Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

[tryingtoohard]

We are going out to dinner tonight-- and I want to just have water.

I am so sick of drinking. I can't even remember the last time I really, truly had fun. Or enjoyed a meal.

I am trying to look through the tool box, and my first thought was, OK- I know why I want to quit, but "favorite AF drink?" What is THAT?

I have been drinking heavily for 15 years.

[JackieClaire]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

[MENTION=22046]tryingtoohard[/MENTION].....
I'm 10 years sober and don't have a favourite non-alcoholic drink except water......I can't be bothered with non-alcoholic cocktails......so I ask for water and get water. I also ask for it without ice. I've never been looked at oddly by a waiter or a barman. To be honest I drink now to keep re-hydrated and if I'm thirsty.
If that's what you want don't be shy and ask............... the best to you with your quit.

[Slo]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

I haven’t found a favorite go-to alcohol-free drink yet either, and don’t usually like the NA cocktails much either. Often NA beer works for me; it’s filling and not sweet. Sometimes tonic water with lime, or soda water with cranberry juice. Some people like Diet Coke, but I’m sensitive to the caffeine at night.

Welcome, [MENTION=22046]tryingtoohard[/MENTION]!

[available]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

Welcome Trying

You can only make that decision to drink water. will other people care, not really, as long as they have what they want to drink. Some may pressure you to drink but you can just say you dont feel well. My fav drink is lemon, lime and bitters and water. When i did stop drinking though i stayed inside and hibernated for a few months to gain strength in being sober. I didnt want to feel deprived so i didnt go to any events.

There are people on MWO in different stages of sobriety and we welcome everyone. Being on a site that understands alcoholism was so important to me, knowing i wasnt alone and that other people got what i was going through.

Newbies nest is a great place to start and settle in.

I hope you enjoy your water.

[Byrdlady]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

I posted before I stopped drinking. I came here to learn to control my drinking. What I learned was I couldn’t. But I CAN control not drinking!

About the only thing I drink now is Diet Coke and, like SLO, I don’t drink that when I go out at night because of the caffeine. I drink water as a deterrent! If I drink too much of anything, I’m up all night, so I get water when I go out so I won’t drink much. Too bad I couldn’t have done that with AL. Goes to show you the power of addiction
Order your water with pride tonight! Let us know how you do! Byrdie

[satz123]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

I posted before I stopped drinking. I came here to learn to control my drinking. What I learned was I couldn’t. But I CAN control not drinking!

Same here Byrdie - thought I could just drink at weekends - silly me

[MENTION=22046]tryingtoohard[/MENTION]

I am so sick of drinking. I can't even remember the last time I really, truly had fun.

So I don't really get what the question is here ? Why are you sidelining the real issue - with a question about non-alcoholic drinks?
It doesn't matter a feck what you drink does it ? Your are going for food right?

Now what are you going to do about the real issue : "I have been drinking heavily for 15 years." ??

[Nursie]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

I posted before I quit. I quit a few times.

My favorite special going out drink is a gingerale with a cherry in a martini glass.
I have been told it’s the classiest gingerale ever!

Cheers to your water tonight. You can do it!!

[julia1970]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

hi tryingtoohard, i have joined the forum this weekend and i am still drinking. i am sick of drinking (and smoking pot) as well. i think over the last week i had two decent meals. i have been mostly inside my house (or either walking my dog or buying alcohol and pot), have hardly seen or done anything interesting. my holidays are down the drain (no, still some days left!). it is deadening. my body feels sick and weak, i feel numb and depressed.
i felt like that yesterday as well (and the days before). at waking up everyday i thought i would be crazy to repeat the same i did yesterday! what a horrible day. to run to the store and get new beer a few hours later and do just that: a complete repetition.

but my resolve to get completely sober is growing since i got on this forum. i'm going to stop this. have not yet figured out exactly how (or have i?! hey i thought i just typed an exclamation mark upside down), but i know i can. i must. i deserve better than this.

