Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

[JingleJo]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

kuya;1434191 wrote: JJ everyone is different but be prepared for feeling up and down and a bit 'flat'. From a month til last week ( will be for months on the 1st ----YAY) my moods were all over the place.....not bad moods just variable unrelated to life. It is the brain repairing so try to welcome it as such....it has no bearing on the future.

You can't guzzle poison for a donkey's lifetime without some consequences! :H:H

Oh and I found the fatigue annoying

Yeah, my moods were all over the place at first - peaks and troughs kinda thing, then came a sense of relief and a calm feeling. Been feeling pretty consistently chilled on the inside the past couple of weeks with no major ups or downs, just a steady calmness with an ability to handle things without getting stressed to the max. Every task or thought each day either used to either stress me out big time or give me this weird excitable (not in a good way) feeling. I'm really liking this calmness thing - t'is a breath of fresh air.

[Lavande]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Life is full of ups & downs JJ. As long as we choose to not drink we'll be fine

CONGRATS on your 6 AF weeks :yay:

[JingleJo]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Lavande;1434200 wrote: Life is full of ups & downs JJ. As long as we choose to not drink we'll be fine

CONGRATS on your 6 AF weeks :yay:

Yip - just knowing I'll be able to handle those ups and downs much better than before is a refreshing thought in itself The smallest of issues used to feel like a DISASTER when I was drinking. Yuck.

Thank you

[OnceAgain]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Wow Jingle - You just made me tear up.... This is so similar to the way I was acting. My whole life revolved around AL. I would encourage my husband to be away up at our vacation home so that I could be alone and drink without him knowing how much I was consuming. I was edgy and wanting to leave early at social events even when there was AL because I would have to "watch" how much I had so that I did not make a fool of myself (although I am sure I made a fool of myself anyway at times - who am I kidding?)! I am only on day three and I have already noticed how much I think about AL all the time - like right now if I was still drinking I would already be through a half bottle of wine and wanting to take a nap before the next round. Today I have been reading and drinking tea and am now going to the movies with my hubby and feeling alert and happy. I am so glad we are all taking these steps to rid ourselves of this monkey on our backs! Thanks for posting.

[bettygirl]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

i could have written this post myself...we are all the same in our stories...let's keep on keeping on!

peace!

[bettygirl]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

JingleJo;1434154 wrote: Thank you It amazes me just how much things have changed in a mere 6 weeks.

And, I think you are right re the unidentified 'hiders' that will be all around us - folk who you would never imagine to be drinking sneakily behind closed doors. Much more widespread than what people think I would suspect.

i think so too...lot's of folks hide the amount they drink because they are ashamed...i can totally relate.

well done on the 6 weeks!

[Mootsbill]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Well done on the 6 weeks jj, I agree with your post so much, I have been sober all Christmas and it has been so much easier, I did find it tough because I had a terrible binge in the week leading up and felt very down and stressed, but I went on lots of nights out and I had no hangovers, could drive home, which in the cold is so much better :0). I managed to enjoy all the Christmas tv because I wasn't drunk by the afternoon! I would be in control for long periods of time, but then when I binge I loose all control and this is my battle
Im intending on carrying on, taking it a day at a time, for 2013, to have clearer life and mind.
The pregnancy thing was easy for me, I was not drinking alcoholicly then and both times I was sick as a dog so alcohol was a no go, but also I felt very calm and serene during both my pregnancies and all my anxieties and depression stayed well away, maybe they need to bottle those hormones ;0)

[belles]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

JJ - Congratulations on 6 weeks.

One of the reasons I've finally decided to quit for good is that I want my life back! I can completely relate to avoiding evening engagements that might interfere with my drinking - forget going to a movie!! If I did, I'd sneak in the little bottles of booze to make it "fun".

I don't know why my eyes opened to this finally as I was still in my alcoholic state - but they did. I can't wait for 6 weeks sober and 1 year sober!

