Until three months ago I was a drunk. I was getting through at least two bottles of wine a day and falling into bed only to wake up to yet another miserable day wandering when I would get my next drink. I lived for the stuff and nothing else mattered to me. All I wanted was that feeling of inebriation all of the time. Result was it cost me over ?100,000 and I was on a one way trip to an early grave !
Ar 16st 7 lbs, I was a flabby mess, too unfit to climb the stairs without blowing and no real time for my family. Alcohol was my priority. My friends were disappearing fast and I was totally unsociable. I stopped washing properly and my eyes were permanently bloodshot. I looked carefully at myself in the mirror one morning and asked myself the question, do I want to spend the rest of my life leading this existence or am I going to do something about it ?
That was really the first step. That day, I was not working, so I sat down to study alcohol in more detail. I looked at its effects and researched it in every way that I could find. I became an ?expert? on the stuff. I started to get a little excited because the more I read about the subject, the more I wanted to get it out of my life. Problem was how was I going to go about it ?
I had read Allen Carrs book and whilst it was quite hard hitting and well put together, it did not really contain the trigger that I needed to quit Alcohol. I needed something more and with a little more research, I found that key !
Having spent a good deal of time on the mywayout forums, I decided to order a copy of Jason Vales book called Kick the Drink?easily. I have to give a huge amount of credit to this book and will categorically say that I could not have done this without sight of that book. It changed my life completely. OK at this stage I want to say that whilst the book is powerful, it is not the total answer but if you want to stop drinking for good then you must get a copy of this book before you start otherwise it just won?t work !
I was convinced that I was an alcoholic, but early in Jasons book he states: ? There is no such thing as an alcoholic?never has been, never will be?. That really made me think. It is such a huge statement to make, but he is totally correct and when you read the book, you will understand why !
I decided that I was going to stop drinking for good. Total abstinence meaning I would never touch another drink again. Moderation does not work?ever?ever. The only way is to stop for good and move forward. It is easy. There is no craving. What is there to crave for other than a life of misery ?
I booked an appointment to see my Doctor. The plan was that I would control the appointment. I would tell him what I was going to do and how I was going to do it, but I wanted one thing from him in return which I will come to in a moment. You see, I had researched medications which could help me to control any cravings that I might have for Alcohol and I had decided that I would go for Antabuse as that seemed to be my best chance of abstaining.
OK you are perhaps starting to see a little picture building up here. First I decide that I am going to quit drinking. Second I am going to read a very powerful book on the subject and Thirdly I booked an appointment to see my Doctor. Now I am starting to get excited because I am planning to have a new life and I am really looking forward to having my last drink !
More to do yet though before I actually commit. I needed to look forward to see what those first few days would be like without my prop. I was going to live a life without Alcohol, yet everywhere I looked there it was. I couldn?t walk down a street without seeing it in shop windows. On TV, people are drinking and seemingly enjoying it. I like going into bars because my friends drink, so I had to make a decision. My decision was to keep plenty of alcohol in the house, just as I always had done. Even now, I have beer in the fridge and there is wine in the racks. I have spirits and liqueurs in the cupboard. I made the conscious decision to live with it all around me. I could have a drink whenever I want, but I choose not to. My choice.
I went to see my Doctor on a Thursday evening. November 2nd. I told him quite simply that I was an out of control drinker who had decided that enough was enough and that I was going to stop. I explained that I would drink two bottles of wine that evening when I got home and I would drink two more the following evening ( Friday). I would pace myself until midnight, empty the bottle and that I would never touch another drop again. Well, it certainly got his attention ! I then asked him for his help and asked him to prescribe Antabuse. He told me that he couldn?t let me have it unless I went for counselling. I told him I was not going for counselling and if he woudn?t help me then I would go it alone. He thought about it and asked if I would go to AA. I said that AA would not cure me as their philosophy is that you are an alcoholic and live from day to day. I explained that I was not an alcoholic and that by Saturday I would be a non drinker?.for ever. He made a deal with me that if I could stop drinking for two weeks, he would prescribe a drug called Campral which he believed would give the best result.
(I agreed and two weeks later went back to claim my prescription for the Campral !! More of this later)
So now you see that my plan is coming together. All I had to do was to put it into action. Remember at this stage, I had no medication, just a plan.
I was started to get excited. That Thursday evening I drank my two bottles of wine as normal and continued to look at any article related to Alcohol that I could find on the internet. I woke on the Friday morning, the last day I would ever drink Alcohol and really looked forward to the day ahead. Just two more bottles of wine and I would be free forever !
Throughout Friday evening, I kept topping up my glass and watching the clock. At 11.45pm, I topped my glass right up and sipped that cold wine until 1 minute before midnight. I took a last swig to empty the glass and went to bed. I have not touched another alcoholic drink since and have had absolutely no desire to do so.
In the next part I will tell you how I did this and how I found it so easy. Before I do that though, I want you to think about planning your life without Alcohol. You must do these few things before you try to stop using the method that has worked for me.
1. Decide on your quit date
2. Get a copy of Jason Vales book
3. Make a doctors appointment 48 hours before you finally decide to stop
4. Drink your last Alcohol and then stop.
There will be some people out there who will not agree with what I am saying or doing. I have no problem with that as everyone is entitled to their opinion. However I can assure you that no-one has found it as easy to stop drinking as I have. No pain, no craving, no bad withdrawal symptoms. Just pure joy because I am free of the nastiest drug ever concocted by man and I can now enjoy every hour and day of my life.
I will start to work on the next part of this document and post it as soon as I can. If you have any questions, or comments, please leave them on this thread or message me.
Regards?Tim
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