Day 17....does it get any easier?

[PAMN]

I read somewhere that the effects of alcohol withdrawal can be felt for six months or so after you stop drinking - could that possibly be true? I am on Day 17 and on Campral...I am very irritable and impatient most of the time now. I don't feel any physical symptoms like I did the first few days (which was really only slight headache). It seems like a lot of people go a period of time (30 days, months, even years) then start drinking again - that is discouraging in that it appears this will be a life-long, constant struggle? Thoughts?

[Finding My Self]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Hi PAMN - I'm not sure about alc. withdrawal after 6 months - having reached there! They went long ago!! But at day 17 I could have bitten the head off an elephant!! Grrrrrrrr! Hang in there - that passes! (Except for the days when we are just human and they pass too!)

Yep, we all have the choice of drinking again - going AF does not stop alcohol from existing...but it makes it easier to make a healthy decision.....do go for a good 30-60 days before making too many plans about your future drinking 'career'! Things change in yur mind about it the further you get....WELL DONE for 17 days!!!

LOve FMS xx

[retteacher]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

I echo what FMS & tk have said. I make the decision each day that my life is 100% better AF than drinking, & I will not interfere w/my happiness by drinking. I have been sober 59 days & am still adjusting (particularly in the area of sleep). I slipped after over 60 days AF. I think I started to believe my romantic fantasies about drinking in mod (which I cannot do). On Oct. 6th, I woke up & said "enough is enough." I won't drink anymore & approach my program on a one day at a time basis. I don't think about the future wo/alcohol. Good luck, Mary

[magic]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Hi Pamn,

Congratulations on your AF days, well done!

I love what Mary has said...."I will not interfere with my happiness by drinking."

Mary says all kinds of wise things, watch for her.

I can only speak for myself and I will. I have been sober for over 3 years. I no longer think about picking up a drink, I have no cravings, as far as I am concerned I am a non drinker, just like the billions of other people in the world.

I think that when you are just beginning it is hard to grasp that there is anyone out there who doesn't drink except we "problem drinkers" who have quit. It's true, there are many.

I cannot say that I will never pick up a drink. I don't know what tomorrow will bring.
But for today I am sober.

Keep going, sweetheart, you're doing so well. Each day it will get easier.

A sober life is a grand life. You must trust me on this.

magic xx

[PAMN]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Thansk!

Thanks, eveyrone, for the words of encouragement. :thanks:

I am happier AF, for sure. I have normal conversations with my husband about normal things instead of my philosophical drunk ramblings I used to have (how on EARTH did he bear it?). I enjoy walking my dogs in the evenings and drinking hot chocolate instead of wine while I sit on the patio after a hard days work. The hardest part is the drive home from work after a very stressful day....wine used to be my "reward" and relaxation. New thinking......

thanks again everyone. Closing out Day 17 and on to Day 18!!!

[Accountable for Me]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

You are doing great Pam! Keep on going.... The first few weeks are the hardest. Bring on many moods and changes. Keep convincing your mind that this is a breeze! Believe me it works to help you along. Drown your thoughts with positive ones.

[Reenie]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Pamn: As time goes on life AF gets easier, but unfortunately, I believe its always going to be a struggle. The downward spiral is always just one drink away. I think its a matter of reminding yourself that life is better AF. It's always going to be a matter of being proactive and preparing yourself to avoid taking that first drink. It stinks having to live this way. As for being irritable and impatient, those symptoms eventually fade away; especially after you adjust to your new way of life. -Reenie

[Finding My Self]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Magic - this is great! "I think that when you are just beginning it is hard to grasp that there is anyone out there who doesn't drink except we "problem drinkers" who have quit. It's true, there are many." It terrified me initially (and I still labour under my warped thinking about it sometimes!) as my then partner reinforced it to me over and over, as did a brief stint at AA.... even though I know loads of people who just don't drink.....I think, for me, it was a way of beating myself up....which I am very good at and seem better at it than I even realised!!! Now I know my ex's attiutude (which had for more to do with him than me) of "Tell'em you're a 'recovering alcoholic' and they'll be proud of you" (eeek! A dangerous thing to go spouting in public I think - and not necessarily pleasant for the unsupsecting recipient!! Bit like telling eveyone you're 'on your monthlies'!!!) was (a) rubbish (b)totally uneccesary!! Counsel and decorum please!!

So, Pam.....you're doing great. And, erm, yes, the philosophical ramblings?!??! Well, you know, they weren't that bad...just rather waywardly delivered!! But, yep, give me 'normal' conversation anyday now!! And hot choc! And, the 'end-of-day' feelings do pass - it's OK!

Hugs FMS xx

[Eastender]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Hi Pamn,
I did 33 AF days, then curiousity got the better of me had to see! Opps no ! like I had never stopped.
Managed to control the intake for that day and started AF again Day 3 for me. Certainly did not change my physical craving for drinking, but mentally I have shifted somehow and starting to think about alcohol in a different way!

[Long Road]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Oops I know

I definitely can't be a MOD. One drink and i'm a goner. So it's AF for life for me, but that's OK. I feel pretty good about it :band2:

[PAMN]

Day 17....does it get any easier?

Mod

Long Road, I can't do mod either - no way, no how. If I drink....I drink daily and a lot. So abs is my only option for success. Today is Day 18. I feel like I'm over a hump and am over half way to 30 days, so I don't want to lose it now!!! 30 days seems within reach and seems like a great milestone.