AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

[Mick]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

no not slagging yoor speling satz..just reading those interesting facts...did you know the face of our house has 16,023 bricks in it.The roof has 687 tiles :H:H:H

[momof3]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Good Moooooorning Fabber Abbers,

It has been a long time since I have checked into AF Daily Land. How fabulous it is to see so many new names here who are serious about staying AF for good. This thread was and is my main source of inspiration for living an AF life.

All's well in Mof3 world. Very busy with kids home for the summer, working, and teaching yoga part-time.

For those of you who are new to being AF. Keep at it. It just gets better and better. I have more energy than I know what to do with and my brain is as sharp as a tack! Before I quit for good, I was 20 lbs heavier than I am today and taking medication for anxiety and depression. I have no anxiety and depression at all now. If you ever feel like having a drink, just remind yourself that alcohol is poison to your body and soul!!!

How about those olympics? Wish I were in London!!

Love to all of you and be well.

xxoo
M3

[Lavande]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Good morning Abbers,

If you're going to London M3, I'll go with you ~ sure could use a change of scenery
Great to see you here today!

Thanks for the coffee shue & Mick!
Stuck in a hot, humid, weather pattern here with thunder storms threatening at all times. That combined with hiding in the house (avoiding more poison ivy) has me longing for the cooler, drier air of Fall

Greetings to porqoui, satz, lifechange, daisy & welcome can't do it
Hang in everyone because the journey gets easier! Life gets much, much better too!

I have lots of little things to do including securing more ice for my overheated chickens!!
Have a great AF Sunday everyone!

Lav

[allswell]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Hello everyone,

I just wanted to stop by and say Hi. It's a beautiful Sunday morning and I'm going to make the most of today. So glad to not waste one second of my day to a hangover! Like M3 said, it does get better and better.

Have a great AF day all!

[porqoui]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Morning all....just checking in.

[CanToo]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

As I sit here and read your posts I cry every time you acknowledge my existence. When I say I am alone I really am alone. In order to keep my drinking a secret I walked away from all my friends. From my sports and from my family. From any chance of a relationship with a man. If you ignore the phone long enough and don't return messages people will stop calling and move on with their life.

I get up, go to work, come home and drink...every single day. My day 1 (this time) I could't get up and go to work so I stayed home and found this site. If I drink because I don't like my reality how can I change this reality alone?

The sun is shining here today and I'm looking for the motivation to get out and about for day 3. Think it's time to find the toolbox.

[lifechange]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

hello Momof3 and Allswell!! i'm very happy to see you here.
and Satz, i'll take the support anyway! thank you. god knows i can use every bit i can get!!
Can'tdoitonmyown, that's a tough name to shorten --it made me sad to see your lonely mood. i know how you feel, as many of us do. i also isolated myself so that i could drink alone--and even though i had my bf and kids around some i felt lonely most of the time. i'm glad you are here and that you are learning. the toolbox has been a huge help for me. as have some of the stories in the my story section. Turnaround just posted a lot of her story (though we're all sitting on the edge of our seats to see how it continues--we know it has a happy ending!) and that can also be hugely helpful. to see that you aren't alone. i spend hours a day here sometimes. be kind to yourself. you're doing a great job!!
Life

[lifechange]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

just wanted to clarify that i meant to add that Turn's happy ending is more of a happy beginning. i so look forward to the time when not drinking isn't an almost daily struggle. i'm going on blind faith that it will become easier.! it already has in a lot of ways.

[mauritiusdodo]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Hi all, this is the first time I can come here and declare that I am AF today, a Sunday of all days, I did my first day yesterday which again is a miracle for me, I normally only start AFdom or a diet on Mondays LOL

[Kaslo]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Good morning, Fabulous Abstinence folks. BIG SHOUT to Mof3. You were my inspiration. Yes its still morning in Kasloland. I did a marathon drive from Dawson Creek yesterday to home. Started at 7Am and rolled in at 9:30 PM, through the glacier parks and down the Columbia from Revelstoke. Thats 870 miles (1399 kms) or about the same distance as from New York to St Louis. I had a break while my daughters BF drove for about 2 hours in there. I had a hot tub when i got home for sure.

