7 months, going strong
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Join Date: Jan 2019
Posts: 83
7 months, going strong
Well it’s more than seven months now and I’m feeling good! I can’t say I’ve not had some urges, but I’ve been practicing playing the tape forward and reminding myself why I’m not drinking.
Just wanted to post that update. Thank you as always for your support and sharing. It helps.
Just wanted to post that update. Thank you as always for your support and sharing. It helps.
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2019
Posts: 83
Thank you! There are so many whys... mostly I just don’t like myself when I’m drinking. My hangovers got so bad that I’d be suicidal, even days after. I’m of course still mortified by some things I’ve done and said while drinking, but I’m a generally very happy if mildly anxious person. I’m not suicidal, nor a bad person, but that’s what alcohol made me. It’s not always been easy, but it’s been worthwhile. I’ve “tried” to quit a million times before, but this is so far the longest and feels different. I also spoke with a therapist during my first month, which helped if in no other way at least to show myself I mean business.
So I guess my why is just because I know I’m better than what alcohol made me and I got sick and tired of being sick and tired
I’m still staying vigilant, though. I know one drink is all I’d need to fall back on old habits.
So I guess my why is just because I know I’m better than what alcohol made me and I got sick and tired of being sick and tired
I’m still staying vigilant, though. I know one drink is all I’d need to fall back on old habits. 
Keep going, it gets better. Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 1,408
Great job! I went just over 7 months then fell flat just the other day. Now I'm dusting myself off and back in the game.
For what it's worth, the tape in your head is right! Keep playing it. I sure wish I could induce the feeling on command.
For what it's worth, the tape in your head is right! Keep playing it. I sure wish I could induce the feeling on command.
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Join Date: May 2019
Location: UK
Posts: 3,922
I’m seven and a half months in too 😀
My “whys” for not drinking were/are less pleasant. I had a fatty liver so reckon I was heading for cirrhosis in a few years, and I can’t imsgine a grimmer predicament. That cruel disease has no symptoms until it’s too late, and the fact I continued drinking heavily despite knowing that still baffles me.
The “side effects” of not drinking are I don’t argue all the time with my wife 😀 My temper was a huge problem even if I’d drunk the day before.
My “whys” for not drinking were/are less pleasant. I had a fatty liver so reckon I was heading for cirrhosis in a few years, and I can’t imsgine a grimmer predicament. That cruel disease has no symptoms until it’s too late, and the fact I continued drinking heavily despite knowing that still baffles me.
The “side effects” of not drinking are I don’t argue all the time with my wife 😀 My temper was a huge problem even if I’d drunk the day before.
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Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 5,154
Congratulations. I'm a believer in the idea that if you can make it 7 months, you can stay sober for as long as you want. At 7 months there is the occasional craving, but the biggest hurdle at this point is your AV. This isn't like a craving, which is something that would kill me if I had to live with life long. Now it's about mind games, some from your AV, and some from your conscious mind. We always like to blame our AV, but our AV is still just us.
While mind games seem to be long past for now, I've been able to ignore them by restating my vows to sobriety, never forgetting that I will always be an alcoholic, and that I can never drink normally. For me, I return to those three axioms as articles of faith, because my mind games always centered around thoughts that I could somehow drink normally, or that I should at least test the waters again and see if things might be different now. Those thoughts were the ones I experienced, and those axioms were the defenses I used. It might be different for others.
It also helps that I no longer have a desire to drink. Even if I could, it's unnecessary, at least unnecessary enough that it would be idiocy for me to bother with such an experiment.
While mind games seem to be long past for now, I've been able to ignore them by restating my vows to sobriety, never forgetting that I will always be an alcoholic, and that I can never drink normally. For me, I return to those three axioms as articles of faith, because my mind games always centered around thoughts that I could somehow drink normally, or that I should at least test the waters again and see if things might be different now. Those thoughts were the ones I experienced, and those axioms were the defenses I used. It might be different for others.
It also helps that I no longer have a desire to drink. Even if I could, it's unnecessary, at least unnecessary enough that it would be idiocy for me to bother with such an experiment.
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Join Date: May 2019
Location: UK
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Originally Posted by DriGuy 
Congratulations. I'm a believer in the idea that if you can make it 7 months, you can stay sober for as long as you want. At 7 months there is the occasional craving, but the biggest hurdle at this point is your AV. This isn't like a craving, which is something that would kill me if I had to live with life long.
Agree 100% about experimenting. I truly believe drinking again will immediately send me back to those early weeks. No thanks.
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Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 5,154
Originally Posted by Hodd
The cravings in the first weeks of sobriety are powerful and take effort and willpower to ignore. During that time, I really thought every evening for the rest of my days would be spent fidgeting, looking at the clock and fighting off that urge. However, over time it becomes the norm not to drink, and that urge becomes occasional and weak.
Early on it starts to dawn on you that you CAN quit forever, and with that knowledge, confidence, and weaker cravings, drinking becomes nothing more than a choice, and eventually you don't even think about making a choice. The cravings are gone, and you just automatically don't drink, while you bypass all all the thinking, fretting, and calling upon vast quantities of will power. It almost seems magical, but it not magical at all. It's pretty much the way we get over any addiction. Avoidance of the substance simply causes that to happen.
Although I have to admit, it doesn't feel that easy at first when you view quiet sobriety as a pipe dream and you think the cure is to build up a massive reserve of will power. The cure is not gaining more will power and getting stronger, but creating a personal environment where no massive amounts of will power are needed, nor is a titan strength of character required. It's ass backwards, well OK, counter intuitive.
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