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On Day 8 - no cravings - confused

Old 01-18-2010, 11:38 AM
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On Day 8 - no cravings - confused

My original story can be found here: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...long-post.html

I am confused. I am on day 8 without a drink. I have had no withdrawal symptoms (outside of tossing and turning through sleep - sleep has returned to normal the last few nights)...and I've had zero cravings for a drink - not one.

Has anyone else ever experienced this? I am confused because I expected them to happen frequently. But since the day I told my 'secret', I haven't had any.

Does anyone have any idea what this means? Am I just lucky?
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Old 01-18-2010, 11:43 AM
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Don't over think it. Just feel it.

Feels good eh?

I've been relieved of the obsession twice in my life. I spend hours, heck days, wondering what I did. Was it surrendering? Was it being honest? Was it the meds? Did I just finally have enough? Was it the people I surrounded myself with? Was it that time of month?

LMAO.

Enjoy it and have some faith that you might never have an answer.

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Old 01-18-2010, 12:00 PM
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Hi David,

You totally surrendered and admitted you were powerless.(step 1) It's a great relief and you've also had a lot of relief by confessing to those you have kept the burden of a secret from.

Enjoy this ....but it will not last until you take action to prevent you from going back to drink when the problems as to why you started in the first place become evident again. The rest of the steps will deal with this.

Have you been back to that AA meeting?
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Old 01-18-2010, 12:05 PM
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Hi intention-

I haven't gone back to a meeting yet, but I do plan on it. I'm getting ready for my busiest work week of the year which starts this Thurs....

I guess I understand the 'relief' that I've felt for coming clean so to speak, but I'm confused why I haven't had any 'physical' cravings for alcohol. I thought it was a chemical dependancy. Even though I've admitted my issue to myself and told my secret, shouldn't there still be cravings to deal with?
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Old 01-18-2010, 12:18 PM
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Hi David, I didn't experience any physical cravings other than those in the first few hours after the last drink. I wrote about it in this thread

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...t-anxiety.html

Consider yourself lucky that you have not been so physically dependant on alcohol that you need a medical detox. That doesn't make you any less of an alcoholic though. It's how we use the alcohol and what it does to us that makes us an alcoholic not how much we consume every day.

There are many on this site who have not needed a medical detox.
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Old 01-18-2010, 01:02 PM
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Awesome David, you are a lucky one as I am. Someone mentioned do not over think it, that is good advise. Are you going to meetings? Have you found a sponsor? Are you reading the book?
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Old 01-18-2010, 01:19 PM
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I think there's as many different stories as there are people, and alcoholics, David.
I'm just glad you haven't suffered much

I agree with other people in this thread tho - it's important to remember why you stopped...and especially important to guard against thinking well-heck, maybe you weren't that bad after all?....

I know I would sometimes feel 'good' when abstinent and I would use that to question my alcoholism - three guesses where that led me LOL

D
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Old 01-24-2010, 03:01 PM
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Hi David,
I can definitely relate. The first two weeks of getting sober were incredibly easy for me, I had absolutely no desire to drink and no withdrawl symptoms as well. However, after those two weeks that mental obsession kicked in and I have thought about it a lot and have had a few close calls. I would talk about this at meetings as it made me confused as to whether I'm really an alcoholic or not and the thing is, it can be easy to get sober but staying sober is the hard part and I've found that is very true.

Good luck!!
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Old 01-24-2010, 03:48 PM
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Hi,

I'm on day 25. I only had "cravings" for about 1 night....I've only had one MILD "urge to drink"...easily pfffted off...more like the thought of it just crossed my mind...

That said...I have often had withdrawl cravings for days and had to deal with urges constantly many times in the first30 dayas.....

This is not my first time around the block...

because of that...I am able to take this minor miricle as just that...It doesn't shake my belief that I am an alchoholic who suffers from the cravings and the obssession....It is simply being relieved at the moment as i work a spiritual program...

The first time I got sober (25 years ago) I was unable to identify with many charactoristics of an alchoholic because i had never TRIED to quit....so I wasn't sure after sucessfully quiting after my first meeting if I really was a truley alchoholic person...thats the pitfall it's important to avoid...for me
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Old 01-24-2010, 04:56 PM
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All of us humans are different dave...
i knew a guy once that would sleep through most of a detox at home.
his body shook while he slept.
unfortunately he died of active alcoholism a few years back.. leaving behind young children..