Mick and Shue, I saw only bears from the road, and scat on my walks through what was the woods, as a lot of it had been logged, due to mountain pine beetle pretty much taking out major sections of forest in the Rocky Mountain foothills where I was working.

I enjoyed the discussion of AF beer. I used to drink AF cider, on Friday I would have one, for example, in my early months. But now I dont even really think about it. I was quite worried I was going to be pressured at the BBQ where my gunman got so drunk, but he just said "More for me!!" very cheerfully. I knew what I was hearing. He was literally calculating in his head how much more wine he was going to get. No one cares if I drink or not, really. BUT I DO. It took a long time to figure that out.

I really love to see all of you on here. Especially Cantdoitonmyown. I hope you can see that you now have a few people from around the world who are here for you. I thought of you on my drive down through the mountains, and wondered what your story is. I hope you took Shues advice and read the Toolbox thread, click on this link below....

https://www.mywayout.org/community/f1...box-27556.html

The stuff in this thread is invaluable.

Also please be kind to yourself, and start writing out all the things you truly hate about AL. Are you in Alberta? Im in BC. Sorry about my Premier, lol! You can do it, Cant. It WILL happen, and you will get your life back but it takes some determination. Tell us some more about yourself.

All the rest of yez, have a great AF sunday. I am going to relax in my garden today. will check in latr. Love to all on this fine Sunday. BIG encouragements being sent out to all of you. SO WORTH IT!!!

[Turnagain]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Greetings FABurrrrrrzzzzz....

I am on deadline for a few days.....damn final project reports! Bleh. So I only get to come here for breaks. AND - ooops...I've got to finish the MY STORY thing. Didn't mean to write a novel. Hey - why use 300 words when no one's breathing down your neck about word counts and whatnot (except in damn final reports!)

I am always so encouraged to see folks here dealing with daily life in such a good and healthy and NORMAL way. Normal as in NOT using a toxin to alter the perception of reality. And Normal as in not always perfect. We supposedly learn from mistakes, right?

Can'tdoitonmyown.....I am soooooo glad you're here! Welcome. By mustering the courage to come here, you are now officially no longer doing this on your own AND you are not alone. Dig into that Toolbox that KAS (our very own Miss Science Panties) linked above. Read, read, read and then do, do, do. This is part of the process of getting free of the addiction. And it is a process. You didn't get addicted overnight. It took time.

It will take time to heal. That doesn't mean you get to keep drinking while you heal (just want to be sure I'm not misunderstood by anyone out there.) Nope. The alcohol has to stopping going in. Once and for all. Being free is amazing. So....stick around. We are your new cyber friends. And if you don't mind, I'd like to give you a new nickname for around here: Cantoo....as in - you CAN TOO get addiction out of your life.

Mauri - I am happy to see you are also over here! That is a GREAT sign that you quit on a Saturday...I did the same thing too. I think it shows a significant change in thinking and is a powerful way to start taking the massive action required to deal with this addiction.

Okay...later...FABulators!

[lifechange]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

i like the nickname!! Cantoo---i just wanted to say Doggygirl's story is another i found super inspiring and helpful. it's also sooooo long so it takes lots of time to read.

looking forward to seeing all you crazy cats tomorrow!!

[daisy45]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Love that name too - very positive!

[Mick]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Ok I will start it..hi Cantoo..:welcome: you're not on your own here..everyone is rooting for you..we are all at or have been to some extent been in the same place as you.Just reading your post, you say that you dont like your reality,..but picking positive points out of those 6 sentences

Sports..been something that you were into
Family
Employment
Sunshine

You dont like your reality , and that is why you are drinking.Perhaps the drinking has slanted your view on reality.About 2 weeks into my decision to be af, I had the little voice in my head saying"ok youve done great at this, now lets get back to reality"Once you accept that life with booze is artificial, and realism is without it, then you are on the way to binning the little voice.As everyone will tell you, youre life and perspective on life will change when you accept that booze does not play a part in your life.You can do it ..so go for it.Can I make a suggestion to you?Keep the little man with the white flag.. as part of a target..say whatever number of days you decide, and on that day stick it right up the drink demon to show him that you aint quitting

Mick

[LillyE]

AF daily - Sunday, July 29th

Hi all!

