Newbies Nest

[tonyniceday]

Re: Newbies Nest

As said on another thread, Many MANY congratulations to SUPER MARIO on hitting 3000 DAYS today ... "Well Done" and "Congratulations" etc just does not cut it for such an amazing achievement....as on the other thread, that's got to need a speech!

[Pavati]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi, All:

ADP - I second what Mario said. I worried for 9 months about a vacation I was taking, and by the time it came around I was strong and ready. When September comes (Green Day song!), you can plan then. I just spent a mini-reunion weekend with a bunch of friends and one of the women really was on some 30 day diet so she and I weren't drinking. ALSO, the entire group drank far more bubbly water than wine - everyone slows down a bit as we age (well, not EVERYONE, or else I wouldn't be here...)

Yes, I take NoSugars advice and just post responses when I can. I used to go back and name everyone, and I found it was restricting my ability to use the site as it was taking so long. We will all be fine...

A day off today - looks like a lot of errands ahead of me. Grateful to have a delicious cup of coffee and some quiet time first.

Happy SOBER Saturday.

Pav

[ssd858]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi all,
Am wide awake and doing some reading to tire my eyes for a couple more hours sleep.
As usual getting encouragement and picking up tips to keep AF. Just a few more hours away from 10 weeks AF in my part of the nest and sooo happy about that.
However, I see a problem arising as today I booked my trip home in September for my belated 50th and that will really test the quit, (boy, planning that far ahead and believing I will still be AF is a breakthrough) :-) I'm telling all there that the new diet I'm on disallows alcohol, but I know I'm going to feel the preasure when I get there. Any advice always welcome.
I take each day as it comes and try to smile as much as possible. The doctor allowed me to get back to my gym and am killing it right now yay!!!! So if all goes to plan, I'll be fit at 50!!??!!

Right, eyes now tired, I can sleep again. lol!

Thank you all for honesty, encouragement for each other and for never stopping trying to stay clear of AL.

Axxx

Take this as your main excuse for staying afree! By then you will be in fantastic shape and just say you want to stay that way!
Also, try a fancy na drink! My current fave is a na Mimosa: 1 fresh squeezed orange, 1 small bottle Fever Tree Indian Tonic.
So yummy and tastes way better than a real drink! In May I am heading home to my brother's 50th bday party and it is in wine country. Amazingly I am feeling pretty good about it. This brother really doesn't drink much so he won't mind.
I am excited for you! Once you make it through this experience you will feel that you can do anything afree!

[Byrdlady]

Re: Newbies Nest

A beautiful day here in NC.
Mario, what an accomplishment! 3000 days, did you ever?! You cant imagine how grateful I am that you were here when I started. I must have asked 100 times 'When will these cravings stop?' You are the one that said they would subside in a couple weeks' time. I clung to that tidbit of information and fought to get there. It worked. THANK YOU for being here.
Hope everyone has an easy evening. Byrdie

[Lost Soul]

Re: Newbies Nest

Evening all,
A super long day today & I am very tired tonight so looking forward to a nights sleep! Great reading how everyone is doing - great positive posts! Congratulations Mario on 3000 days, What an achievement! Look forward to reading your insights & useful information you share here.
Wishing all a safe & sober Saturday
LS

[available]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning nesters

Well i celebrated 3 years and 4 months of sobriety on the 1st. Time flies at an amazing pace when one is sober and for the life of me i cant imagine being back where i was. Sure i still have times where i would like "one" but they are few and far between. Everyday waking up sober is a day to be happy. I never want to be in that darkness that was my life back then, sadly back then i did not realise how good my life could and would be without al in it.

Congrats Mario on 3000 days, so happy for you on your day.

ADP have your plan in place for September and just remember you dont drink, end of story. We always overthink events, i know i do, and they never ever turn out to how we envisage. As long as you are solid in your sobriety you can achieve amazing things and being sober, fit and 50 is a reason to be solid. I also gave up before i turned 50 and this month i will be 53 and sober. There is nothing better than that.

