Its Day 15 and my cravings are wearing me down
 

Maybe my expectations were too high but Im on day 15 and rather than getting better the cravings seem to be getting out of control, I try and tell myself the cravings won't last long but it seems to be constant. Im not sleeping so I'm tired all the time which is gradually wearing down my resolve, is this how its going to be for the rest of my life, its like torture. I know a lot of you guys have been through this and you can't take my cravings away but I guess I just need some hope, I really don't want today to be the day I start drinking again HELP PLEASE!!!!!!

Hi Rolf

have you seen this link? There are some good ideas here:

https://www.soberrecovery.com/forums...-cravings.html

Cravings aren't pleasant but they will go away without us drinking on them, and they will lessen in intensity and frequency too :)

Hang in there :)

D

Rolf hang in there!
I know it's rough and seems like it's never going to get better but IT ABSOLUTELY WILL AS LONG AS YOU STICK TO YOUR RESOLVE 100% NO MATTER WHAT.
One thing that took me a while to realise is that we are on a journey and frustrating though it is our journey needs time. Not days or even weeks......
But the great thing is that you now have 24/7 support here and I urge you to post as much as you can. Have you checked out the Class of July 2018 or the 24 Hour Thread?
Being part of this community made all the difference for me. I post every day without fail and probably will forever!
It's important to look out for HALT triggers in the early days (hungry, angry, lonely, tired) and to make sure you can be as rested and nourished as possible.
If you are at a loss as to how to fill those craving hours how about putting together a sobriety plan or journal? I needed to plan for my risky times and also journal how I was feeling and monitor how I was doing against my little mini goals.
The main thing to remember here is that we are all saving our lives. Bottom line.
I look forward to sharing your journey with you xxx

Some great advice, I will take your advice and start a journal. Its funny(not really), I have lost my home and marriage because of Alcohol yet I still crave the thing that I know has ruined my life for the last 35 years, its crazy and makes no sense whatsoever. I get frustrated and annoyed with myself for this weakness which just makes the whole situation worse, people say to me that I should write down the bad things about alcohol, I want to scream: I KNOW THE BAD THINGS, I HAVE EXPERIENCED THE BAD THINGS, i don't need to write them down, I live with the consequences every minute of every day.
Sorry its a bit of a rant but I really do feel very vunerable today and I desperately want to get to day 16.

Ive been there its hard very hard it took me 2to3yrs to kick out the.Bad cravings the thought in my head that eats me alive i cant fucos i snapped so easily..i had slip here and there was able to quit for almost a yr then fall back im 16days sober as well.. we can do this dont quit trying

I fall back thinking mmm ive been sober for a while now i dont crave maybe i can drink socially occationally but no...i cant im an alcoholic and always will be

I think maybe I am making things hard for myself, booze has had a devastating effect on y health, I'm very overweight because of booze and Im a diabetic. I thought that since I was giving up the booze I could also diet at the same time to get my weight sorted out and my blood sugar down, Im only having 5 protein shakes a day so maybe thats not helping as Im constantly starving. Everything I do is the same, if I drink I drink to the extreme, if I diet I diet to the extreme, there doesn't seem to be any middle ground for me, I have to see instant results or get instant gratification, its crazy but Ive always been the same.

Initially I made things hard for myself also. I, too, have put on weight and am pre-diabetic. I craved carbs and found myself eating whole packages of cookies or lots of cereal, trying to eat away the alcohol cravings. It's leveled off somewhat. I try to keep HALT in mind. I've read threads where folks work on the alcohol first. After about 6 months, the weight starts to take care of itself. Just want to say that I understand. I'm rooting for you. :grouphug:

I was very in tune to this train of thought the day I joined SR and chose my screen name. :)

You don't need instant results. You want instant results. That's not the same thing. That's really good news because it is highly unlikely you're going to get instant results.

I always drank, but now I don't. People can change. You can change.

Best of Luck on Your Journey! :ring

Cravings are really difficult and yes they will lessen. And yes, maybe ease up on the dieting. I would suggest eating healthy whole foods. Try to stay away from junk, fast food and processed food. That alone should do a lot for your weight, along with removing the calories from alcohol.

I know that acceptance and surrender are really important for me. Acceptance that I will not drink again no matter what and surrender that alcohol has won. It will never work again.

Drinking to relieve a craving is going to just that. Relieve the craving for maybe an hour. Then its back and its back even louder. I recommend finding other ways to itch that scratch. Exercise works miracles and it doesn't have to be much at first if you don't really exercise. Try walking a couple times a day.

Hang in there.

Hang in there. Vitamins really helped my cravings. Friends have said that eating some candy got them through those urges, you can do it. It does dissipate.

My two cents is that you gotta eat. The blood sugar thing might be impacting your cravings. Plus, you’re probably malnourished from the years of alcohol abuse. So, eat when you’re hungry, but try to make it good stuff. And when your cravings are the worst, try grabbing a piece of fruit or having a balanced meal. It really helps me. I often confuse wanting to drink with being hungry because I drank through my hunger for so long.

The AV/allergy/subconscious mind, whatever you want to call it, is nothing more than an obnoxious toddler trying to boss you around.
You have complete control and it is nothing more than an annoying. Smack it like a mosquito.

OK, I guarantee THIS is a huge part of your problem. I just posted in another thread that it was impossible for me to try to tackle my weight and drinking at the same time. No way could I do that! So, I ate what I wanted for the first few months, not trying to go crazy, but allowing myself to enjoy food, and especially sweets! Once I hit the 6 month mark, I was evened-out to the point that I was excited to focus on losing weight, and I've been doing much better than I expected. You can definitely do this, it will just require you to think about your weight in the longer term, and your drinking as the "burning building" you need to escape from. You can do it! :)

Check out "urge surfing" - Dee has posted a great thread on it before, I'm sure you can find it or others if you search the boards.

I found the technique very helpful.

Its part of the cravings link I posted above :)

D

I agree with the folks here that say dieting is part of the problem. First things first - if you relapse, it was all for naught, so focus on staying sober. If you feel the urge, eat something. Eventually, after 3-6 months (sorry, but you need to hang in here!) the cravings will level off.
Regarding weight, the fact that you don’t consume all these extra calories through drinking willl eventually cause you to lose some of it, but again, this should NOT be your focus for the first six months.
I’ve been sober for a year now, have zero cravings and I’m 15 pounds lighter. You need patience, a lot of patience!

I would agree with mac. I'm at 4 months and am slowly starting to feel normal and urge free at default. It took alot of day ones and eventually a new record every day and I wouldn't take any of it back. You have to hold on. 14-21 was always hard for me. It will be so worth it! I had to eat ice cream for a while but now I'm back to plant based (mostly) whole food meals and I feel healthier than ever. I can't help too much with sleep, I struggle there a bit still, but I'll take it over a hangover any day! Good luck on your sober journey!