Newbies Nest

[Guitarista]

Re: Newbies Nest

Xoxo im not giving up.

Hi Nursie. Now that is BADASS!

Thanks for your posts friend Kensho. The science is in re daily gratitude thinking and journalling/writing down something, anything we're grateful for. It can be a warm home, a roof, a pair of shoes with holes, a friend, pet, the rain, the snow, the wind.........A daily gratitude list trains our minds to look for the good in our lives, and not focus on the negatives. Try for 40 days and see what happens- or for the rest of your life.

Belle. Day 2 is super BADASS!

Off to the beach now Wags and Pavi. 18c sunny. I can't complain.

I hope all are ok given the many situations life will present.

Hi Lav and Byrdie!

Big waves to y'all.

[BelleGirl]

Re: Newbies Nest

Mr G, I wish I were off to the beach also. I love the beach...could sit and watch the waves for hours. I would definitely trade that for a turkey feast, which I am not a big fan of.

Struggling a little bit tonight, but I do not want to feel like shit tomorrow when there is so much to do for the Thanksgiving feast. It is just our small family and Grandma. Son and hubby are making most of the meal, while daughter and I are supposed to be working on the cranberry orange relish and pumpkin pie.

Again...I will not let that beast get me tonight. It is not going to take another night/day from me.

Gotta go get busy with some prep work. Lots to do. Take care all...check in later or tomorrow morning.

[SHADES_of_IDAHO]

Re: Newbies Nest

....”We are here for you too “... as said by so many of you here in so many ways. That goes both ways....my heart goes out to you all sending many blessings your way for a safe and al free journey over the holidays , “especially putting your health first “...

I am thankful for having had such a wonderful amazing son and grateful to have had time with him ... so many memories... he was a blessing every day. “Life is a Gift”!

[Moffit]

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Shades, so sorry for the loss of your dear son. May the loving memories of him bring you peace, comfort, and strength.

[Moffit]

Re: Newbies Nest

Day 18 and going strong!


Thanks to the power of "won't".


Peace:love:

[BelleGirl]

Re: Newbies Nest

Yay Moffitt on day 18!

I made it through day 3! For me, that is something to be thankful for. Now I just have to keep it going.

Mr G, I love your BADASS label! Thank you for that. it really does help: "dammit AL, leave me alone because I am one 'effin BADASS"

OK, I'm really not a fan of the Thanksgiving holiday. don't get me wrong, I do believe in being thankful for things...but a stressful day of cooking preceded by days of prep, shopping in stores with cranky people does not help my anxiety. Husband and son are doing most of the cooking, which sounds great in theory...it is just that he makes the process 1000x more complicated than it should be. I may have to retreat to my "studio" (ha ha) if it gets to be too much. He will probably have wine around, I'll let him have that if he is doing the bulk of the cooking. I did buy some sparkling apple cranberry cider to look fancy. however, the kids usually slurp that down in like 5 seconds. I'll have to hide a bottle for me. Ha - hiding bottles. I'm an old pro at that!

Happy Thanksgiving to all that are celebrating.

[BelleGirl]

Re: Newbies Nest

[MENTION=15947]Nursie[/MENTION],
I reread your post about how you made it through the spa, but then drank...and how this quit seems so much harder.

I was AF for almost 5 years. Christmas of 2016 "Uncle Bob" convinced me to put some gin in my tonic water. Well, that was that start down the rabbit hole again. 3 years later I'm struggling to get out. I haven't been drinking to the point of drunkenness often (but once in a while), but it has been hard to get through a day 2. I know what you mean about craving with every ounce of your body. I lost the ability to even stop myself and think before doing. It's like something has taken over my mind and body. and it has: AL.

So I get it, and I am fighting right along side of you...until this gets easier, which it will. I finally made it past 3 days. Yippee! I need that "clarity of mind" that Lav talks about and hopefully it is coming around. I have a lot on my plate with family stuff and I cannot afford to not have that clarity.

:hug: to you...let's do this. You are not alone.

