Sober (AF) September Challenge

[mollyka]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Morning Neart - yep its a very good read, going to finish it now while watching the Italian Grand Prix. Hey Witchy and Anon. Anon I never ever ate anything sweet, was proud not to have a 'sweet tooth', can now eat choc by the bar and wine gums by the jumbo bag. Witchy I'm very interested in your friends 'diet' 6 kgs in a week - that's a WOW! I read that article and my understanding of it in a nutshell are that we must give up cigs (thankfully don't smoke) coffee (why can't it be substituted for decaff?) tea, coke, white bread, flour, pasta, rice, and anything with sugar, jeez these are all the things I love. Even tho I fight against the feeling of 'deprivation' having given up alcohol, to have to give all these up as well just feels like a step too far, and yet, if it solves the fatigue, sleeplessness, depression etc. oh I don't know, it just seems like a biggy doesn't it? Anyone else have difficulty with this?
Molly

[Spinning J]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Good afternoon (here!) everyone!! Hope everyone is enjoying a lovely Sober September Sunday! When I used to work full time Sunday was a day for drinking loads and I feel so sad when I think back at the time I've wasted drinking poison! But I'm not now and thats the main thing and I'm determined to stay AF this time. 3 weeks today :thumbs:. I'm feeling good. I've been eating healthy and going to the gym so feeling positive. Still not found a pair of boots:H. I read all the posts then forget what everyone has said! I will get the hang of this before the month is out! Sending a big :l to everyone and good luck for the week ahead :h xx

[OverIt2007]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Its amazing how when you get sober, suddenly you want to get healthy in other ways too. Such as going to the gym and eating healthy. I think kind of goes hand in hand you want to give up all the bad habits. Maybe its because you just feel so much happier by getting the addiction off your back as well!

Day 13 for me. Still taking my Antabuse and no thoughts of drinking. None at all. Hate to say it but this is going really easy for me this time. Knock on wood!!!

Happy Sunday Friends!!! Be strong today and resisit any temptations.

[sidney]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

All good here. Went to a house warming party last night lots of expensive wine flowing.
I drank perrier and still had a great time. Are we half way there yet? Not quite. Anon I like to read too and read so much more when I can see the page not through a veil of alcohol. Just read Drinking: A Love Story. Much incite for women drinkers.

Wishing you all the best for the week ahead. Sid

[mollyka]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hey Sid, Overit and SJ - everyone flyin round here lately! Overit, I wonder sometimes is our head just in the right place when it seems easier, and other times it feels like your battling a minute at a time, I've found that in the past, I suppose grab hold of the 'easy' times and milk them for all they're worth!
Molly

[Dewdrop]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hi guys just checking in with everyone now, had a busy Saturday and I?m out this evening. Still going strong was offered a glass of wine at lunch yesterday and turned it down and there will be wine tonight but I am still feeling that I can handle it. If I feel in any way a bit wobbly then I?ll either not go or I?ll leave early with an excuse.

I?m also following a much healthier diet and feel so much better for it and I?ve lost 5lbs so far even though I am eating more?? Need to up the exercise though and that?s my next step.

As for supps/vitamins Sunbeam I?m taking L-Glut, B complex, Starflower Oil and Nytol then on Wednesday I got Kudzu and Gaba from MYO so have added them in although not noticing any difference but reckon since I have them I might as well take them. I think it?s a combination of healthy eating, supps, lots of water with lemon and most definitely the support of this site that has got me to Day 19. WoooHoooo :l

Hope you are all having a lovely Sober Sunday - it's sunny and bright here, might just go for a walk

Dewdrop:h

[Doggygirl]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hi all! I have enjoyed reading all the posts about the enjoyment of being sober and hangover free! I need to make sure I never take that for granted. It's good for me to sometimes remember in detail what it was like to waste entire days being drunk, getting absolutely nothing done, and sometimes even doing a drink / sleep / hangover / drink / sleep cycle more than once. Sundays were famous for that. In the later years of drinking, that went on a lot more days than just Sundays. I shudder to think where the progression was going. Grateful to be sober today, that's for sure!

Love all the focus on other positive changes such as better diet and exercise. I love my exercise (I go to Curves) and that seems to be a good habit that I have made solid, at least for now. I struggle a bit more on the food front - especially fighting the sugar monster. I am just so much better off without the sugar and other high carby foods (i.e. pasta, bread, rice, etc.) If I get it all out of my system for a couple of weeks, then I don't crave it. But right now I've got sugar in my system and cravings run rampant when I do that!

I can relate to books and having to re-read and re-read and re-read due to attempts at drunk reading. I really enjoyed Drinking: A Love Story. Well, enjoyed might not be the right word. It brought tears to my eyes at times because my life got so crazy like that too with the nutty hoops I jumped through in order to drink. It is certainly a story of hope and recovery though too. (thank goodness!)

Congratulations to all on your AF days whether 1 or 10 or 100 or 1000. It's a one day at a time game no matter where we are on the path. I'm going to make applesauce today so I better get crackin'! One thing is for sure, there will be no AL in my life today.

