Newbies Nest

[teezah]

Newbies Nest

Boot Camp Roll Call

Boot Camp Roll Call for June 26, 2012

(*Add your name to this running list if you want a daily log by hitting the Quote button on this post).

Fin - Day 9 (Chasing Week 2)
Teezah - Day 3

Fin - I'm on day 17 sobriety, but wanted to do a full commitment of 30 days which is why I'm only on day 3 of boot camp.

[Fin]

Newbies Nest

teezah;1341233 wrote: Boot Camp Roll Call for June 26, 2012

(*Add your name to this running list if you want a daily log by hitting the Quote button on this post).

Fin - Day 9 (Chasing Week 2)
Teezah - Day 3

Fin - I'm on day 17 sobriety, but wanted to do a full commitment of 30 days which is why I'm only on day 3 of boot camp.

Wow, 17 days?! Outstanding. Thanks for joining the Roll Call, etc. And you grew up after 17? You're waaaay ahead of the ball, girl. Took me to age 46. Oh well, better late than never.

[K9Lover]

Newbies Nest

Hi Everyone!

Just checking in. You Boot Campers are doing great...keep up the good work!

Nothing new to report here...staying AF and enjoying every hangover-free day!! Applying for a new job, so any positive thoughts sent my way will be appreciated!

Hope you all have a great day.

K9

[Honeysoup]

Newbies Nest

Fin;1341231 wrote: Boot Camp Roll Call for June 26, 2012

(*Add your name to this running list if you want a daily log by hitting the Quote button on this post).

Fin - Day 9 (Chasing Week 2)
Your name here

Honeysoup

[Fin]

Newbies Nest

Boot Camp Roll Call for June 26, 2012

(*Add your name to this running list if you want a daily log by hitting the Quote button on this post)

Fin - Day 9 (Chasing Week 2)
Teezah - Day 3
Honeysoup - Day 7
Next name here - Day


FOOTNOTE: * If you hit the "Quote" button on this post, be sure to delete all the [/QUOTE and what's between these brackets] symbols at the very beginning and the bottom of this post so your name will be added to this list and this post (vs. an indented quoted post). The goal is to preserve the names in one clean post over the course of a day. Alternatively, copy/paste the entire post as is into a "Quick Reply" before adding your own name and saving.

[LibraryGirl]

Newbies Nest

LillyE;1341221 wrote: Oh and just after I posted that I saw that someone else had posted this from the same site, so I guess links are ok:

Reader Mailbag: How do we Motivate Ourselves to Get Sober with the Idea that We Can Have Fun Again Some Day?

Roonie and Library - you both need to read this Me too.

If I thought like a frat boy, this might seem to apply to me, lol. I don't or haven't thought about drinking in this way since my early twenties, if ever. I wasn't out to get "wasted" and thought that was the only way to have fun, man, yeah! LOL

I guess it makes sense. Maybe I'll take up sky diving.

P.S. When I say drinking makes things more fun/interesting (seemingly), I don't mean getting trashed. Obviously, that would defeat the purpose.

[LibraryGirl]

Newbies Nest

K9Lover;1341299 wrote: Hi Everyone!

Just checking in. You Boot Campers are doing great...keep up the good work!

Nothing new to report here...staying AF and enjoying every hangover-free day!! Applying for a new job, so any positive thoughts sent my way will be appreciated!

Hope you all have a great day.

K9

Good Luck, K9! Are you applying for a new position within the same org?

[K9Lover]

Newbies Nest

LibraryGirl;1341528 wrote: Good Luck, K9! Are you applying for a new position within the same org?

Hi LG!
Yes, still with the City. You'll be suprised the job I'm going for....Corrections Officer/Jailer. I'm ready to get up out of this cube and start frisking some people! LOL

[K9Lover]

Newbies Nest

LibraryGirl;1341528 wrote: Good Luck, K9! Are you applying for a new position within the same org?

Double post...argh this dang computer. LOL

[LibraryGirl]

Newbies Nest

Have compassion for the drunk girl in handcuffs. Sounds exciting K9! That should make your days more interesting, to say the least. Will you wear mirrored sunglasses?:H

[LillyE]

Newbies Nest

Fin - Day 9 (Chasing Week 2)
Teezah - Day 3
Honeysoup - Day 7
Next name here - Day
Lilly - Day 10

Hello all, especially my fellow boot campees!