[paulywogg]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

I posted before I stopped for about 6 years, I'd get sober stretches, relapse but always posted, I always tell people to post no matter what cuz you never know what little kernal is gonna stick in your head and make quitting possible I like water, I like no I'll take that back I LOVE coffee, when I go out I always splurge on a soda cuz I don't drink them regularly, how'd your night go? Welcome again and I'm happy to meet you

[Pavati]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

Hi,

If I read your question I think you're asking what "AF" means? It means alcohol-free. And you have some good suggestions there. Mine is sparkling water with a dash of flavoring - fresh orange, some good juice, lime. Once my friend made a "shrub" that was delicious.

Like Byrdie, I first posted thinking I wanted to learn how to moderate. That was a farce. If I was good at moderating I wouldn't have found this site... One suggestion is to commit to 30 days without alcohol and then re-assess. That didn't work so well for me because I really did have to admit I had to quit for ever in order to get the commitment from myself to stay the course.

You can't "hope" or "think" this to happen. You have to dig in and MAKE it happen through hard work. The toolbox is a good place to start.

Pavati

[NotHappyHourHappyLife]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

Welcome back, TTH! Like you, I vanished for a couple of years, and I have once again looked at my alcohol habits.... while I was "gone", I was out there in the world moderating, presumably in charge of my life.

When I was here before, I spent a lot of time on here talking about alcohol, so while I wasn't partaking, it was still "front and center" in my life, but in a different way.

Back in October, I spent a week in Europe with my non-drinking 21 year old son, and because I didn't have the peer pressure of starting early in the morning and going until bedtime, I hardly drank.... and started to re-assess my habits. WHY is it so important for a liquid to have so much control over my life? And similar to what you said above, I was sick of drinking. The romance was over.

I went cold turkey, which is the only way I can stop addictive behaviors (i.e. quit smoking cold turkey 20 years ago). My son has been (unknowingly) my support system for the last 3 months and while I have lost weight, I now have a sweet tooth that I will satisfy with a chocolate. I haven't cheated on me.

So why am I here tonight? The last time I quit drinking, I gave my husband a "my way or the highway" speech and he quit drinking. I didn't do that this time, and he is still living with his nightly pal, Mr. Jack D. With a marriage of 25 years, by choosing my AF drink, I see that we are sadly living together, but it's definitely a "threesome". He's not going to quit drinking unless I give him another ultimatum, and quite frankly, if he's not going to do it on his own, I'm not going to push. It has to be his choice, just like it's got to be yours.

We are all welcome here, as we are all broken humans, trying to be better versions of us. My uncle once said it takes 6 to 8 years from the time the first thought of stopping creeps into our heads until we take decisive action to stop, but that's just a number.... I hope this is my real quit. My motivation to protect my quit is my son, but I realize that the true motivation should be me.

Hugs.

[Marylou123]

Re: Has anyone here ever posted BEFORE they quit drinking?

Hi TTH,
I joined almost six years ago pretty much the day I finally was “sick and tired of being sick and tired.” I clung to the Nest and stood on the shoulders of those that came before (Lav, Byrdie, Pav, Ava, etc) and savored every nugget from those that were even newer. The great comfort was I wasn’t alone in my drinking patterns, whatever I had done would neither surprise nor cause judgement from those here, and, I had hope! I posted a lot the first three years but mostly just fly by now. But only because after three years of sobriety I wanted to make some sober friends. So now I go to a women’s 12-step meeting and have lots of friends I can hang with in person! I owe my sobriety to MWO and I’ll celebrate six years of joy and peace next week.
Like most others here have said, my drink of choice now is water. (And coffee!) I used to feel weird, even like I was being cheap, if I didn’t order a cocktail. That passes. Plus, everybody’s drinking water now...it’s cool, just not in plastic. And, here in the US, there’s the “sober curious” and “dry January” movements so you can use that as a reason.
I wish you all the best on this journey. You can do it.
xo -ML
ps Ava, Gman and all the peeps here from down under - prayers for your safety and a fast end to the devastation.