a new profile
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 7
a new profile
Hi I will introduce myself now,
I'm in my mid forties and my friends think I'm ******** for quitting beer (my drink of choice). I've done the 12 month thing before as many here no doubt have done as well. You know how that went without me having to type anymore...within a week happy go lucky 30+ beer a week guy returned. I do lots of cardio stuff and try to stay in shape but after almost 2 years back into beer I was getting a gut again and I kept thinking about if I had enough beer in the fridge. Beer was not fun and I felt like a slave to the local beer store, knowing everyone that worked there of course. Funny thing is my non-drinking wife never complained about my drinking ever. She wouldn't care if I bought a case tomorrow no kidding. My friends all thought my 12 month thing was noble but now that I'm several months into not ever going back they think it's dumb. I do lots of activities, but I do miss getting the buzz and don't really want to be aware of everything all the freakin time. Never had any issues with the law and booze. I of course like being able to drive whenever I want to and pick my kids up regardless of when they need me. The decision to quit was completely introspection based. I know the workout high is all I got now so it'll have to do.
thanks Breathalyzer
I'm in my mid forties and my friends think I'm ******** for quitting beer (my drink of choice). I've done the 12 month thing before as many here no doubt have done as well. You know how that went without me having to type anymore...within a week happy go lucky 30+ beer a week guy returned. I do lots of cardio stuff and try to stay in shape but after almost 2 years back into beer I was getting a gut again and I kept thinking about if I had enough beer in the fridge. Beer was not fun and I felt like a slave to the local beer store, knowing everyone that worked there of course. Funny thing is my non-drinking wife never complained about my drinking ever. She wouldn't care if I bought a case tomorrow no kidding. My friends all thought my 12 month thing was noble but now that I'm several months into not ever going back they think it's dumb. I do lots of activities, but I do miss getting the buzz and don't really want to be aware of everything all the freakin time. Never had any issues with the law and booze. I of course like being able to drive whenever I want to and pick my kids up regardless of when they need me. The decision to quit was completely introspection based. I know the workout high is all I got now so it'll have to do.
thanks Breathalyzer
Member
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Midwest
Posts: 9,029
Welcome and good to meet you.
Drinking wasn't fun for me anymore either. I'm preferring having a clear head most of the time; not walking into the local gas station and having the clerk ask "no beer today?"; not planning ahead to make sure I don't run out. Just too much energy wasted.
So hang with us.
Drinking wasn't fun for me anymore either. I'm preferring having a clear head most of the time; not walking into the local gas station and having the clerk ask "no beer today?"; not planning ahead to make sure I don't run out. Just too much energy wasted.
So hang with us.
!
Member
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Deep in the heart of Texas
Posts: 1,736
Welcome to the family.
Your sobriety is yours & yours alone. Yes, it will benefit everyone else in your life, but this journey is for & about YOU.
Good luck. We're here with you every step of the way.
Your sobriety is yours & yours alone. Yes, it will benefit everyone else in your life, but this journey is for & about YOU.
Good luck. We're here with you every step of the way.
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 7
Thanks for the kind words and welcome ones too. The thing that is irking me big time (and I remember this from my year off alcohol) is the constant awareness and clearheaded worry that seems to accompany soberness at all times. Sure it's nice to be mentally engaged with things you like to do, but there's a hell of a lot of worry that creeps up to and is slow to leave. Worry about things that you really cannot control anyway, but maybe the mind is only clearing itself who knows? Getting re-centered? If only I had the skills to stop at 2 beers I could be more mentally relaxed, but that's never been my style and that's why I had to stop. I can't help but think that the only reason that quitting alcohol has dominated my thoughts for so many years is because I have no self control. I basically quit because I have no self control and that doesn't make any sense.
Into the Void
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: California
Posts: 931
Breathalyzer,
Welcome!