Otherwise i am plodding along, the man is up and down like a yo yo. His grief reminds me of when i stopped drinking. That sounds bizarre even to me but we have talked about it together. He is so not a drinker but understands the loss i went through and i understand his loss. He will have ok days and like today he will be sad and angry and be thinking of his mum on and off. I cant take his pain away but i can be his support.

I am going to start knitting a scarf today for him, that should keep me out of trouble.

Take care

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good evening Nesters,

Still waiting for the real spring to arrive here in Lav-land.....it's down near freezing tonight, geez.

Mario, CONGRATS on your 3000 AF days :welldone:

ADP, you truly will be feeling a lot stronger by the time September gets here, don't worry ahead of time.

Ava, looks like we need to plan a birthday party for you soon
It's so good that you can provide support for your friend right now. Congrats on your continued AF time as well.

Hello to LS, Byrdie, Pav, Tony & everyone who has checked in today.
Wishing a safe & comfy night for all in the nest!

Lav

[NoraC]

Re: Newbies Nest

I thought this was a good quote from Belle - Tired of Thinking about Drinking

a thought is not an action. you don’t have to do what your brain tells you to do. like, what if your brain told you to kiss that strange man in the grocery store? yeah, you wouldn’t do that. and you don’t drink either. no matter what your brain says.

[NoraC]

Re: Newbies Nest

I found my post that I ghought I lost! Yes!!
Here it is:


I am crawling out of the pits of death, Cancer, grief, and addiction. I am climbing higher and higher. The air is nice up here. My family is so happy. Everyone has a sense of calm that they haven't had in some time. My last drunk was my worst drunk ever and I am glad it is behind me. I think all of my drunk behaviors and episodes will always hurt a bit. They must, or I would feel like "researching" (drinking) again to see if I could miraculously control it.
I am no longer stuck in the swinging pendulum. I do believe I am finally going to make it.
I do believe that everyone can have sobriety and a happy life. I do believe that it takes some people more tries than others. But I pray that we can all live in sobriety peace and safety before anything worse happens because of our drinking.

Nursie - I was looking at my personal journal (a word doc that I journal in) and read one of your posts that I had kept. Such a great post - thank you. Worth sharing here again. :hug:

[mario]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good morning nesters ,

Thanks for all the well wishes , totally unexpected to be honest,

I don't have the temptation's or battles with my addiction anymore, I still do my work on myself to keep me focused & I do try and improve that, Reading, mediation, CA meetings, But here is the important part, I would not have had the success I have had if others here did not reach out to me when I came here.

Originally Posted by mario
i am new here and still trying to find my way around,anybody any tips as i would love to talk and get some help to stay sober 27/02/09

That above is my first post on MWO, And thanks to many people here I got loads of tips & help & support, And thanks for the containing support & guidance I get from coming to MWO, it can be done folks, 3001 days is proof of that & I am no better nor worse than anyone that comes here.

Have a great day folks I on a buzz now ;-)

[Neo]

Re: Newbies Nest

Well done on 3000 Mario. Now Super Mario. The Beer is in another castle

Mushroom1.jpg

If I had quit on that date it would have saved so many issues but didn't
Looking forward to a week sober and am eating well especially today . Have huge tub of yoghurt to get through and grapes were beautiful that I bought the other day . Will use this Sunday evening to sought out the crap in my bedroom/office lol

[tonyniceday]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi nest
Well here I am again at just over 70 days. I had this last time (the only other time I got this far) that day 70 is almost like a magnet to me. I knew someone well who had a serious problem with drink and kept trying to stop. I didn't know what he was going through at the time as I had not acknowledged my own problem. The point is that he never hit day 70. He died around 2 years ago directly because of his drinking.

Last time, when I got to 108 days, I had the same thing around the 70 day mark, I know why, but it seems to be happening again. On Friday, which was day 70, it wasn't so much of an issue because we had a group of around 15 bikers in the restaurant and they always seem to order one more drink than they actually want, and one of the bikers, when they left, went around the table and finished off all of the partial drinks. He was a mess, and it was a good reminder to me. I've never actually done that, finished everyone elses off, but I could easily have been that person. I saw it for what it was and there was no thought of drinking in my mind as it repulsed me.

