No hangover. Waking up without that is a joy.

It's great to wake up and read these posts over a steaming cuppa. :)

At a little over three years sober I'd say the quickest benefit was waking up with no shame and worry over the previous day. Not to mention the freedom from cotton mouthed, shaky hands, sweaty hangovers!

Beyond the many physical benefits of long term sobriety, I'd say that I'm very very thankful for the change in my perspective. The alcoholic side of me tried for some time to convince me that sobriety was a sentence of deprivation. What a lie that is. Somewhere along this journey I've come to appreciate my freedom and cherish sobriety for the absolute gift it is. A basis for genuine living.

Well, I just had an unexpected Thanksgiving moment right here in the still of the morning. What a great way to start the day.

All the best to you Susie. :)

Waking up feeling good and not having to piece together what happened the night before while feeling riddled with shame.

Being a better example to my children and being able to be a more in tuned in, caring and responsible mother to them.

Getting back in to fitness and seeing my body heal and become stronger.

Being inspired to learn new things and get back into old hobbies.

Feeling proud of myself for taking back control of my life and destiny. Not living down to my addiction anymore.

Lots of great stuff in this thread. This, from Berrybean, is very current for me. Thanks.

And this from Mark... more to look forward to. Beautiful, Mark, thanks...
“Somewhere along this journey I've come to appreciate my freedom and cherish sobriety for the absolute gift it is. A basis for genuine living. Well, I just had an unexpected Thanksgiving moment right here in the still of the morning. What a great way to start the day.”

First of all, thank you for all the replies, the shame, guilt, being there for your kids, your partner, evennwork. Being able to go out anytime of the day. Having anxiety all my life but finding out that alcohol makes it soooo much worse the next day. And the above quote by Mark.... deprivation.... here I was feeling sorry for myself because I can't drink anymore but in fact it's a gift. I'm going to read this everyday. Thank you all so so much!

Tell "us" what we have to look forward to
FREEDOM!
freedom from
-the mental obsession to drink
-the compulsion to drink
-misery
-agony
-mental mayhem
-feelings of uselessness,hopelessness, worthlessness
-the past

other things to look forward to
-peace
-serenity
-handling situations we used to drink over
-enjoying life
-a new attitude and outlook on life.
- living life and not just existing

many more things,too, to look forward to

Thank you and thank god for this amazing SR site and people who understand

Being present and truly alive in potentially every moment.

Waking up feeling good. :) Being able to take good care of my critters now that I'm sober. :)

Only a month in (Day 30 today), but already the fruits are coming to bear:

1. Listening to music this morning, I can't remember the last time it sounded so good.
2. Woke up feeling peaceful, not panicked.
3. My face isn't puffy anymore and I am losing belly fat.
4. It's not a chore to eat healthy, fresh fruits taste so good.
5. My pee is clear.
6. I am opening a checking account and depositing monthly all of the money I would have spent drinking for a travel and fun account.
7. I look forward to today.

I hated my secret life, I hated being a liar. Being sober have given me my life back. I still have plenty of faults, but I'm emotionally stable, and responsible. I make my appointments, pay my bills, and I can answer the door and not hide from the world.

Enjoying Life Without a Substance
 

When I was actively drinking alcohol made a boring time fun and a fun time more fun. I couldn't understand how people could enjoy things without a drink involved! Now I can go shopping, go to the movies, go on walk and enjoy it without planning how I'm going to sneak a few drinks in. For me it took a few months but you start to enjoy the simplest things WITHOUT ALCOHOL! I know it's hard to believe it was for me too but I'll say one more thing, I've had over a year sober with two relapses. Once you cross the sober threshold and try to drink again it's never the same. Drinking only made me depressed and anxious even while I was drinking. I remember thinking while I was drinking "I think I would enjoy this more sober." It takes time and for me it was meetings and a sponsor and new sober friends but it is so worth it I promise.

Thank you so much for the replies! I think the biggest thing for me is and going to be not constantly thinking about how I'm going to drink or sneak a drink in when I'm out in the evenings or even worse on a trip with sober people. Putting vodka in water bottles, getting irritated by having to eat dinner at non alcoholic restaurants! What a constant whirlwind in my head!

Yeah, I don’t miss transferring vodka to a water bottle and then still hiding it as a sort of double layer of protection, cause even if the water bottle got found The jig wasn’t up straight away unless the contents were smelled or tasted!

Utter madness now I think of it and what a devious little blighter I was when drinking.

I feel amazing, not afraid to try new things, and I connect better with people :)

I sure don't miss feeling like death trying to find a liquor store that is open!! ugh. How horrible. lol.

True and how about when your kid wants a sip of your "water". Oh the shame.....