Turtle1

Hello, I am new here. I have been drinking heavily on and off for about 13 years. I have never gotten in trouble but my alcohol intake is far over the recommended intake for females. I know there are women that are far worse than me but i feel I will only get worse. A few monthes ago I noticed a mild sensation on my left side below ribcage under breastbone so I decided to stop drinking once and for all. Well after a few days the pain went away so I do attribute this to my alcohol intake. Well, I never lasted longer than two weeks without drinking. For me, at the end of my day,I will usually consume four hard mixed drinks or 5 beers or almost a full bottle of wine(red) or an entire bottle of wine(white) The sensation has not returned but my drinking is not on a daily basis any longer. This week I was sober for four days. It seems as though I cant get past 3 or four days without giving in to that craving. I never have any physical withdrawal symptoms. Only a longing for alcohol. Im not sure what my next step should be.I would like to stop drinking but its hard to get over that longing. I am not a social person and am not sure AA is for me. I have read a few books and such and I feel I do have a problem but I am not sure what my next step should be since I can't seem to quit on my own.

Dee74

Hi Turtle1

Welcome to SR

You'll find a lot of support here - that support helped make the difference between three or four days at a time and lasting sobriety for me - I hope we can help you too
D

LaFemme

Hey Turtle and welcome! I never made it more than t days sober either

I wouldn't discount AA just because you aren't a social person. That said its not currently part of my recovery. But I work very hard with a lofe coach to address the underlying reasons I drank and remove them and I spend a lo of time here where I get support, encouragement and inspiration from an amazing group of people.

Good luck!

Turtle1

Yeah, i'm really not a social person. I really don't know of any other solutions besides going to aa meetings. The whole idea of talking about my problems in front of others makes me really nervous but the concept of AA, I think is a good thing.

Turtle1

Yeah, what I am missing in my quest to overcome this, is probably the social element which is what I am lacking and seem to be searching for here in this anonymous website. I guess I answered my own question and will search for a meeting group and repost again when I begin day one once again.

Dee74

Keep posting if you like Turtle - as I said SR was very helpful to me

D

LaFemme

Hey Turtle...my post was a little unclear...typo I think...I never made it more than a couple of days before I found SR...now I have 6 months. Post here while you try to figure out if you want to go to AA or not. We may be anonymous but there's a lot of love and support here

least

Welcome! I've been sober a bit over a year with the loving support of my friends here and my wonderful addiction counselor. Counseling saved my life. Have you considered seeing a counselor/therapist? Mine's specialized in addiction, having been addicted to a substance herself. She's been a lot of help in my struggles, not just with drinking but with family problems too. She's a gem.

I'm a believer in the benefits of a good counselor.

Anna

Hi Turtle,

I'm glad you found us, and you can always find company here anytime of the day or night.