Big congrats to you buddy! The first week was the toughest for me. I can't believe you didn't have cravings. What is your secret? I have been following your posts and it sounds like you are doing really good. I am learning a lot from what you are writing too.....so thanks for that!
Walking or any kind of exercise really helps me too. I am using exercise to cope with my cravings. It is kind of working. I am not drinking but I am still not happy about it some days. One day at a time I guess.
Well I made it through week 1 with no alcohol. I honestly did not have any withdrawal symptoms, and did not have any urges to drink at all. Now I just want to repeat the week over again/ I don't expect to have urges, as my mindset is set up properly now. Even if I do have urges, I have my 3 option plan to get me out of that urge. Those being hypnosis, long walks and other exercise, and online AA support meetings.
Have a great week guys!
Well I made it through week 1 with no alcohol. I honestly did not have any withdrawal symptoms, and did not have any urges to drink at all. Now I just want to repeat the week over again/ I don't expect to have urges, as my mindset is set up properly now. Even if I do have urges, I have my 3 option plan to get me out of that urge. Those being hypnosis, long walks and other exercise, and online AA support meetings.
Have a great week guys!
Gus,
The mind is a powerful thing, isn't it? Fortunately, it doesn't always have to work against us, we can use it to our advantage. It sounds like you have put a lot of thought into your plan to overcome any obstacle that may come your way.
I look forward to reading about your journey. Stay strong! :)
Lynn
Hi Ashley,
Thank you for responding.
Yes, I'm ready to give my body and mind a good break from alcohol. I decided to give myself another break because the alcohol was again creating too many problems in my life. Its caused problems in relationships. It is also causing problems with how my mind functions. I am taking anti depressants right now, and I think I ended up on them due at least partly to alcohol consumption.
I know you recommended 90 days as a break, but I feel like I need a longer break. And yes, posting here regularly helped me immensely before, so I intend on posting all 180 days, even if Im not getting a response, just to keep myself focused.
What will I do if somehow rationalize the need for a drink? In my last stint being alcohol free, Im pretty sure that did not occur. But if it does occur, I have several tools I am going to use:
1)I have been doing a quit drinking hypnosis by Michael sealed lately (its on Youtube). He gets you to picture the urge for a drink in the past , then fast forward to the bad things that happened. I intend on picturing bad things happening the minute I get an urge
2)I can go for a long walk if I get an urge to drink. I recall doing alot of long walks when I stopped from 2015 to 2017.
3)I can attend an AA meeting on Zoom. If I attend those meetings, I wont drink. Attending those meetings is a good reminder of what can go wrong when I drink.
Thanks for asking the question Ashley. It just made me refocus on what to do if that happens.
Have a great day!
Welcome back Gus!
Great to hear from you, although sorry to hear you had a bumpy ride. It sounds like you are ready to get down to business. I think posting here daily will greatly help you, and also help this site! We need more people like you posting, so thank you for taking us along for the ride
Six months is an admirable goal. I think it will give you a lot of clarity, your body and mind will thank you. What made you decide that now is the time?
I love your mindset! It sounds like you are starting off very strong. What will you do if you some how rationalize a reason to drink? How will you handle it?
Looking forward to reading more from you.
Take care,
Ashley
P.S Thanks for the kudos. It brightened my day :)
Hey Lynn,
I am filling up my evenings with things I can do now that I’m not drinking. I am much like you were when I drank - I drank alone when I wanted to drink to excess. That’s a very lonely existence! I am keeping busy and I’m asking myself “Why would I want to drink?” I can’t come up a reason why. My mindset is what I have to focus on in order to be successful.
Thanks for the support Lynn! I’m sticking with this cause I know it worked for me before and I know it will again.
Have a great day!
Gus,
I did the same thing with my thoughts about drinking. When I gave up alcohol, I would spend the entire day depressed because I couldn't drink that night. The night without alcohol was bad enough, thinking about not drinking only added to it. So I did something similar to you. Instead of telling myself that I couldn't drink that night, I would think about things that I could do. I made it a point to have something to do at night that I couldn't do when drinking. Before I knew it, I was doing something different every night.
It didn't take long to realize that the only thing I was doing when I was drinking, was drinking. I was sometimes with friends when I was drinking, but to drink the way I wanted to drink, I was drinking alone. I came to the same realization as you, nothing good came out of drinking. Funny thing though, I would like to be able to drink! How crazy is that?!
I wish you luck. I'll be here to support you in any way I can! I hope you are having a good day. :)
Lynn
Hey Lynn,
Its great to hear from you!
What I learned from reading my owns posts so far is this. When I quit before, I changed how I thought about drinking. As an example, instead of saying "I should not drink" or "I dont want to drink" I was asking myself the question "Why should I drink? What possible benefits will this provide for me?" The answer of course is nothing. Drinking provides nothing for me. It does nothing only creates problems.
Anyway, this site worked for me before. I plan on sharing alot here in the coming. Thanks alot for touching base with me!
My goal for now is 180 days alcohol free. I recall Ashley telling us many years ago that people need a MINIMUM 90 days to reset their brain around alcohol. I need above the minimum. I intend to post here daily just to keep myself on track.
Hope everyone has a great day!
Gus,
It's good to hear from you, although I'm sorry to hear you are having difficulties. I think it's great that you are going back and reading your old posts. I think a lot of the time when we receive advice from someone, in the back of our minds we are thinking that it really doesn't apply to them. I know that when I was drinking I would read posts or advice, and sometimes think that wouldn't work for me. I was thinking I was different somehow. I now know that was just another way of making excuses. It's not often we can take our own advice, so good for you!
If you don't mind sharing, what have you read in your old posts that you find helpful? Have you been able to determine any one thing that takes you back to alcohol? I hope you have had a great start to your week. Welcome back!
Hi everyone,
I have been a frequent user of this site in the past. I posted here regularly when I quite drinking for 3 years, from 2015 to 2017.
I have had a bumpy couple years with alcohol since them. I have managed to stay away from it for weeks and months at a time, but thats not long enough. I want to give myself a break of at least 6 months, then decide if I want to stay away permanently or it.
I have been going back reading my posts from when I quit before. They are really helpful. Its like my sober self is giving advice to my non sober self.
Also, I had great support here from Ashley, Lynn and other people. I am hoping to hear from more of you.
Anyway, I would appreciate any feedback from anyone. Thanks
