I thought I'd start today's thread with a little something I learned yesterday from my hypnotherapist.
He and I were talking about the last time I had a strong temptation to drink. He asked me to explain in detail how it occurred. I said that I was at work about 3 weeks ago, and the thought came to me that it would be nice to relax and unwind with some wine after work. He asked me to stop there.
That sentence has two parts.
1. It would be nice to relax and unwind... Is this true? Yes. It would be nice to relax and unwind indeed -- by taking a walk in the woods, by spending time with friends, by playing with my dog in the park (if I had a dog). OK.
2. ... with some wine after work. Is this true? Hmmm.. What is my experience with this? Every time for the past decade when I have tried to "relax and unwind" with alcohol of any type it has caused me profound grief. So, is this something that would be "nice?" And -- is it truly a way to "relax and unwind" when I know in the back of my brain that it is going to have the opposite effect in the long run? NO, NO, and manifestly NO.
So in the past when I have fallen for temptation, I have been duped. (That should have been obvious, but cut me some slack, my brain has been pickled.) The clever part of the trick is that part of the statement is true: It would be nice to (fill in the blank). But it goes on with the lie "using ALCOHOL," hoping we will fall for it, which I always did.
Alcohol insinuates itself into our lives in such a way that we think we cannot do anything without it. We think we can't relax, socialize, have sex, be creative, deal with stress, or any number of things without IT. Now that we have chosen the path of long-term sobriety, the challenge is to find ways to do these things without the evil little monster. And to recognize its evil little tricks. I was amazed when my therapist pointed this one out to me.
I'm curious -- what other subtle ways to you find alcohol trying to trick you? Or what ways did it try in the past? It is a clever beast, but we have to outsmart it.
He and I were talking about the last time I had a strong temptation to drink. He asked me to explain in detail how it occurred. I said that I was at work about 3 weeks ago, and the thought came to me that it would be nice to relax and unwind with some wine after work. He asked me to stop there.
That sentence has two parts.
1. It would be nice to relax and unwind... Is this true? Yes. It would be nice to relax and unwind indeed -- by taking a walk in the woods, by spending time with friends, by playing with my dog in the park (if I had a dog). OK.
2. ... with some wine after work. Is this true? Hmmm.. What is my experience with this? Every time for the past decade when I have tried to "relax and unwind" with alcohol of any type it has caused me profound grief. So, is this something that would be "nice?" And -- is it truly a way to "relax and unwind" when I know in the back of my brain that it is going to have the opposite effect in the long run? NO, NO, and manifestly NO.
So in the past when I have fallen for temptation, I have been duped. (That should have been obvious, but cut me some slack, my brain has been pickled.) The clever part of the trick is that part of the statement is true: It would be nice to (fill in the blank). But it goes on with the lie "using ALCOHOL," hoping we will fall for it, which I always did.
Alcohol insinuates itself into our lives in such a way that we think we cannot do anything without it. We think we can't relax, socialize, have sex, be creative, deal with stress, or any number of things without IT. Now that we have chosen the path of long-term sobriety, the challenge is to find ways to do these things without the evil little monster. And to recognize its evil little tricks. I was amazed when my therapist pointed this one out to me.
I'm curious -- what other subtle ways to you find alcohol trying to trick you? Or what ways did it try in the past? It is a clever beast, but we have to outsmart it.
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