7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

[Unwasted]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hey Everyone,

A quick drive by for me today (Day 70 yay)......

Just wanted to mention - if you have access to The Diane Rehm Show (NPR - everyone's local affiliate will be different), try to listen to the podcast about sugar.

NS, of course I thought of you - I've heard a lot about the sugar/alcohol/addiction connection, but this had a bit of new information - most of it you'll already know, but I think it's still worth a listen.

You can get the previous show Podcasts for free - it was aired Tuesday, July 23.

Pinecone, I think being aware of what we're putting in our body is a strong line of defense against drinking again. And once we get on this path and start feeling better, sleeping better, etc. it helps us be reluctant to give it up - which then helps us remain AF. Lots of things working together.

MS - hope you're racking up some AF days and feeling better. I love the 51 things link too - great stuff!!

My Life - hope you're doing ok.

Alls, Free, anyone stopping by. Have a super day/evening/weekend.

xx,
UN :lilheart:

[NoSugar]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Congratulations on 10 weeks AF, UN!! :goodjob:

I looked up the DR show you referred to. I love the title: Richard Cohen: "Sugar Love: A Not-So Sweet Story. I'm going to listen to it shortly. I just love DR -- great courage to come back on the air after working through the problems she developed with her voice. I think her interviewing style is great - she gives people a chance to actually speak!!

I think the tide is turning on sugar. It's gotten a "pass" for the last 30 years and people are finally starting to take a closer look. I'm not convinced that sugar is the only culprit in the world of carbohydrates, but I suspect its the worst. The main thing that makes me crazy is that everyone is so afraid of fat, especially saturated fat, because of effects on blood cholesterol, but it is carbohydrates that increase blood triglycerides and those are the fats most associated with heart disease. It is hard to undo 30 years of misinformation but as I said, it looks like changes are coming.

Hey, Pinecone -- any progress on the meditation front? I need someone to lead me into that. I'm just not getting it done on my own!!

MS, I like the quote you included. Like AllsWell, I suspect most treatment modalities work when the person is truly ready to change. The poor statistics for the various recovery programs likely reflect the fact that many people end up in them who have not, way down deep, decided that the time is NOW. I don't think I hit a "rock bottom" but I was at the end of my rope with myself when I joined MWO.

Hi, MyLife and Free - hope you both are doing well .

:h NS

EDIT: Thanks for telling us about the podcast, UN! I just listened to it and thought they did a good job with the subject. Sweet dreams, everyone...:H

[allswell]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hey All,

I'm also a big fan of DR because she has smart people discussing the issues and it's not some shouting match like most of mainstream media. I always feel like I've learned something.

I also agree sugar is as toxic, if not more toxic than any other horrible addition we can include in our diet. I truly believe when the blood sugar is level we are at our absolute best. I know I am.

Have a great Friday all, it's going to be great weather here, looking forward to enjoying every minute of it!

[Unwasted]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hey Guys,

I am also a huge DR fan for the reasons mentioned here. NPR in general is fantastic programming, especially compared to most of the junk out there.

Alls, interestingly, they don't totally throw sugar out the window - they just teach about the important distinctions and what types to avoid. For example, the sugar in a soda is much different than the sugar in a piece of fruit.

And NS, they talk about how fat has been vilified and how it's not the culprit - of course they go into it more in depth than I'm touching on here.

One of my favorite things they said was - 'we are what we eat but we don't even know what we're eating' which is true of so many people who don't pay attention and just think that things are peachy because their stomachs are full.:H

Pinecone, you touched on this earlier - we really need to be aware of what we're putting into our bodies - beyond just alcohol!

Have a great weekend everyone.

[Pinecone]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hi Friends,

Unwasted, thanks for the link. I love NPR in general too. My local affiliate doesn't have the DR show, but I did bookmark the link on the sugar story. Thanks!

NoSugar, I'm still looking for a good, nuts and bolts guide to meditation. I can struggle with the ungraspableness of it all when I sit there by myself, just looking for a basic guide to the practice, something to get me started. I'll keep looking and let you know if I come across anything good.

Great to be with you today, have a great AF night!

[mylife]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hello Everyone!

Sorry I was MIA for the last couple days. What a whirlwind of great and thought provoking posts!

Pinecone - thanks so much for joining us!

