sober1ck

Reasons? I didn't have many good ones to drink, so how many do I need to sober up? To try something new? That's a reason, just not a very lofty one. I'm trying it out to see what happens.

Panacea

Exhausted- my reasons are fairly simple - and I have two of them -- my kids...three if you count my husband

But there are other unexpected and lovely benefits as well. The biggest one for me was the mental clarity and peace of mind. I love not feeling hungover or drunk all the time.

Pan

Dee74

I love the life I have sober.

I love not having to hide anything.
I love being able to look myself in the eyes in the mirror.

I love knowing that however bad one day might be, I have faith life will return to its normal goodness....and it always does.

I feel like I have the 'old me' back

D

BoozeFree

Well I had a long post and of corse got deleted. Today was long. I picked up my dog around 11AM. She was very sad all day and so sore. She's on my bed resting right now but ill have to keep her in a crate when I go to sleep so that she can't jump off the bed.

I will catch up on posts tomorrow hopefully.

Dee74

I'm sure it's take a few days BF, but she'll be as right as rain soon

D

Grace2

08.40

Morning Undies

It's another very cold one here in the U.K 1.0c, had to scrape the ice off my windscreen this morning, it's nice and crisp and dry though and will kill lots of germs. I slept well last night, thank goodness and I didn't want to get up out of my toasty warm bed this morning. Last work day for me this week, yay. I had a really wierd dream last night about going to an old school friends funeral, the strange thing was that it was a pre-death funeral service that my friend attended because she didn't want to miss it!! I haven't seen this particular friend for about 18 yrs so goodness knows where that came from!! It was just so vivid and clear.

TTBABP, if you do get one of those drinking dreams, well they are horrible, because they are so real, but use them as a reminder of how you don't want to be! I've had a few and I wake up in a panic, with that horrible guilty feeling I used to get trying to rememer if I've left any evidence around!

Morning Nicky, I hope you got some sleep too and I hope you're managing to find some time for yourself. Look after yourself.

Hi Bloss, you did well with the way you tackled that urge, I like your style. I've had a few urges lately I must admit, but I'm determined that I'm not going to give in to them. I've not come all this way to fail now, been there, done that! HALT is what saved me that day when I was driving home from the hospital after being there most of the night with my Dad. Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired, I had two out of the four, so I went home got something to eat and had a little rest. The urge passed. I was reading somewhere this week that these urges never last more than half an hour, just need to try and occupy your mind with something else till it's passed!
I don't think the gloomy, grey days help our moods either, roll on spring and summer.

I hope your headache has lifted WWG and the anxiety has subsided. Make sure you drink plenty of water. You're doing really, really well. Stay focused, your body will soon reap the benefits of staying sober and so will you.

Exauhsted, welcome to the Undies as we like to call ourselves. You'll get lots of support here so stick with it. If you want reasons as to why we have chosen to give up drinking someone started a new thread yesterday called ' Things you won't miss about drinking' or something very similar. You will find all the reasons you need and more, infact I can probably relate to all of them! It would be good for you WWG to read it too, infact it would be good for all of us here to read and add to it, it will be a very useful tool for when the A.V comes knocking.
I like the feeling of freedom not drinking has given me, as in I don't have that constantly guilty feeling in the pit of my stomach, I'm not telling lies to myself and my family now I don't have that guilty secret. I'm not waking up in a panic trying to remember where I've hidden my empty wine bottles, I'm not isolating myself and avoiding answering the phone or the door, I'm not paraniod about what I've said to people and if I stink of alcohol. But most of all I've still got my family, who are my life, and I was in grave danger of losing them all, I would have lost them all if I didn't get a grip. I got up one morning after one of my wine binges to walk into the kitchen and on the work top was an empty wine bottle, a wine glass and a photo of every one of my g.children, my children and my family and a note from my husband saying 'you've chosen a wine bottle over us.' I'll never, ever forgot that and the hurt I caused. So there you have it and that is the first time I've shared that!

Sober1ck, you're right, there are no good reasons to drink.

Pan, I agree entirely, how's it going with you?

B.F So frustrating, I'm always doing it, at least one a day, losting posts that is, lol.
Aww I hope your dog feels better today, I bet she's feeling really sorry for herself, she'll improve day by day, like us she needs lots of rest and tlc.

Thanks Dee, we like the old you very much too.
*****

08.40

Morning Undies

It's another very cold one here in the U.K 1.0c, had to scrape the ice off my windscreen this morning, it's nice and crisp and dry though and will kill lots of germs. I slept well last night, thank goodness and I didn't want to get up out of my toasty warm bed this morning. Last work day for me this week, yay. I had a really wierd dream last night about going to an old school friends funeral, the strange thing was that it was a pre-death funeral service that my friend attended because she didn't want to miss it!! I haven't seen this particular friend for about 18 yrs so goodness knows where that came from!! It was just so vivid and clear.

