6 months sober
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Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Texas
Posts: 69
6 months sober
I'm 6 months and 10 days sober and thought I'd share some reflections.
IT GETS EASIER! The sleepless nights won't last forever. The withdrawals aren't the end of the world. It just takes time. If you're like me, and every waking moment when not at work you had a glass in your hand, you have to make adjustments.
I had to learn how to do everything while not drinking. How to relax after work without a drink. How to watch TV without a drink. How to BBQ, go to the deer lease, sleep, read. I had to literally re-learn how to relax and enjoy myself without drinking.
I also had to accept the fact that I'll never be a "normal" drinker. I can't come home and have a bourbon to unwind and that's it. I can't just have ONE glass of wine before bed. I can't just have a cold beer after working outside on a hot day. That one drink leads to 10.
I also had to accept the fact that I drank to ignore/cover up issues in my own mind. I'm different. I'm not normal. I have to face the issues head on. Not bandage them with alcohol.
I also learned how to treat my addiction as if it's an enemy combatant who wants me dead. This sounds crazy, but I apply lessons of warfare to my addiction. And it works for me. I've been reading a lot of books written by Navy SEALs. They have a mental strength that is like to tap into.
So, I'm 6 months sober. The urge is still there, underneath. I'd love a drink right now. But I won't drink. I actually do enjoy being sober. My life can count now. I can be useful. I can be helpful.
Also, tea and Topo Chico have been life savers.
IT GETS EASIER! The sleepless nights won't last forever. The withdrawals aren't the end of the world. It just takes time. If you're like me, and every waking moment when not at work you had a glass in your hand, you have to make adjustments.
I had to learn how to do everything while not drinking. How to relax after work without a drink. How to watch TV without a drink. How to BBQ, go to the deer lease, sleep, read. I had to literally re-learn how to relax and enjoy myself without drinking.
I also had to accept the fact that I'll never be a "normal" drinker. I can't come home and have a bourbon to unwind and that's it. I can't just have ONE glass of wine before bed. I can't just have a cold beer after working outside on a hot day. That one drink leads to 10.
I also had to accept the fact that I drank to ignore/cover up issues in my own mind. I'm different. I'm not normal. I have to face the issues head on. Not bandage them with alcohol.
I also learned how to treat my addiction as if it's an enemy combatant who wants me dead. This sounds crazy, but I apply lessons of warfare to my addiction. And it works for me. I've been reading a lot of books written by Navy SEALs. They have a mental strength that is like to tap into.
So, I'm 6 months sober. The urge is still there, underneath. I'd love a drink right now. But I won't drink. I actually do enjoy being sober. My life can count now. I can be useful. I can be helpful.
Also, tea and Topo Chico have been life savers.
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