littlefish

I started keeping a diary about 18 months ago, and it was oriented to documenting my alcoholism. Sadly, (well, it started out with the hope of it turning into a sobriety diary).

It's been a good tool. I had a couple of craving thoughts go through my mind last night at a stressfull moment, (stress is my ultimate trigger to drink), and I took a moment to see what I was doing one year ago today. I had just broken a period of sobriety and had gone on a major binge this time last year.

I drank an entire bottle of vodka, one year ago yesterday, starting around 7AM, and passed out for three hours in the afternoon. I keep my diary on my computer. I closed my diary, went back to cooking dinner and thought: I am so grateful for today. One year ago, I was given the gift of a day in my life and I threw it away. I'll never have that day again. Think of what I could have done if I had not been drinking?

It didn't happen again. Yesterday, aside from a fleeting moment of stress, which I handled by reviewing my past, I took full advantage of my gift of a day.

My diary has been a good tool for showing me the astonishing difference between sobriety and drinking. I would recommend it. It doesn't have to be a novel, you can just report if you drank, how you felt when you did, or if you didn't drink and how you felt. What you did, or didn't do, and how sobriety or drinking affected the quality of each day.

faith08

wow! good idea lf.... i did document one of the last binges i went on (at the end around 3am) and it's horrifying for me to look at.
congrats to you!

CarolD

I too recommend journaling and it helped me immensley.
I also kept a paper detailing my last de tox ..
I never want to do that again!

Thanks for sharing another victory with us LF

Rella927

Journaling even for us little codies has helped me so much!
I look back and see what a real arse I was! !

Way to go littlefish! awesome!

tommyk

Littlefish - good thinking, I like it.