Newbies Nest

[Starfish1]

Newbies Nest

Words from the wise....

?You?ve got to give TIME, time? (Byrdie)

?The real 'you' can only shine when AL is totally out of the picture.? (Lav)

?But, at some point there is something that "clicks"....a different outlook appears - you see things differently.? (Lolab)

These words are priceless, ladies! In fact, if there were a ticket out of addiction, I think these words would be printed on it.

So many people ask the ?oldbies? how DID you do it (Byrdie?s secret of long term sobriety)? How DO you do it? What made this time different? I know I have wondered that myself each and every time I have tried to quit. I have asked it THIS quit?. (Day 99 for me, and I know I am only one drink away?.but nonetheless, I KNOW, this time is different). The difference is:

I am giving it time

I have put AL totally out of the picture AND

I realized over the weekend that something has clicked- I have a different outlook-

And I am SO HAPPY!!!

I am certainly not one of the ?oldbies?, and I am nowhere near complacent, but I am different now.

Over this past weekend, I had to attend a party where lots of AL was involved. It was a festive occasion and my old self started (oh so slightly), romanticizing those old ideas. Damn!!! How was I going to handle the pressure? Why can?t I drink like everyone else? Why do I have to be different? Can?t I have just one??? Same old ideas, but this time, there was a different outcome. When that old chatter started, I struggled with it for a bit?.but, because of the time I have put in (learning from this site) and the fact that I have totally given up on the fact that AL can EVER be a part of my life, I made a plan.

I used my plan to keep my hands busy with AL-free drinks at the party, to keep myself busy ?hostessing? and to sit by the few folks that I knew did not drink. I got through the night.

It was not until the next morning, that I realized ?something had clicked? and that I am stronger than the beast! Star?s voice of reason actually outwitted the beast and its load of crap! It felt GREAT! I actually liked the person I was on Sunday morning, rather than feeling ashamed of her.

Time is healing, something has clicked, and this lil star is happy to be shining today!

Carry on, all! You are doin? great!:l And thanks for all your help!
:h

[Tess-2]

Newbies Nest

The Ability to Choose

This is my experience regarding the ability to choose. I'm an overly responsible, go-to-the-head-of-the-class gal; always have been. I'm one of many siblings, and may parents would occasionally proclaim, with no small amount of pride, "Tess was born grown up." I would often choose the more difficult path in life rather than the easier one. Then came alcohol. I started drinking light beer to offset anxiety. One beer became two, two became a six-pack, and a six-pack became a half-case. I was drinking from sunrise to sunset. Always petite, my weight doubled in 18 months. I developed many medical issues and was eventually hospitalized with such severe hypertension that I could have easily had a stroke or a heart attack. Every night I would promise myself that I was going to stop drinking. And I absolutely meant it. Every day I would drink. At some point, for me, I had lost the ability to choose. That was the most frightening aspect of alcoholism: alcohol was making all of the choices for me. This "monster" had a hold of me and was shaking the very life out of me. I became increasingly hopeless that I would ever be able to choose to stop drinking. I often considered suicide. Fast-forward five years to December 31, 2012. I found the MWO site. Somehow, I found enough strength to stop drinking for one day. I am now 7 days AF, and am regaining the ability to choose. Having a free will is what makes us human (as Byrdie said). If there is a place named Hell, which I doubt, it is a place where people roam about, having lost their ability to choose. I will never, ever, ever take my ability to choose for granted again. Nor will I turn it back over to the beast named alcohol. :sun:

[Dottie Belle]

Newbies Nest

:thumbs:Thanks for the moon star...I needed that....
Dottie

[Starfish1]

Newbies Nest

You EARNED it, Ms Dottie- THANK YOU, for showing us how it's done!!!

[Tess-2]

Newbies Nest

Star - thank you for the full moon!!

Nanette - you are a gentle soul. I appreciate your encouragement!!

Let's stick together in The Nest: it's safe and warm and full of honesty and hope.

Tess ~

[sweetpea29]

Newbies Nest

Hi again everyone,

Congratulations to all the day 7'ers; Rooni and Breezy on day 5; and Belles on day14. Fantastic! Sorry if have missed anyone.

