how to start abst?

[Guest]

okay i've been reading the mod posts and the abs posts for the last couple of weeks and have decided i need to do abs. so i'm looking for advice. how have you folks managed to abstain w/o going crazy? what's the secret? I can maybe do one day a week, even on 100mg of topo. Let's hear some idea's for those who want to do this but not AA.
Tx a bunch

[Guest]

how to start abst?

newbie,
just read heaps and see how others have done it and decide how you want to do it. Me, I went cold turkey and it was very hard but i just did it one day at a time with no meds and i'm nearing 10 months sober now and not likely to go to mods but staying on abs.
good luck
brigid

[wwbarb]

how to start abst?

ABS

Newby, I have to fill my time with other things and focus on the benefits. The first week was tough. I consistently didn't drink on most weekdays, but the weekend was tough for me. So, I "white knuckled" it through the first weekend. On Sunday night, I reflected on how productive I had been that weekend. Next weekend was easier. The third weekend, I even went to the bar and drank club soda, no problem at all! I've come so far that I wouldn't dream of blowing it. And, in the process, I've lost 6 lbs so far and really amped up my exercise.

I knit, so I try to find some kind of knitting event that is going on Saturday afternoons (which is my drinking time). Sometimes, I just browse a yarn store,book store or sit on my couch and knit, watching movies that I haven't seen in a long time or re-runs of my favorite shows. The key is to fill my old "drinking time" with something else.

Hope this helps.

Barb

[Mackeral]

how to start abst?

Hiya Newbie, i dont think there is any easy way to do it, just ways to lessen the pain a little,one of the things i did before i stopped was reduce.
A week at time i would cut the amount i was drinking by 20%..After a few weeks of this i was down to 4 cans a night of normal strength alcahol, coming down from 6 or 7 cans of the 10% lager or cider...And quitting from 4 normal cans is a lot easier than from what i started on...It also gets you used to the idea of what you are about to do and i dont think its as much of a shock to the system...
Would love to have you on the abs boards....There is a lot of brave, intelligent,exsperianced and funny people there who will always have your back...Brigid for example...10 months...She is obviously doing somthing very right.
Take care newbie and hope to see you around...Mackeral

[cv1]

how to start abst?

Hi there, when I start abs I really have to get quiet and stay away from most things and places...just get books, juices, focus on the entire diet and exercise issue so I don't concentrate on the "abs". It's easier for me to become an introvert and try NOT to obsess over what I can't have but on how much good I'm doing for myself. You're abs much of the day anyway, so when someone asked me if I thought people wouldn't like me if I wasn't drinking, it seemed silly and obvious, but that doesn't make it easier. The first day and fourth days are the toughest for me...after that, they get easier and easier, or rather...more of a normal thing.

[cpn1004]

how to start abst?

Mackreal, that seems like a good plan.
I may have to give that a try.
So far it has been difficult to go from 8 beers to Zero.
cpn

[Mackeral]

how to start abst?

Let us know how you get on if you do cpn....Love the Spy Vs Spy pic.....Not seen that for years......Mackeral