do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

[InChains]

As a few of you know I'm a couple of days AF and was just beginning to wonder: how many people here managed to achieve long term success without outside help other than mwo? and of those how many needed professional help?

I would make this into a poll, but I don't know how, will try and keep track of answers though and see if I can turn up anything interesting/useful from picking your collective brain

[JackieClaire]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

Ah you need to be a subscriber to do a poll.

Good thread,btw.

I think the only think I haven't done is re-hab and do you know I wish I'd had the courage to give it a try. De-toxes too many too mention but through those I've seen that I did want to get sober. But how many times did I think after a few weeks, months sober that I was cured. Stoopid or what.

I've done AA and NA (alcohol was my drug of choice) and enjoyed them. And would go back in a heart beat if I found that MWO just wasn't cutting it any more.


Just before I started posting on MWO I was seeing a great counsellor unfortunately I would turn up half drunk or badly hungover so what we said went in one ear and out the other. So after yet another detox my doctor told me about this web site called MWO. I'd already signed in 10 months previous but had never used an on line forum before so just left it sitting in my bookmarks. Once I got sober my counsellor and me could get down to the nitty gritty of where my problems arose. I remembered things from our sessions. He gave me reading to do and I listened, I read and I talked and talked.

Primarily MWO has been the biggest asset to me keeping my sobriety. Logging in every day, reading, posting sometimes with great enthusiasm and sometimes just for a bit of a natter. I now work in an out reach program talking with other addicts who on the whole are the nicest, funniest, loyal and friendly people with a problem with substance abuse including alcohol. I couldn't have picked up the phone 4 years ago to do that.

What I'm actually trying to say in a long winded way is grab all the help that you can find. Here, on the phone, doctors, friends with sobriety. I know I couldn't do this alone.

Sorry bit rambling, but if there's anything you want to ask. I'm an open book.

[mama bear]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

MWO and the support of my family saved me.....having to face my husband and kids got to be harder and harder

[paulywogg]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

hey inchy,ive wondered the same thing myself,do i need outside help? i dont know,i can go pretty strong af for a bit but then my mood gets pissy and i just dont care anymore so i relapse,i dont know what kind of outside help i need,maybe be hypnotized so drinking seems shitty,bad part is sometimes when i drink i get really happy,i wish i had that motivation and elation sober,i guess its not the quitting thats hard for me its the staying quit

[JackieClaire]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

Good point you make there, Pauly.

It's not the stopping it's the staying stopped. I'm never going to deny that I did have some great times when I was drinking, but when those fun times turn to more tears than laughter it's time to get out.

There's a book somewhere called Living Sober. I'll see if I can find a link. It's an AA book but if you just drop the AA bits (if you're not a fan) it makes a lot of sense. Sure you can get it from Amazon.

[Anjicia]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

I've done out patient treatment, counciling AA and on here. I started going back to AA meetings last week. But still don't have long term sobriety yet. I love being a part of mwo and try to log on daily and post. AA is ok and its good to be with people in a room who have the same problem and at differant stages of sobriety. I'll never quit trying to beat this beast.

[Nelz]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

I considered some "treatments" but was too cheap to pay the co-pay. I knew AA wasnt for me. I am NOT knocking AA, I just know it would not have worked. I have some friends in AA and they swear by it.

I really just use a real bad bottom out experience I had, remember just exactly how terrified I was at that moment, and use that as motivation.

But to be honest, its not hard for "that" long. If we can just get past a certain time frame(different for everyone), it just gets exponentially easier. It gets thrown around in here all the time, and is probably cliche....but its soooooooooooo true.

So for me, it was the bottom out, white knuckles, and this place. It would also break my heart to disappoint Nicey......

[Struggles 106]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

HELP TO ABSTAIN

Hey Inchy

I tried AA too, but it's not for me. For a while I felt like I was deficient for not being able to get into it. But I realized that I'm allowed to have the feelings I have about it.
As an atheist it was not a good fit for me.

SO...now I credit antabuse for my success, which is now a tad more than 3 months.
I believe that after some time of clarity and clear thinking it gets easier. The further you get from it the better tosee how bad it really was. (In my experience)

I hope you can get the help you need Inchy. You are young and have a lot of promise and talent. I wish you well

[sugarbeat]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

I like the poll and would really love to hear from people who are 4-5 years plus sober that believe they are emotionally sober (thinking sober) also for the most part

[madmans]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

It was just this place for me and a lot of will power at the start, I did take a lot from Allen carrs book, I was desperate to get sober, felt time wasting away.
Sugarbeat I don't think you have to wait that long to reach that level of thought, I did read somewhere that it took about 2 years and I'd say that was about right for me. Drinking hasn't been an issue for me for about 6 to 8 months now, a real none thought , I now feel and think like I did 17 years ago, the only difference is I know I can't drink ever.

[sugarbeat]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

Hey Madman, thanks for the feedback, I absolutely agree that the thinking doesn't take that long to start flowing in the right direction. Why I suggested that period is to see what foundation/ support people used to successfully maintain it, hope that makes sense

[kuya]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

I am a medical professional and an atheist so AA was not for me. No matter what is said living in a small community makes the possible exposure of recovery groups likely, people have no problem with say, a teacher, having an alcohol problem but tend to think anyone medical 'should' know better. I have even had that suggested here by one member. My own doctor is struggling with his alcohol use but I know would resist AA for the same reason I do.

I am also a single mum and having a child at home makes attending ANYTHING really hard.

I quit for two months on my own but didn't understand that ONE drink puts you straight back to day one. Coming here taught me that, staying here reminds me every day.

I have heard it takes two years to truly cement sobriety and, while I am happily sober, I will listen to those wiser than I.

In short, MWO is my AA and the honesty I can have here is greater, IMO, than I would care to have at a face to face meeting.

[mario]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

For the most part it was MWO that did it for me, I went to a few AA meetings and also had counseling classes to help me understand why I drank, But for me it was the everyday logging on here and talking and posting which got me through, I also would say that I am confidently in a sober way of thinking all the time as the thoughts of having alcohol does not interest me at all.

[learningtolovewinter]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

Kuya- thanks for ur post, it is helpful for me to see:h

I quit for two months on my own but didn't understand that ONE drink puts you straight back to day one. Coming here taught me that, staying here reminds me every day.

[YouKayBee]

do you need nelp to achieve long term success?

I tried most things and MWO was one of those things. In the end a visit to a Dr in Scotland who prescribed a particular method got me on the way to sobriety however I'd probably have never found out about him, nor gone on that trip if it hadn't been for MWO.