[wagmor]

Re: Newbies Nest

Nursie - I can't even count how many times I had similar experiences before my quit finally stuck: I'd get past one particular temptation or situation only to have one later that same day take me down. I wonder if it's a little bit of "letting our guard down" - like in horror movies where you think the monster is going to jump out, and he doesn't, so our minds and bodies breathe a tiny sigh of relief and THEN he strikes! This seems like it would make sense with al or quitting sugar, smoking, dieting, etc - we focus our attention on one "obstacle" we can clearly see, and when we make it past that we relax just a bit (or a lot) and then wham! I don't know, but in my book I would say give yourself credit for the success at the salon and focus on your BADASS "I'm not giving up!" attitude. You will get this :hug:

Belle - congrats on day 3! Stay strong today and focus on being thankful for your quit and all that it brings you. Stash that sparkling cider if you need to - your kids will be fine and you deserve to have it if it's part of what helps you through the day.

Moffit - great to see you and congrats to you as well!

Pav and Kensho - I love Project Runway too, although I haven't seen the most recent seasons. I don't really have a lick of talent in that regard, nor am I terribly interested in fashion in general, but the creativity with sometimes ridiculous materials, the challenges to create a look that fits the recipient's lifestyle and/or life needs - all of that is quite fun. I actually like Top Chef as well, and I hear that the British Baking Show (name?) is a good one. I think one of you has mentioned that???

Byrdie - safe travels!


Ok nesters, today is Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. I am particularly thankful for this space and for all of you. This is my favorite and most positive online community that I participate in. I hope you all have fantastic days and eves as we collectively ride the earth on one more rotation. :heartbeat:

[paulywogg]

Re: Newbies Nest

Happy Thanksgiving nesters,Nursie I'm sorry you got through the haircut appointment but not the day let it go tho no use dwelling on it,I think there just comes a time when we accept that drinking makes us sick, lonely and depressed so we don't wanna go back,I don't have the answers cuz we know how my track record has been but RIGHT now I have no desire,I know the thoughts that come and go of having a"fun" escape is all bullshit anyways,fake promises that don't pan out,was supposed to storm here hah! Rained for 15 minutes last night,talk about false promises waves to the gang and have a safe, happy day,don't listen to any Al lies that try to whisper in your ear-Al is a lying thief!

[Pavati]

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Hi, All:

Wags, I love Top Chef also. The Great British Baking Show is one of my faves. A creative competition, and they all seem so NICE. You have a lot of watching to do... I love that horror film analogy - makes sense.

Belle, I am with you - NOT my favorite holiday at all. I decided this year that I'm not going to stress about it at all. Whatever happens, happens. I can do my part and that's all. We have a fun family crew coming and that will be good, and I do LOVE the leftover sandwiches. I'll focus on that. I think one of the reasons I don't like it is that I always drank too much at Thanksgivings, including the infamous "Thanksgiving Massacre" almost 6 years ago. I think I drank too much because dinner was earlier than usual, and I always started even earlier than that. With no "off" switch, it made over drinking very easy for me. Everyone is more moderate now and we have no real big drinkers in the family - they all enjoy, but really I was the problem. And THERE's my thanks for today. I am so GRATEFUL that I am free from that crappy poison and am not controlled by alcohol any more. I bought some interesting stuff to try a mocktail with. We'll see...

Hi, Pauly. The thoughts come to me when I am stressed and see booze - I think well, I could VERY quickly not feel this way - temporarily. That guilt and pain I would feel AFTER that doesn't make it worth it, though.

Enjoy the beach, G. One of my favorite places, too.

Nursie - get back on that horse. Maybe your brain is throwing a tantrum knowing it won't get booze again. Don't give in!

Enjoy your meal for two, Lav. Byrdie - safe travels. Everyone - have great and SOBER days.

xo
Pav

[narilly]

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Shades I am so sorry to hear about your son. I can’t imagine the grief you are feeling. We ARE here for you, keep coming back.