TTBABP, if you do get one of those drinking dreams, well they are horrible, because they are so real, but use them as a reminder of how you don't want to be! I've had a few and I wake up in a panic, with that horrible guilty feeling I used to get trying to rememer if I've left any evidence around!

Morning Nicky, I hope you got some sleep too and I hope you're managing to find some time for yourself. Look after yourself.

Hi Bloss, you did well with the way you tackled that urge, I like your style. I've had a few urges lately I must admit, but I'm determined that I'm not going to give in to them. I've not come all this way to fail now, been there, done that! HALT is what saved me that day when I was driving home from the hospital after being there most of the night with my Dad. Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired, I had two out of the four, so I went home got something to eat and had a little rest. The urge passed. I was reading somewhere this week that these urges never last more than half an hour, just need to try and occupy your mind with something else till it's passed!
I don't think the gloomy, grey days help our moods either, roll on spring and summer.

I hope your headache has lifted WWG and the anxiety has subsided. Make sure you drink plenty of water. You're doing really, really well. Stay focused, your body will soon reap the benefits of staying sober and so will you.

Exauhsted, welcome to the Undies as we like to call ourselves. You'll get lots of support here so stick with it. If you want reasons as to why we have chosen to give up drinking someone started a new thread yesterday called ' Things you won't miss about drinking' or something very similar. You will find all the reasons you need and more, infact I can probably relate to all of them! It would be good for you WWG to read it too, infact it would be good for all of us here to read and add to it, it will be a very useful tool for when the A.V comes knocking.

Just for today, I will feel special to myself and I will love me.

sober1ck

So encouraging Dee. Some day it can be the old me, but new and improved.

I will check in later, but I want to say hi to everyone: bloss, caledonia, grace, pan, tanja, ttbabp, boozefree, wwg, midnight, mydee, dickensen, benice, OLL, duane, and exauhsted... and of course Dee and anyone else I missed... have a great day!

tanja

Good Morning Undies,

Nicky - Your dog's picture is adorable. It lifts my spirits every time I see it. She looks so happy playing with her toy. She actually looks like she is smiling! I hope you got some good rest last night.

Bloss - I so appreciate your honesty and courage about sharing your story about getting an urge to drink. It's pretty frightening that an urge can just come out of nowhere. But, it's just so important for me to recognize that it can and will happen and that I don't have to give in to it. Great job on recognizing the factors that led up to the craving and dealing with it.

Exhausted - I agree wholeheartedly with Dee's reasons for quitting drinking. Namely, to build the life I want and get the "old" me back. Alcoholism does progress and after 30+ years of binge drinking the hangovers were stupendous with the attendent anxiety, depression, fear, shame and guilt. My reasons for quitting drinking were to live longer, have more energy, feel stronger at everything I do, feel more relaxed, be able to think more clearly, have more time, be happier, have more self-confidence, feeling stronger emotionally and growing emotionally in terms of building greater patience, forgiveness, kindness, courage, grattitude and giving to others more than seeking to receive. Giving up alcohol allows me to reach for the things I want in life. The overall sheer misery of drinking wasn't worth the very short time that I enjoyed it. For me, I could see that it was not only a quality of life issue, but a very real life and death struggle.

Boozefree - I'm sorry that your doggy is sad and sore. He has got the best mom to take care of him.

Grace - I agree with your sentiments exactly. I too feel that I have not come all this way to throw my sobriety away. My experience of getting some time under my belt made me more determined to build upon that and reinforced the desire that was always there. A eureka moment was actually recognizing that urges are part of this disease and that they will come and I had better learn ways to deal with them. It is reassuring to know that eventually they do pass and the sense of relief when that occurs. The feeling of pride in one's self and knowledge that things will get better is such a gift!

Yesterday I attended another AA meeting. There was another memorial hanging on the bulletin board. I asked someone if they knew the gentlemen that passed away and what happened. Apparently, he was 50-60 days sober and had to undergo surgery. He was prescribed percocet. This led back to drinking and his premature death at the age of 55. He left behind a wife and three small children. It makes my hair stand on end when I see the stories of people that die from alcoholism. There, but for the Grace of God go I. But, it serves as a potent wake-up call that I never forget the lethal nature of this disease.

Wishing everyone a very happy and sober day!

Dee74

have a great day everybody

D

sober1ck

Thank you, that is what I started to see: misery is a gateway drug. High doses can be fatal.

benice

Grace, I had a very similar strange dream last night! I ran into two friends who I have also not seen in over 10 years and they had just attended a funeral. This one was very vivid and clear too...I went to high school with these girls nearly 35 years ago! But thank goodness I haven't had a drinking dream in a few weeks.

