sobriety.

I'm now only doing good things for my body.

I look so much better. My skin has cleared, my eyes are brighter, hair healthier etc.

The relationships I have in my life are genuine.

Sorry for the long post. There's a lot of reasons sobriety rules

Abigmess

terrible anxiety/ panic attacks , loss of motivation, a beautiful partner that deserves a present strong man , want to have kids and raise them in a healthy functional family environment

KAD

I don't want to have to start all over again. This could probably spark another topic altogether about whether a relapse is simply a temporary diversion, like taking a wrong turn halfway through a trip, or a total loss of one's recovery, like when a house of cards collapses. I have found among others in my life, as well as my peers within AA, it is most often perceived as the latter. I'm afraid I've also been conditioned to see it that way, even before joining AA.

In either case, I don't want to have to backtrack again. I don't want to lose whatever trust and respect I've managed to regain. I don't want to go through detox and rehab again. I don't want to count days and weeks and months again. Last but not least, I don't want to die from it. The way things were at the end, death was not far off.

BrendaChenowyth

I'm not me when I drink.

MIRecovery

The was not one good thing that alcohol did for me not one. I'm happy today. To say the least my life is not all rainbows, unicorns, and pixy dust but I am happy. I'm simply am not willing to give up the serenity I have for the hell I had

BrendaChenowyth

I'm looking back over others' reasons and I'm thinking... Why the ever-loving **** did we ever do this to ourselves????

Soberpotamus

My incentives to stay sober are all about what life is like now. It would be inconceivable to me to go back to how I was living before.

BrendaChenowyth

^ ditto

KAD

It's true life is much better and more stable for me now than it was a year and a half ago. I think the further away I get from that last drink, the more the positives will replace negative reinforcement. In the meantime, remembering how the tape played out does secure my resolve to stay the course.

MelindaFlowers

Oh yes. I'd drink an entire 2 liter bottle of water on the way to work. Literally chugging. I was so dehydrated I wouldn't pee until noon. Every day. I can't believe my body didn't just die.

I'd always laugh when non-drinkers would say they were dehydrated. Seriously?

Hawkeye13

Watching my husband (who still drinks) still struggle with the same depression,
insomnia, anxiety and physical deterioration with which I suffered so long.

He has other serious health issues besides drinking which contribute
to much of this, but I can really see how alcohol is having a huge
negative impact.

Mountainmanbob

Been having some of my worst days in my 8 years of sobriety. I'm reminded that if I were to drink over all of this, everything and everybody would be going down hill rather quickly. I know that things will get better, I just don't know when. Maybe never if I drank? Not the way I wish to go out.

Bob

Bunny211

I was dying of alcoholism at 32 years old.
This past week I went to Colorado, hiked St. Mary's Glacier, Pike's Peak, Seven Falls and saw the Garden of the Gods. I was on top of the world (literally). I'd never go back to the miserable existence I led when alcohol was my master.