Questions
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2019
Posts: 108
Questions
Hello all. On day 11 now. Doing really well which is good but need to make sure this sticks this time, so have some questions if people could help:
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
Member
Join Date: Oct 2018
Posts: 67
Originally Posted by Al34 
Hello all. On day 11 now. Doing really well which is good but need to make sure this sticks this time, so have some questions if people could help:
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
2) What do you enjoy? Make that a priority, find joy. Shake up your routine, get out of the house and live this new life that you have earned.
3) H2O, diet sprite, tea, for me, what do you want to indulge in? I used to love slurpee's, frozen pebbles of juice... sign me up. Now if I'm sober I get to go to the buffet with crab, because that is my true food/drink love. Reward youself, you are doing AMAZING!!!
Member
Join Date: Mar 2019
Posts: 519
Originally Posted by Al34
Hello all. On day 11 now. Doing really well which is good but need to make sure this sticks this time, so have some questions if people could help:
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
Hey there! Congrats on double digits, 11 days is incredible!!! I am hitting my one month on SATURDAY WOOHOO!!!
1) For me, AA has been the foundation. I got a sponsor and am working the first steps with her. She is having me write down (by hand) what happened, how alcohol defeated me and how it affected others. I am diving deep here and going waaaayyy back and unearthing some heavy stuff. It is going to help me in a huge way, I can already tell.
2) Currently interviewing but I am a gogogo type of person, so I have been busy. Unwinding to me is working out an hour a day, then coming home and cooking with a funny movie on in the background. I take my time while showering and doing my nightly rituals, enjoying them as I never got to do them drunk. I also dedicate an hour or more to reading the Day by Day meditations, completing my Gratitude List for the day and coming here! Then I hop into bed and get cozy and say my nightly prayers and then 5-10 mins of deep guided meditation. If I am not zonked out, I read a few highlights from a good book.
3) Drinks at the moment are a good coffee, flavored soda water (currently enjoying Polar Orange Vanilla!) or infused water I make myself, like orange and lemon or lemon/cucumber. Yum!
Hope this helped, it was fun to write! Night!
Member
Join Date: Jun 2019
Posts: 1,614
Congrats on the double digits. Well for me at 102 days . I like to grill out. So now since I got blessed with a new job . thanks to my sobriety I can reward myself to some special foods. A nice fat ribeye .crab legs. And all the fixings. I love my quiet time in the am where I do my readings and pause and reflect. I post here a lot.lol. why? Cause I want to share my journey with wveryone. To give hope. Keep coming back
Member
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 598
1. I have come to the conclusion that the reasons for my problem with drinking are no longer important. All that counts is that I never drink again.
2. For me it is exercise and routine. Hard gym every day after work without exception. Then a small meal and reading or watching TV or writing. I try and avoid empty time.
3. Herbal teas and if I go to a party I allow myself alcohol free beer. I do not find that a trigger at all and I enjoy the taste.
2. For me it is exercise and routine. Hard gym every day after work without exception. Then a small meal and reading or watching TV or writing. I try and avoid empty time.
3. Herbal teas and if I go to a party I allow myself alcohol free beer. I do not find that a trigger at all and I enjoy the taste.
Guest
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 8,674
Glad you are here and asking, and sober!
1 AA, therapy, spiritual growth, support system (yoga, etc are add ons for me)
2 At the start, where you are, anything that kept me busy and NOTHING that involved drinking activities or friends....as I've gone on - being sober gives me the freedom to do whatever I want
3 I don't save special bev treats for the weekend! Along the way, different things have appealed. Right now, I drink good coffee in the AM, lime sparkling water with extra lime, sometimes diet coke....just my norm!
I need IRL support, and I think of my program and habits and lifestyle as layers of separation between sober, healthy me and the possible future drink.
1 AA, therapy, spiritual growth, support system (yoga, etc are add ons for me)
2 At the start, where you are, anything that kept me busy and NOTHING that involved drinking activities or friends....as I've gone on - being sober gives me the freedom to do whatever I want
3 I don't save special bev treats for the weekend! Along the way, different things have appealed. Right now, I drink good coffee in the AM, lime sparkling water with extra lime, sometimes diet coke....just my norm!
