Two and a half years sober today.
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Two and a half years sober today.
The foundations I have laid in my recovery have made me a surprisingly strong man.
The things I am having to deal with at the moment would have crippled me for sure if I was still drinking.
By doing the next right thing , when things get difficult and seem like there’s nothing I can do and it’s all too much. I look back and see that I haven’t done anything wrong and I am firmly planted. This gives me the strength to carry on into the unknown one step at a time. Gaining the valuable experience I need to become a full and rounded free man.
Quitting drinking remains the best thing I have ever done.
The things I am having to deal with at the moment would have crippled me for sure if I was still drinking.
By doing the next right thing , when things get difficult and seem like there’s nothing I can do and it’s all too much. I look back and see that I haven’t done anything wrong and I am firmly planted. This gives me the strength to carry on into the unknown one step at a time. Gaining the valuable experience I need to become a full and rounded free man.
Quitting drinking remains the best thing I have ever done.
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Join Date: May 2019
Location: UK
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Thanks for posting that, snowy.
Yes, problems are solved easier when sober as you say. It’s also a fallacy that drinking relieves stress when it’s alcohol dependency which caused the stress in the first place.
(I’m 8 months sober so posts like yours inspire me and others)
I hope the items you’re dealing with get resolved. Well done again.
Yes, problems are solved easier when sober as you say. It’s also a fallacy that drinking relieves stress when it’s alcohol dependency which caused the stress in the first place.
(I’m 8 months sober so posts like yours inspire me and others)
I hope the items you’re dealing with get resolved. Well done again.
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Originally Posted by Hodd 
Thanks for posting that, snowy.
Yes, problems are solved easier when sober as you say. It’s also a fallacy that drinking relieves stress when it’s alcohol dependency which caused the stress in the first place.
(I’m 8 months sober so posts like yours inspire me and others)
I hope the items you’re dealing with get resolved. Well done again.
Yes, problems are solved easier when sober as you say. It’s also a fallacy that drinking relieves stress when it’s alcohol dependency which caused the stress in the first place.
(I’m 8 months sober so posts like yours inspire me and others)
I hope the items you’re dealing with get resolved. Well done again.
Keep on with that attitude and you will see many improvements in yourself.
Well done on 8 months
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Join Date: May 2019
Location: UK
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Thanks, Snowy
Like you, I’ve had a few things to deal with lately. Being free of alcohol did make life easier, but I can’t pretend it’s always easy. I still feel like that “one” glass of wine on occasions, but I’ll then feel like that the next day and the next.
I had a liver fibroscan recently. All was fine. No detectable fat or scarring. If I had an unfortunate end and donated my organs, my liver would probably be just fine. That’s incredible for someone who used to drink a bottle of wine a day, was obese and had a fatty liver. I’ve been given one hell of a second chance so can live with the occasional urges.
It takes tremendous willpower to give up, especially in the early weeks (a process which I’d have to repeat if I ever do have just that “one”). There’s no reason nor excuse for an ex-drinker to drink again.
Thanks again, snowy, and take care everyone 🙂
Like you, I’ve had a few things to deal with lately. Being free of alcohol did make life easier, but I can’t pretend it’s always easy. I still feel like that “one” glass of wine on occasions, but I’ll then feel like that the next day and the next.
I had a liver fibroscan recently. All was fine. No detectable fat or scarring. If I had an unfortunate end and donated my organs, my liver would probably be just fine. That’s incredible for someone who used to drink a bottle of wine a day, was obese and had a fatty liver. I’ve been given one hell of a second chance so can live with the occasional urges.
It takes tremendous willpower to give up, especially in the early weeks (a process which I’d have to repeat if I ever do have just that “one”). There’s no reason nor excuse for an ex-drinker to drink again.
Thanks again, snowy, and take care everyone 🙂
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Glad to hear your liver is tip top.
The urges fade in time. Extreme situations bring the urge back briefly for me but it’s easy to deal with. I just know the routine now and it comes as second nature not a chore. But I still feel victorious when I’ve sent my beast away with a flea in its ear.