Would like to give a big shout-out THANKYOU to Lav, Byrdie, K9, Star, Lola and Nanette; without your guidance and support i know i would not be here x

Proud to share that i 'braved' the supermarket for the first time since my quit today. Didnt so much as glance at the wine aisle and all the offers on the poison, they can shove them where the sun dont shine! Felt good to type that

Im away now to try cook-up something healthy-ish,

Love,
Sweetpea xo

[sweetpea29]

Newbies Nest

Tess, didnt see your post. You are doing great. Wish i had your ability to see things so clearly.
Keep up the good work xo

[Byrdlady]

Newbies Nest

Tess, your post gave me goosebumps. Thank you for filling out the thoughts that I had. It's so true. Once I realized that drinking is just like stepping off that ledge...I found strength. AL is not an option.

Star, I know you are on break from all the awards you are bestowing...but your post rang true for me, too. Time is critical for this journey. I am so glad I had it under my belt (drinking joke) when I really needed it. This past week was testimony to what we are trying to achieve: Freedom from the pull of AL. I'm so proud of you, Star....those 99 days didn't happen by themselves. That's at least 99 NO, HELL NO's!! Tomorrow you get award of your own! Well done....

Battle Stations, everyone....this is war and we are winning. XO, Byrdie

[New Day]

Newbies Nest

Thanks for the Moomie.....for me it seems like it was a team effort.....we helped each other and we had our coaches here to guide us along with encouragement. Thank you all.
And Star...99 days....way to go! Triple digits tomorrow!
Tess...well put...you do seem ahead of your years
Enjoy the rest of your day!

[Honeysoup]

Newbies Nest

Thanks for the MOON! LOL! That was worth the seven days!

Not doing too bad today. It's almost like the sun is brighter and I can see clearer from my eyes. Never thought I'd look at life that way. I don't know if it's because I was always too hungover and ashamed to notice, or because I was in a hurry to get home to my drinking spot.

I was able to take my daughter to go bowling with her friends with no worries. Before I would just say, ya you can go if you have a ride. It's nice to know now I can pop in and out when ever I want for my kids.

Happy Monday!

[K9Lover]

Newbies Nest

Honey -
That was always my line to my daughter "Sure you can go if you can get a ride home"...in fact I would be looking foward to her getting out of the house so I could drink without feeling guilty. Now I don't have to plan or worry about how she's getting home, I know I'll be able to drive no matter what time it is.

Saturday it was pouring rain and I was drinking my coffee and I thought to myself "I'm so glad I don't have to go outside and smoke"...when we change our thoughts from deprivation mode to appreciation mode, that's when it all starts to click!

Tess - You sound good today...keep it up!

[Starfish1]

Newbies Nest

K9- You ROCK! You keep showing everyone how strong you are by giving up these addictions. Don't know what we would do without you.

[Overit44]

Newbies Nest

Good morning! Just checking in. Day 27 here. Feeling great.

I don't know if I shared this from Friday but I checked back in with my dr. since the AB prescription. She is so proud of me and said I looked terrific. Her concern was any side effects, which there have been none of. My blood pressue was say down. We went over my blood that I took 1 month before going AF and everythign was great then, including liver enzymes. I did stop by the health store after leaving and picked up some liver stuff, a daily vitamin, some iron and something else and some magnesim. Got to get this body back up and running correctly.

Wow, great things to think about in the nest this AM. I was busy all weekend and couldn't poke my head out, I think someone was stepping on me. (joke) Anyhoo, everyone have a great day!

Honey-you're too beautiful to have yellow eyes! Glad you're feeling and looking better.
Tess-you amaze me.
ya to all the 7dayers
Hello to everyone else. I can't think at the moment. Need more caffiene.

[rooniferd]

Newbies Nest

Is it just me, or are there some amazingly POWERFUL posts in the nest today? I feel so drawn to each of them, as if you are speaking directly to me. Thank you!

[odat1234]

Newbies Nest

2:18 and alls well. Voices are strangely quite today. Good!