9 Weeks and counting
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 269
9 Weeks and counting
9 weeks ago was my last drink. Prior to that I had strung together a year of sobriety before I delved into "moderate drinking". When I had my year sober, I was never happier and anxiety free. You have all read enough posts to know how the moderate drinking experiment went.
So in early October I decided my emotions could not handle the alcohol any more, and I quit on my own. That was fine for about 3.5 weeks, when I gave in and drank for 2 more nights. Clearly, I had to do a little more.
That is when I started to find SR and became active reading and posting here. I worked a lot on diet, spirituality, self talk, learning about the disease and how it affects the brain, identifying my feelings, and sitting through the uncomfortable feelings knowing they will not hurt me.
What has changed.... i was anxiety ridden all the time, sweating, and in and out of depression, irritable bowels, headaches, general discomfort. Thinking about the future and making a plan to move on in my life is so much less daunting than it used to be.
Do I still battle with these issues? Yes.... but do I battle with them on a daily basis, not as much to no. Some days and mornings are much better than they used to be. The tightness in my chest and stomach are much less crippling than it was.
There is great hope now that I will come though this. Learning to relax and let the process happen helps. When I am fighting it or stressed out, the process seems to take longer, sleep is harder to come by and the next day is not as pleasant.
The PAWS symptoms do come an go. Right now, I am proud of myself for making it this far, which I could not have done without the great support here. So maybe that is helping me feel better and stay focused and feel good.
There is still lots to go, but it DOES get BETTER!
So in early October I decided my emotions could not handle the alcohol any more, and I quit on my own. That was fine for about 3.5 weeks, when I gave in and drank for 2 more nights. Clearly, I had to do a little more.
That is when I started to find SR and became active reading and posting here. I worked a lot on diet, spirituality, self talk, learning about the disease and how it affects the brain, identifying my feelings, and sitting through the uncomfortable feelings knowing they will not hurt me.
What has changed.... i was anxiety ridden all the time, sweating, and in and out of depression, irritable bowels, headaches, general discomfort. Thinking about the future and making a plan to move on in my life is so much less daunting than it used to be.
Do I still battle with these issues? Yes.... but do I battle with them on a daily basis, not as much to no. Some days and mornings are much better than they used to be. The tightness in my chest and stomach are much less crippling than it was.
There is great hope now that I will come though this. Learning to relax and let the process happen helps. When I am fighting it or stressed out, the process seems to take longer, sleep is harder to come by and the next day is not as pleasant.
The PAWS symptoms do come an go. Right now, I am proud of myself for making it this far, which I could not have done without the great support here. So maybe that is helping me feel better and stay focused and feel good.
There is still lots to go, but it DOES get BETTER!
Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Eastern Us
Posts: 1,366
Great job!
It became easier for me when I realized that I wasn't depriving myself of anything of value when I stopped drinking alcohol. It adds nothing but misery to my life. I feel sorrow now for the folk that still drink it, regardless of the amount.
It became easier for me when I realized that I wasn't depriving myself of anything of value when I stopped drinking alcohol. It adds nothing but misery to my life. I feel sorrow now for the folk that still drink it, regardless of the amount.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 9,029
Awesome post and congrats on nine weeks. I especially liked the bit about sitting through the uncomfortable feelings knowing they won't hurt you. It took me a long time to figure that out but it is so true.
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