Keep your eye on the prize Hodd
The urges fade in time. Extreme situations bring the urge back briefly for me but it’s easy to deal with. I just know the routine now and it comes as second nature not a chore. But I still feel victorious when I’ve sent my beast away with a flea in its ear.
Keep your eye on the prize Hodd
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Originally Posted by Snowydelrico
Glad to hear your liver is tip top.
The urges fade in time. Extreme situations bring the urge back briefly for me but it’s easy to deal with. I just know the routine now and it comes as second nature not a chore. But I still feel victorious when I’ve sent my beast away with a flea in its ear.
Keep your eye on the prize Hodd
The urges fade in time. Extreme situations bring the urge back briefly for me but it’s easy to deal with. I just know the routine now and it comes as second nature not a chore. But I still feel victorious when I’ve sent my beast away with a flea in its ear.
Keep your eye on the prize Hodd
My wife (teetotal since birth) said later that maybe I’d be able to drink sensibly like that in about five years time. I said no way. Once you’ve crossed that line into dependency, you’ve signed up for life. I’ve researched and researched, and all alcoholics will fail if they attempt moderation. It took me years to realise that.
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😀👍 I see it as losing a loved one. It’s heartbreaking at first but after a few months you realise they’re gone and you can’t get them back. You them remember the good times (and forget the bad).
RIP Red Wine 2018
(Sorry for the flippancy. I’m aware others will be struggling, and giving up alcohol really is a matter of life and death, but I’m hoping my outlook shows there is hope, and others will be able to look back with bemusement or maybe even humour at their old ways)
RIP Red Wine 2018
(Sorry for the flippancy. I’m aware others will be struggling, and giving up alcohol really is a matter of life and death, but I’m hoping my outlook shows there is hope, and others will be able to look back with bemusement or maybe even humour at their old ways)
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Brilliant job and perspective Snowy!! Love this- and, here at just past 3.5 yr, I am finding another period of just what you mention, dealing with hard things sober. So much better- indeed, I never would have been here to deal with them at all if I hadn't quit drinking, and certainly not this well if I didn't live a recovery program like I do best I can.
Love hearing your posts Hodd- I found the similar dawning of what you are talking about around the 8-10 phase too. Keep going.
Love hearing your posts Hodd- I found the similar dawning of what you are talking about around the 8-10 phase too. Keep going.
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Thanks August
I think the important message from major events in our lives is there’s never an excuse to drink.
If someone’s had a terrible day at work and argued with their partner and “needs” a drink, that’s called feeding a dependency. Non drinkers or occasional drinkers don’t need a drink to relax. Again, that takes a few years for a drinker to realise and is probably the main cause of relapses.
I think the important message from major events in our lives is there’s never an excuse to drink.
If someone’s had a terrible day at work and argued with their partner and “needs” a drink, that’s called feeding a dependency. Non drinkers or occasional drinkers don’t need a drink to relax. Again, that takes a few years for a drinker to realise and is probably the main cause of relapses.
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Originally Posted by Snowydelrico
The foundations I have laid in my recovery have made me a surprisingly strong man.
The things I am having to deal with at the moment would have crippled me for sure if I was still drinking.
By doing the next right thing , when things get difficult and seem like there’s nothing I can do and it’s all too much. I look back and see that I haven’t done anything wrong and I am firmly planted. This gives me the strength to carry on into the unknown one step at a time. Gaining the valuable experience I need to become a full and rounded free man.
Quitting drinking remains the best thing I have ever done.
The things I am having to deal with at the moment would have crippled me for sure if I was still drinking.
By doing the next right thing , when things get difficult and seem like there’s nothing I can do and it’s all too much. I look back and see that I haven’t done anything wrong and I am firmly planted. This gives me the strength to carry on into the unknown one step at a time. Gaining the valuable experience I need to become a full and rounded free man.
Quitting drinking remains the best thing I have ever done.
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