Originally Posted by BillieJean1

I just want to add that residual desire is nothing to fear, it's not a sign that your quit isn't working or that you are doing something wrong. I think that can derail a lot of people. I used to fear my AV and think it was good when it was quiet and bad when it was active. As long as you are recognizing the source of the thoughts and dismissing them, it's fine if they take awhile to quiet down, and they will significantly quiet down over time. It's when we start to engage and argue with them that it can start to feel like white knuckling. The idea is not to manage the AV but to starve IT. A lot of common recovery information is about managing the AV - watch out for people, places, resentments, HALT. To me, that's coddling the AV and nurturing IT. If you are never going to drink again then what do any of those things matter? Can any of them really make you drink again?