LoftyIdeals

PFS...you have my prayers, too. That bugger alcohol is cunning, baffling, powerful. It will lull you into thinking you can be safely satisfied, and then it will steal your children when you are not looking. It's a real dastardly deed.

But, the important thing is that you are calling it's bluff, and saying good riddance. You can do this. It's hard, but I think it's worth it. I still get tempted, but I'm in real denial...of it's power over me. What I'm saying is that I mostly have peace in my life since I gave it the boot, but every now and then it perches on my shoulder and whispers sweet lies into my ear (and it's beard tickles). That's when I have to whiteknuckle it until I figure out a game changer. I'll switch something up in my life to keep it confused. So far, its worked.

You can do this, PrayForStrength. In the end, many of us don't really want it, but it beats the pants off the alternative.

Good luck!

rs2

Hey PrayFor, thanks for coming back here. I really hadnt planned to be sober this long, but it sure is nice not being a slave to the alcohol. I too want to go back and see if I can handle moderate alcohol intake, but a few weeks of sobriety ran into months and now I'm thinking I should give it a year before I try to see if I can handle it. Today was 7 months for me, and my teenage daughter asked me last night how long it'd been. She was just cheering me on.

Hearing of your experience makes me think that moderation may not be a good option. I've seen so many folks say that total abstinance is the only way and thats probably the only way for me too. WHat do you mean by the effects on your body are a lot worse?

Thanks again for checking in here and letting us know whats going on with you.
Sincerely,
rs2

Dee74

I'm glad you're back PFS - you found out what I did - we can never go back...it only gets worse...

Feel free to check out the March thread in Newcomers if you like

congrats to you on 7 months rs2

D

prayforstrength

Thanks guys. I appreciate you very much.

I completely understand now that moderation is not an option. I simply can't drink.

rs2 - the "hangovers", what I imagine is "liver pain" and the never ending feeling that I need to vomit are much worse now. Thank God. I think I worked all the poison out of my system over the 5+ months I had not been drinking and now my body is refusing to deal with it. Funny how the internal voice can convince you to keep doing something that really doesn't feel good in the long run. Something that can steal our lives away or "children" as Lofty put it The worst thing is my son is disappointed in me.

I will turn this around!

Congrats to all of you and, Dee, I will check out the March group.

Peace!

Dee74

I absolutely have faith in you PFS

D

LoftyIdeals

I re-read that, and have no idea why I wrote "children". Call it creative license? Anyway, keep posting PFS, and glad to hear you are going the year stretch rs2. I've been down this road for 28 yrs off and on, so if I go back, its simply because I chose to drink. I have no expectations of being able to control it for any length of time. For me, expecting such would be the definition of insanity.

Congrats on 7 months, rs2; my 7 months is today, which means Piotr would have been yesterday?

Again, welcome back PFS!

Piotr

PFS - great to see you back here and a conviction to not go down that path again. I had 6 weeks of sobriety last June, when I decided I can handle my drink now. I couldn't. Binge drinking and then the constant vomiting. The only way for me is total abstinence.

rs2 and lofty - congrats on 7 months. You are awesome !!

My 7 months was on the 6th.
Have been going to the gym regularly since October. Last weekend went for a real bicycle ride. Felt so good to be fit, not as tired and use the top gear. It really hit me that all the hard work pays off and life gets better.

So keep at it everyone !

wantthistostop

Hi all - been some time since i posted here but i haven't forgotten you all. I will reach my 7 month mark in 5 days and it feels good. I still attend my weekly therapy and considered wrapping it up last week... but after seeing him this evening have realised that i am not ready to close that door just yet.

I had my first drinking dream a couple nights back... it seemed so real! When i woke i actually thought that i had had a drink the night before and wondered if i had and just thought it was a dream!? Took a while to realise it was just a dream - but thinking about it afterwards scared/worried me. Although i have had no desire to drink!

Anyway just wanted to stop by, touch base and say keep up the good work xxx

blackstrat6

Yippy Skippy! 7 mos!

Dee74

Congratulations blackstrat!

D

Piotr

Congrats wtts !
I still go to therapy every week and have started group therapy recently. Still a lot of issues to deal with.

Blackstrat - you rock !

rs2

WOW! It'll be 8 months for our class. My how time has flown. So happy to report that I went to Las Vegas for a week and was COMPLETELY SOBER! That was a 1st for me.

From time to time i look back at the postings of those that are in their 1st weeks of sobriety as a reminder of the wild emotional ride it was to cease alcohol. It is now so easy to pass on ordering a glass of wine or cocktail, but it was so HARD those 1st few weeks/months. Over all, nobody out there really cares wether I drink or not. Of course I've bent over backwards to try and not make them uncomfortable about drinking around me.

