My current approach to moderation
drinkingal, your above post was so beautifully worded and so true in my opinion!
K9's does have a valid point that a lot of people leave because they cannot moderate. I know that is true as some have shared that with me as well. However, there have been others who have shared with me that they are moderating with success but chose to leave because of various reasons that didn’t have anything to do with not being able to moderate. Some just grow tired of reporting here and being reminded that people are counting drinks, tracking drinks, etc. Look at my post for April and you’ll see what I mean. But for problem drinkers (because anyone who finds MWO is a problem drinker) some can find success but they have to really work at making moderating successful when they’ve overdrank in the past. A few have personally shared with me that they find it harder to moderate when they have to “think” about their drinking experiences and coming here and reading posts makes them dwell on their situation too much. They would rather just moderate on their own without a reporting system and it seems to work well for them. Others find other support groups that work just as well for them but are not for alcohol, e.g. overeater’s anonymous (food addiction) that can be applied to those trying to moderate drinking as many of the principles are the same. So just because moderators leave doesn’t mean that they are all unsuccessful.
I am with you drinkingal in the belief that moderating is a first step for folks, whether they end up being able to moderate or not. Self-monitoring in itself seems to help people reduce their drinking. It helps them to be more aware of their drinking and to pay better attention to how much they are imbibing. I know for me I could get lost in the flow of drinking more than I liked when I wasn’t self monitoring and keeping up with others at a party or event when the drinks just kept flowing. Coming here to get support to learn to “think” about how many I am having, (and then even taking it one step further) by tracking what went on when I drank, (was I hungry, was there a trigger, was I with someone who drinks a lot?) etc. helped me to evaluate my drinking pattern and get a better handle on it.
And back to you Freethinker, yes, this is a moderation site so although some folks will share that moderating didn’t work for them, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t work for others.
Hugs to all,
:l
Eve11
drinkingal, your above post was so beautifully worded and so true in my opinion!
K9's does have a valid point that a lot of people leave because they cannot moderate. I know that is true as some have shared that with me as well. However, there have been others who have shared with me that they are moderating with success but chose to leave because of various reasons that didn’t have anything to do with not being able to moderate. Some just grow tired of reporting here and being reminded that people are counting drinks, tracking drinks, etc. Look at my post for April and you’ll see what I mean. But for problem drinkers (because anyone who finds MWO is a problem drinker) some can find success but they have to really work at making moderating successful when they’ve overdrank in the past. A few have personally shared with me that they find it harder to moderate when they have to “think” about their drinking experiences and coming here and reading posts makes them dwell on their situation too much. They would rather just moderate on their own without a reporting system and it seems to work well for them. Others find other support groups that work just as well for them but are not for alcohol, e.g. overeater’s anonymous (food addiction) that can be applied to those trying to moderate drinking as many of the principles are the same. So just because moderators leave doesn’t mean that they are all unsuccessful.
I am with you drinkingal in the belief that moderating is a first step for folks, whether they end up being able to moderate or not. Self-monitoring in itself seems to help people reduce their drinking. It helps them to be more aware of their drinking and to pay better attention to how much they are imbibing. I know for me I could get lost in the flow of drinking more than I liked when I wasn’t self monitoring and keeping up with others at a party or event when the drinks just kept flowing. Coming here to get support to learn to “think” about how many I am having, (and then even taking it one step further) by tracking what went on when I drank, (was I hungry, was there a trigger, was I with someone who drinks a lot?) etc. helped me to evaluate my drinking pattern and get a better handle on it.
And back to you Freethinker, yes, this is a moderation site so although some folks will share that moderating didn’t work for them, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t work for others.
Hugs to all,
:l
Eve11
) I am within 20 pounds of my desired weight. A long cold snowy spring has done nothing to encourage me to drop the winter weight... thanks for the great idea.
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