Need to stop drinking- please inspire me with your sobriety stories

[SomeLikeitSnot]

Im not an alcoholic but I’ve always loved a drink. I love that soft focus feel and the relaxation it gives me. However the weekend before last I (again) got carried away out with friends and came home and was vomitting, was sick in the bed and spent all of Sunday hungover and unable to move. I’m a 36 year old mother it’s ridiculous. DH was lovely bur since then I’ve been ashamed, embarrassed and angry at myself. I’m worried I was drunk and embarrassing myself when out but I don’t want to ask my friends and give away how drunk I was.

So- I need to sort myself out. I’m otherwise very healthy and I scared myself to be honest. I’m not cutting down I’m stopping but I’m worried about how people might perceive me and how I’ll stick with it. Advice, inspiration and books etc to help welcome, thank you 🩷🩷

When I say again that’s happened twice in the last year it’s not often but it’s a sign I lose self control when drinking and it spirals

I've seen Soberistas recommended and a friend of mine has been successful using smart meetings.

It's amazing that you want to stop, it might not be successful the first time, but keep on trying & remember how much better you feel the next day.

I'm trying to do the same so good luck!

And be kind to yourself, drinking is so normalised in our society, it's really hard to get away from it.

I was similar. Didn’t overdo it often but sometimes I did and I felt so unwell the next day. I was also the same with the soft focus.

I decided after one bad hangover that enough was enough. I hated worrying that I had done something daft and embarrassing.

I had extra layers that my family have a history of alcoholism. I haven’t had a drink for over 2 years and it’s the best thing I have ever done.

I drank extremely heavily for years, binge drinking since I was a teenager and things spiralled when I was very unhappy in my job. I always did Dry January but started drinking again on Jan 31st. I had one particularly bad night and just thought "That's it". I did the following in the early days:
Told my friends and family I was not drinking anymore. This helped me stay accountable. (Husband extremely supportive).
Ate chocolate when needed!
Went out for a walk if I had serious cravings
Kept a total of days sober using an app
Treated myself to a treat regularly eg massage, face mask, new top
Didn't go out on heavy nights at first but quickly able to manage this
Now... I
Drink Nosecco or Kopaberg Zero if I fancy a 'drink'
Get up early and don't need naps!
Still join in with dancing etc on a night out
LOVE being able to walk out of a pub/party and get in my car to drive home.
I am 568 days sober and hand on heart do not miss it!
Very happy for you to message me if you think I could help...

I was definitely an alcoholic - I drank at least one bottle of wine a night by my late 20s and early 30s I'd often have a glass more from another bottle. I functioned well in my career but I gained loads of weight, I was miserable and knew it was a problem. I'm now nearly three years sober and life is much better. No shame, no anxiety, much more money and I love waking up without a handover and being able to leave drinks at a sensible point. I went to a v posh restaurant recently and was shocked the next day when none of my friends remembered the dishes as they'd all drank too much. I know for me, alcohol isn't something I can return too. I listened to the Unexpected Joy of Being Sober on audiobook and just white knuckled it at first but around 100 days I really noticed the vast improvements in my life

By its very nature, drinking alcohol makes you want to drink more of it. It’s not a weakness you have, that what it does, you want to drink more and it’s hard to stop once you start on a night out.

Give it up one day at a time. Just get through today.

After a particularly bad hangover, I took ‘the pioneer pledge’ for a year and wore the badge to remind me how much hangovers kill me. I stayed off it for the year no problem. That might not be your type of thing but it worked for me. All the very best x

I just gave up, no particular day. Just woke up one day and that was it.

I was an alcoholic. I drank two bottles of wine a night. Every night for years.

I've been sober for 2 1/2 years.

I recommend Jude Barnes to you.

I used to drink wine and have a very merry busy social life. Then I had babies. I didn't drink anything,but started again due to dh.

I didn't like being grumpy, didn't like my skin looking awful, so told dh I wasn't drinking anymore. I drank water, coffee, cordials. Dh was a functioning alcoholic. The booze was masking the marriage issues.

I steered clear of boozers, only kept friends who didn't need a drinking companion. Took up running, took up professional exams, keep really bloody busy. Avoided the wine aisle.

Haven't had a drink for over a decade. Don't want one. Have a Christmas drinks cupboard gathering dust. It doesn't even occur to me it's an option. No one I knew then can quite get their head round it!

Pm me if you want. Its really nice to be totally yourself.

I was an alcoholic (and an addict) for a long time after some horrible things happened to me.

I would drink a litre of gin every night. Other substances, whatever I could get, whenever I could. Hugely chaotic lifestyle. Had been homeless, have a family history of alcoholism.

Then I found out I was pregnant with my daughter and I stopped. Cold turkey. No medical help, no family support, just didn't do it again.

I moved away from the people and places that had been part of my addiction. I had to cut off some people.
Clean and sober nearly 8 years now. I miss parts of it, I would be lying if I said I didn't- but I love my daughter more than I miss them.
Life is immeasurably better sober.

Ahhh sobriety is a whole new world! I quit booze for a year and enjoyed every single celebration without booze - birthdays, girls weekends away, Christmas, long haul flights back to Uk to see my family, my parents 50th wedding anniversary party, all of it.
Sobriety delivers what alcohol promises. As soon as you get through the first “trigger point” it becomes far easier. Mine is always Friday sundowners at the local beach bar close to home. Husband and I would meet after work for a couple drinks with the kids, order food to go and then we’d go home (picking up more booze on the way). But once I start a bottle of wine I don’t stop until I finish it. And then my Saturday I would be sluggish and my workouts would suffer, and I’d turn to a lunchtime Bloody Mary, or another glass of wine to set me right.

In the end alcohol ruins every single one of my “tomorrows” because it changes my mindset from “focused” to “fuck it” and I hate that feeling.

Dont get me wrong, I do drink now although haven’t for about 2 weeks, but I do plan to revisit sobriety longer term soon. My best aids we’re Three Spirits elixirs which I love, gave me the buzz with none of the alcohol - you’ll be able to get them in Uk but I have to ship them here.

good luck!

I had to break the habit too, and what helped was swapping that end‑of‑day drink for something that actually made me feel clearer the next morning. I also did a short stint with www.integritytreatmentpartners.com/programs/outpatient-rehab , which kept me grounded while I juggled work and life. Once I got a few calm evenings under my belt, the urge eased off and the soft-focus feeling stopped being worth the hangxiety.