Newbies Nest

[paulywogg]

Re: Newbies Nest

Some of those drinkin memes are funny tho,I hate alcohol but I've posted some on fb just cuz they crack me up at the time,read an article on my fitness site about how more people are dying from alcohol than the opioids we're hearing so much about,honestly hope that some day drinking is frowned upon like smoking is now

[NoSugar]

Re: Newbies Nest

Someday I think alcohol will be seen for what it is, [MENTION=17650]paulywogg[/MENTION] - poison! As I've said before, I don't think it would be legalized if it were a new product being studied by the FDA today. I wonder if we'll look back someday and wonder why in the world we thought it was ok to routinely put radiation-emitting devices on the sides our heads and in our back pockets, too !

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good evening Nesters,

Boy, you sure can tell a holiday is on the way. The alcohol commercials on TV & everywhere else are annoying.
I went to the supermarket this morning with a big list & it was just mobbed, oh my. Hope I don't have to go back again before Thanksgiving.

Pauly don't let that cold derail you - you know better. Get yourself a bttle of Immune C. Strengthening your immune system is the best thing you can do for yourself

NS, most days I feel like we're damned if we do & damned if we don't
Just when yo get used to things being one way ~ the rules change!
All we really can do is the best we can do with the current knowledge, right?

Well, we are supposed to have the coldest Thanksgiving day in 117 years - how about that?? Brrrr!!
Hello to everyone & wishing a safe night in the nest for all.

Lav

[Byrdlady]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hey all. I miss Kensho, too. I hope all is well.
Looking forward to this 4 day weekend. My niece’s MIL invited 5 more people to Thanksgiving at my niece’s. Poor thing. I feel bad for her. They just moved in to the home, it isn’t near ready, she says. I told her we are there to see her, not the house.
Pav, I always think of your Thanksgiving day massacre. Your last hoorah!
We all have so much to be thankful for. Hugs to all, Byrdie

[narilly]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hello everyone.

Ava, i am sitting here typing while wearing a shirt, turtleneck sweater and a vest. Plus I have my dogs around me to keep me warm, lol. Yup layers till May is the way it’s gonna go here.
Pauly, come up here, the cold will cure your hay fever

Ya, a few years ago 4 bottles between 3 people would have just been the start of a drunken night for me. So glad those days are over.

Yeah slo, your in laws sound great. Thank goodness.

Talk soon.

[lifechange]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning Nesters!

On my second and last cup of coffee, catching up with you all before waking the girls. We had a big day yesterday, celebrating my eldest's 17th birthday. It felt really strange to have one of my kids turn 17!
Just looked at the weather forecast and like many of you have, it's freezing and grey.. brrr.. I have to say, that after our hot and neverending summer, I don't really yet mind the cold. I'm actually relieved that it can still get cold.. hoping for some snow to go with it.

Really praying for rain for all of you who desperately need it. I'm so sorry to hear that so many people are missing, Pav.. I hadn't realized. Are you way out of the way of the fires? Gosh, I hope there's relief soon.
Nar, we're also into lots of layering, warm watter bottles and snuggling with the cats.. I finally broke down and turned on the heater a couple days ago.. I think we'll start to eat breakfast in the living room, where it's warmer and cozier. I've got to find one of those trays to carry things from the kitchen, instead of making a hundred trips!

Slo, so glad to hear things went well with the fiance's family! How far away do they live from you? Are the kids planning on living somewhere nearby? I sure can't remember where you live..?

I also hate all the extra alcohol pushing this time of year. I'm having my best girlfriends and their kids over for Thanksgiving on Sunday and was thinking of asking them not to bring alcohol. But 3 of them really like to have a glass of wine with dinner and 1 rarely "has the chance" to.. so I told them to bring their own and then take away any leftovers. Anyway, I'm looking forward.. haven't done T-day for a couple of years.

I hate low rider jeans! Loved them though, when I was 22!:happy2: Now I've just got 2 pairs, the best fitting ones used to belong to my mom! Scary.
Pauly, I hope you'll feel better soon. I also used to drink to make myself feel better when I was sick. That was sick.. Like Lav said, fill yourself up with drinks, food, supplements that strengthen your immune system! I guess we should be all doing that preventatively this time of year..