Others drinking around me does not seem to be a trigger. My biggest cravings for a cold glass of chardonnay seems to be when I'm mentally very tired from work. I was able to get my Yacht Club to start carrying Buckler beer, which is non-alcholic. I've alawys liked my beer in a glass so many folks at the club are not aware of my sobriety, not that they'd care anyway.

Miss seeing the posts here. Just want to say congratulations to everyone for making it this far! We are 2/3ds of the way to being sober for a year. Way to go!

PrayForStrength; thank you for posting about your relapse and "do-over". As Ive always thought I'd eventually drink again and try to control it, your experience is very enlightening to me. THANK YOU! I hope you are doing well and will keep posting here in the August class.

Piotr: great job! So happy you are sticking with the sobriety and rebuilding your life. I hope your relationships with your family will continue to improve.

Good night & good luck!

Sincerely,
rs2

LoftyIdeals

Hey there, Augustians. Thought I'd bring this thread a little higher to see how you folks are doing. Things are good here. Made 8 months on the 7th, now about 8.5. It's less of a struggle now, but I still get triggers from stupid stuff like painting the house and stuff. But none that cause me to drink. Still not smoking since 1/1/12.

How is everyone else?

rs2

Hey Lofty: Great to hear from you. Congratulations!! You've been over 8 months without a drink and over 4 months without a smoke!! You are doing great and knowing you've quit smoking ( which studies say is 10 times harder than quitting heroin) means you have the ability to do ANYTHING you put your mind to. Congratulations!!

Way to go Lofty!!

Doing great here without the booze, but have been putting on weight. Gotta clean up the eating habits and get back to excercising.

Keep up the good work everybody, we are almost at a year now!

Sincerely,
rs2

Zee

Im a bit of a late-comer to 'the class of' but i got sober on 30th aug 2011 (unfortunately not by choice, but by extreme liver conditions!) so Im nearly 8 months, yay!
As I was so ill (you will see 'my story' on my first post here when I joined SR in March) I got dragged out of my 'alcohell' whether I wanted to or not! I am unbelievably thankful for that. I have not particularly craved for a drink and have never relapsed in any way because when you've spent a month in hospital its a bit of an eye opener!
I have an ultrasound tomorrow to take a look at my liver (thursday) so Im a little nervous. My liver specialist booked me in for one... and an endoscopy on may 9th just to see whats going on in there I suppose.
Well, anyway, on a lighter note, to quote one of Will Ferrells tweets "I just broke my personal record of days without dying today" If anyone is on twitter, you have to follow him, he is seriously funny!

LoftyIdeals

Welcome Zee, and congrats on 8 months! Hope the tests come back great. Sounds like you had quite a wake up call.

Will Ferrell is a riot; I'll have to follow him. Glad you joined the thread!

rs2

Walked out of the 1st Will Ferrell movie I went to see "Anchor Man". Didnt think I'd ever like him, but picked up Talledega Nights on a rainy weekend at drinking camp (deer camp) and found it hysterically funny. My wife doesnt think its very funny when my 8 year old repeats the lines from it.

So glad to have you join us Zee and congratulations on 8 months. Looks like we are quckly headed toward 9. Yeah!

Hey Piotri and Lofty, way to stick in there. its nice to see you guys still around and still sober.

Onward and upward!

rs2

amy55

Hi guys, I'm still here also, so lets see we have rs2, lofty, an newcomer zee, welcome aboard zee, and piotr.

Did I miss anyone?

So I am now in my cabin for a year. Kitchen is done, dining room is done, bathroom is done, bedrooms are done, living room is done, but none of it is furnished yet. I still have my outdoor furniture for inside. I do have a tv, and a wood/coal stove, the rest is yet to come.
So now it is spring. Need to get my mudbath which is supposed to be a driveway done, just putting down a bunch of red rock for now, can't afford much else. But that's ok !!!!

Still have those carpenter bees, but guess what, ........ I am doing a better job on them then my exterminator. Still have my down times, and isolation times, but that's ok too, I get to talk to myself to get to know myself better.

So, here's to everyone........ a big congrats, and if I missed people that still are around,let me know.

Life does get better........................................

amy55

Ok, sorry bout that, but also need to say hi, and grats also to
Hooped, Carla 77, jimihendrix, prayforstrength, wanthistostop, blackstrat6, ojibway84, and of course I can not forget Dee, for always being there for us.

Thanks everyone
Ann Marie

Dee74

thanks Amy - great to see you & great to hear all is well

D