eddie73

My experience of my ism is that after a while of sobriety, there will come a time when you will start to withdraw from activities and things that you were forcing yourself to do during early sobriety.

This can happen out of complacency or it could be a more sinister trap you are laying for yourself and your eventual relapse.

Basically that is exactly what happens.. You are left to your own devices and your own warped view of yourself and life. It eventually becomes reality. The drink is taken in a moment of frustration and you are back to the bottom of the well again.

My advice based on this experience is to stay plugged into support groups and to have a network of family and friends to tune into for the inevitable harder days of recovery.

CaiHong

Eddie73
A timely warning for me. I went out for lunch with my family. I was reluctant to go and I questioned my own reluctance and enjoyed myself even though my DIL and I both got mild food poisoning.
I received a text message invitining me to an AA pre meeting dinner and was not going to go because of work but thought, no, I really need to go and you can get out of work.

Thanks for the post
CaiHong

Peony1

I can identify with this although my worst times have been as a secret drinker. I hardly ever went out to drink. Did it at home. So easy to hide the vodka in a soft drink isn't it?

The trigger for me was just sheer boring loneliness which I tried to break out of or just numb through drinking. It removed the feeling (temporarily) but then there was the awful fallout.

I'm only two days in but woke up this morning feeling more positive about doing things and getting out in the world than for a long time.

Owning up and sharing with others (hopefully without boring the pants off them!) is a miracle for me after shutting it up for so long.

SSIL75

ITA with this! What is it.. that action changes your thinking better than thinking changes your actions? Just DOING healthy things for me has been a real life changer.

miamifella

I think a lot of my difficulties in early recovery were because I had been taken away from my network of friends. I was in a strange town and too poor to afford a phone line (for many months). I would go to many meetings a day to be around people who were at the bottom just like me. But they were transient. And prone to relapse. They were damaged.

So going to three meetings a night filled the time. But it was not enough. I needed one-on-one human contact and the support of people who cared about me.

Friendship really does mean a lot.

foodie1

Thanks for posting this eddie73

Kmber2010

Good post Eddie. Couldn't agree more that staying plugged in whether we think we need to or not is so important. Keeping with support is what got me finally going on this journey.

Thx for sharing

Fandy

good point.....I also mostly drank quietly at home....cutting myself off and wallowing.

I have to be sure that i reach out frequently to stay connected to reality

Rusty Zipper

no sitting at home watching Oprah (sorry Ope)

and eating Bon-Bons

as the horizontal position can be a death sentence

angelsguideme

Eddie- thanks for writing this- I agree too...this is very true. Prayers and hugs to you!