Stop beating yourself up over the self-control issue. Alcohol is a highly addictive drug that we are expected to drink in our culture even though for a significant portion of the population it leads almost certainly to addiction and then disaster. If you are wired like most problem drinkers, once you ingest alcohol your inhibitions and self-preservation instincts go out the window. So it's not that you are weak willed. In fact, if you quit for a year on your own without hitting some sort of personal bottom or disaster, I would say you are extremely strong willed! But I think I may detect a hint of perfectionist thinking in your post. You might want to consider working on letting things go to achieve more inner peace without self-medicating.
Welcome!
Stop beating yourself up over the self-control issue. Alcohol is a highly addictive drug that we are expected to drink in our culture even though for a significant portion of the population it leads almost certainly to addiction and then disaster. If you are wired like most problem drinkers, once you ingest alcohol your inhibitions and self-preservation instincts go out the window. So it's not that you are weak willed. In fact, if you quit for a year on your own without hitting some sort of personal bottom or disaster, I would say you are extremely strong willed! But I think I may detect a hint of perfectionist thinking in your post. You might want to consider working on letting things go to achieve more inner peace without self-medicating.
Magsie
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: UK
Posts: 26,683
Hi Breathalyser, I am a born worrier, I know what you mean. My husband completely opposite, never worries, that I know of and deals with situations when they fling themselves at us.
Strangely enough it does get better, I'm a year and half sober, now and like I've read in other posts life gets better the more sober time we clock up.
I do worry about things though, but they don't linger or fester.
Strangely enough it does get better, I'm a year and half sober, now and like I've read in other posts life gets better the more sober time we clock up.
I do worry about things though, but they don't linger or fester.
Member
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 1,222
hi Breath......alcohol is a massively addictive drug. Thats why you are thinking about it all the time. Nothing to do with self control. Only you know whether you are an alcoholic or not. I am 11 weeks sober after 27 years of non stop and worsening drinking. My wife has spent most of this time trying to convince me that I am not an alcoholic. I told my friends that "I am off the beers for a while" and they all think I am crazy - they are all drinkers themselves. But I know I am an alcoholic and thats all that matters. Alcohols screws up your mind and when we sober up we all have different nuances of the same broad problems to handle, anxiety being probably the most common.
Your path is well trodden and the issues you face are common. If you feel that you are an alcoholic then you need to drop the booze, forever. Sorry for the bad news. On the plus side you will not destroy your life. Hang in there buddy....
Your path is well trodden and the issues you face are common. If you feel that you are an alcoholic then you need to drop the booze, forever. Sorry for the bad news. On the plus side you will not destroy your life. Hang in there buddy....
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 7
Originally Posted by ubntubnt 
hi Breath......alcohol is a massively addictive drug. Thats why you are thinking about it all the time. Nothing to do with self control. Only you know whether you are an alcoholic or not. I am 11 weeks sober after 27 years of non stop and worsening drinking. My wife has spent most of this time trying to convince me that I am not an alcoholic. I told my friends that "I am off the beers for a while" and they all think I am crazy - they are all drinkers themselves. But I know I am an alcoholic and thats all that matters. Alcohols screws up your mind and when we sober up we all have different nuances of the same broad problems to handle, anxiety being probably the most common.
Your path is well trodden and the issues you face are common. If you feel that you are an alcoholic then you need to drop the booze, forever. Sorry for the bad news. On the plus side you will not destroy your life. Hang in there buddy....
Your path is well trodden and the issues you face are common. If you feel that you are an alcoholic then you need to drop the booze, forever. Sorry for the bad news. On the plus side you will not destroy your life. Hang in there buddy....
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 7
So I take a walk to the mailbox to get the mail yesterday hoping no bills awaited me and I get to the box and there is a perfect beer can laying there. It was empty. Instantly my heart rate goes up and I felt a rush of blood go to my head. I really noticed it and wanted many of them. I imagined a whole bunch of them all lined up full in a red box with just the right weight and feel to the handle. Yup I must stay away from this because it wasn't the one beer I wanted ..it was an urge to go get a case and do some polishing. I got my mail with a heating bill, and my thoughts forcibly changed to other things.
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