Big shout outs to Lav, Byrdie, Ava, G-Man, NS, Kensho, Rava.. all of you stopping or flying by. A nice Tuesday..xx

[Rava]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good Morning Nesters. I’m checking back in to say that I fell back into the rabbit hole but climbed back out. Have had 2 sober days and am determined to get through Thanksgiving Day sober as well. I have been reading and listening to podcasts even while I was sneaking my evening drinks. I have quickly decided that sneaking my drinking is not the person I want to be. If I can quit drinking during my late husbands cancer and death, I can stop for Thanksgiving. I found a podcast called HOME which I have been enjoying. Laura McKowen speaks to me for some reason and enjoy her story. I found her thru the Bubble Hour so I am trying. The truth is I have to try HARDER and stop the half assed attempts.

[paulywogg]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hello nesters,Rava,good to see you back amazing how we can get through super hard things sober then still find an excuse later to fall down the rabbit hole or quicksand as I call it,congrats on day 2 LC,happy birthday to your eldest!I'm irritated with the cold just because I'm always cold as it is,however last year it stayed hot til January so I'm actually diggin the cold this year,we did turn on our heater a few weeks ah,,,Vegas wimps! wonder where Kensho is? I think of Overit too,also J-vo hope they're all ok,wishing everyone a great,free,Tuesday!

[Pavati]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hi, All:

Yes, I've been wondering about [MENTION=20476]KENSHO[/MENTION] also - where are you?! I know you're not drinking because you don't drink.

Good to see you check in, Narilly. I am so amazed that you live in that COLD weather.

The whole time I’d be drinking the first one I would be thinking about having the next one and trying to pace myself. Then I would go home like Ava and get drunk on wine because two or three beers was not enough.

Amen! I was ALWAYS chasing that buzz from the first drink. You can never find it again, and then it was all thinking and trying to pace myself. I even had my husband help time me sometimes. Argh. WHY did I do that to myself? I am so grateful to be free from all that!

The truth is I have to try HARDER and stop the half assed attempts.

Welcome back, Rava! I am not sure you have to necessarily try HARDER, just differently maybe. What happened when you drank? What can you do differently next time Honestly, the human brain is pretty crafty, so you really have to set yourself up not to drink BEFORE you drink. For me, it was having a heart to heart with my husband so that he could keep me accountable, calling a good friend, and seeing a therapist. I knew I could lie to myself, but not to those three. What do you need to do differently to set yourself up for success? Willpower alone usually doesn't work in the long run.

Aaaah, yes, the Thanksgiving Massacre. Thanksgiving week was the last time I drank. I had a habit of getting "overserved" on Thanksgiving because we eat at about 4, so that extended cocktail hour VERY long, and I always drank too much. This last time it was from Thursday through Sunday essentially, and I finally threw in the towel. Even today as I am typing this, I get sad and embarrassed about that weekend. I've had worse individual nights or days, but as a collective, I just couldn't pull it together. I missed work on Monday (which I RARELY did because not missing work meant my drinking was ok). I am honestly so very grateful that I don't have to ever feel like that again.

I have Wednesday through Sunday off - it will be so great to have an extended time off, although I'll work a little. Stay warm, well-fed, and rested folks. This is just another Turkey dinner.

xo
Pav

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Rava - right back in the saddle! What's one take-away you can add to your toolkit that might help you if you find yourself heading toward a rabbit hole again?

Kensho - hope all is well with you. Not sure if I have just missed your particular posts or if you've been out of the nest for a bit. Hugs either way.


I have decided that I need a clone. I just don't have enough time to get all of the things I need to do done. Many of them are work-related but I also want to do fun stuff and it just seems like days fly by and my list never gets shorter. How in the he77 did I ever manage to drink? If only I could now have all of those wasted (pun intended) hours back!

Happy days and eves to everyone stopping by the nest today. Make it a good one!

[Slo]

Re: Newbies Nest

Oh! I thought Kensho lived in California for some reason.

Thanks for coming back, Rava!
I like Pavati’s plan where she had 3 people to lean on and stay accountable to. It worked!
I needed to start posting here and be accountable here in order to stay sober.
Just keep racking up sober days, and keep feeding that good information into your brain.

