Living in Sobriety Part 9
Miracles Happen
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,977
I have a question, I noticed last night that I am picking my skin all the time and have been doing it a while now. If I feel a bump or anything I pick at it until it is gone and by then I have opened the skin. It starts to heal and I start picking again. I know this is not good, its like I am obsessed with imperfections and I end up making them worse.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: massachusetts
Posts: 2,216
Good Morning, my friends! As this is my 1000th post on SR, i would like to tell you how grateful I am to have you (and SR) in my life. When I found SR in early April of 08, I wasn't at my lowest (that came 4 months later), but I was pretty bad in the head. What first attracted me to the site was the "extra" anonymity. I had been going to AA for about 4 years and, becasue my meetings are generally filled with old timers, felt unable to admit that I couldn't "get it". I was bingeing 2-3x/week and sinking further and further into mental hell. But here I saw many who were just like me and for a long time, relied on SR when I stumbled, to help me regain my footing. And that's how it's been since. My recovery tools are a mishmash of AA, SR, reading, therapy, yoga and meditation. Somehow that recipe is working. Today is my 82nd day of straight sobriety and I have had 4 one nighters in the last 185 days and it is the best I have done since I was pregnant (20 years). Both "counts" are important to me. Louis, admitting my powerlessness took me a long time. Like many others, I tried to "control it" and couldn't. Finally, believing that drinking isn't an option for me was a necessary Rubicon for me.
I literally couldn't have done it without SR. That is a fact. And I am so immensely grateful to all of you. Oddly enough, it was the extra anonymity that brought me her, but now I find it teeth-knashingly frustrating that I can't converse with you all in person. Full circle, huh? But then again, I have shifted my weight from "hiding" to "seeking".
OK, enough grandstanding for me.
It's great to see you Louis, PR, and Bo! Welcome back Least! I was just yesterday wondering when you were returning...
Stoney, Tan and Ro...I hope you all feel better. Lest you think I'm some sort of nut, I was JUST KIDDING about the space junk. I REALLY believe it's due to all those "signals" we can't see. Can you imagine if we could see all the microwaves, cell phone stuff, GPS ****, radio waves...the list goes on and on. It would look like an huge spider web! Yuck. Thank God we can't, but who knows what it's doing to our insides. Poor Mother Earth...but that's a rant for another day. I'm sending you kissies to make you feel better, 'K???
Bee...good for you with your bike. I power walk daily (mostly) and it has gotten to the point that I feel guilty if I DON't go. How alcoholic of me!
Nelsie, I loved your statement "When I put the cork in the bottle...the madness stopped" How true. And, I have to tell you "Eat, Pray, Love" is one of my favorite books of all times. I have read it AT LEAST 4x. That's where my screename came from. Do you remember her debate with herself. (hide vs seek)? Also, When she wrote in her journal about her self saying "I will always love you"...Gives me goosebumps every time...
Anyhoo, I must get more coffee, but again, I love you all in so many, many ways...thank you, thank you , thank you.:ghug2
lizzy, lisabeth,elizabeth, hideorseek,whatevva
I literally couldn't have done it without SR. That is a fact. And I am so immensely grateful to all of you. Oddly enough, it was the extra anonymity that brought me her, but now I find it teeth-knashingly frustrating that I can't converse with you all in person. Full circle, huh? But then again, I have shifted my weight from "hiding" to "seeking".
OK, enough grandstanding for me.
It's great to see you Louis, PR, and Bo! Welcome back Least! I was just yesterday wondering when you were returning...
Stoney, Tan and Ro...I hope you all feel better. Lest you think I'm some sort of nut, I was JUST KIDDING about the space junk. I REALLY believe it's due to all those "signals" we can't see. Can you imagine if we could see all the microwaves, cell phone stuff, GPS ****, radio waves...the list goes on and on. It would look like an huge spider web! Yuck. Thank God we can't, but who knows what it's doing to our insides. Poor Mother Earth...but that's a rant for another day. I'm sending you kissies to make you feel better, 'K???
Bee...good for you with your bike. I power walk daily (mostly) and it has gotten to the point that I feel guilty if I DON't go. How alcoholic of me!
Nelsie, I loved your statement "When I put the cork in the bottle...the madness stopped" How true. And, I have to tell you "Eat, Pray, Love" is one of my favorite books of all times. I have read it AT LEAST 4x. That's where my screename came from. Do you remember her debate with herself. (hide vs seek)? Also, When she wrote in her journal about her self saying "I will always love you"...Gives me goosebumps every time...
Anyhoo, I must get more coffee, but again, I love you all in so many, many ways...thank you, thank you , thank you.:ghug2
lizzy, lisabeth,elizabeth, hideorseek,whatevva
let it grow!
