~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

[dill]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

Quiet is good, Jude! We were expecting some wintery weather here today, but it drifted to far to the south of us. I'm seeing a pretty sunrise outside my window, with partly cloudy skies. Grateful for that!

It seems a lot of things are coming a little bit early this year, Mr. V. The grass is greening up ahead of schedule, too.

Keep all that snow contained up in your area, please, Cowboy!

Committing to another 24.

[Orimus]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

29f and sunny here in Jersey with rain expected tonight and snow tomorrow. Committing to another 24!

[paulywogg]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

5:04 am in vegas,another 24 please

[abcowboy]

“Someone who is trying to be sober is often trying to work out deeper emotional issues and is attempting to undo years of habitual behavior. When you reduce recovery to just abstinence, it simplifies what is really a much more complex issue.” - Sasha Bronner

-17C (3F) here this morning, it's cold, but at least no more snow in the forecast! Crazy winter eh QW! Vermilion is really good with snow removal, we usually drive on bare pavement in the winter, but this year the Town boys are having a tough time keeping up with all the snow!

6:15am in Alberta, 24 more please, and thanks...

In the past 24 hours, these people have signed in for 24 hours of sobriety:
[MENTION=15430]lifechange[/MENTION] [MENTION=24080]Jude58[/MENTION] [MENTION=20895]Orimus[/MENTION] [MENTION=17650]paulywogg[/MENTION] [MENTION=7944]dill[/MENTION] [MENTION=17632]Mr Vervill[/MENTION] [MENTION=22409]Quit wining[/MENTION] [MENTION=24140]Crusader[/MENTION] abcowboy

Today is going to be a darn good day not to drink!

[abcowboy]

I chose today's quote to get a bit of discussion going, so I'd like to hear everyone's opinion on the quote. When I read it, I thought of [MENTION=24140]Crusader[/MENTION] and the science behind drinking and recovery. Can we just abstain and remain sober, or do we have to get to the "cause" of our drinking to be successful in quitting?

My counsellor said that to me in our first session, we have to find out why you drink, then we'll be able to figure out a plan to make your recovery successful. I'm thinking she was right...

[Crusader]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

A good morning all on day 19. Feels good to add to those days.

It looks like many of us feel that hangover feeling from lack of sleep. I am grateful for the last two nights of sleep. I was up earlier today, but I did get a decent amount of sleep last night. I’ll have to stick with my sleeping aids until I get further along in my quit to try and taper myself down. I’m thinking about attempting to grow some of my own herbs this summer, and see if some of the relaxing/sleep aid ones can help. So far the over the counter ones I’ve tried don’t work for me. They used to years ago, but I may need stronger doses now. I want to get more self reliant as time goes on.

Dill, you are in the states, so you can get the first two seasons of ‘Alone’ on Hulu or you can go to the History Channel website and watch them if you have a cable/tv subscriber like Dish, DirectTV, etc. You use that to show you have access to the History channel in your cable, and that allows you to view them. I have seen both season one and two. Two was better in my opinion and this show coming to me right now has perfect timing. It’s very personally directed for me. I’ve been thinking about survival and preparation for years. My drinking kept me from actually putting some of my goals into practice or preparation. It has many lessons on different levels within its episodes. I found Touching the Void and some other documentaries on Amazon. Thanks for the suggestion.

ABC, thank you for mentioning ‘Alone’. I may have never noted its existence. Great timing for me.

Lifechange, you are a lucky sleeper. Yes, insomnia is awful. I developed mine after a case of a bad flu that lasted for six weeks. It left me with some effects that never recovered to previous levels. I hold out hope, now, that maybe I can heal that at some point. We can hope.

ABC, as you’ve noted, I agree completely with your quote. For me, it will be the difference in keeping the quit. There is so much ‘fear’ based components to my drinking. I really realized that yesterday in a confrontational way. We often know things, but these issues stay muted until something snaps them into the light where we can really see them clearly. Some of my deepest fears that I drank to run from came to pass. Yesterday, I realized I am still alive. I am making it through them. Did all my drinking stop them? Pain and bad things can and will happen to us all. I started this quit with ‘a need to quit’ because I felt so sick and wasn’t functioning well at all. That kept me sober long enough to think in a more clear fashion. Now I have to work on preparing myself for some of those other fears I have inside. Some of those fear controlled so much of what I did in my life to prevent it. Last year, two of those fears were realized/came to pass. Nothing I did stopped them from becoming reality. I have some others that I am now addressing and my journey will be working on preparing for them, so they don’t have such a grip on me and my behavior. I have gained some traction with this other fear and will continue to be proactive vs. the powerlessness I have been plagued with inside. That isn’t even me or wasn’t when I was younger. My thoughts and life experiences brought me to that place. I can’t overemphasize the power our fears can have to be destructive if we don’t face them. These are some of my thoughts. A band-aid approach only works for so long. The infection continues if the treatment doesn’t change.

This may be a bit winded, but I’m in a hurry at the moment.

Another 24 for me.

[Quit wining]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

Committing to another 24 hours.

Just heading out with my 4 legged buddy for a walk. Still cold BUT the promise of plus temperatures is only a few days away. Mother Nature will clear the snow that our city can’t/won’t!

Orimus, huge congrats on 400 days! Well done!!

QW

[dill]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

[MENTION=24140]Crusader[/MENTION], I have Time Warner Cable and we do get the History Channel in our package. I'll go to their website and check it out. I have told Mr. D about the program and he is on board with watching it. One of his favorite shows is Alaska the Last Frontier. I don't know how similar the two shows are, but I think we will enjoy Alone, from what I have read about it. I have asked Mr. D, (resident IT guy) to figure a way for us to watch it, so, the ball is in his court!