I need IRL support, and I think of my program and habits and lifestyle as layers of separation between sober, healthy me and the possible future drink.
Member
Join Date: Jan 2018
Posts: 2,913
1. Yes, although I guess I would say to be really conscious of the fact that addressing issues and staying sober happen on parallel tracks. In other words, you don’t want to wait (not that you are) for things to be resolved, or sink back into temptation when the same issues arise going forward.
2. I mostly don’t. I get home from a busy day at work and then it’s chores and yelling kids and getting through the nightly routine. If my life looked a little different I would definitely take a walk or do some yoga or read or watch a TV show. Right now I try to appreciate my life for what it is—and then try to really prize the 20 or so minutes I get after the kids to to sleep. Or really enjoy it if one of my kids and I do something together that doesn’t involve chores, consternation or some combination thereof.
3. Agree with sentiment that treats aren’t just for weekends. I guess it seems kind of like I see different schools of thought—caution about sinking into old patterns by indulging in excessive spending or eating or video gaming or whatever, and then on the other hand I see a fair amount of as long as it’s not drinking or drugging and it makes you happy, go for it. I tend to be more in the latter camp and have generally found things are still so much better than if I were drinking. So with all that said, my treat might be ordering something online I need for the house, or having cake (I ate a LOT of cake there for a while), or a mocktail (there are also different schools of thought on this so treat with caution), or I’ll just sit in bed and browse the Internet which I don’t get to do a ton of, or I’ll take a nap. I have also found that focusing on how lucky I am helps as a general proposition but also as a more specific lens through which to view enjoyable activities. If I’m out with friends (drinking or no) I am just glad for good conversations where I’m not fixated on whether people notice how much I’m drinking. If you peel back all the romanticized cultural images around alcohol you should find that so many of the good times that happened with alcohol were, well, just good times. It was the people, the place, the moment, not the booze that made it what it was.
Oh and this wasn’t a question but the more you can come here, the better! And post before you drink if you are thinking about it or have taken any preparatory steps.
Good luck!
2. I mostly don’t. I get home from a busy day at work and then it’s chores and yelling kids and getting through the nightly routine. If my life looked a little different I would definitely take a walk or do some yoga or read or watch a TV show. Right now I try to appreciate my life for what it is—and then try to really prize the 20 or so minutes I get after the kids to to sleep. Or really enjoy it if one of my kids and I do something together that doesn’t involve chores, consternation or some combination thereof.
3. Agree with sentiment that treats aren’t just for weekends. I guess it seems kind of like I see different schools of thought—caution about sinking into old patterns by indulging in excessive spending or eating or video gaming or whatever, and then on the other hand I see a fair amount of as long as it’s not drinking or drugging and it makes you happy, go for it. I tend to be more in the latter camp and have generally found things are still so much better than if I were drinking. So with all that said, my treat might be ordering something online I need for the house, or having cake (I ate a LOT of cake there for a while), or a mocktail (there are also different schools of thought on this so treat with caution), or I’ll just sit in bed and browse the Internet which I don’t get to do a ton of, or I’ll take a nap. I have also found that focusing on how lucky I am helps as a general proposition but also as a more specific lens through which to view enjoyable activities. If I’m out with friends (drinking or no) I am just glad for good conversations where I’m not fixated on whether people notice how much I’m drinking. If you peel back all the romanticized cultural images around alcohol you should find that so many of the good times that happened with alcohol were, well, just good times. It was the people, the place, the moment, not the booze that made it what it was.
Oh and this wasn’t a question but the more you can come here, the better! And post before you drink if you are thinking about it or have taken any preparatory steps.
Good luck!
Member
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 356
Originally Posted by Al34
Hello all. On day 11 now. Doing really well which is good but need to make sure this sticks this time, so have some questions if people could help:
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
Thanks in advance, honestly much appreciated
To unwind, I find walking helpful. I don't run because of my back, knees, and age frankly. But I try to do a mile a day or more. I typically do about a mile and a half. On weekends, maybe two one mile walks so a total of about two miles. If you have podcasts you like, listen to them instead of music.