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: USA
Posts: 15,540
here's my sloppy joe recipe - been usin' the same recipe for over 20 years 
i got this from an old librarian friend - librarians are famously good cooks
1 pd hamburger (you can use ground turkey, but we love hamburger better)
1 chopped onion (i use onion powder instead of fresh, and add about a half of chopped green pepper - me and mr k don't love fresh onion)
brown meat with onion/green pepper with salt pepper garlic powder. drain meat.
at this point - you can put meat in your crock pot and cook on low for the afternoon OR just simmer on the stove with the following sauce:
1/2 cup ketchup
2 T apple vinegar
1/2 teaspoon tabisco (or a bit more if ya like it hot)
1 T brown sugar
1 teaspoon yellow mustard (i like a bit more...)
1/4 cup water
add more salt/pepper/garlic/onion powder to taste and add a pinch of celery powder/celery salt if ya have it
serve on toasted buns!
easy to double or even triple for a crowd. freezes well too, for down the road.
i got this from an old librarian friend - librarians are famously good cooks1 pd hamburger (you can use ground turkey, but we love hamburger better)
1 chopped onion (i use onion powder instead of fresh, and add about a half of chopped green pepper - me and mr k don't love fresh onion)
brown meat with onion/green pepper with salt pepper garlic powder. drain meat.
at this point - you can put meat in your crock pot and cook on low for the afternoon OR just simmer on the stove with the following sauce:
1/2 cup ketchup
2 T apple vinegar
1/2 teaspoon tabisco (or a bit more if ya like it hot)
1 T brown sugar
1 teaspoon yellow mustard (i like a bit more...)
1/4 cup water
add more salt/pepper/garlic/onion powder to taste and add a pinch of celery powder/celery salt if ya have it
serve on toasted buns!
easy to double or even triple for a crowd. freezes well too, for down the road.
Member
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Here's me. but when drinking could be found in doorways!
Posts: 1,138
Hey....
thanks fro the info.... i am getting it.... went to a step 1 meeting this morning... it really helped too as well as the info you guys have kindly shared... i am gonna just do the best i can... i dont think there are any right or wrong answers.... .... and nelco... yes i was listening lol
Believe: them pains in your leg... are they like cramps.... cos a old gent i looked after said that to stop him getting cramps in his legs he used to either sleep with a magnet under his pillow are carry one with him... something in the magnet draws out the cramp apparently.... and when i have had cramps i have stood on a magnet and it has honestly helped....
plus... good for you on the bike ride....
Good morning guys.... sorry to ear some of you are still not feeling well... i wis you a quick recovery back to health.....
I am gonna go listen to my records now... i so love viynal (can never spell that word)... love the cracklin and jumping songs... cant beat it... my fav is war of the worlds... but just bought the sound of music and king and i to try...
My fav author is James Patterson... cant beat him.... am reading his Maximum ride series just now....
Have a good day all
thanks fro the info.... i am getting it.... went to a step 1 meeting this morning... it really helped too as well as the info you guys have kindly shared... i am gonna just do the best i can... i dont think there are any right or wrong answers....
.... and nelco... yes i was listening lolBelieve: them pains in your leg... are they like cramps.... cos a old gent i looked after said that to stop him getting cramps in his legs he used to either sleep with a magnet under his pillow are carry one with him... something in the magnet draws out the cramp apparently.... and when i have had cramps i have stood on a magnet and it has honestly helped....
plus... good for you on the bike ride....
Good morning guys.... sorry to ear some of you are still not feeling well... i wis you a quick recovery back to health.....
I am gonna go listen to my records now... i so love viynal (can never spell that word)... love the cracklin and jumping songs... cant beat it... my fav is war of the worlds... but just bought the sound of music and king and i to try...
My fav author is James Patterson... cant beat him.... am reading his Maximum ride series just now....
Have a good day all
Miracles Happen
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,977
Louis, I was searching for something that might help you with the unmanageablity questions and I found this. Hope it will help you.
Now let's look at denial, dishonesty, and disarray.
What Unmanageable Events Did We See?
Things weren't going well with the family.
Sure they were all to blame, but how is it that problems with wives, kids, siblings, aunts and uncles - girlfriends or boyfriends - were getting larger and large; their warnings and concerns were getting louder and louder; and their actual assistance in getting us out of messes was really getting smaller and smaller.
Things weren't going well with the job.
Sure we hadn't necessarily been fired or lost our customers or clients. But somehow the patience of any or all had been strained and evidently less and less with each missed appointment, with each fouled up activity, with each angry outburst, with each fearful approach to the person or the job itself.
Then there was the dishonesty.