I was traveling for business and was exposed to two nights of dinner out with colleagues and drinking. Luckily, there was ONE other non-drinker. Somehow if there are two - it feels better. Safety in numbers, I suppose. So I was able to order a bottle of sparkling water and split it with someone else and it wasn't a big deal.

Anyway, the second night there was a group of about 9 of us out for dinner and the topic came up of drinking. The people at the table began telling stories of various business trips they had taken with a particular woman who was a very high ranking executive within the organization - so most of the people she traveled with reported to her. Anyway, apparently she got very drunk in front of them on many occasions - including one in which she actually fell asleep (or passed out) at the dinner table for 45 minutes while they all ate dinner. The stories they told were shocking and sad to me. This person is no longer with the organization - but I thought how sad it was that she was struggling like that with this disease - and thanked my lucky stars I hadn't gotten to that point with alcohol YET. (We all know it's a progressive disease).

Anyway, happy to report I'm still sober and feeling stronger about this lifelong decision every day. Also, NS I read the book you had mentioned by Amy Hatvany on my trip. It was good to reiinforce my non-drinking with a good book about a woman's path to recovery at night! Thanks! And I agree "thoughts" of Alcohol are something that will just be with me now - and it's much better now as they are more distant and analytical.

UN - that's so funny that you mentioned thinking that about the struggle with going AF vs. the struggle with drinking. I had exactly the same thoughts in the past - I thought "well since I'm stuggling anyway, might as well struggle with trying to moderate!" It is so funny how addiction will conjure up these ridiculous justifications for getting the drug in our brains! Amazing to me, really if I think about it!

I really enjoy this thread and all the insightful posts. I don't have good access to NPR where I live - something I really miss as I listened to it all the time when I lived on the west coast. But I'll look up the links! And I will also look up the link for spiritual river. I have looked at that site in the past and had forgotten about it. Lastly, I have continued my exercise regime - about 1 hour a day of SOMETHING. And I am also interested in meditation! I did get as far as to get out my yoga mat and think about it!! LOL. I do want to follow through with that as well as I feel it's the last missing link.

Okay, so much for my morning ramble. Hope you all have a wonderful AF day!!

One last edit - UN CONGRATULATIONS ON 70 DAYS and NS CONGRATULATIONS ON 6 MONTHS!!! It's great having a good number of people on this thread achieving such success!!

[free at last]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hi all, quick pop in for me. Still haven't figured out how to reply on my bb-it seems to be hit or miss for me.

All is well and I remain AF, even with the alcohol being ever present in the huts, restaurants and campgrounds. I took AB for 5 days to get a loading dose and am now taking it only twive a week. It seems to be working for me. Also, the intense evercise leaves me so drained each evening it is all I can do to clean up and fall into bed. My DH calls it my biggest loser experience.

Been enjoying the thread, will catch up properly when I am back stateside.

[mylife]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hi All,

Just checking in on a Sunday morning. So here's my shout out for a sober Sunday! It really is great to be AF.

FAL great to hear from you! I really have to hand it to you doing so well on your hike with AL all around. Good job - and I want to join you on the biggest loser experience!!

I think it was UN who said they often feel like they're in a parallel Universe where everyone else drinks Alcohol. I thought of that yesterday. I actually went to Happy Hour at a beach cafe with my DH, and looking around I did feel a bit like I was living in a different Universe from everyone else. Originally, my husband was going by himself while I shopped, but I joined him after awhile and just thought - what the heck. I'm going to have to face these things and be okay with it at some point. I had my club soda and really didn't miss the alcohol it at all. I was never a big happy hour person in the past. I did get a little irritated with my DH as the booze kicked in and he got a little loud - I can see that being a problem... and told him so later, but I really didn't want it for myself.

Hope you're all having a wonderful AF Sunday.

[Unwasted]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Leaving MWO

Guys:l

I have enjoyed conversing with you intelligent people immensely, but will no longer be posting here. After a rotten day yesterday, I had 2 beers. After feeling solidly sure I was finished with alcohol, I guess it's not to be. I thought about it all day, so it wasn't a spur-of-the-moment thing. I was just having a lovely dinner with my husband and wanted that experience.

Of course, with just two beers I had all the good and none of the bad - it didn't disrupt my sleep because I did it around 5, and I had no buzz whatsoever when I went to bed. No hangover, no bad anything.