My reasons are less clear. The obvious ones are my hubby and 3 kids...but I have not been able to shake the depression since I quit. I self medicated with wine, which clearly had its drawbacks so I know quiting is simply the right thing to do. I have so much to be thankful for, depression is completely illogical. The more I trust that God will take care of my major stress issues, the better I become. Baby steps...time...faith...hard work...glass half full...yep, getting better!

Have a great day!

Caledonia1

Good for you Benice. It's amazing all physically and mentally well we become th elonger we stop drinking.

I too used to drink to block things out and relieve stress, come to think of it not just about everything....lol

x

Welcome Exhausted. This is a great class here. Lovely to have you on board.

Love and hugs to you all. Sorry I've been so aloof recently, got an awful lot on but all good and of course sober.

Looking forward to a good old catch up soon. I'm heading down south this weekend to see my Dad. Plenty of fun and relaxation which is much needed.

Hugs
x

bloss

Morning Undies

Lots of good reasons to remain sober, some days just have to remind myself. Usually there is something here on SR to sharpen the commitment to sobriety.

Everyone have a nice Thursday
Bloss

OneLessLonely

Not killing someone drunk driving
No hangovers of debilitating anxiety, guilt, regret, headaches, nausea
No planning around drinking, more free to do whatever else you may want to
New hobbies
Save money
Save your life
Better truer relationships
Healthier body
Healthier mind

I actually needed those reminders myself today so thanks for asking. It's not always easy but it's always worth it.

bloss

A few reasons I am glad to be sober:

Remembering what happened the day before, what I said, who I called/texted.

Not waking up with bruises and injuries (no memory of how it happened)

The list is long and scary. But, I still need to remind myself.

walkingwithgod

I just had a great therapy session, it is great to be honest. I am becoming a better person, and I owe all of you a Thank You. I just got stocked up for the 2 feet of snow that we are getting tomorrow. I am nervous about the winds/snow and the power going out, but there is nothing I can do about that. I also will get the first 3 Star Wars movies on Blu-Ray tomorrow in the mail for something to watch during the Blizzard. God Bless all of you.

TTBABP

Wow great to read all of your reasons for giving up the booze and I can echo many of them. I was trying to think why I drank - I think the main reason I would give was to relax, a hot shower a glass of wine. Of course after the first glass, second, third glass relaxation turned to depression and an absolutely horrible next day. It was a terrible cycle - I try to remember it when I get the urges.

walkingwithgod

For the first time I bought supplies for the blizzard that didn't included alcohol.

FrenchPink

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR 11+ MONTHS MILESTONE, NICKY!!!

Mammoth has been spending too much time hiding under water and almost forgot to help you celebrate your phenomenal, inspirational, and absolutely incredible sober accomplishment! Big, proud hugs of love to you, sober mate! Keep up the terrific resolve.

elephant-loch-ness-monster.jpg

Hello to my Fundie Undies! I hope everyone is doing well in sobriety. Huge congratulations to everyone who's celebrated milestones recently. What a difficult, but rewarding trip this is. Just passed my own 9 months milestone yesterday, woo hoo! Wishing everyone continued sober strength. Love and hugs to all.

Grace2

Hi Undies, just checking in before I go to bed. Just don't know what I do with my posts, I've just notices I did a double this morning!!! Well that's a new one on me, I surpass myself at times.

Hi Sober1ck, hope you had a good day too.

Tanja, that's a really good post and I enjoyed reading it. It makes my hair stand on end too when I hear of people dying of alcohol related deseases, especially when they are around my age, I feel the same too when I see alkies on the streets, yes 'there but for the grace of God'. So true, thank goodness we have found ourselves, each other and S.R.

Benice, how odd that we both dreamt about funerals, I wonder what deep meaning is behind that! I'm sorry to hear that you've been having a black cloud time of it since you gave up the evil booze, that seems to be quite common and I'm thinking it's maybe part of the emotional roller coaster of recovery. It will pass.

Nicky, slow down, just slow down woman! Have a great week end with your Dad and for goodness sake chill out a bit. Take care and look after yourself.

Bloss, that is so true, there is always something here on S.R that strengthens my resolve to stay sober, there is always so much I can relate to, it just makes me realise that I am not on my own and there are other people who do know how I feel.

Oll and Bloss I can relate to all those reasons>

WWG, it's lovely to see you sounding so much more positive and confident, I think you're beginning to believe in yourself at last. With each new sober day that passes you will grow and life will get better. You'll be fine in the snow, we had it last week, look upon it as an adventure. You can make a massive snowman with your Princess. Well done on not including booze in your supplies, think of the money you are saving.

TTBABP, I can relate to that too, what a wino I was!

F.P how lovely to see you again, you've been missed. Nicky is going to LOVE that pic, it's fab!

Many congrats to you on achieving 9 sober months. Awesome.