Instead of bragging about how much we drank, it seemed better to cover it up. To buy at different stores. To drink at different bars. To eat at different restaurants. To hang out with different people - the ones who drank too much. Maybe there was even the hiding of the evidence - hiding the extra bottles, placing the excessive evidence at the bottom of the garbage can, denying the amount we had to drink, hiding the facts about the people, places, and things that were becoming a new part of life.
What about the legal problems?
The bills that were not being paid, with the dun-notices that were piling up. The traffic tickets that really didn't need to be dealt with. The diminishing number of business and customers leading to debt and thoughts of bankruptcy. The very real considerations of divorce, loss of child custody, and restraining orders. The pile-up of tax returns, and the delays in payment of taxes, followed by IRS activity. Then the real criminal stuff. Drunk driving. Driving without insurance. Driving without a license. Driving without proper registration. Driving with open containers. Driving under the influence. Possession. Surely they weren't just the result of drinking too much, but the events piled up.
What about ethical problems?
The doctor who commits malpractice. The lawyer who misses court or misrepresents his clients. The fiduciary who embezzles or falsifies reports. The person who takes bribes. The person who regularly lies to family, friends, employers, authorities, courts, doctors, therapists, and businesses.
What about the criminal problems?
Were we embezzling funds, dipping into trust accounts, breaching fiduciary obligations, cheating people, lying to clients and customers, padding expense accounts, cheating on tax returns, filing false insurance applications and reports? Oh, those couldn't be due to alcohol. But isn't it interesting how many of us found ourselves in just such circumstances. Then the biggies for some: Robbing. Breaking and entering. Larceny. Assault. Battery. Domestic violence. Manslaughter and homicide. Messing with under-age children. And just about anything else that is covered in the penal codes-local, state, and federal
What about health problems?
The liver disorders. The heart troubles. The falls and fractures. The injuries in fights or accidents or job-related problems. The vague aches and pains. The "hangovers." The blackouts - can't find the keys or the car or the house; and can't remember what was said or done. The confusion and forgetfulness - not thinking too clearly from time to time. And the ones the doctor warns about - tremors and physical aberrations.
What about the loneliness, the guilt, the shame, the anger, the fear, the despair?
Long before the judge or the doctor or the clergyman or the family begins to get the point across, we feel distant, abandoned, ashamed, sometimes angry, often guilty, filled with fear, and without friends. If the problems get bad enough, enter despair—thoughts of suicide.
What about the mental conditions?
Depression, melancholy moods, sleep disorders, manic episodes, brain damage, and more. How many are seen by the psychiatrist, the psychologist, the counselor, and the family doctor before finally being sent to or seeking a mental ward or hospital.
What about the religious consequences?
Most of the scum bag things alcoholics finally do are squarely violative of Biblical principles, Christian teaching, and even the Ten Commandments. In short, they are sin! Excessive drinking is a sin. Adultery is a sin. Lying is a sin. And on and on from there. Sin may be commonplace, but it's still sin - large, small, hidden, open, productive of harm, or temptingly pleasant and permissible.
What about the trips to the Emergency Room? To Juvvie?To court? To jail? To prison? To the Probation or Parole Officer? To the therapist? Do these have anything to do with drinking?
I kinda found this very enlightening for me.
Now let's look at denial, dishonesty, and disarray.
What Unmanageable Events Did We See?
Things weren't going well with the family.
Sure they were all to blame, but how is it that problems with wives, kids, siblings, aunts and uncles - girlfriends or boyfriends - were getting larger and large; their warnings and concerns were getting louder and louder; and their actual assistance in getting us out of messes was really getting smaller and smaller.
Things weren't going well with the job.
Sure we hadn't necessarily been fired or lost our customers or clients. But somehow the patience of any or all had been strained and evidently less and less with each missed appointment, with each fouled up activity, with each angry outburst, with each fearful approach to the person or the job itself.
Then there was the dishonesty.
Instead of bragging about how much we drank, it seemed better to cover it up. To buy at different stores. To drink at different bars. To eat at different restaurants. To hang out with different people - the ones who drank too much. Maybe there was even the hiding of the evidence - hiding the extra bottles, placing the excessive evidence at the bottom of the garbage can, denying the amount we had to drink, hiding the facts about the people, places, and things that were becoming a new part of life.
What about the legal problems?
The bills that were not being paid, with the dun-notices that were piling up. The traffic tickets that really didn't need to be dealt with. The diminishing number of business and customers leading to debt and thoughts of bankruptcy. The very real considerations of divorce, loss of child custody, and restraining orders. The pile-up of tax returns, and the delays in payment of taxes, followed by IRS activity. Then the real criminal stuff. Drunk driving. Driving without insurance. Driving without a license. Driving without proper registration. Driving with open containers. Driving under the influence. Possession. Surely they weren't just the result of drinking too much, but the events piled up.
