Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

[sothankful]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hi there, Well I slept most of the day away. I just got done reading your post from the 4th and I feel so bad that I didn't get online yesterday to read them. you all are so supportive. I was crying thinking wow, all of you have taken time out of your day to post something to each and everyone here. then I just go and piss it away. I want you all to know that I am so grateful that you all are here. thank you so much I mean that from my heart. day 1

[Hannah]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hello all you Booze Bustin Buds!

Well, how?s it going today?

We had a tee off time booked for today, (surprise surprise! although they were forecasting storms for later in the afternoon. We weren?t sure we would get a whole 18 holes golfed, but figured most of the round, anyhow?..NOT! We were standing at the tee off just waiting for the group ahead of us to get far enough down the fairway, and eyeing the clouds, and wondering if we were about to get rained on?..and my hubby said ?Holly ____, get your rain jacket out NOW!? And I looked down the fairway, and I swear we could see it coming, like a wall of water. Wow. Thank goodness he noticed. I did have my rain jacket mostly on before it hit, and we went scrambling for our truck. We sat in it and watched the rain and hail, and realized we wouldn?t be golfing today! And felt like little kids whose candy has been taken away. Wahhhhhh!!!!! We were pumped for it, and didn?t get it, and then felt like we needed ? something!!!!! And unfortunately that felt like a drink. We drove around aimlessly for a while, then picked up some steaks and fixings, came home, and sat on the balcony (rain over by now) and drank an AF beer??..but still feeling kind of restless, but lazy at the same time. Hubby said to me, this is bad, but I feel like being bad?..and I misinterpreted it, and said, Yeah, I?d better go take something, because I am sure craving a drink right now ? Oh, he said, yeah, that too, but mainly I don?t feel like BBQing steaks ? and I said, Well, we don?t have to have them tonight, what do you feel like having? He said ? taco chips????? So here we are, had a bowl of taco chips for supper (along with a stick of cheese ? hey, gotta have some protein, right?) and now working on a glass of AF red wine. Pamina, tomorrow I may find out what it feels like to have an AF hangover, just like you!

But ? Al didn?t get me after all. So what if my arteries are slamming shut even as I type.

Joy (1967) ? Good for you! So proud of you, gal! You have won that round with Al , and don?t it feel great???!!!!! And sure I remember Jefferson Airplane! Love(d) their music, grew up with it. Don?t recognize Ambrosia, but I am sure I would recognize a tune if played.

Kaddy! 120 days!!!!! You are stepping into old timer country - how does it feel to be an old gyser? (Kidding!) Good for you!!!!

Louise ? Your mango salsa sounds delish. What did you serve it with?

Sothankful ? It?s a process, don?t give up on yourself. Many people who are on these boards sober now went through what you are going through. Just keep on trying, NEVER give up.

Sheep ? I will second DG?s high recommendation of Curves. I?ve been a member for 2 ? years, and hope to be one of those 75 year olds you see in there, still exercising to the beat!!!! I tend to be about ten pounds less sober than when drinking ? just one of the perks of abstinence! And yup, exercise is great for beating down those cravings too.

Greenie! I?m gonna have to visit subscribers to see how you made out at Lenair, (just don?t seem to have the time to get all around the boards these days) but sounds like just great! Three weeks! Awesome!!!

Pamina, laughing at your description of an AF hangover! If that?s possible, still much preferable to the real thing, No? I?ve never had more than one AF beer in a row, I don?t think?interesting?.guess there is a teensy bit of Al in it, but you would think if would be drowned out by all those carbs. I have noticed it still relaxes me if I haven?t eaten beforehand, so maybe our bodies still react even to that teensy little bit of Al?

DG ? So cool that you are shrinking to the point that new clothes don?t fit!!!! I am a big Land?s End fan too, love their sleeveless tee ? not quite a tank top, but cool. I am missing my Curves this week too, just because hubby is keeping me busy golfing and I don?t have the energy to do BOTH, believe me! But am looking forward to a normal Monday morning, and my appointment ? I think! Awesome you are on day 45 ? you rock!

Well, looking out the window, and it?s fixing to storm again ? but have to admit that we had awesome weather this past week, so can?t complain. Gelgit, I wish we could send this your way. How are you doing with the fires?

Well, hope you all have a great Saturday evening, all!

[greeneyes]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

:goodjob:, 1967! Feels good does it not?

[Doggygirl]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Good Day Booze Busters!!!! With the holiday on Friday this weekend IS feeling like a nice long holiday weekend to me - in a really good way. Sometimes the weekends - even holiday long ones - feel like they fly by way to fast.

