Mags1

“Oh what a tangled web we weave

When first we practice to deceive”





My drinking got me in all sorts of bother and from being an ok person I became someone who would lie and deceive to protect my addiction.



Very much like a spiders web is made, I’d weave my life to fit round my drinking. and thought I’d perfected it like a pristine silky web.



The strength I found to feed my addiction was tantamount to the strength of a spiders web.



But unlike the spider, I tangled myself in my own web of lies and drinking.



My own web trapped me, in a nightmare of booze, hangovers, regrets and deceit, until the day I eventually broke free from the web.



It wasn’t easy to begin with, I’d drank for many years, eventually I realised enough was enough. It got easier with time.



If you feel this is you too, you can free yourself from this web. It took determination on my part and much support from like-minded people who had trodden in my footsteps.



I found support from people here on SR (SoberRecovery). It pretty much saved my life.



If you’re wanting to stop, give it a go, we’re here to support you. We know the pitfalls and ‘bumps in the road’



For me, stopping drinking was the best action I

took for my mental health and well-being.




‘I will be here along with many others, all of us ex drunks and alcoholics. We are your scouts and can tell you what is on the trail ahead so you can be ready for any obstacles. I can tell you to come on! It is rocky and slippery but if you focus on where you place each step, you will have no trouble getting to where I am on the trail.

All of us can tell you where the potholes are, bumps in the road, and the slippery places, but we can't walk your path for you. We can only take joy as you succeed, and cheer, one and all!’

Dee74

Thanks Mags

D

calmself

Aaaargh. Dee beat me to it 😀

End of Day 116 - today I pretended to pick up a 6 pack of beer when my little son and I went to get grocery. He had a puzzled look and asked me "Daddy are you sure?" I just smiled and said no way and put it back. We then got Chobani yogurt drink and came home. Glad I was able to pick my favorite ipa and put it back.
Hope everyone has a sober day ahead. Good night from Seattle!

Mags1

Hiya calmself, sleep well. you gonna call shotgun?

calmself

Yes, Mags!!

Mags1

Yaaay. Congratulations on Shotgun calmself

SimplySue

Hello everybody and thanks for the amazing post Mags!

I’m up for another sober weekend. Day 44 for me today.
Have a lovely Thursday all 💕

Mags1

Hi SimplySue , good to see you! congratulations on day 44! Good work!

saoutchik

In for another sober weekend!

Welcome to Weekenders SimplySue!

Congratulations on shotgun calmself.

Thanks Mags. People often deceive themselves by suggesting that various problems they face in life causes them to drink when quite often it is the drinking that is causing or exacerbating those problems.

Mags1

So true Saou! I made a million reasons to drink until I just drank.

Jo43

Good Morning all on this overcast Thursday morning in UK.

Definitely in for another sober weekend!!

Off to drop my girlie to school then breakie with my dad. I'm going to then trawl the charity shops and see if I can find some bargains before meeting my friend from church for coffee. A nice relaxing day I hope

Hope you have a lovely day xx

Mags1

Hi Jo, hope you find some good bargains.

Purplrks3647

Thanks Mags! Hey everyone

I used to deceive myself by thinking it was okay since I didn't hide my drinking from anyone....oh, the things that make sense to us at the time....

In for another sober weekend! <<< (Thanks Sao!)

Robbie64

Thanks Mags. I'm IN for a sober weekend!

Canadian Koala

Thanks Mags

I've been trapped also in that "nightmare of booze, hangovers, regrets and deceit"
I never thought I'd get out of it one day...
My number came out of the hat the day I ended up in the hospital for 10 days.
It was my chance to start life sober and I haven't looked back since.
SR has been my shelter day after day, I'm so grateful ♥

Have a good day Weekenders ☼

CBS62

Thanks Mags. I am in for another sober weekend. Like Purp I didn't hide my drinking from anyone but my family was concerned about my wine consumption. I finally faced the music and quit. Moderating never worked.

Cityboy

Looking back, it's obvious how I thought I was being cleaver, managing my drinking around other things in life. In reality it was more the other way around, as I was managing other things in life around the drinking.

Leshar

Thanks Mags, for another thought provoking Weekenders thread! I'm in for an honest sober weekend!
Jo, I love charity shops! I visit our thrift stores as we call them here regularly, and have got some lovely things. Vintage clothing and some 70s kitchen items which is my current vibe. Hope you found something!

MLD51

I'm in!
Oh, the lies I told. It took YEARS for some people to trust me again. I'm not sure some of them actually really DO trust me. But I can't blame them. I was not only unreliable, I LIED about so many things I didn't even need to lie about. And the more I did it the more I thought I needed to, and the worse I felt about myself. It was only when I became brutally honest with myself and others that the real healing began. The first really honest thing I said was to myself, when I told myself (and really believed it) that I really couldn't control my drinking. That was the beginning of my sobriety. Once I saw and internalized that truth, it freed me in a way that was rather amazing. I went from there and started being honest with everyone, and making apologies for the lies I had told. I explained it by saying I believed no one would like or love me if I was honest about the drinking and all the stuff that went with it, so I lied to protect myself. It was true. I was so ashamed of myself when I was drinking, and I assumed I had to try to cover it all up or everyone else would be ashamed of me as well. I thought I had people fooled, at least to some extent. Nope - I wasn't really fooling anyone. Least of all, myself. Life is so much easier and less stressful when you tell the truth.

adair

Before my drinking became a problem, I used to never even be able to tell even the tiniest of white lies. The truth was sacrosanct, never to be subverted.

The lies started off small ('I have a headache' rather than 'I'm hungover') but quickly snowballed.

When I was in the thick of my addiction, no lie was too big if it served to support and sustain my drinking habit. I very much became trapped by my own web of deceit but spent years denying how stuck I actually was.

My drinking turned me into the type of person I used to regard with pity and disdain.

The good news is my decent, respectable self is still there. By not drinking, I can step free of the web of deceit and reclaim myself as I'm meant to be.

Thanks, Mags.