You step away for a couple of days and so much going on! Sorry I didn't check in over the weekend - was out and about and not on the computer really at all. I missed you guys even just two days away!

But it was a really lovely and SOBER weekend so here I am on Day 29! Felt pretty good to realize it was four weeks exactly last night.

Obviously I didn't drink at my fancy dinner on Friday night, though my friends had the matching wines, all eight of them, and I have to confess it was HARD. And I'm a bit worried it's set off some 'stinking thinking', as they say, in my head, as I caught myself over the weekend having thoughts like, "Maybe I could just have a big night 'every now and then'?" or "Gee, wouldn't some wine be lovely with dinner tonight" etc. Yes, I know the folly of these thoughts - I'm just concerned that they're there and realize I need to actively counteract them, especially with 30 days approaching.

The dinner was AMAZING, and ultimately I relaxed and enjoyed it and no doubt actually enjoyed the food all the more for not being distracted by drinking, but early on in the night the mental tape playing in my head (imagine a battlefield) quelled my enjoyment considerably. One good thing though ? Once upon a time the tape would have been "Oh I HAVE to have wine with this dinner - why not - just a few glasses - it's a special occasion" etc. This time I knew I wasn't going to drink, the tape was more about having to really actively remind myself WHY I wasn't drinking - if that makes sense.

It also made me think again about just how much alcohol is glamorized in our culture. The food, made by this renowned, top French chef, got way less description than the wine. For EVERY 100 ml glass the sommelier came over and gave these long, evocative, poetic descriptions. You know, "Here we have a fresh, lively young sauvignon, with top notes of apricot and honeyed aromatics from grapes pressed between the milky thighs of young virgins?" It was soooo over the top eventually it kind of had us laughing. Not great for cravings though or the romancing of wine in my head? But it made me think, the food sold itself, whereas the wine? does it need all that surrounding crap just to blind you to what you're really paying $15 per glass for?

Anyway, I'm excited to get to 30 days but slightly worried about how to move forward now. I need to make a plan and reinforce why I'm quitting for good not just 30 days. I'm starting to second guess myself almost subconsciously and it worries me.

So a couple of questions for you all? 1) Anyone have any thoughts how they moved past 30 days? 2) Did any of you quit when you knew alcohol was a problem for you but your life wasn't clearly totally unmanageable nor your drinking obviously out of control to others? I think in a way this almost makes it harder as it's easier to start thinking "Oh I wasn't that bad compared to SOME". If so, how did you really convince yourselves you HAD to quit completely?

Turnagain, I loved what you said about us all being here supporting each other. I also really love your story posts. You're a great writer, you know that? Can you please alert us here when you make new updates?

Porquoi, great to hear you sounding chirpier! And WELL DONE on 30 days!!!!

Shue, oh so glad you resisted that rum! Scary the cravings can hit like that out of nowhere. Remind me how long it's been for you now?

Daisy, well done for getting back on the wagon. I've been enjoying your thread too. Will go have another look at the latest now in fact.

I can't believe we have not one but TWO accordion players here! Anyone else hiding special talents?

CantDoItAlone (we need an easier nickname for you!) - WELCOME and second what LifeChange said. This place is a fantastic lifeline in the early days and ongoing. I hear your sadness and loneliness and I know what that feels like in the early days but I promise you that if you can hang there your mood will lift and lift with each day AF. Also, focus on your recovery for now and whatever it takes to get you there but know that once you've healed yourself you WILL be able to repair those real life relationships too and build new ones AF. :l

Just read on? Cantoo. I like it

Mick, your words about that little voice totally summed up where I'm at now - thank you! I like your advice about the truth about alcohol NOT being reality. how's the toe mate?

Lilly x