What about ethical problems?
The doctor who commits malpractice. The lawyer who misses court or misrepresents his clients. The fiduciary who embezzles or falsifies reports. The person who takes bribes. The person who regularly lies to family, friends, employers, authorities, courts, doctors, therapists, and businesses.
What about the criminal problems?
Were we embezzling funds, dipping into trust accounts, breaching fiduciary obligations, cheating people, lying to clients and customers, padding expense accounts, cheating on tax returns, filing false insurance applications and reports? Oh, those couldn't be due to alcohol. But isn't it interesting how many of us found ourselves in just such circumstances. Then the biggies for some: Robbing. Breaking and entering. Larceny. Assault. Battery. Domestic violence. Manslaughter and homicide. Messing with under-age children. And just about anything else that is covered in the penal codes-local, state, and federal
What about health problems?
The liver disorders. The heart troubles. The falls and fractures. The injuries in fights or accidents or job-related problems. The vague aches and pains. The "hangovers." The blackouts - can't find the keys or the car or the house; and can't remember what was said or done. The confusion and forgetfulness - not thinking too clearly from time to time. And the ones the doctor warns about - tremors and physical aberrations.
What about the loneliness, the guilt, the shame, the anger, the fear, the despair?
Long before the judge or the doctor or the clergyman or the family begins to get the point across, we feel distant, abandoned, ashamed, sometimes angry, often guilty, filled with fear, and without friends. If the problems get bad enough, enter despair—thoughts of suicide.
What about the mental conditions?
Depression, melancholy moods, sleep disorders, manic episodes, brain damage, and more. How many are seen by the psychiatrist, the psychologist, the counselor, and the family doctor before finally being sent to or seeking a mental ward or hospital.
What about the religious consequences?
Most of the scum bag things alcoholics finally do are squarely violative of Biblical principles, Christian teaching, and even the Ten Commandments. In short, they are sin! Excessive drinking is a sin. Adultery is a sin. Lying is a sin. And on and on from there. Sin may be commonplace, but it's still sin - large, small, hidden, open, productive of harm, or temptingly pleasant and permissible.
What about the trips to the Emergency Room? To Juvvie?To court? To jail? To prison? To the Probation or Parole Officer? To the therapist? Do these have anything to do with drinking?
I kinda found this very enlightening for me.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: massachusetts
Posts: 2,216
I dunno, Bee...it's probably along the lines of nail biting...kind of a compulsion. I think we all have little things like that. Mine is anti-aging lotions and potions. Yet I smoke and never use sunscreen (and live in the caribbean, no less). Duh, me.
I guess if you end up making a spot worse, perhaps you could "substitute" something less harmful? Or maybe just put a bandaid over it so you don't see it? Maybe others have some better ideas....mine aren't great, I know.
I guess if you end up making a spot worse, perhaps you could "substitute" something less harmful? Or maybe just put a bandaid over it so you don't see it? Maybe others have some better ideas....mine aren't great, I know.
And I love music too, been listening to alot of Disco lately, get the body jumping.
Miracles Happen
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,977
Yeah Lisabeth, when I was reading it I had a few ah ha moments. As to the legal troubles, no I didn't have any either (yet) but what I did to some Police friends of mine, there will be alot of amends to make. I was lucky, very lucky that they were friends.
Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 12,136
Here I am again. Couldn't stay away for long. Thanks for the recipe K that looks great I am going to do that as a treat on Thurs or Friday for my dear daughter - maybe for my sis and nieces too. Is apple vinegar the same as apple cider vinegar?
Louis I used to love vinyl - haven't had a turntable for years but love the sound that is unique to listening to LP's and 45's.
Bee there is a name for that skin picking I know a couple people who do it my dad is one of them. I'll try to get the name of the condition, and yes it's a condition, I think. Depends on the severity I guess.
Lizzy thanks for the heartfelt 1,000th post! You are awesome and I'm so proud of you - you've come so far.
Louis I used to love vinyl - haven't had a turntable for years but love the sound that is unique to listening to LP's and 45's.
Bee there is a name for that skin picking I know a couple people who do it my dad is one of them. I'll try to get the name of the condition, and yes it's a condition, I think. Depends on the severity I guess.
Lizzy thanks for the heartfelt 1,000th post! You are awesome and I'm so proud of you - you've come so far.
Member
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 12,136
I will check it out, thanks Ro.
Miracles Happen
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 9,977
Just checked it out Ro, thanks. Not that bad,(yet) thank God. I usually do it when laying in bed at night watching TV, I start to scrape with my nails. I will try to be more vigilant at night now and stop doing it.
Currently Active Users Viewing this Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