I apologize for not posting more boot camp arse kicking. Between the computer chaos, deadlines and now I'm sick, it's proving a tough week. But I'm here, on day 10, and increasingly happy to be so. And I can't tell you all how much it thrills me to see everyone's Boot Camp signatures. I'm proud I gave rise to that and it makes me feel like we're all in this together and there's this underground secret network of support whenever I'm struggling

While I'm still focused on that 30 days straight, I also will be pretty thrilled if I get through the weekend, and therefore the month, still AF, as that will mean I will have only drunk one night in the month of June, which in itself will be a first. My usual pattern is to go one, two, maybe three weeks at most and then have a few nights of bingeing until I feel truly wretched again. So at least this is progress.

And even though I feel a bit stressed and sick right now, even this time is giving me clarity. I keep thinking back to drinking experiences going 'how did I think that was normal or ok?', 'how sad is that' and etc. Small shudders. Also, without boring you all with the details, a couple of health things (basically upset stomach and digestion stuff) have improved sooo much for not drinking! Like, so much so it's clear that drinking was the issue, not anything else I tried to blame it on.

LG, while I didn't think of drinking like that either necessarily - the spiritual river post that is - but I felt the point was more that you will be surprised at the things you find fun once you quit - that you can have lots of fun sober - and that drinking isn't nearly as fun as you think it is when you're in the thick of it - that whole euphoric recall thing. I still feel like I'm 'missing out' on the fun by not drinking so anything that helps me challenge that is useful to me right now.

You and Roonie have both said that you're feeling like nothing is fun when you're not drinking and you're bored. What is it that you are missing so much and what were the not fun bits of drinking that led you here, then? (Believe me, I understand as I have the same struggle - I'm just trying to help you both also try and see if you can shift your thinking on it. I need to too.)

L x

[LillyE]

Newbies Nest

Further to that... I also thought the end point of the article was interesting - if you got that far - that it is more the removal of pain than the attainment of joy that motivates many to get sober initially. Makes sense to me.

Good luck with the job K9. That's one I'd find hard to imagine doing! Yes, please be gentle with the drunks... sure you will be

[LibraryGirl]

Newbies Nest

Yes, Lils, I know you only meant to be helpful. I agree about the removal of pain. That is definitely what motivated me. So to answer your question, that is the not so bad bit about AL. One of them.

I guess I also took something else from that article...where it said you were drinking for years and have been sober only months, so you shouldn't expect to instantly be back to your pre-AL self. Well, it said something like that...and so true. It's such a journey. Who knew what we'd be having to face years down the road after we took that first sip of AL. I sure wouldn't have if I had known.


LG

[LillyE]

Newbies Nest

LibraryGirl;1341566 wrote: Yes, Lils, I know you only meant to be helpful. I agree about the removal of pain. That is definitely what motivated me. So to answer your question, that is the not so bad bit about AL. One of them.

I guess I also took something else from that article...where it said you were drinking for years and have been sober only months, so you shouldn't expect to instantly be back to your pre-AL self. Well, it said something like that...and so true. It's such a journey. Who knew what we'd be having to face years down the road after we took that first sip of AL. I sure wouldn't have if I had known.
LG

*Sighs* Yes, I hear you.

I hope I'm not being annoying to you and Roon with my suggestions here. I am indeed just trying to help.

I totally share your struggle about abstinence versus moderation as the idea of never drinking again is still hard and the motivation to not quite there. But deep down I know the idea of moderation, consistently, is probably a joke for me and I'd be better to let it go. So, while I am feeling strong and good about not drinking I'm trying to use that time to build that motivation by reading as much as I can, journalling, trying to remember all the bad times, shift my perspective etc.

It helped me too to read Lolab's (I thin it was LL?) post about how it takes at least six months to start to really get to know the AF you. We need patience. Not something that typically comes easily to addicts who crave instant gratification and escape, right?

[LibraryGirl]

Newbies Nest

I meant to say the not so *good* bits about drinking. I guess it was clear, lol.

I have a terrible headache right now, and absolutely no desire to drink. Usually I don't. The daily cravings have stopped. I just guess I want that option if I "decided" to again. Of course I have it, and I know that I can quit again. I don't believe I would willingly go back to daily drinking and all the ramifications it had on me.