Speaking of dealing with emotions that come up which used to send me to the bottle, we watched a movie the other night that was so unsettling to me emotionally that I had terrible dreams that night. But I didn't drink! I can watch some pretty horrific movies/shows without batting an eyelash. But this one somehow brought home to me with great emotional clarity what it was like for my son when he was in Iraq and what it was like for him to transition back to civilian life after his traumatic experiences there. It gave me a greater understanding of some of the reasons why things went the way they did for him over the past 10 years and I felt overwhelmed with sadness. I woke the next day thinking about my dreams and understanding and processing my emotions. But I didn't go out and buy. Small victories!

[MENTION=21602]abcowboy[/MENTION], when we are 4-5 years old we begin to ask why. We human beings need to make sense of things and understand why. It's simply built in and is a tool for survival. It serves us well to arm ourselves with knowledge and do whatever it takes for us to have our own understanding to the best of our abilities. Can't solve a problem if we don't understand it....on some level! For each of is, that is different. I think we need to understand how and why we got in to the pickle we got ourselves into before we can hope to get out of it!

[lifechange]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

9:33 here and we're having an overcast, rain-snowy day.. looking forward to the Green of Spring..
another 24 af hours for us all..

[Jude58]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

5:00 am here in N.Y. Nor'easter likely to just graze this part of the state, and we're only expected to get 3-5 inches of snow here. I can live with that, and am grateful that we will miss the bulk of the storm.

cowboy...not sure what to say about the quote in question. Personally, I think that alcoholism has many causes, not all of which stem from repressed emotions. In my case, I come from a long line of alcoholics, so I know that genetics plays a big part in why I drank. Combine that with growing up in an environment where the booze flowed constantly, I didn't have a chance. Also, people that suffer from clinical depression are more likely to abuse alcohol, which of course, makes the depression worse. For me, the depression, which I still struggle with to this day, came before the booze. I drank to help deal with being shy at social gatherings, I drank to help me fall asleep, and I drank because I loved that euphoric buzz where all was well with the world. Of course, that wonderful buzz soon faded into a dark and scary place...not nice at all. Whatever our reasons for drinking are, abstinence is the key to freedom, with or without counseling. In a nutshell it comes down to the needs of each individual, as one alcoholic is not the same as another, and the treatment should be based upon that.

Here's to another 24 and thank you!

[Mr Vervill]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

32F and grey.
A myriad of things/problems lead to drinking. Including everyone I knew from high school (and earlier) drank, everyday. That habit started early. It wasn't just AL, pot, and other drugs. We were all chasing that high.
Have to give that more thought.
24 more here please.

[abcowboy]

"7 Rules for a Happy Life: 1. Think of others more than yourself. 2. Laugh every day. 3. Spend less money than you make. 4. Be an encourager NOT a critic. 5. Pray when you feel like worrying. 6. Give thanks when you feel like complaining. 7. Keep going when you feel like quitting."

- Unknown

Clear and cold! Brrrrrrrrr -21C (-2F)

6:20am in Alberta, I'm in for 24 more please, and thanks...

In the past 24 hours, these people have signed in for 24 hours of sobriety:
[MENTION=15430]lifechange[/MENTION] [MENTION=24080]Jude58[/MENTION] [MENTION=17632]Mr Vervill[/MENTION] [MENTION=7944]dill[/MENTION] [MENTION=20895]Orimus[/MENTION] [MENTION=17650]paulywogg[/MENTION] [MENTION=24140]Crusader[/MENTION] [MENTION=22409]Quit wining[/MENTION] abcowboy

Today is going to be a darn good day not to drink!

[Orimus]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

Winter storm warnings here in Jersey as the snow is falling, 34f. Committing to another 24!

I think everything that we do is for a reason ultimately but it seems to me that we discover the reason for our drinking in the course of our quest for abstinence. In that quest we are not just figuring out who we are and who we wish to be but developing the picture of the life we want to lead. This contrast highlights those things that are and have been incongruent with that idea. Our behaviors while drunk point the way to what we were actually trying to accomplish/fulfill in our own damaged way. It is indeed a personal journey and will be different for each person. Like any war in history there is a tipping point but there were a number of events that led up to out drinking even if they are not apparent. Imho the journey to a non-drinking life is a journey of self discovery and sometimes can be as simple as stepping into the light. Just a few thoughts on the matter. :happy2:

[paulywogg]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

5:50 am in Vegas,another 24 please I started drinking at 32 cuz I've always had sleep issues and hubs and I discovered that 1 or 2 beers helped us sleep thru the night,those innocent couple of beers turned into years of hell for us both! He was able to get his drinkin under control,,I've taken the long road unfortunately but at least I'm working on it

[dill]

Re: ~cattleman cafe~ & another 24...

I think for me the main problem is genetic. I see a lot of similarities between myself and Jude, except that I never suffered any serious depression. Growing up, alcohol was just part of the landscape. My parents socialized and that involved drinking. But I never drank until I was at college. After graduation and on into my adult life, I was a "normal drinker" for awhile altho I did begin use alcohol to deal with daily stress at the end of the work day. Thus moderate drinking became a daily event for me. My drinking just escalated over time I think due to the genetic predisposition. But I agree with [MENTION=20895]Orimus[/MENTION]:

Imho the journey to a non-drinking life is a journey of self discovery and sometimes can be as simple as stepping into the light. Just a few thoughts on the matter.

Working my way back up out of this deep hole I had dug has been a journey of self discovery. And of learning about the universe and my place in it and my relationship with God. It has been a very spiritual renewal for me and I am grateful for that part of the whole experience. I might not have taken the time to reflect on things quite so much if I hadn't been searching for my way out.

24 more please!
[MENTION=17650]paulywogg[/MENTION], did you used to have Carla from Cheers as your avatar at some point?