Then last night, was a typical Saturday night, busy all evening and I was mostly in the Kitchen. It was at the end of the night that when everything was cleared down, and the staff had left, and I was on my own doing the "end of day" procedures, that I really REALLY wanted to pour myself a drink. I didn't (and the medication means it would have really bad consequences if I did - and being totally honest it was ONLY the medication which stopped me). I have not had such an all-encompassing urge like that all the way through this last 10 weeks and it scared the sh*t out of me. I know it's mainly that psychological thing with me of the 70 days but I am scared that at some point I will not be able to resist. It was that strong.

Has anyone found any way to just stop that urge from building and nipping it in the bud earlier. I woke this morning clear headed and grateful I didn't succumb but in the moment I know I could easily have done so.

Tony

[Roobs]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good morning nesters,

It's been over a week since I checked in here. There are about 7 pages to catch up on which I will try to do throughout the day. I have been on a spring vacation. I did not drink! One night a couple of friends ordered a drink and I had a small pity party for about 5 minutes. Then I was angry that one of my friends left a little bit of her drink in the glass! How does she do that?! I want to be that kind of drinker. Silent tantrum. Other than that one moment, our trip was so busy there wasn't time for obsessing about drinking.

Today I will try to re-engage with all my sober tools. I'm feeling a need for a tune up before I get too distant.

Have a great sober Sunday everyone.
Roobs

[Byrdlady]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good morning nesters,

It's been over a week since I checked in here. There are about 7 pages to catch up on which I will try to do throughout the day. I have been on a spring vacation. I did not drink! One night a couple of friends ordered a drink and I had a small pity party for about 5 minutes. Then I was angry that one of my friends left a little bit of her drink in the glass! How does she do that?! I want to be that kind of drinker. Silent tantrum. Other than that one moment, our trip was so busy there wasn't time for obsessing about drinking.

Today I will try to re-engage with all my sober tools. I'm feeling a need for a tune up before I get too distant.

Have a great sober Sunday everyone.
Roobs

Roobs, I am definately the AL Police when I go out with drinkers. If that is my biggest flaw, Im doing OK! Glad you made it thru, We are so proud of you!

Tony, all I can say is this: If you are feeling vulnerable, pull out ALL of your tools to help you get over the rough edges. You did the right thing in coming here and posting. Glue yourself in, thats what Ive done and so far, so good! Once you get this milestone/stumble point behind you, I think you will be in calmer waters. I kept falling at day 12, its was maddening....once I got past that, its as if the carpet rolled out in front of me and I knew I could do it! What a story about that biker guy, as disgusting as that was, I was in that same team photo....we all are, this thing doesnt clear up by itself! Im sonproud of you for muscling thru.
Hope everyone has an easy day! Byrdie

[Pavati]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning, Nest:

Tony - the triggers for craving are HALT - hungry, angry, lonely, tired. If you can avoid those, it might help you avoid cravings. I believe in other aspects of self care, too - exercise, meditation/mindfulness, talking to a sober community, etc. The other thing that helps end cravings for me is to play it forward. What if I DID have that one drink? How would I feel (like I let Ava and you all down)? Would I want to stop? Since I wouldn't stop (eventually), what would it be like? How did I feel the last time I drank (the most awful I've ever felt in my life)? Conjuring that terrible cycle really helps my mind to turn around and admit that no, I can't have alcohol and the life I want to live. They are incompatible. Glad you made it through.

Roobs - I notice that same thing. I NEVER left part of any type of drink behind, and in fact, while I wouldn't have walked around and downed everyone's drink, I probably was know to mumble, "you going to finish that?" Phew and thank goodness that is over.

Ava - knitting sounds therapeutic. I have tried a couple of times in my life, but I always drop/add stitches and end up with a wavy river of a scarf. I'm glad you can be there for your guy - and I get that loss feeling for sure.

Nora - thanks for sharing both of those posts.

Off to get some exercise and drag my kid through some late and missing homework assignments.

Happy SOBER Sunday.

Pav