undercoverangel

I think I'm slowly discovering what truly makes me feel happiness, or what just gives me that sudden feeling of euphoria, even just a passing feeling. What gives you that warm happy feeling in your everyday life? I've noticed just in my 2 weeks of sobriety a few little things that make me smile.

1) The sound of my kids laughing (Actually anytime they are getting along makes me happy!!)
2) My Yorkie, she is truly my bundle of love. She follows me everywhere and it's my lap she prefers. She's my BFF.
3) Family Night. We all curl up in the livingroom with warm fuzzy blankets, and we rent a good movie and make popcorn and pull out the snacks. Love those nights.
4) Being able to take a nice long 3 mile walk, without trudging through snow!!
5) Fussing in my house. My thing has always been decorating, I can spend hours doing that lately!
6) A Saturday morning going out to a nice breakfast with my husband and doing a little shopping. It's amazing how many Saturdays I just didn't feel like doing anything... hungover...
7) SR!!

I'm sure I'll discover many more little things that make me happy, but these are a few I've noticed recently, no alcohol needed.

EntreNous

Watching wildlife and nature. Perhaps a little boring but it brings me peace.

jamdls

I'm with EntreNous, I can feel happiness just watching the grass grow/flowers bloom etc.
Seeing my daughter and/or her family brings me joy
my pekingnese (most of the time)
chocolate
sleep

Kmber2010

UA, I have found joy in the simplest of things which makes every day great - even the not the so good days

Enjoying waking up and being free, playing with my dog, going a little fast on the muddy trails by my house in my truck, taking a walk in the woods and feeling at peace, taking a different way home just because, feeling my baby kick and just enjoying every minute of it.

I just love feeling again and having a quiet day. The chaotic life I lived is no longer Lots of work (still a work in progress here) and am so grateful

Thx for sharing. Good stuff!

SASA

waking up in the morning, feeling peace. My cats next to me. Getting up, seeing them looking at me and wanting their food. Afterwards we go out in the snow to play and walk together. There are my 3 angels sitting and walking with me in my yard. Loooking full gratitude to my house that hopefully will be paid in full this summer. Going back, making coffee, sipping the 1st cup. Listening to silence and nature around me. Just priceless........

ButterflyDreams

Being with my grandkids (like today)

Placing in my age group in a race

Photography...making someone happy with the portrait I took of them

When I hit a really long tee shot or sink a really long putt

Running a race with my kids

Getting into bed sober and reading a good book

Waking up sober

Riding in my sports car on the Blue Ridge Parkway with the top down on a warm sunny day

Having some of my favorite ice cream

Walking on the beach

Working on portraits in photoshop

Hiking in the woods

Sleeping in

I guess that's a lot to be happy about! I actually have lot's more but it does feel good to put on paper what brings happiness to me... wonder why I ever wanted to have a drink.

undercoverangel

Wow, great stuff! My list is growing! I also love nature. Our house is way off the road so we have lots of wildlife around us. I love to try and figure out the animal tracks in the snow.
Congratulations Kmber2010 on the baby! How far along are you?

Toronto68

I can relate to some of those examples. It makes me happy when I see strangers smooching, when I take in the sky or some building that has visual appeal, or when my cat behaves...When I wake up on time and feel efficient. There's a variety of things. I don't know if each one of them is like euphoria. There isn't much that makes me happy for very long though.

yeahgr8

I'm trying to move forward to inner joy rather than happiness as something has to make one happy and that's always an external...the problem with that is that once the event is over or the feeling gone we tend to look for the next thing to make us happy...if that makes sense:-)

Sobriety is funny sometimes, if you had said to me 2 years ago i would have posted the above i would have told you to go away in a very rude fashion lol

LaFemme

I have a slightly different approach to happiness. Yes there are many things, people or events which make me happy...but the joy I treasure most is the one that isn't based on external factors. Its the well of peace and joy which resides within and only requires a thought to access.

I forgot how to do that for awhile....back when I was buried under the weight of my addiction.

Xoxo, T

Kjell

Being me or at least that's my goal.

I've been sober for almost a year now and I still don't know what makes me happy. I leaned on drinking and drugging so heavily that I have a lot to learn about my sober self.

LaFemme

My thoughts exactly

That said...good design does make me happy...I'm such an art geek

Liv2011

When my kids look at me and the looks says 'I would never want any other Mom'

least

My dogs, more than anything else, and the realization that being sober allows me to give them such excellent care. It gives me more joy to watch them being happy doggies than it does to do something for myself. I take great joy in watching them enjoy themselves.

Waking up feeling good most mornings is also reason to be happy. No more sick-as-a-dog and hating myself awakenings. And oh yeah, my brain works again.

nogard

Be ok being me and accepting myself and others just as we are and life just as it is

nancylee

1. My kids, even when they drive me crazy
2. My dogs playing
3. My husband, when he is not being nasty
4. Painting and doing pottery
5. Music, singing and dancing, even though I do it badly!!

Reubena

Love this thread!

I'm s-l-o-w-l-y learning to feel the happiness that the little things in life bring.

The smell of coffee, or the anticipation of it when I wake up.
The sounds of my kids voices right now as they will quickly change. Love the lisps.
The freely given hugs in our house.
The joy that I see in the eyes of 7 and 5 year olds. Unadulterated joy
The contentment that hope with no expectations brings.
The satisfaction of completing a task.
The realization at the end of the evening that I've done my best and haven't intentionally harmed others and myself.
The mornings after sober evenings. Really thankful for these.
Headaches do not have to be products of alcohol. Neither does vomiting. (I'm amazed that in recovery, I can now feel a sense of relief when I am sick!)


No longer pursuing perfection makes me happy.
Learning to not blame my faults on my parents (at age 42!!!!, good grief ). My parents did the best they could and not "blaming" helps me to take steps forward which makes me happy.
Feeling emotions again. The full spectrum of emotions, not just the super highs and the super lows.

When I once felt boredom (in the evenings during my previous witching hours), now I feel contentment. Can't beat that

myheadhurts

Cycling alone in the mountains.

Climbing snow covered mountains.

Listening to good music.

Using some new language I have learned.

sailorjohn

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be."

Abraham Lincoln

Cliff beat me to this one, but I am a firm believer.

A lot of things give be pleasure, but that's a temporary thing.

Sneezy

The delicious feeling of waking up in the morning without a hangover. Stretching and feeling good, warm dog snuggling up close, feeling as good as when I was six years old, never having touched alcohol, waking up on a Saturday morning and looking forward to the day. I just LOVE this feeling

Love reading this thread too and thinking about happiness - it's worth thinking about!