Pamina, LOL on your AF beerfest. I actually read your post before dog training. Didn't think much of it at the time - but I've been threatening to try AF beer at some point, even though beer was not my poison of choice since the college years. When dog training was wrapping up I went to our garage refrigerator where the beverages live only to find about 3 beers in there. So I took one to our trainer but then had to make a liquor store run. So at that point, an AF beer was calling my name to at least try it. I ended up with Sharp's (my other choices were O'Douls and a Budweiser AF beer of some sort). On a hot summer day around others drinking beer and shooting the breeze, it tasted pretty good! I had two and of course that blew my carb count out of the water for the day. As Dolly mentioned, either the carb count in general or the grain content may be what made you feel tired. Anyway...you inspired me to finally discover what AF beer is all about. I can't make it a regular thing due to the carbs, but it will be nice once in awhile on Saturdays or special occassions!!

Greenie in the Big Girl Pants!!! :grannypants: Congratulations on 3 weeks AFHF!!! That is awesome. Overall you sound SO good since you return from Lenair. Sorry you were sick though and have been having some physical symptoms going on. But life sure is looking up isn't it? LOL on the liquor store rotation from the drinking days. I thought about that yesterday when making the beer run for the boys. It was nice to walk into the one I picked knowing I hadn't been there in a really long time!

Sheepish, congrats on Day 4!!!! I really enjoy winter time too (rather than the horribly hot summer days) EXCEPT for the shortness of the daylight hours. Hopefully this coming winter we will all be solidly sober, and able to enjoy that time of year rather than get in the cyle of depression / drink / more depression / more drink / continue ad nauseum. (at least that was my cycle last winter!!).

sothankful, I'm sorry to hear of your fall on the 4th. Like the others have said, don't give up. It would be awesome if every one of us could succeed in getting an AF life on the first try. I'm sure that happens for a few folks, but for the majority, it seems we have to go through some trial and error and pain before we finally get it right. You WILL get it right if you keep trying. You mention that you think you need to look at the process in a different light....Hope you will talk more about that. Mean time CONGRATULATIONS on yesterday being back to Day 1. We'll be thinking of you here on Day 2!! Especially due to the fact that you will be wearing the Fugly Green Suit. Sorry we didn't have time to get it cleaned in the last year. :egad:

louise, thank you for the recipe!! I echo Hannah's question - what did you serve it with? Since you provided the recipe I will decline your invitation to come clean your closets!! Believe me - I HEAR you on the weight frustration. I know I will always have to work at it in a way I really didn't (lucky me!) in my younger years. But I truly believe the hormones are helping - especially after a doseage adjustment on Thursday. I've still been watching calories and carbs and working out, but I've seen better results with the same effort over the last few days. I don't want to speak too soon as it may just be a fluke. But if this keeps up for another week or two, I will be 100% confident the hormones are making a huge difference. And it's not just about the weight - it's about mood and energy level, etc. I didn't even take an L-Tryptophan Magic Mood Pill yesterday!!

1967 You ROCK!!!!!! Love the "Joy" in your name AND your post!! Good for you resisting temptation, and believing in yourself. WE CAN SAY NO. AL only has as much power as we are willing to concede. Jefferson Airplane!!!! WHEE!!!! Oh the memories! I was thinking of you yesterday and had fond memories of living in Florida in the Clearwater area during most of my 30's. I loved all the beach concerts in the summer time. Of course I wasn't doing them AF back then like you did last night!! On to Day 9, then tomorrow you will be a Double Digit Babe!

Hannah, sorry that your game got rained out (and hailed out?? :egad yesterday. My mind went to a dirty place when you talked about Mr. Hannah wanting to be bad. Wow. Chips and a stick of cheese and AF wine for dinner. Sounds like fun to me!!

I felt great during dog training yesterday. It was a smooth running day where we had lots of people who trained, but somehow nobody was in a rush and things just ran smoothly with people coming and going for their different types of work. And it's always a good training day when Mr. Egotistical A-Hole is not here. (the one who while pouting, backed into our gates causing over $2,000 damage) I mentioned up stream the AF beer during afterglow which actually hit the spot. We were talking and laughing - our trainer tells good stories. And I swear he has better gossip than most women!!

I have a "before" picture in a pair of shorts and a tank top from around the 1st of June. The top is an XL and the shorts are an 18. Yesterday, I was wearing the same exact tank top (Land's End!) but in a L, and the same exact shorts (Sam's Club) in a 16. YEAH!!! I've got a ways to go before the Mrs. America pageant, but I'll get there. Hannah, I hear you on Land's end tank tops and sleeveless tees. What I REALLY like about them is that the arm holes are cut correctly so your brazierre (sp) and straps aren't sticking out all over the place.