DG

[anon]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Back from a lovely day watching race in the sunshine around a beautiful lake. I even managed to run a few miles very slowly so am very chuffed. After the race there was picnic which I was not expecting with lots of my favourite wine and I was not even tempted! Cravings here now and I have only been home 1hour. Time for some food Perrier and chocolate to end day 8.
I hope everyone is feeling positive.

[choice]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Good morning everyone. The sun is finally shining here in Auckland... it's been a bit rainy and unstable weather here for a few days. Lets see if this sunshine lasts for while today.
Sunbeam, I love digging in the dirt myself and planting. It makes me feel more connected to the earth and is very relaxing, always makes me feel hopeful and positive.

I went to the library last Friday and they were having a book sale... I got a bag full of books, a few on nutrition, one on meditation... and some fiction. The book I've got my nose in now I got in the self help section at the bookstore the other day called... Sober for Good. It's inspiring as it has success stories of people 5 years + sober. What is interesting to me is always the similarities and differences I have with other drinkers. It helps to tweak my path towards a sober life.

I'm day 21 Af today 3 weeks. I remember the hangover I had three weeks ago. I was so desperate and sad and experiencing so much physical and mental pain. I thought it only took a few days for AL to leave your system? I'm not sure why my thinking gets clearer and clearer my resolve stronger. My guess is it has something to do with working at being sober?

[anon]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Choice is it tommorrow or yesterday? It is Sunday evening here. Well done on 21 days what an achievement

[witchywoman]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Morning boys & girls
hay Choice, I have been watching your progress over the last 3 weeks & i just wanted to say I am proud of you & so happy for you, the tone & energy on your posts now is so different & uplifting from when you started. you sound like a different person, which in a way I guess you are. Well done hunny!!!
Last night I was lying in bed meditating, I was in the zone, calm, breathing slow, acknowledging any stray thoughts then back to my breathing & meditation mantra, when I burst out giggling, I have 3 cats & 2 of them were snoring their little heads of, not in time but 1st one then the other & my third was purring for all he was worth, it was so funny, but what i realised was that it was one of those "moments of grace" that the universe provides & had I not stopped drinking I would have missed it, it was so special & funny.
anyway I will catch everyone later, have a great day or night, stay strong
XX

[mollyka]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hey Witchy, I know those 'moments of grace' its like a little happy moment that as you say just go completely unnoticed when drinking. I got a PM from someone on here about a week ago with a funny little remark in it - well about 10 times in the following 24 hours I got the giggles just thinking of it - little moments of happiness........it's great!
Molly

[Peacefull]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hi Everyone,
I am happy to say day 15 here..Was surrounded by AL literally all weekend and had the best weekend in a long time because I didn't drink.

Feeling wonderful on a Sunday night not riddled with anxiety and shame. Set my alarm early for a workout and looking forward to the week.

Thanks for your support, I made it through what could have been a real challenging weekend, but was strong and had its great to remember every single second of the fun filled events we were at.

Peace

[Sunbeam]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

Hey Everybody,
Like Spinning J and Doggy Girl, Sunday afternoon was when my drinking was the worst. What a relief that's over. I have rarely had anything at all to drink on Sunday ever since joining here.

Good books and good food are being discussed, and I love both. I also love that clear head and memory when reading AF. In my worst days I would sit and look through catalogs or magazines, but hardly read books at all. Now I try to alternate good books with junky stuff including murder mysteries. I've read most of the mysteries by Sue Grafton and JA Jance. I just started reading one by Navada Barr; she wrote a whole series set in various US national parks. Most of the paperbacks I read I buy for pennies plus shipping from Amazon.com.

The last better book I read was Overtreated, about all the wasteful practices in our USA health system. It was quite eye-opening. If you have any health problems this will enable you to understand how the ysstem REALLY works, and doesn't work. I have also read some very good better eating books: In Defense of Food, Mindless Eating, and Volumetrics. The last two are perhaps the best available on weight loss. Forget diets, you need to change your habits, and these books have a lot of research-based ideas, no fads.

Not that I have yet perfected the art of good eating. Some here have mentioned that there is a relationship between wine and sugar, which is why we find ourselves eating chocolate and so many other sweets when we cut out the wine. I definitely have been eating way too much ice cream since Aug 23, when I started this AF endeavor. But starting yesterday I resolved to start reining it in. You do need to pick some priorities sometimes, can't do everything at once. I'm also not really overweight, just on the borderline on those BMI charts. My numbers are all good: blood pressure, good & bad cholesterol, etc.

OK back to work tomorrow. It has been a very satisfying weekend. Take care, all.

[choice]

Sober (AF) September Challenge

ha ha.. it's tomorrow Anon.. I'm in the future. Thanks WW... I feel like a different person, or kinda more like my real self. I was pretty freaked out when I started. It's funny sobriety scared me. I haven't started meditation yet but probably will soon, I like the story about your cats.