Stinking Thinking

[itsmytime]

HELP!! It's starting already at Day 5. Don't know if it's because I am starting holidays and will be the first sober week off in years.

I can't drink anymore........

[Sober Visitor]

Stinking Thinking

Maybe this will help get you through today . . .

JUNKIE THINKING: One drink won't hurt.
RESPONSE: One drink will always hurt me, and it always will because I'm not a social drinker. One sip and I'll be drinking compulsively again.

JUNKIE THINKING: I only want one.
RESPONSE: I have never wanted only one. In fact, I want 5 or 10 or 15 every day. I want them all.

JUNKIE THINKING: I?ll just be a social drinker.
RESPONSE: I?m a chronic, compulsive drinker, and once I drink one I?ll quickly be thinking about the next one. Social drinkers can take it or leave it. That?s not me.

JUNKIE THINKING: I'm doing so well, one won't hurt me now.
RESPONSE: The only reason I'm doing so well is because I haven't taken the first one. Yet once I do, I won't be doing well anymore, I'll be drinking again.

JUNKIE THINKING: I'll just stop again.
RESPONSE: Sounds easy, but who am I trying to kid? Look how long it took me to stop this time? And once I start, how long will it take before I get sick enough to face withdrawal again? In fact, when I'm back in the grip of compulsion, what guarantee do I have that I'll ever be able to stop again?

JUNKIE THINKING: If I slip, I'll keep trying.
RESPONSE: If I think I can get away with one little "slip" now, I'll think I can get away with another little slip later on.

JUNKIE THINKING: I need one to get me through this withdrawal.
RESPONSE: Drinking will not get me through the discomfort of not drinking. It will only get me back to drinking. One sip stops the process of withdrawal and I'll have to go through it all over again.

JUNKIE THINKING: I miss drinking right now.
RESPONSE: Of course I miss something I've been doing every day for most of my life. But do I miss the pain of drinking right now? Do I miss the worry, the embarrassment? I'd rather be an ex-drinker with an occasional desire to drink, than a drinker with a constant desire to stop doing it.

JUNKIE THINKING: I really need to drink now. I'm so upset.
RESPONSE: Drinking is not going to fix anything. I'll still be upset; I'll just be an upset drunk. I never have to have a drink. Drinking alcohol is not a need, it's a want. Once the crisis is over, I'll be relieved and grateful I'm still not drinking.


JUNKIE THINKING: I don't care.
RESPONSE: WHAT IS IT EXACTLY THAT I THINK I DON'T CARE ABOUT? Can I truthfully say I don't care about my pain? I don't care about having a hangover in the morning? I don't care about what I'm doing to my liver, lungs, kidney, and heart? I don?t care about all the people I?ve hurt. No, I care about these things very much. That's why I stopped drinking in the first place.

JUNKIE THINKING: What difference does it make, anyway?
RESPONSE: It makes a difference in the way I live, the way my heart beats, the way I feel about myself. It makes a tremendous difference in every aspect of my physical and emotional health.

[DfromCT]

Stinking Thinking

IMT....good luck and be strong. If possible, visit MWO forums often, and seek support with those you're spending your holidays with. I like the hypnotherapy (and the supplements and my med, Naltrexone certainly helps in a big way) and do that almost daily.

One thing that I found as a motivational factor is avoiding starting back at day one! Each day I get further (today is day 13) it means I'll lose more if I drink....

GOOD LUCK.

[K9Lover]

Stinking Thinking

Instead of saying "I can't drink anymore", I tell myself "I don't have to drink anymore!" It's a very freeing thought. I don't have to plan, scheme, hide, pretend or lie about it anymore. I don't have to wake up in a panic. I don't have to spend all day recovering. Once you can shift your thinking, it becomes so much easier. You can do this, I have faith in you!

[Struggles 106]

Stinking Thinking

THINKING OF DRINKING

I can relate to that thinking. I find that I just have to push the thoughts out of my mind.
Sober Visitor's post was great-counter-thoughts to the damn drinking thoughts.

To me it's not about drinking-sort of-it's about drunkenness. Because that is really what the goal is. Just to get drunk and avoid feeling whatever it is that I don't want to feel.
It is certainly not an issue of being sociable, having a beer and chatting. It's about drinking as much as possible as fast as possible. And that includes driving to get more alcohol when too much has been consumed already. Truly messed up.

