Coming up on 2 years sober, a few thoughts for newcomers.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2018
Posts: 83
Originally Posted by wibble 
Hey everyone.
Just wanted to pop by and post a few thoughts i've been having as I come up towards my second anniversary of being sober.
I used to be on the site almost constantly a few years ago and I still recognise a few names from my time here. I had a pretty terrible time getting my head right to finally quit and SR was a huge help to me.
I don't have any great wisdom to offer other than my own experience of stopping drinking alcohol. Maybe something i've experienced will help someone along their journey, maybe everyone has already stopped reading this post!!!
I guess the most important thing i've learned along the way is that things do get easier as time goes on and as you get more time under your belt. At least thats been the experience for me. My life hasn't been plain sailing over the last two years, far far from it. But I've never resorted to drinking and day by day I can feel myself getting stronger.
I'm happier, fitter, leaner, got more money in bank accounts, i'm more focused in my career and i'd like to think i'm a far more grounded and decent person.
I've lost countless friends and changed my life almost completely to enable me to stop drinking but theres never been a day when i've not thought it was worth it.
My single biggest piece of advice to anyone in the early days of stopping drinking is to just get through each day any way you can. Go to bed as early as you can, exercise if you are able, try and treat yourself with a little self love but try and focus on the notion that time will make you stronger.
I avoided alcohol and situations where there was going to be alcohol present for a long time, I went to bed at insanely early times (6pm was fairly normal for a while) anything to just get me through the day.
But I can honestly say now that I can be a bar or restaurant and people can be drinking around me and I'm not bothered by it in the slightest.
Its taken me this long to get to that point but I feel its a small price to pay for getting my life back.
Your life is sat there waiting for you, you just need to allow yourself some time.
AA didn't click with me but I found AVRT to be a huge help, I still have conversations with the "beast" and know that its always going to be there waiting if I allow it a chance to come back into my life.
I can honestly say I never thought i'd get to this point where i've been sober for almost 2 years, but I've done it and i'm getting the rewards in my life now.
Wherever you are on your journey I wish you well. This site and the people who contribute really are wonderful.
Good luck
Wibble
x
Just wanted to pop by and post a few thoughts i've been having as I come up towards my second anniversary of being sober.
I used to be on the site almost constantly a few years ago and I still recognise a few names from my time here. I had a pretty terrible time getting my head right to finally quit and SR was a huge help to me.
I don't have any great wisdom to offer other than my own experience of stopping drinking alcohol. Maybe something i've experienced will help someone along their journey, maybe everyone has already stopped reading this post!!!
I guess the most important thing i've learned along the way is that things do get easier as time goes on and as you get more time under your belt. At least thats been the experience for me. My life hasn't been plain sailing over the last two years, far far from it. But I've never resorted to drinking and day by day I can feel myself getting stronger.
I'm happier, fitter, leaner, got more money in bank accounts, i'm more focused in my career and i'd like to think i'm a far more grounded and decent person.
I've lost countless friends and changed my life almost completely to enable me to stop drinking but theres never been a day when i've not thought it was worth it.
My single biggest piece of advice to anyone in the early days of stopping drinking is to just get through each day any way you can. Go to bed as early as you can, exercise if you are able, try and treat yourself with a little self love but try and focus on the notion that time will make you stronger.
I avoided alcohol and situations where there was going to be alcohol present for a long time, I went to bed at insanely early times (6pm was fairly normal for a while) anything to just get me through the day.
But I can honestly say now that I can be a bar or restaurant and people can be drinking around me and I'm not bothered by it in the slightest.
Its taken me this long to get to that point but I feel its a small price to pay for getting my life back.
Your life is sat there waiting for you, you just need to allow yourself some time.
AA didn't click with me but I found AVRT to be a huge help, I still have conversations with the "beast" and know that its always going to be there waiting if I allow it a chance to come back into my life.
I can honestly say I never thought i'd get to this point where i've been sober for almost 2 years, but I've done it and i'm getting the rewards in my life now.
Wherever you are on your journey I wish you well. This site and the people who contribute really are wonderful.
Good luck
Wibble
x
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 853
Originally Posted by MissPerfumado
Brilliant advice. Get through each day any way you can ... that is a great thing to remember. And time really does help strengthen the sober muscles, so that the default is not booze when things go wrong in life.
Congratulations on two years. I am very happy for you, wibble.
Congratulations on two years. I am very happy for you, wibble.
I never recognised the power that comes from time being sober until it was a reality for me. In my drunken know it all state I would privately mock those who counted days/weeks/months/years sober saying that they were marking time until they drank again, which was pretty rich coming from someone who was still drinking...
But i've realised that its not the actual counting that matters its the strength you gain from every single moment of your life you spend sober.
I've realised that every single day you are sober gives you more and more power to fight against the beast, it gives you more ability to challenge the dark thoughts when they come and trust me they always come.
If you are on day 1 or day 10000 it doesn't matter, you should be proud of yourself that you've challenged the beast.
The beast encourages you to over think the situation, to agonise over the future. That there is no way you can be sober forever, but you don't have to be sober forever. Just be sober now, go to bed early, get some sleep, rest and chalk off another day sober and very quickly days become weeks and your power grows and grows.
x
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