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Has Anyone Else Picked Up New Weird Compulsions Since Sobering Up Or Is It Only Me In

Old 04-10-2012, 09:46 AM
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Has Anyone Else Picked Up New Weird Compulsions Since Sobering Up Or Is It Only Me In

For me it's "To Do" lists. I keep making them up and make sure I include things I have already accomplished so I have the satisfaction of marking them off. I'm serious, I do like 2-3 a day. May be because I need to assure myself there are things to be done and I can do them. Another is looking in everyone's grocery cart to see if they have booze. And presenting myself to checkers and stuff at the store as to how great everythings going. Like they say "How are you?" and I respond with something dorkish like " Icouldn't be better, life is great, how are you?" If I was next in line behind myself I'd strangle me. I hope to recover from early sobriety. By the way, Life is great, couldn't be better.
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Old 04-10-2012, 09:58 AM
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That sounds like a healthy compulsion Fitz! I find myself being overly polite with 'please' and 'thank you' now that I sobered up. I think it may have to do with the fact that I used to often venture out in public hungover or drunk and as such, I was a miserable and grumpy person. I was probably rude and impatient to a lot of strangers and that's not how the real me is. I guess I'm trying to redeem myself for karma's sake haha.
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Old 04-10-2012, 10:23 AM
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I make sure Step 1 is the top of the list every day
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Old 04-10-2012, 10:39 AM
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"And presenting myself to checkers and stuff at the store as to how great everythings going. Like they say "How are you?" and I respond with something dorkish like " Icouldn't be better, life is great, how are you?" "

Uh...yeah. I sorta do that, too. I think, in my case, it comes from feeling so good after feeling so bad for so long. I find that I'm disgustingly chipper. The checker at the Giant Market probably thiks I'm a loon.
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Old 04-10-2012, 10:43 AM
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Originally Posted by MycoolFitz View Post
I hope to recover from early sobriety.
Hahaha!! Love it!
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Old 04-10-2012, 11:26 AM
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SOBERINNEPA- "Uh...yeah. I sorta do that, too. I think, in my case, it comes from feeling so good after feeling so bad for so long. I find that I'm disgustingly chipper."

Me too! And suddenly people call me "Hon" and "Honey"...?? They probably think I'm developmentally delayed. LOL
My senses were dulled and now they're waking up. Like turning into a human being from a zombie. Every little thing is a delight. Eating. The birds chirping. The color of the sky. Taking a bath. The feeling of warm socks on my feet.
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Old 04-10-2012, 12:08 PM
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Originally Posted by GirlFromCO View Post
Hahaha!! Love it!
Me too!

But it is nice to see yourself showing some competency at regular life things. Thanks for the reminder.
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Old 04-10-2012, 12:12 PM
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:rotfxko Fitz you crack me up! What beautiful posts from everybody too!

Mine is definately putting DVD's back in their case, and clean kitchen and dining room floors. An avalanch would fall on you if you open one of my closets, but woe to those who don't put a DVD away properly!!!
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Old 04-10-2012, 12:22 PM
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Originally Posted by MycoolFitz View Post
I include things I have already accomplished so I have the satisfaction of marking them off. .
AGGHHH!!! I totally do this!! And things that I know I can achieve really, really quickly, like make the bed (it's a duvet. I pull the corners straight)

I'm slightly obsessed (but in a cute way. H has said so) with not wasting any time any more, so I cram my day all the way through. Even time for reading has to be scheduled. The up side is that I'm sleeping like the dead, mostly I suspect from exhaustion.

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Old 04-10-2012, 12:59 PM
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Originally Posted by heathersweeds View Post
:rotfxko Fitz you crack me up! What beautiful posts from everybody too!