I noticed (in terms of escalation) that near the end of my drinking I was buying more to avoid that scenario. Thinking well I'll get 12 beers instead of 6, or a bigger bottle of wine since I know I'm going to want more. Pathetic.

Being drunk is such a waste; so much time wasted in a fog.

[Turnagain]

Stinking Thinking

K9Lover;1352518 wrote: Instead of saying "I can't drink anymore", I tell myself "I don't have to drink anymore!" It's a very freeing thought.

SO TRUE....K9! That is a very powerful line of thinking to help retrain the brain.

The Stinking Thinking is par for the recovery course. BUT you can overcome it. Remember....your brain is still looking for the fix....and the rest of your system is screaming out for that big sugar fix that alcohol provided.

It takes time to heal and you're doing it. Way to go on coming here to learn how to combat this. You're doing it! It is YOUR time.

[mario]

Stinking Thinking

The immediate object of our goal is sobriety, free from alcohol and all its terrible consequences
without this freedom we have nothing at all,

But at the same time we can achieve no liberation from alcohol obsession until we become willing
to deal with those character flaws which landed us into that condition in the first place,

In this freedom quest we have a few choices,

A rebellious refusal to work upon our glaring defects can be an almost certain ticket to destruction
or perhaps we can, for a time stay sober with a minimum of self improvement and settle ourselves into
a comfortable but often dangerous mediocrity, Or we can like a lot of long term abstainers here
continuously try hard for those sterling qualities that can add up to a much more fulfilling & happy life.

[Pinecone]

Stinking Thinking

Hey Itsmytime, You'll be just fine. Just struggle through it. Distract yourself, have a snack, order take out, watch movies or even go to bed early if you have to. The thoughts will let up and you'll be so proud you made it through. It WANTS you to think it is a crisis, but you'll be fine.

[itsmytime]

Stinking Thinking

Thank you everyone,
Cravings or should I say the mental battle is really strong today. I sent my hubby a text saying effin Friday Cravings, and bless him instead of enabling me - which I think subconsciously I wanted him to say "dont' worry, have a drink after work" he said "you are going to get them" he is right and it truly is one day, one craving at a time. I am going to keep myself really busy and know how great I will feel to wake up and get to the gym instead of wallowing in guilt and anxiety.

Thank you again friends, your words of wisdom aren't taken lightly and are helping me tremendously. You know what though, I didn't feel like this these past years trying to quit, I went instantly to the pink cloud. This must be an indication that this time is the last time and I am bidding farewell to my dependence on booze !!!

[DfromCT]

Stinking Thinking

There you go, itsmytime. I thought about quitting and made plans to moderate and/or take time away from alcohol for years. With twins coming sometime in the next few weeks (not later than 8/9) I knew I had to do something drastic. I'm doing the whole MWO program, with a slight modification away from Topamax.

Some (though very few) can just make a decision and stop drinking. That certainly wasn't me, but I know a couple of people that drank a lot and surprised me by doing just that. They had enough, and that was all they needed. Others can simply tell themselves "I don't need to drink", and that works for them. Some go to rehab and/or AA. Still others rely on Antabuse treatment, which will make them violently ill if they drink, so they know they can't and that's a big enough deterent. (I've always wondered if a hard core alcoholic went on Antabuse if they had to prove to themselves that it works by drinking and finding out how ill it makes them, but never wanted to learn first hand!)

For me, the hypnotherapy, which has me teaching myself that I love my wife and family more than I love alcohol, combinded with a powerful anti-craving med (Naltrexone) and the MWO supplements all create the battle armour I'm using. I'm already starting to lower the Naltrexone dose, at my doctor's suggestion, but know that I'm not ready to give it up. I'm also not ready to try moderation, and wonder if I ever will be.

The point is that the fight is not easy, we each need to figure out what works best, for ourselves, and to what extent we're willing to go to break free from the stranglehold alcohol can have on us. If you (or anyone) are truly committed to the outcome, you'll figure out what you need to do. The support you seek plays an integral role as well.
It's not easy, but most things in life that are worth it aren't. YOU CAN DO IT!