CommunityDawn

Here I am again. After posting a thread on this forum a few weeks ago and receiving loads of encouragement from SR members, I went back to drinking on most nights. I am disappointed with myself but know that there's no point in beating myself up as I can't turn back the clock.

Tonight is night 1. I really want it to be different this time, to find some way of holding on to the resolve to stay away from the first drink. Yet the truth is that every day brings a struggle against the booze. Sometimes I make it through the first day, through another day, and another day after that, without drinking. Sooner or later, I think: "I need a break, just tonight". The drinking cycle continues and is so hard to break. This d#### habit is so much a part of me that I'm afraid that I'll never be able to break it.

Right now, all that I can do is to renew my resolve and to stay away from a drink tonight. Thanks for letting me get that off my chest. :-)

Dee74

Welcome back CommunityDawn

I think supports very important - when I had those kind of thoughts and I wanted to drink, I'd come here instead...SR got me through some rough nights and tough times

D

grenade

I wish you all the best. I am on day 1 as well.

stevie88

Welcome to both of you...59 days ago I didn't think I could break the cycle either...Keep at it....

CommunityDawn

Thanks so much. I will be in bed in half an hour, `safe' from a day's drinking.
Dee, that is what I have done: Jump on here instead of going to the bottle shop.
Grenade, I'm right there with you. You can get through today!
Stevie, your post is inspiring. Congrats on the 59 days!

MidnightBlue

Hi, CommunityDawn. I am on my Day 2 and trying to distract myself in every possible way. From my experience the hardest are Day 4 or 5, when I start feeling Ok, forget about crippling hangover and think that I can afford myself "just one glass". So this time I set up a very busy schedule for the entire week, including business meetings where I just can not show up looking like a hell frozen. Hope it will work).

I wish you all the best.

MrsKing

The key, I think, is in preparing yourself mentally prior to the moments when your mind tries to play tricks on you to get you to buy alcohol. When you get those thoughts that tell you that you need a break, just tonight, you have to have something in place so that you are able to fight them. We need to feel as though we are stronger than those thoughts. At the beginning, I played over every possible situation in my mind and saw myself saying no and doing other things. I didn't give any hope to the part of me that wanted to drink because I gave it no chance - I prepared myself mentally for when those thoughts would come and 100% believed that they weren't going to beat me.

Like you said, there is absolutely no point in making yourself feel guilty for drinking. Congratulations on getting through the day and stay strong... you CAN do this.

CommunityDawn

I'm up again with insomnia and thought that I'd check back in again. Thanks for those useful tips, Midnight Blue and Mrs King. Yes, I know from past experience that preparation is the key and relate to the complacency which arrives around day 4 or 5 (when the hangover memory starts to become dim...) Tomorrow I'm going to write out a list of things which will help me out for the first week.

lyddie

Hang in there CommunityDawn. The first few days are especially difficult. Use all the resources you can find to stay strong. You can do this.

Wolfram

Welcome!!

And look toward a bright future!

IndaMiricale

Well I dont know if your still up or not. But you made it one more day without that good buddy the drink.

I can relate so much to the one more day or night thinking. And the only thing I can tell you is it takes time, but you really change that thinking.

Stick around and keep posting you got good support here.