I've still got some dresser drawers and bathroom drawer/cabinets to clean out so maybe that will be my project for the day. Mainly I'm going to just do whatever I feel like doing!! So who knows...I might just be reading and posting here quite a bit.

Love you all!! Have a Booze Bustin' Day everyone!!

DG
:award: + ****************
Celebrating 46 Hangover Free Days!

[Marshy]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hi all,

Well, the Booze Busters cheerleading squad were moonlighting at Gay Pride here yesterday, sashaying along on the parade in their shorty shorts. Very thoughtful of you to send them over for the day, DG and Hannah :H :H
Fortunately for them the rain held off, and a good time was had by all. I went armed with a small bottle of water. The more events I go to AF the easier it gets (I never thought I'd say that!) and it's actually a huge relief to not be thinking about where and when to get my next drink.

Today I'm having a lazy day, going through the Sunday papers, half-watching the men's final at Wimbledon, that kind of day. Having a few AF beers too, so might get the dreaded AF hangover tomorrow. It's gotta be better than the real thing!

Have a great day everyone.

[greeneyes]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

I've been so busy since AF and the holiday confused me (I couldn't figure out why I didn't get the sunday paper yesterday)! Anyway, Thanks DG, but it's really tomorrow. I most certainly cannot count today as snocered as I got drinking scotch with my dad for my last drink three weeks ago. :H:H That would be when I lost my purse. Stilll haven't found that sucker. I took my supplements improperly and am fine now. Being sober just gets better and better!

[Miss Behaving]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

okay, now that I've explained stroppy, can someone explain "big girls pants" to me? I've never come across it anywhere except on this site and it intrigues me!

Monday morning here - groan!!! It has been such a cold weekend. The snow didn't last because a southerly blast hit .... and there isn't much south of here until you get to the Antarctic, so southerly winds are truly bitter. I dropped Uncle Mame off at the airport at 6am this morning and was planning to go for a short run and swim, but I just couldn't do it! The temperature isn't supposed to get much over 6 degrees today ......

Glad everyone else sounds good and hope you are all having a good HFAF weekend! Louise, the salsa sounds great and I have many plans for it once we get mangos again! (LOL - I went to our local farmers market yesterday and one of the growers had pineapples, which dont grow here in the middle of winter!!! I did manage to get fish that had only been caught the day before though, which I turned into a very nice red curry!)

Hannah - sounds like you had an eventful non-golf game! And my thoughts went the same way as DGs at Mr Hannah wanting to be bad!!! Actually, you have re-invigorated my thoughts of golf - my dad was a big (and very talented) golfer and I sequestered his golf clubs when he died. Haven't played since I met Uncle Mame because he doesn't. But we were moving stuff in and out of storage yesterday and I caught sight of the golf clubs, and said to him that he should give it a go, and got a reasonably positive response. So maybe this summer .....

DG - will PM you about the hormone stuff - mine are all over the place at the moment. Going to get one of those pharmacy menopause tests this week. Dont quite know what is hormones and what is my body getting used to not having large quantities of alcohol.

Must get off to do some stuff, but hello to Pamina, Greeneyes, 1967, Marshy, Sheepish, sothankful and everyone else who is lurking and not posting!!!

[sothankful]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hi there, Feeling better today.

DG, Thank you for the words of encouragement. as for what I meant about seeing this process in a different light. trying not to look at this like a diet or white knuckling it. i want a life style change.
and like my husband said life will still be fun. I want to be able to have fun in a social environment.
without getting sh** faced every time. Tired of the green suit, it makes my ass look big !!! LOL

Hannah-thank you so much. I will not give up. I think I was expecting a miracle over night. that is not realistic. I will keep plugging along like DG said....

have a great AF Sunday...

[sothankful]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

I forgot... day 2

[Sheepish]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hi All BBers

OK- DoggyGirl. Your congrats for me on Day 4 were slightly premature as I did go out Sat night and I did drink. I had 1 cocktail and 2 small glasses of wine with dinner. So- there goes my 30 days and back to square one. Which brings me to the question. Maybe I am on the wrong thread or????? I find myself capable of moderating for long stretches and then I will go through periods (recently) where I just kind of 'give up' and drink whatever/whenever I want. I feel like I SHOULD go AF 30 days as the book recommends- but then I am also capable of moderating fine on most occasions. (Although I have had my share of hangovers) and I do think alcohol plays a negative role in my life sometimes. So- Do I beat myself over this Sat nite 'slip'- because I didn't do 30 days? Was this a success because I moderated? I also don't know if this particular thread is the place to ask this question as I know that it is for those looking to abstain and I respect that.