Moffit, keep going, day 19 tomorrow.
Belle, keep it up, we are all badass!
G, you may be the biggest badass, haha, in a good way.

Don’t give in Nursie, you can do it.

Pav, I know Thanksgiving is not your favourite, I will never forget the Thanksgiving massacre.

Beach weather, how I wish. It is -17c here and snowing, ugh. It is definitely chilly but I just layer up.

Thanks for the singing compliments, I have never really sang before except when I was a kid. It is really uplifting, I love it.
Pauly, hope things get better with your daughter,

Wags, one more rotation it is!

I had a drinking dream last night. I got drunk and woke up hungover and was so remorseful because I had been sober for 5.5 years and I blew it. Holy crap, that scared me. Thank goodness it was only a dream. I am grateful for that and it was a good reminder of why I don’t drink.

Don’t drink today xo

[available]

Re: Newbies Nest

Morning nesters

Working from home today, carl woke me at 5.30am so i decided to take him for a walk, it was just so peaceful and lovely. This is what i would never have been able to do 6 years ago. God i could not function till after midday and then after feeling like i had wasted the day, decided to head to the bottleshop to start the whole process again. I have never regretted a day of my sobriety, i have however regretted everything when i drank.

Belle and nursie, i got sick of stopping and starting, of coming on here and saying i had drank and finally i knew it was up to me and me only not to put that goblet to my mouth and drink. I also decided to listen, really listen to Byrd, Lav and NS. I always thought they had it easy giving up drinking as they seemed so grounded and happy but then i realised that they went through the same as what i was going through. To hear how grateful and content they were with their life gave me the confidence to try harder and to just get through the day. Nothing worth fighting for is easy but in two days i celebrate 6 years and the only person who can take that away from me, is me.

Xmas is nearly here and i remember my first xmas, my girls actually wiped the table as there was spilt wine on it and they thought i may have licked it up. god i laugh about that now but they obviously knew my problem and were doing everything in their power to help me. Fast forward to this one and i could not care less who drinks and who doesnt, its a day to spend with my children and appreciate what i have now. Funny enough no one really drinks now i dont and they respect that i dont drink so dont get drunk.

Pauly, how is the family situation going? You dont sound as stressed, my fingers are crossed for you.

Welcome back Moffit, great work on 18 days.

Happy thanksgiving everyone, i hope your day was a happy one.

take care xx

[Lavande]

Re: Newbies Nest

Good evening Nesters,

Thanksgiving day is almost over, it was a good one. Good food, quiet day, good leftovers since it was just t he two of us, Lol

Ava, I’m so happy for you approaching your 6 year anniversary. Feels pretty damn good, am I right?

Moffit, good job on your AF time too!

Belle & Nursie, early days for you. They can be rough but they are forming a solid foundation for your future!!!!

Narilly, those dreams can be disturbing but they can also serve to reinforce your quit!!!!

G, I’m sure you enjoyed your beach weather, haha! We’ll be getting that back in 6 months or so, Lol

Byrdie, sorry about Rubi’s dental work. The day I picked mine up after her cleaning the vet tech in the office said her dog was done that day as well & had many teeth removed

Pav,kensho, Pauly, Wags & everyone - hello!

Wishing everyone a safe & comfy night in the nest!

Lav

[Nursie]

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Thanks for all of your kind words everyone! We had a nice Thanksgiving over here.
Funniest thing- there were some people drinking, some people not, but the ones who were drinking had very little to drink! Some didn’t even finish their glass- what kind of alien does that? And THEN they switched to coffee and dessert. Not another drink was had by anyone.
If Nursie was drinking at a party, it would not go that way. Nope. I’d be the one drinking fast and more, more, more. I’d be the loudest, and most ridiculous person there.
You know what though? I still had a great time. I am still funny and apparently people like me sober. So here I am in bed at 10pm happy and sober. I am grateful for that and grateful for all of you!!
Happy Thanksgiving!

[Guitarista]

Re: Newbies Nest

Great stuff Nursie.

Happy thanksgiving friends.