day 7. time to celebrate?
 

yep, that voice is creeping in LOUD. heck, if i can go this long, then what harm could one day of celebrating do? trying to stay focused and remind myself why im on this wagon. my 9 month old princess is trying her darndest to give me inspiration, but when she goes to sleep and mama is asleep- the voices kick it in to high gear. got some n/a beer all last week to quench the thirst, but i usually pour half of it out. i started x'ing out days on the calendar to represent sober days, and so far, im working on "turkey" #2 this month. BUT!!!, why cant that calendar have just one or two slips? nothing to be ashamed of, right? working extra hard today to stay on track and due to the nice weather (finally) in arizona, we've got some nice hiking to look forward to and keep the distraction/occupying at a maximum.

thanks for reading, and encouragement.

pete

ps. ive gone hogwild building 2x4 shelves/planters/more shelves for the backyard garden. the wife is soooo happy im doing something i love and enjoy, but im running out of backyard.

I guess that depends on what you mean by celebrate?

If by that you mean, go life live on life's terms and really feel your feelings, then yes...celebrate! After all, what in life is not worth celebrating? If it means lowering your defenses and taking your focus away from recovery, then I would say that seven days of sobriety is too soon to be doing that kind of celebrating.

For me, drinking is no celebration. It's a death wish.

yeah, im pretty much talking about getting a drunk on. im hoping you fine folks can beat that thought out of me. i love encouragement and "rah rah's", but i could use some tough love that i dont get from my friends of family. ive spent many hours a day here for the past week to remind myself that lots and LOTS of us are dealing with this on a daily/hourly basis. pondering what project i can work on next just to stay busy not drinking. i wish i had told you all to invest in the company that supplies lowes with 2x4's. theyre making a fortune off my sobriety and that is fine with me. ive never felt better.

hey if you posted here you know the answer

Pete,

Why to you quit to begin with? I mean you must of had reasons that have pushed you this far down the sobriety road.

failed first marriage/family and working on doing the same with #2. just trying to salvage what i still have and enjoy life happily, healthily and with a clear head. thanks for reminding me.

Whether it's seven days or 7,000, the moment you drink, you no longer have anything to celebrate, Pete.

Keep thinking about those things Pete. As well as reminding yourself of all of the negatives that come along with drinking. As for the happiness, she can be an elusive feeling, but in order to feel anything you can't be numb.

just c&p'ed this in an email to my wife to be printed and posted above my desk. thank you VERY much.

You're here cos you can't manage your drinking, right?
so, what makes you think you could handle your slips Pete?

I went out one night for a few drinks - I'd been sober and I thought I deserved a 'break'.
I then drank every day for the next two years.

I believe if you're a drinker like me, every drink puts you back in that cycle.
Keep moving forward Pete :)

D

So, you are going to drink to celebrate not drinking?

^ This.

It'd be like setting fire to your diploma to celebrate passing your finals!

If either one got ill in the middle of the night, you'd be useless...

Stay stopped, 7 days is nothing...

Allowing x number of slips is pretty much the same as pretending that you're moderating. If you were good at moderating, I'll bet you wouldn't have ended up here in the first place.

I know where you are coming from! I didn't know how to celebrate anything by way other than drinking, so it felt very natural for me to celebrate my sobriety by drinking. It's really messed up, but I've been there.

Stay sober, because I've found that this passes in time. :)

Exactly...If you could just drink a couple of times a month, you probably wouldn't be here...

Alcoholic #1
Wants to get sober, gets sober, stays sober. Life becomes manageable again.

Alcoholic #2
Wants to get sober, gets sober, relapses, relapses, finally gets it, stays sober. Life becomes manageable again.

Both alcoholic #1 and #2 are the same because they're both trying to move on with their life. While it comes easier for some, it can be harder for others. But their both after the life beyond drinking.

But heres the thing. Relapses are not rewards. You may THINK they are, but trust me their not. Your only working backwards my friend. Your also trying to normalize your drinking, and I can tell you with absolute certainty you will fail.

I do know the alcoholic mind bud, and how crazy it can think. Your post is coming in in TRUE HIGH DEFINTION CRAZY ALCOHOLIC THINKING right now.

Have you even read what you posted? Lets recap

-Im happy Im sober!
-Ive been sober 7 days wohoooo!
-Lets celebrate by getting drunk!! YEAH

lol. Come on man. I know you can see the insanity in that :)

yes, i definitely saw the absurdity in that statement. i figured most of you have been through that mindset and was looking for some words of wisdom. i sure got them!!! made it through the day and feel great this morning. it gets easier everyday for me. perhaps not counting days would be beneficial. any milestone may lead me to that way of thinking.

thanks
pete

Celebrate with cake and ice cream :) That way your family can celebrate with you! Even your princess!