Please do not get me wrong- ALL of you and your posts are very helpful. Hearing your perspectives gives me many things to think about.... I am just feeling confused.

I am AF today and plan to be tomorrow- would like to stay but I also fell coming here every few days and putting on that suit. I guess I need to figure out what the goal for me is... I am sorry to be so long winded. Thank you for letting me vent.
Have a great start to the week all

-a humble Sheep

[Hannah]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Hellooooooo you beautiful booze bustin' buddies!

It?s late Sunday night, and I?m checking in now, because I have a feeling this week will be busy, and it?ll be hard to get here regularly?..

Egad Marshy! Our cheerleaders in a gay pride parade? Say it?s not so!!!!! I recruited those fellas myself, and I can assure you, they aren?t gay??(my lips are sealed as to how I know that!). Sounds like you had a nice, relaxing Sunday. We all need days like that. It?s nice when we realize that we don?t need to drink in social situations, that?s progress for you!

Hiya Greeneyes! Always so nice to see your cheerful little toes. Are you gong to explain to Mame what big girl pants are all about? You are the expert!

Mame ? brrrrrrrrr!!!!! I am a warm weather person too ? totally hate winter. Not sure what I am doing living in this part of the world! Re the golfing ? that?s about the only sport I ?do?. My hubby is a scratch golfer, and I took it up just to actually see him once in a while during the summer months! But now I love it. You gotta get your hubby out there!
Re the hormone thingee ? the only problem I really ever had were hot flushes ? and I sure notice that now I am not drinking, they are not an issue. Bonus!!!!! Good luck getting yours sorted out.

Sothankful ? I am ?so thankful? you are hanging in there. Sounds like you have a staunch supporter in your hubby, and that is a definite asset. And he?s right ? life is still fun ? and so much better!

Sheepish ? If you are able to moderate successfully, good for you. What do you feel most comfortable with? Lots of people who successfully moderate still do 30 day stints from time to time. There are all sorts of threads on the boards, try a few out and see where you feel most comfortable. Some are for moderating, some are for abstinence, some are just for support in general. And if your journey takes you elsewhere, you can still pop in and say hello from time to time! No worries.

Well, this week will be a tough week for me ? this is the week of the Heavy Oil Men?s Golf Tournament in the town we just moved from. The CEO of my hubby?s company, and his wife, will be flying up from Texas and staying with us overnight on Wednesday night. (We are going to take them to the Riverhouse Grill). Then on Thursday my hubby and his boss will head out early so they can play the course in preparation for the tournament on Friday, and his wife and I will follow in my vehicle later on in the day. That night there is the banquet and dance. This typically is a drunkfest. I told my hubby that this week is going to be very tough for me, and he fully understands that it sure will. His boss is quite a drinker, I am sure an alcoholic himself, and can drink most grown men under the table. He is also bad for wanting you to drink along with him. Thankfully, his wife doesn?t drink much at all.

So for the three days of the tournament, I am going to have to be social, smile and nod and say no thank you, I don?t want a drink, no really, I don?t, thanks anyways??..I have thought about taking some of the Antibuse I ordered a while back, but I am much too afraid that I will accidentally end up sipping the wrong drink, or that someone will order a round, and then I won?t know for sure that mine is Al free ? so I am going on pure willpower plus lots of kudzu and L-glutamine. I will sure be glad when the event is over and I can relax once again. This is one of the few social occasions that I don?t think I will be able to find enjoyable, so will just have to get through it as best I can. But ? I am not going to blow it. I have close to 70 days AF now, and it?s at that point that I blew it last time ? SO NOT THIS TIME, AL!!!!!!!!:alf:

And on that note, I am off to bed?..have a great Monday, everyone!

[greeneyes]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

OK, Aunty Mame! Here goes.... sometimes you find yourself in a jam, an unpleasant situation, facing a task you'r rather not, etc. You just have to "put on your big girl pants and deal with it". Over time the phrase got to be known and sometimes abbreviated to BGP. I still use it every now and then.

I'm officially 3 weeks today! Feel great! Love being sober! It's 2:30 AM so I have to run off to bed. I'll try to pop back in tomorrow and see what every is up to.