BUT we all know the drill - it's whether or not it throws me back into the bad cycle, like it's done in the past.

I guess I haven't experienced enough pain to get me through to the other side. Please don't feel bad for me and most of all, don't let it be a catalyst in any way for you to drink. You guys all have your own experience and path, as do I. And, there are many here who are having success and good lives without alcohol. I absolutely cannot explain why I can't stick with it. And, right now at least, I feel compelled to try moderation again. It defies logic, I absolutely know that.

I wish you all the best and hope you can be fulfilled without needing the escape I seem compelled to continue to try and find.

Take care - love you guys (as much as one can love someone one has never met LOL).

xx,
UN :lilheart:

[3June2013]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Unwasted, you're leaving MWO? I'm so sorry to hear that. Do you think you might be reacting to having a couple of beers? There are plenty of people here that choose to moderate rather than abstain. If that's your choice could you still benefit from posting and sharing here? Just a thought.

[allswell]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hey Un,

Please don't feel like you're a leper because you had a few beers. I haven't been close to being as well as I was last year but I keep fighting (myself mostly as we all know with this problem) and come here not because I have to be perfect but because I need the inspiration of others in the foxhole that are in the same fight. I hope you reconsider friend.

[Byrdlady]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Unwasted;1507741 wrote: Hi All,

I made the very conscious decision to drink and am back to hating it! So, I'm here to be accountable, help myself, and help others when I can. It was the support of people here that enabled me to accrue the 7 months.

I'm thinking of this last go-round as a learning tool that's solidifying my resolve to stop the mind games and truly embrace sobriety. If my dichotomized brain switches gears on me again, I'll go the meds route!

UW, I have been a closet fan of this thread since you started it. There have been so many moving accounts of people doing just what you did...
Sometimes, getting away with the 'slip' is worse than a terrible tumble...because that makes you think you've actually got some control. The truth is, that we don't have control at all anymore, and we never will. You know in your heart of hearts that moderation is an exercise in futility, right? Even on this site, it is tried with powerful drugs with nasty side effects. None of us can undo what has already been done...but what we CAN do is stop bullshitting ourselves, and slam the door on this beast that preys on us. Try and pick up the pieces of your 71 days and keep going! Do not give in to AL! It WILL WIN. See 2010 for me...I tried for a dam year to moderate and my drinking got WORSE!
You told us in your first post that you knew you couldn't drink moderately....what has changed now? More self awareness? More what? Truth is, nothing has changed...you only get one brain and it knows where you've been. I would urge you to stay the course here. Stick with us like minded people who CAN NOT DRINK AL safely! Just consider the 2 beers a bump in the road instead of a relapse and you will be better for it!! Don't feed the addiction any more! Cut it's food source off and you will be so happy you did. Being led around by a bottle sucks the life out of us. Hop right back up on this wagon and we'll grab on!! Don't give in to it!!!! Byrdie

[NoSugar]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hi, UN :l

Thank you for letting us know your situation. It is hard when someone we care about just disappears so your explanation is a gift.

Do you plan to post on the moderation threads or leave MWO entirely? I would love to hear what's going on with you. If you're not posting but feel like sending a PM, please do!

If it turns out those brain circuits we've been learning about truly can't be re-wired and moderation doesn't work again, I sure hope you come back here and start over for what can be the last time. I don't think the data are wrong, UN - this is going to be a Herculean task. Is an occasional small volume of ethanol really worth it? Is it even going to be enough to activate your brain's pleasure center?

For your sake and ours, I hope you change your mind now. If moderating even starts to become a problem, please hurry back - there is no need to risk finding out what "rock bottom" looks like. (Plus, I am really going to miss my science- buddy!)

I think you are heading for your cabin soon - I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing time.

Love, NS

[mylife]

7 MONTHS OF SOBRIETY BLOWN

Hi UN,

I only wish you the best. I completely understand...and I agree everyone's journey is different. I hope you will consider continuing to post. I think even if you are choosing to moderate posting can help give you insight and a better chance.

Thank you for all your words of wisdom - we have been on this path together for some time now! I wish you success in whatever you decide and really hope you enjoy your new home in the mountains! :l:h

PS - I agree with NS - if moderating or not posting doesn't work please hurry back!