BTW - went to a comedy club last night with my hubby and they had fabulous Non-alcoholic drinks available - I was so excited. I got one called the "Lindsey Lohan" a really good lime juice with pineapple, and some orange juice with some grenadine. I was so happy.

[JingleJo]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

belles;1434374 wrote: forget going to a movie!! If I did, I'd sneak in the little bottles of booze to make it "fun".

Talking of movies - me and my other half went to the cinema to see 'Skyfall' just a couple of weeks before I decided to quit. It was a Wednesday night and I wasn't 'intending' on drinking, but I ordered a glass of wine with the dinner, then another. Then I squeezed in another glass in a bar before the film started. Large glasses, so a bottle in all.

As soon as my butt hit the seat in the cinema, I started trying to calculate when the film would be finished to work out if there would be enough time for the pub afterwards. Then when the trailers went on for ageeees I could feel my irritation levels going through the roof as they were taking up soooo much time. I then clock-watched the whole way through the film and was miserable and angry when I realised the pub in the cinema complex would be closed by the time the film finished and the offsales were long shut.

After the film, I practically begged my other half to drive into town for drinks in a pub that would still be open. He had a 6am rise the next day, but I couldn't have cared less. I felt DESPERATE at this stage, so I even started to try to guilt trip him into it "but we never get the time to do social things and enjoy a drink together" and proceeded to go into a stinker of a bad mood and huff all the way home.

Crap state of affairs.

Went to the cinema again the other week to see 'Argo', stone cold sober, enjoyed the film and went for an AF meal afterwards then home with a tub of ice cream, and it was a brilliant wee night.

[JingleJo]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

ps thanks guys for the well wishes xx

[kuya]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

I also remember whilst 'popping to the shops' EVERY night how many times my daughter would ask me to buy her a small treat and I would forget.

I would be so intent on getting my booze that once bought the relief would drive all other thoughts out of my head.

I would arrive home and the look of ' TYPICAL ! ' would be in her eyes. Goodness knows how much petrol I have spent over the years on booze related/rectifying trips. I know that cost is down a lot cos I would only buy enough for the night cos EVERY morning for 23 years I was going to quit.

This thread is awesome..... Anything that gets us to remember the mess that alcohol caused is such a positive incentive to remain quit :thanks:

[New Day]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Congratulations JJ on your 6 weeks.....amazing! This thread is also an eye opener for me. Reminder of just how sneaky I have been and all the planning of getting my wine in the house unnoticed. The last few years I bought it mostly in the 4 litre boxes so I didn't have to deal with so many bottles. It was easy to get rid of a cardboard box and a plastic liner.
And also easier to cover up how much I was actually drinking...or so I thought. Only fooling myself.
I'm embarrassed by the time wasted
I will reread this thread to remind me why I want to get AL under control instead of the other way around. Thank you

[Findingcara]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Yes

I've done that too, New Day, gotten the box of wine to keep from going to the store every night after work and also to not have so many bottles in the recycle bins. So the liner is not recyclable, added to the guilt of drinking so much. Now i want out.q

Congrats JJ on 6 weeks! That is awesome!

[Lasha]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

Trainspotting

Watched "Trainspotting" for the umpteenth time last night but this time sober and straight, I cant believe how I'm still alive. Still cant make my mind up what was the most difficult to give up cigarettes, drugs, (although I managed to avoid H but dabbled in everything else) or alcohol. They're all very difficult.

It was funny and sad and inspirational to watch and is a wake up call, if you haven't seen it give it a go or if you have watch it again, this time sober, you see things in a new light. If you have difficulty with translation kaird is card etc.

Lash the drummer

Cigarette free - March 2010,
Drug free - Cant remember about 2 years.
Alcohol cut back to 4 ciders a day and dropping.

As Billy Connolly said he thought he'd give up cigs and alcohol when it was still his choice.

[bettygirl]

Realising just how much of a priority alcohol was...

finding cara, i drank boxed wine for the same reasons!!! one every other day at the end there! yikes...easy to hide and easy to dispose of, nevermind the taste ;(