Boredom I know this has been done a thousand times before but I am so bored. Due to the weather here it has been impossible for me to do any work. I am on day 23 now of sober and these last couple of days have been so hard. I have £20 quid in my pocket and keep thinking that I could get smashed for that. On the bright side I have managed to stop myself from having a drink and the snow will be gone by the weekend. |
Hi Spen, Congratulations on being sober. Fantastic achievement. :a122: Now are you really bored ? Or is that your alcoholic child-like mind jumping up and down, stamping its feet, having a tantrum, screaming "I want a drink!" ??? |
It's amazing how sobriety stages can be so similar for so many of us. Weeks 1& 2 physical issues, weeks 3 & 4....BOREDOM. I'm on day #25 now and am going thru the same thing as you...life can seem slightly grayer around the edges. I'm told this is only a phase. Keep your mind and body occupied. Pick up a hobby; resume an old project. Let's find out when the days of sobriety are interesting again. |
Hi there spen. Great to see you again . Yeah I know what you mean about the cold weather getting you down. I agree with intention tho I think it's just the alcholic mind playing tricks with you -as it will do when it's nice and sunny outside and we'll think "oh wouldn't it be nice to have a drink in the sunshine?" Glad to see you're back on track-come on we can do this! (I'm on day 5 this time round) Have you tried the mindless games in the arcade when you get bored? And as countless other members on here have said don't forget how boring we get when we are drunk! Keep posting -that will stop you from being bored! |
Originally Posted by JJB
(Post 2484891)
as it will do when it's nice and sunny outside and we'll think "oh wouldn't it be nice to have a drink in the sunshine?" |
Acknowledging that there will always be an excuse for a drink is key to acknowledging ones alcoholism. This is what made me feel so hopeless about my situation when I was still drinking. It would not have mattered where on the earth I moved to or what I was doing or who I was mixing with. Sooner or later an all-mighty Binge would have happened and I would have been back to square one. Acceptance that I am an alcoholic has given me great hope for my fututre as now I know what I must not do if I want to be moving forward positively. To take a drink cannot be an option for me as I accept my alcoholism. Just for today I will not drink/use. Gives me the oppurtunity to work on what I know needs to be worked on. Hang in there man, it does get better. |
Several years ago our members compiled this list :) 150 Things To Do Instead of Drinking 1. Read a book 2. Take a walk 3. Play a musical instrument 4. Knit 5. Clean your closets 6. Research your genealogy 7. Cook a gourmet dinner 8. Write an article for your local newspaper 9. Go take some pictures 10. Clean the mildew in your bathroom 11. Start writing that book you've been planning 12. Plan a garden 13. Plant a garden 14. Play with a pet 15. Read to a child 16. Visit someone in an old folks' home 17. Watch a news special on TV 18. Set up a family budget 19. Make a web site 20. Take up archery 21. Exercise 22. Go to an online recovery meeting 23. Surf the internet 24. Call your mom 25. Learn a foreign language 26. Write a poem 27. Play golf 28. Take a bubble bath 29. Draw 30. Teach a parakeet to whistle 31. Take a nap 32. Listen to music 33. Paint 34. Clean your desk 35. Start a stamp collection 36. Go window shopping 37. Browse in a book store 38. Go to an art gallery 39. Go for a drive 40. Paint a room 41. Watch the clouds go by 42. Play darts 43. Do target shooting 44. Do home repairs 45. Clean your garage 46. Sort your photographs 47. Make a scrapbook 48. Climb a tree 49. Plant a tree 50. Make marmalade 51. Make a list of things to do 52. Write a letter to the editor 53. Volunteer somewhere 54. Take a hike 55. Take a college class 56. Try yoga 57. Meditate 58. Get a massage 59. Make fruit smoothies 60. Bake cookies 61. Do a crossword puzzle 62. Go to the gym 63. Plant a color bowl 64. Sharpen your pruning tools 65. Change your engine oil 66. Sew 67. Groom your dog 68. Go see a play 69. Write a sonnet 70. Sort your recipes 71. Play solitaire 72. Go bird watching 73. Write a letter to a friend 74. Read a poetry book 75. Repot your houseplants 76. Go to a movie 77. Mow your lawn 78. Put up (or take down) your Christmas lights 79. Make pickles 80. Go jogging 81. Watch sitcoms 82. Plan menus for a diet 83. Do a jigsaw puzzle 84. Play chess 85. Write a country-western song 86. Watch a video 87. Go for a bike ride 88. Plant an herb garden 89. Start an online journal 90. Dye your hair 91. Go to a restaurant 92. Lift weights 93. Bake some bread 94. Learn a martial art 95. Polish the furniture 96. Make a flower arrangement 97. Read the newspaper 98. Start some seeds 99. Sort your magazines 100. Do some laundry. 