Sorry about your long back getting injured, Available. I’ve been needing to use a special cushion (McKenzie lumbar roll) for my back, and also doing a few daily exercises. The classic periformis stretch that my daughter who’s an OT keeps reminding me about is especially helpful for the nerve damage in my lower back.

For some reason I’m not too nervous about all the drinking that will be going on around me at Thanksgiving in two days. I’m getting more used to going through these occasions dry. And, as [MENTION=20191]Pavati[/MENTION] says, “this is just another turkey dinner”!

[Byrdlady]

Re: Newbies Nest

NS, 3 bottles of wine among 4 people, that's not shabby. I'm ashamed to say that I could have put a serious dent in two of those bottles myself back in the day. I was a solid bottle and halfer. I actually drank the little boxes of wine, the empties were easier to dispose of. Otherwise, I'd have had a hard time stopping at the half bottle mark on the second bottle. I'm a 'keep going til it's gone' kind of girl.
Rava, I'm so sorry you slipped back down that hole. I saw an interesting bumper sticker today. FORWARD MOTION ONLY, NOT ONE STEP BACK. Made me wonder if they might be one of us. It takes some real grit and determination to get thru the deep water. It takes an attitude of NO, HELL NO! I will NOT give in to you. It takes anger....it takes shame....it takes every dirty trick you can think of NOT to yield to that awful mind chatter. I'm so glad you are back and ready to fight.
Hope everyone had a peaceful day today. Hugs to all, Byrdie

[NoSugar]

Re: Newbies Nest

Hey, [MENTION=24196]Rava[/MENTION], welcome back! One of my tools was to promise that I would post here before I drank and wait for a response (even though I knew what it would be!). Just the break in the action to sign in and post will probably be enough to get you back on the track you've chosen. I was so sick of lying about my drinking that I decided I was done with that and I was never going to lie to my friends here. I didn't care enough about myself at that time to keep a commitment on my own but I really didn't want to disappoint the people who had so freely and kindly helped me. For once, my people-pleasing tendencies were helpful! You might want to consider something like that so you won't wade into that quicksand (great image, [MENTION=17650]paulywogg[/MENTION]!) again.

[available]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning nesters

Rava, lovely to see you back and on Day 2, for me i had to be accountable each and every day for not drinking otherwise i would have listened to that al voice. i also had my children on board for when i needed to tell them i felt like a wine and they would always tell me "no you dont". Distracting my mind from wanting that drink was extremely important. Even today i am accountable, its a tool i have that i cannot live without and i dont want too, i love the friendships i have made on MWO.

Well my co-worker is back, i am so happy and now i get to move on to other tasks that need fixing and to catch up on my work. i have completed a job description of my duties to send to the Professor to ask for a payrise, something i would never have had the guts to do when i was drinking. Now i know i am worth every penny they pay me and i am great at what i do. This was supposed to be discussed 6+ months ago so now its time.

Pav, that certainly was a bender 5 years ago of your massacre, a memory even i remember and i wasnt there. My stopping was bought on by NS suggesting i stop procrastinating and pick a quit date instead of stopping and relapsing constantly. luckily i had a lot of support and an amazing quit buddy.

NS, 3 bottles, gee i was drinking up to 2 per night by myself or 1 1/2 like Byrd, those were the days i dont want to repeat again. i still shudder at how i drove to work everyday and tried to function.

well back to the grind, take care and check in Kensho.

xx

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good evening Nesters, great to see everyone

Rava, welcome back, we missed you. You have 2 AF days now so keep building on that!
Addressing my drinking triggers was a huge deal for me. Once I decided that nothing/no one individual would ever drive me to drink again the path to freedom was pretty easy. I will never allow drinking as an option to 'whatever' ever again. It's a permanent 'NO THANKS' for me. Keep working on your plan to address those triggers & you will find success.

Byrdie, you mentioned attitude as a tool. You know I am filled to the gills with attitude aka 'Lavan-itude, ha ha

Kensho, I hope you check in soon, we are concerned.

Hello to everyone & wishing a safe night in the nest for all!

Lav