Moderation is the addict's Santa Claus...
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Moderation is the addict's Santa Claus...
Recent conversation with a friend struggling with booze and some posts here on SR had me really thinking about moderation again. Wanted to post these thoughts in a separate thread, that I posted on another thread, to remind myself when my Beast starts trying to convince me again that moderation is a good idea:
1. NORMAL drinkers don't even know what the concept is! Think about it. Only addicts need to "moderate". My wife leaves a half glass of wine on the restaurant table all the time - to her the idea of moderating maybe means not having a few scoops of ice cream here and there. Moderating your alcohol intake? Pure addict thinking.
2. There is No Such Thing as Moderation. It’s as simple as that. It’s our Santa Claus. It’s trying to still wear that vintage t-shirt from high school you looked so good in – it doesn’t fit anymore homie.
It’s perpetual dissatisfaction (as if it works!).
It’s like trying to eat cake through a straw. It’s a lie our beasts insist on perpetuating – the tiniest glimmer of hope that, yes, we can drink again someday! Like the rest of them!
Deeply understanding and accepting that moderation is a fool’s errand, a myth, an addict’s falsest hope – seems to me to be one of the most crucial pieces of this sober puzzle.
No one is coming to save me - day 29.
1. NORMAL drinkers don't even know what the concept is! Think about it. Only addicts need to "moderate". My wife leaves a half glass of wine on the restaurant table all the time - to her the idea of moderating maybe means not having a few scoops of ice cream here and there. Moderating your alcohol intake? Pure addict thinking.
2. There is No Such Thing as Moderation. It’s as simple as that. It’s our Santa Claus. It’s trying to still wear that vintage t-shirt from high school you looked so good in – it doesn’t fit anymore homie.
It’s perpetual dissatisfaction (as if it works!).
It’s like trying to eat cake through a straw. It’s a lie our beasts insist on perpetuating – the tiniest glimmer of hope that, yes, we can drink again someday! Like the rest of them!
Deeply understanding and accepting that moderation is a fool’s errand, a myth, an addict’s falsest hope – seems to me to be one of the most crucial pieces of this sober puzzle.
No one is coming to save me - day 29.
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Join Date: Mar 2018
Posts: 122
Originally Posted by lessgravity 
Recent conversation with a friend struggling with booze and some posts here on SR had me really thinking about moderation again. Wanted to post these thoughts in a separate thread, that I posted on another thread, to remind myself when my Beast starts trying to convince me again that moderation is a good idea:
1. NORMAL drinkers don't even know what the concept is! Think about it. Only addicts need to "moderate". My wife leaves a half glass of wine on the restaurant table all the time - to her the idea of moderating maybe means not having a few scoops of ice cream here and there. Moderating your alcohol intake? Pure addict thinking.
2. There is No Such Thing as Moderation. It’s as simple as that. It’s our Santa Claus. It’s trying to still wear that vintage t-shirt from high school you looked so good in – it doesn’t fit anymore homie.
It’s perpetual dissatisfaction (as if it works!).
It’s like trying to eat cake through a straw. It’s a lie our beasts insist on perpetuating – the tiniest glimmer of hope that, yes, we can drink again someday! Like the rest of them!
Deeply understanding and accepting that moderation is a fool’s errand, a myth, an addict’s falsest hope – seems to me to be one of the most crucial pieces of this sober puzzle.
No one is coming to save me - day 29.
1. NORMAL drinkers don't even know what the concept is! Think about it. Only addicts need to "moderate". My wife leaves a half glass of wine on the restaurant table all the time - to her the idea of moderating maybe means not having a few scoops of ice cream here and there. Moderating your alcohol intake? Pure addict thinking.
2. There is No Such Thing as Moderation. It’s as simple as that. It’s our Santa Claus. It’s trying to still wear that vintage t-shirt from high school you looked so good in – it doesn’t fit anymore homie.
It’s perpetual dissatisfaction (as if it works!).
It’s like trying to eat cake through a straw. It’s a lie our beasts insist on perpetuating – the tiniest glimmer of hope that, yes, we can drink again someday! Like the rest of them!
Deeply understanding and accepting that moderation is a fool’s errand, a myth, an addict’s falsest hope – seems to me to be one of the most crucial pieces of this sober puzzle.
No one is coming to save me - day 29.
I have tried moderation for years. Alright, I have tried moderation for the weeks following sober periods followed by months of no holds barred drinking. It does not work for me. I have carved out addiction pathways in my mind and body that will always be there. Add a little alcohol and those pathways open back up. It's the result of decades of drinking in abundance. No shame. It is what it is.
I would recommend a book called This Naked Mind which may help anyone grappling with the idea of mederation. It helped me gain an understanding of the insidious ways alcohol tricks us into becoming addicted.
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