I find sparkling water, LaCroix, etc. good. At one time I drank NA beer but found it too close to the real thing.
Best wishes!
Member
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Los Angeles, Ca
Posts: 535
"1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?"
Reasons for drinking are driven by emotional factors, usually feelings of helplessness (about whatever in my life makes me feel overwhelmingly trapped, powerless and out of control).
We all have specific themes or triggers in our lives that cause our behavior. There is always a reason and reward for behavior. Trigger-Behavior-Reward-Repeat.
There are several good books on this subject by Lance Dodes, MD and Judd Brewer, MD
Reasons for drinking are driven by emotional factors, usually feelings of helplessness (about whatever in my life makes me feel overwhelmingly trapped, powerless and out of control).
We all have specific themes or triggers in our lives that cause our behavior. There is always a reason and reward for behavior. Trigger-Behavior-Reward-Repeat.
There are several good books on this subject by Lance Dodes, MD and Judd Brewer, MD
Administrator
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Dancing in the Light
Posts: 61,504
1. To deal with the underlying issues, I found a lot of great books that helped me, and I did a lot of soul-searching and journalling.
2. I go for a long walk.
3. I drink water.
3.
2. I go for a long walk.
3. I drink water.
3.
Administrator
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: Dancing in the Light
Posts: 61,504
1. To deal with the underlying issues, I found a lot of great books that helped me, and I did a lot of soul-searching and journalling.
2. I go for a long walk.
3. I drink water.
2. I go for a long walk.
3. I drink water.
Member
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 1,065
1. What to do about dealing with the issues that got me into drinking? Do i do counselling a third time/yoga/meditation?
You have to keep trying everything, throw enough against the wall until something sticks
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
I shovel poop, as soon as I close the office doors I switch hats, I am arena Mom, dance Mom, soccer Mom, music Mom, barn Mom and I love it! If taxiing the children isn't enough, I have gardens to weed, dogs to train - they really are incorrigible, horses to work and ride. From June - September I have vegetables and fruit to clean, can and freeze for the kids lunches and our meals through winter, during the fall and winter, I find needle point relaxing. Sitting down in front of the fire, stabbing a piece of fabric thousands of times - good for the soul! Of course sometimes I pull a lawn chair up, grab a sparkling water and watch dh split wood. (That's not really relaxing though, gosh just thinking about it has me all bothered...) I also stack wood - so there's that!
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
I sleep in until 6am - that is my only treat on the weekend! If I can find diet Dr. Pepper or cherry diet pepsi (not the feisty cherry crap), but I will drink that any day I find it. If we are going to a party or bbq, I take along my own drinks, might be a flavoured sparkling water, diet soda. We go away most weekends now showing horses, so water - lots and lots of water. I started showing again this year, doing timed events, so I stay away from anything that might make me retain even an ounce.
You have to keep trying everything, throw enough against the wall until something sticks
2. How do you unwind after a hard day at work?
I shovel poop, as soon as I close the office doors I switch hats, I am arena Mom, dance Mom, soccer Mom, music Mom, barn Mom and I love it! If taxiing the children isn't enough, I have gardens to weed, dogs to train - they really are incorrigible, horses to work and ride. From June - September I have vegetables and fruit to clean, can and freeze for the kids lunches and our meals through winter, during the fall and winter, I find needle point relaxing. Sitting down in front of the fire, stabbing a piece of fabric thousands of times - good for the soul! Of course sometimes I pull a lawn chair up, grab a sparkling water and watch dh split wood. (That's not really relaxing though, gosh just thinking about it has me all bothered...) I also stack wood - so there's that!
3. What drink do you have at the weekend as a treat?
I sleep in until 6am - that is my only treat on the weekend! If I can find diet Dr. Pepper or cherry diet pepsi (not the feisty cherry crap), but I will drink that any day I find it. If we are going to a party or bbq, I take along my own drinks, might be a flavoured sparkling water, diet soda. We go away most weekends now showing horses, so water - lots and lots of water. I started showing again this year, doing timed events, so I stay away from anything that might make me retain even an ounce.
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