Mine is definately putting DVD's back in their case, and clean kitchen and dining room floors. An avalanch would fall on you if you open one of my closets, but woe to those who don't put a DVD away properly!!!
Oh bad thing I did drinking I was trying to reorganize everything in my place, imagine a drunk attempting that. Anyhoo I put a box of about 100 CDs out in my yard as I was doing stuff and forgot them. When I remembered they were gone. I chalk it up to alcoholic Karma and hope to believe that whoever took them assumed they were being thrown away.
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Old 04-10-2012, 03:43 PM
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Originally Posted by MycoolFitz View Post
Another is looking in everyone's grocery cart to see if they have booze.
I do this too, not on purpose but I notice it all the time, and I hate to say this but my immediate reaction is one of disapproval! Hate to think of what people thought of me buying copious amounts of booze all the time!
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Old 04-10-2012, 03:45 PM
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I am now compulsive about checking SR. There are surely worse things I could be doing. :-)
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Old 04-10-2012, 03:46 PM
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I know what you mean, Fitz. I'm a little quirky & strange now that I'm sober, but at least I'm not drunk and strange.
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Old 04-10-2012, 04:39 PM
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Yea, its all relative. There's a guy here that runs like 3 AA meetings a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. He has the entire Big Book memorized and mouths the words of whoever is reading. It kind of creeps me out and I think AA addict but then I think whatever floats his sober boat. I guess my compulsive "to do lists", cart checking and disgustingly cheerful check out persona is a small price to pay for my sobriery (unless whoever is behind me in line actually does strangle me, of course then my obit could read "after a life time of drinking Michel F. died sober". I think I have an SR thing too. As I'm sure nobody has noticed, I post alot. :-) But it really helps me to do kind of a public "jounaling", so I hope fellow SRers don't mind and you all can only strangle me virtually. I've really enjoyed the responses. I may be a sober nut but at least I'm not alone.
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Old 04-10-2012, 05:40 PM
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Wow that is so cool I hope I get some weird things like that! That's too funny. Thanks for sharing!
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Old 04-10-2012, 08:02 PM
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I am getting weird about my house. Something out of place will bug me until I fix it. This is crazy-making for me because I live with three sloppy men (well, one man and two men-in-training). If someone doesn't hang up their coat, put away their backpack, or throw away their trash instead of leaving it on the kitchen table, I'm on it like a bird on a worm. I go around straightening pictures, organizing and reorganizing drawers, closets and my pantry, and cleaning things that are already clean. When my boys see me coming with the Dustbuster in my hand, they run for cover. For some idiotic reason, I spent three hours the other day alphabetizing our DVDs only to come uncorked when the guys raided the cabinet for a movie they wanted to watch and put everything back in the wrong place. I was seething and heads were ready to roll ... but I went and took a bath instead. lol

I've always been a bit of a neat freak but this is a little psychotic. I keep thinking it will pass and it probably will. It's a control thing that's keeping my head and the rest of my busy and productive right now ... when I was drinking I didn't give a crap WHAT the house looked like, and I didn't have the energy to clean it even if I DID give a crap, so the family got used to leaving their messes wherever and whenever. I'm sure it has come as a total shock to them that I suddenly care whether or not they replace a roll of toilet paper or leave a glob of toothpaste in the sink. And let's not even talk about the socks and underwear that don't make it into the hamper.

I can't keep this up forever though. lol I figure my time is still better spent prettying up the house than drinking ... that's one good thing that's happened as a result of being sober. Or maybe I'm just menopausal.
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Old 04-10-2012, 08:30 PM
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No weird compulsions here. At least none I can think of.

I wish that I had the to-do list one though. I would think that getting sober would have made me a more organized person that stayed on top of stuff, but I think I've actually turned into an even bigger airhead.
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Old 04-11-2012, 07:05 AM
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I think your responses were great. If I was to psyhcoanalize myself I am probably overcompensating in the orderly direction with the to do lists because my drunken self just lived in confusion and choas. Life is a trip but it hepls to know where you're headed. My best to you my friends.
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Old 04-11-2012, 12:38 PM
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i think mine would be punctuality. I HAVE to be atleast 10 min early or i start to stress. Whereas before i was ALWAYS late, and couldnt care less. it was never my fault either (fake traffic, fake car problems, fake alarm didnt go off lol)

.....maybe its not a compulsion though....its just becoming a responsible person again LOL
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Old 04-11-2012, 01:57 PM
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I have two different calendars where I write stuff and a to-do list. I love to cross stuff off. I'm pretty busy!
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