111. Take a nature walk 112. Play with your kids 113. Volunteer at a homeless shelter 114. Volunteer at a school 115. Pick up garbage in a park 116. Tickle your kids 117. Play basketball 118. Volunteer at an animal shelter 119. Read to a child or pet 120. Sign up for obedience training with your dog 121. Take a walk and pick up litter you see on the way 122. Spend time at the library 123. Sort all your digital photos and make an album to print for holiday gifts to family. 124. Help your kid organize his closet. 125. Figure out the melody and chords to your current favorite tune on the piano. 126. Practice your holiday cookie recipes 127. Make crackers from scratch (that one didn't go so well). 128. Make tortillas from scratch (better). 129. Reread a book you haven't read for years. 130. Tango 131. Learn about someone else’s religion. 132. Reread one of your college textbooks. 133. Key out a wildflower. 134. Do your nails. 135. Do word puzzles. 136. Play a board game. 137. Burn CD’s of some of your favorite music for a friend. 138. Plant a bonsai. 139. Play Mad Libs. 140. Speak only in heroic couplets for an hour. 141. Read poetry online. 142. Ride a stationary bicycle. 143. Set up a domino topple. 144. Play backgammon. 145. Build a house of cards 146. Make an entry in Wikipedia. 147. Read a world almanac. 148. Publish a family newsletter. 149. Throw cards at a hat. 150. Go to bed. __________________ AA=Awesome Adventures in living sober.....:yup: |
Oh Thanks Carol I loved that! I think I'll go tickle my kids! LOL |
Boredom...... an evil thing it is, the cure I found was ACTION!!! Here are a few things I do to deal with it, not in any real order: 1. I go to a meeting. 2. Call some one else in recovery to either talk recovery or just to BS. 3. Read recovery literature or a good book. 4. Find a nice quiet spot, get comfortable, pray & meditate. 5. All of Carols list. I had several months sober and I told my sponsor that I felt kind of bored, he asked if it was possible I was confusing boredom with Peace & Serenity. I pondered what he said for some time...... I realized that things were starting to go better, there was no drama going on at that time in my life, nothing was hanging over my head then either........ things were basically going okay, I felt pretty good mentally and physically. Was I experienceing the Peace & Serenity spoken of by the old timers & my sponsor? What I found was that for so many years my life was in CONSTANT turmoil, I had no idea what it felt like when all of the turmoil was gone and life was Peaceful & Serene...... at that moment I saw that indeed my sponsor was right, I was mistaking Peace & Serenity for boredom! Do not get me wrong, life goes on and some days I get dealt a bad hand in life, but due to my ongoing sobriety, maintaining my spiritual condition fit by keeping my HP in my daily life and applying the principles I learned in the steps, I am now able to play the hand I am dealt that day out to the end instead of trying to drink it away or fight it like a madman. I am finding more and more days as time goes by where I get dealt a pretty good hand, when that happens as I play that hand I enjoy that Peace & Serenity that I was NEVER able to find in a bottle. BTW congrats on the sober time. |
Originally Posted by Tazman53
(Post 2484960)
5. All of Carols list. I had several months sober and I told my sponsor that I felt kind of bored, he asked if it was possible I was confusing boredom with Peace & Serenity. There is nothing to do. Just be. Do nothing. Be. No climbing mountains and sitting in caves. I do not even say "be yourself" since you do not know yourself. Just be. |
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