[Miss Behaving]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Thanks Greeneye!! and congrats on your 3 weeks!!!

mame

[Doggygirl]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Good Day Booze Busters!!!! Sounds like a good weekend was had by all, except for that NASTY NASTY bitter cold weather that Mame had to endure. It was a good weekend here too, with yesterday being rather lazy. I did catch last 4 games or so of the Men's oops I mean Gentlemen's Wimbledon final. Here are a few thoughts:

So who were you wanting to babysit oops I mean win?
I would like to help Rafael work on his biceps oops I mean forehand.
Rafael sure picked some great shorts oops I mean shots out of his arse!!
How many times do they refresh their rockets oops I mean rackets during a match?

:b&d: I am a BAD girl. Dirty Old Lady to the bitter end. Seriously - It really was an exciting set, and looks like the whole match was like that!

Marshy - I hope you waved hello to the cheerleaders from all of us!! Did you round up any great lookin' new cheerleader recruits????? Sounds like you had a fun AF time - wish I could have been there with you.

Greenie, so glad to see you here Booze Bustin with us!! Happy 3 weeks TODAY! (note to booze busters there will be a PARTAY next week....) Sober really does feel good, doesn't it. My brain still tries to get a fix, but I ain't doin' it.

Mame - I am NOT envious of that cold weather - and I sure don't blame you for skipping the gym!! I AM envious of fresh 1 day old fish!!!!!! Recipe please????

sothankful - WELCOME TO DAY 3!!!! Your clothes are much better looking than the suit!! Mr. Thankful sounds very nice and also wise. At first we tend to be SO focused on 1) desiring an AL fix and 2) being angry if we deny it to ourselves and we completely forget that many, many non drinkers have fun in life, deal with problems in life, etc. every single day - without alcohol. We can too. I can relate to your thinking about a life style change. Caysea really got me thinking that way too in the abbercise thread. I am finding that embracing exercise is really making a positive difference in so many ways. I could NEVER enjoy it like this all hung over. That would be sheer torture!! Each person has to find their own way, but exercise has become pivotol in the "life style change" department for me. You will find your way too!! There is a wonderful AF life out there for all of us.

Sheepish - there is no problem discussing your uncertainty about your goals. That is very understandable - especially since you ARE a person who is able to regularly drink moderately. Only YOU can decide what you want your goals to be. I guess if I were in your shoes, the bottom line for me might be whether or not I could TRULY take or leave the alcohol on any given day. I tend to view Mr. Doggy as my "gold standard" for what a NON alcoholic is like. He doesn't think about alcohol very often. It only occurs to him to have a drink if he is in a situation where others are drinking. And then he often doesn't drink, or if he does, he has one or two and that's it. He is NEVER "waiting" for the next occassion to drink. He NEVER has a drink EVERY TIME it's socially acceptable / available. For me, accepting that I simply can NEVER imagine truly being that way helped push me to my own decision that abstinence is a must for me. But only you can decide for you. Don't know if that was helpful or not!!

Hannah, I am wondering about your "interview process" for the cheerleaders. You seem to have a LOT of um...well....private information about them!!! Your week ahead does sound treacherous. Did I read right that the Boss and his wife are staying at your place???? YIKES. I don't like overnight company to begin with - much less imagining that with a heavy drinker who is also the Boss. Sounds like torture to me. Come touch the life line lots!! This too shall pass and you CAN do it. And when it's over you deserve a massage, a manicure / pedicure, and whatever other pampering suits your fancy. Tell Mr. Hannah about that NOW so he can make your reservation early at the fancy spa of your choice.

Well, time to do the AM doggy care and then take off for Curves!! I hope people are getting home from the holiday weekend and vacations today so our business picks up!!

DG
Celebrating 47 HF Days!!
:award: + *****************

[Pamina]

Booze Busters Week of 6/30 Absolutely Fabulous Hangover Free 30 Day Challenge!

Good day BBs!!

Sheepish - you're asking perfectly legitimate questions. It's hard to implement a plan if you're not quite sure what it is. And it can take a good long while to figure out what you want to do. I moderated for 2 months while lurking on MWO before I joined and made the decision to abstain. A friend who's done 6 months AF says he spent at least 6 months before that mulling over how to address his drinking. For him, making the AF decision was harder than the abstaining itself. I'd start with why your drinking is a problem for you. If you can moderate most of the time, what/when/why happens on those occasions when you cannot? Perhaps what you need is a bit of 'diagnostic' time of looking at your drinking patterns. As the others say, there's lots of support on the site whichever direction you decide to go.

I have things to say to other people too. For starters, Mame - are you OK?

But, DG, I'm confused!!! It's a Monday so do I just carry on blabbering over here or are we moving over to a new thread??!!