AF for December

[FlyAway]

AF for December

I had my work Christmas party last Saturday. It's weird, I have a couple months sober under my belt and don't plan on ever drinking again, but while driving to this party the cravings hit me out of nowhere! I haven't had a craving in over 2 months. I was blindsided by them. I totally thought I couldn't be triggered. Ugh. I had all of the "booze talk" going through my head: it's unreasonable to think I'll never drink again, why shouldn't I have a couple, everyone else is doing it, etc. I had actually decided that I was going to drink. :eeks:

When I got there everyone was gathered at the bar. I ordered water. I figured I'd start out with water and maybe move on to a drink later. The water went down just fine. By the time we moved to our table for dinner I had about 80% of my resolve back. I made it through the night just drinking water and felt great the next day. And I am so incredibly happy that I didn't drink!

It did make me realize that I may be letting my guard down though. I was so very close to drinking.

[FlyAway]

AF for December

AGUYFROMNC;1225707 wrote: Day 14 AF
Feeling good, still trying to get the energy back... Been taking multivitamins and drinking lots of water.
Cravings are still calling me...
Hope everyone an AF night!

Hey dude! Glad to see you here. I have been thinking about you and hoping that you are staying strong. I know how hard this has been for you and I know how much you were drinking daily. It makes me happy to see that you're hanging on and staying sober. :goodjob:

[FlyAway]

AF for December

And now one more post about my work Christmas party. This is an example of the wonderful effects of alcohol .

There were 12 of us (6 couples) at this dinner/party. I was the only one out of 12 who didn't drink. But my DH and I were the first to leave. My DH downed so much liquor that he was shit-faced and I had to practically carry him to our hotel room. When in the hotel he promptly vomited. Nice and romantic. Isn't alcohol grand? The next day we met up with another couple from the dinner who told us about the rest of the night. One man got so drunk that he passed out in the cab back to the hotel and then locked his wife out of their room and couldn't be woken to open the door for her. Another man got upset when his girlfriend referred to him by a nickname that his parents call him and proceeded to announce to the table that she used to be a stripper, much to her humiliation! And finally one of the women there in her drunken stupor announced to everyone and in front of her husband that she was bisexual! Good times! :nutso:

[Unwasted]

AF for December

:H:H:H

Flyaway, hilarious - thanks for reminding us of what we're NOT missing! You know, I typically didn't do things that extreme, but invariably I would do something like suggest getting together with someone and then the next day thinking WTF did I do that?! Isn't it incredible? You must feel really proud to have escaped all that! Good for you!

[mylife]

AF for December

Flyaway!! :H:H That is SUCH a reminder of why not to get drunk!!

And the events of the night are only half the battle! Imagine how all those people felt the next day (actually some of them probably had 2-day hangovers!) I bet they all wished they had followed your example. :goodjob:

I am facing a cruise with my family next week. None of them are big drinkers - in fact they can all nauseatingly stop after one or half of one. But I know they will be expecting champagne toasts etc during our cruise. I'm praying for strength and resolve to get through this. I know I will hear lots of "oh, you can have just one" and I need to have some answers ready. Fortunately, my drinking was never bad enough that my family thought I had a serious problem as I kept a lot of my drinking hidden. (Literally - in the closet!)

AGUY - I have to say you are doing great! Give it 90-days - your cravings will become less each day that you make it sober.

Unwasted - Congratulations again on 30 Days!!!

I hope you all have a fantastic AF day.

[FlyAway]

AF for December

Best wishes to you MyLife. Cruises were always such huge drinking events for me. I've never been on one where I wasn't sloshed every night. You'll just have to toast with water or club soda or some alternative. Where are you cruising to?

[Unwasted]

AF for December

Guy, someone on another thread (think it was the Newbie's Nest) posted about about chewable L-Glutamine that you can buy at GNC stores. Would that be an option for you? It's supposed to help with cravings.

ML - I find it so frustrating that we have to be afraid of what others will do/think of us in a situation like you've described. I just hope you'll put yourself first. Really, what's more important? I'm to the point now where I'm resolute about not letting anyone jeopardize my progress. I know it's sometimes easier said than done, but I'll be damned if I'd give up something so important at the behest of others who are really just trying to make themselves feel better by getting you to drink. I know, I used to be one of those people. I never pressured anyone for not drinking but to myself I'd think.....they are no fun!

I've been in two family settings in the last month and everyone did kind of look at me funny, but deep down I think they were impressed! They were curious but not negative at all. I think most people who drink know deep down that alcohol has a bit of a grip on them.......or if they've been drinking a while deep down they know alcohol has absolute control.

I hope you can be strong and save yourself. It is NOT worth it to cave. I see that now in hindsight of all my attempts in the past to moderate/get sober.

Best to you and everyone here...........keep it going......it's so worth it.:l

[mylife]

AF for December

Thanks FlyAway and Unwasted! This is such a great site.

FlyAway - we're going down into the gulf of mexico out of Tampa - I think a couple ports in Mexico, Honduras and Belize are on the agenda. I have been on a gazillion cruises living in Florida (in fact I worked for Royal Caribbean years ago) so I know how it can go. I'll come up with a plan to stay strong.

Unwasted you are right - it is so not worth it. Thanks again both!

[scottish lass]

AF for December

Day 17 here - all my work colleagues are gearing up for the work party on Friday - so hoping I can stay strong - I have great examples to follow from my friends here! I am so looking forward to posting as you guys are about my success and how great I feel on Saturday!!! Thanks for being such great role models!!

[FlyAway]

AF for December

scottish lass;1226349 wrote: Day 17 here - all my work colleagues are gearing up for the work party on Friday - so hoping I can stay strong - I have great examples to follow from my friends here! I am so looking forward to posting as you guys are about my success and how great I feel on Saturday!!! Thanks for being such great role models!!

You can do it! Have a plan in advance. What will you drink? What will you say when asked if you want a drink or why you aren't drinking? And if Friday rolls around and you aren't sure you can do it, start getting "sick" at work and don't go. Your sobriety is more important than this party. There will always be another party.

[FlyAway]

AF for December

mylife;1226105 wrote: Thanks FlyAway and Unwasted! This is such a great site.

FlyAway - we're going down into the gulf of mexico out of Tampa - I think a couple ports in Mexico, Honduras and Belize are on the agenda. I have been on a gazillion cruises living in Florida (in fact I worked for Royal Caribbean years ago) so I know how it can go. I'll come up with a plan to stay strong.

Unwasted you are right - it is so not worth it. Thanks again both!

Very nice! I think I've been on 5 cruises and 4 with RC. My favorite was an Alaskan cruise. I've been on 2 out of Tampa.

[mylife]

AF for December

Hi Guys!

Flyaway, I loved the Alaskan cruise too - I did that one with RC when I was working for them. It was gorgeous. This will be my second out of Tampa as well.

Hope everyone is having a great day!

[Unwasted]

AF for December

Hi Everyone - just checking in. Hope you're all doing well.:l

[Wally22]

AF for December

Hello Everyone
Taking a quick break and just checking in. Still Af and loving it. Hope everyone has something good planned for the weekend.

[DriftyAlison0]

AF for December

Checking in and having all those 0's in my drink tracker is making me feel real good. The plan for this weekend is to have an af weekend.