Some of us sailed through........with little physical symptoms of alcohol withdrawal........some have to be restrained while pink elephants with fangs
whisper in their ears..........or have seizures or both.

some have no cravings.............some are clawing through walls desperate for relief.

with me........once a craving did come or life got so unbearable without a drink........i took one....
i didn't have any defense against it.........powerless.
i could make all the resolves i wanted but when the chip fell and i needed..wanted....desire a drink..........it was game over.
consequences meant nothing......my resolve meant nothing.....
promises......swearing off.........warning from doctors........all meant nothing.

changed happen for when.....or began to happen when someone suggested i read the big book.
read the doctors opinion they said..........
it was so profound that i contined with my sponsor through the rest of the book and completed my first set of steps.

i found that soon it became pretty easy to not pick up a drink....id found a power......although i didn't understand it much at the time.....

maybe pick up a big book and read for yourself.......
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Old 01-24-2010, 05:15 PM
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id found a power......although i didn't understand it much at the time.....
found a power!!! that sums it up for me as well, it WAS something i could control and once i figured that out, well it has been 3 1/2 pretty easy years of sobriety.
consider yourself lucky David as i do, some suffer horribly through what we sailed through.
congrats on 8 days!
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Old 01-24-2010, 08:09 PM
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My first couple of weeks, I only felt better and better each day physically and mentally. It was just in the last few days (today is day 29) that I've been having psychological cravings/urges to drink. Hearing the ice tinkling in a glass, thinking about Friday afternoon after work and the weather was beautiful, hard week at work...all triggers to drink, and boy did I want to. Wow oh wow, did I really want to.

I think perhaps my hp might be the promise that I made to my husband not to drink? I even asked him this weekend if he thought I'd ever be able to drink again...you know, "learn" how to drink in a more controlled way. (Puh-lease!! That's my addiction talking there, loud and clear...). And he said, "No." Thank god he said that.

I feel on such a roller coaster because some days the thought of a drink is like thinking of drinking draino! And other days, it seems that I want my old friend back. But I just keep thinking "Don't pick up the first drink...no matter what!!!"

Hang in there!
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Old 01-24-2010, 09:59 PM
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David - I did well and it was pretty easy for 6 months. I wasn't really working on my recovery (e.g. only going to a couple or meetings a month, not really working the steps, etc.). Then, on my 6 months birthday, I almost relapsed.

So for me, I can never let myself get overconfident. I must work on my recovery daily (although it doesn't have to take that long each day).

I am glad that you are finding it easy so far .. just remember that alcohol is cunning, powerful, and baffling ...
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Old 01-24-2010, 11:34 PM
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Originally Posted by humblestudent View Post

I think perhaps my hp might be the promise that I made to my husband not to drink? I even asked him this weekend if he thought I'd ever be able to drink again...you know, "learn" how to drink in a more controlled way. (Puh-lease!! That's my addiction talking there, loud and clear...). And he said, "No." Thank god he said that.
Thank God, for your sane husband, humblestudent. HP talks to us through other people.
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Old 01-25-2010, 03:43 AM
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wow you sound exactly like what happened to me. I detoxed after 20+ yrs last May. when I got out I had no desire for a drink whatsoever, and started going to meetings every single day. Then after 2-3 months I felt so confident due to my sobriety, my control (little did I know) and having my life back. That all ended one day when
1- I stopped going to meetings

2- I was on the way to a friends house for a small party and I bought a six pack of beer on the way just to give to the party. Next thing I know I was drinking, and haven't stopped since. I had no idea how powerful that first drink would be- and my brain shifted gears....so I am here trying to quit again.
Please take the disease seriously, it is sneaky and it doesnt take much to fall back into the hole.
Best Wishes-
Dub
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Old 01-25-2010, 04:04 AM
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I guess I understand the 'relief' that I've felt for coming clean so to speak, but I'm confused why I haven't had any 'physical' cravings for alcohol. I thought it was a chemical dependancy. Even though I've admitted my issue to myself and told my secret, shouldn't there still be cravings to deal with?
I hope I get this right: there is acute withdrawal that can last for several days and the physical craving is strong in this early period. But, as I can say from experience, it depends on how much I drank immediately before quitting. I tried quitting many, many times. If I hadn't been drinking a lot, and for me, I could drink a lot, I didn't suffer from the physical cravings. A lot of times I would wean myself off of it to avoid the physical cravings. Crazy, yeah. But, I am an alcoholic.

The mental obsession sets in later, over the next few months.
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Old 01-25-2010, 04:06 AM
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Someone on this site mentioned something, there are so many jewels of wisdom here, that he was guarding the front door with a shotgun but alcohol sneaked in the back door.
Keep strong, it is a daily struggle, hence, one day at a time. Just take it 24 hours at a time.
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