Anybody else doing Sober October?

[Trodincatsickagain]

I know there’s been a long running thread for years for dry January but I fancy having a break through October, in preparation for Xmas, give the liver a break beforehand - that is all meant very tongue in cheek 😜

Anyone fancy joining?

Hey @Nearlyadoctor- great that you did check in, thanks for the review of Riot Women, it’s now at the top of my Binge list Hope your consultant pays attention during their training session.
Woke up with an anaesthetic hangover today! Def don’t like that - gonna have to be a GA-free November

Hope everyone slept like sleep-trained-babes & has a fab weekend

Morning!

Yeah good night thanks @HotTiredDog. It’s years since I’ve had a GA but remember that hangover feeling well. Take it easy because it can take quite a while to get back to feeling normal.

Day 25, it really now feels like it’s flown by! Gorgeous day here and off out for a brisk walk soon but have a good day all!

I so nearly caved last night. If DP had opened a bottle of wine, I would have almost certainly had some. But we resisted.
Is anyone going to carry on with no booze? I am quite tempted to, but I’m not sure that I will. I love wine.

Congrats on staying strong @Texanchilli& on keeping DH on the right path too, you definitely get extra sober points for that

Interesting ideas about carrying on post-Halloween, I think that the improvements in all sorts of aspects of our lives have proven it would definitely be good for us. I’m certainly planning on drinking less frequently & smaller quantities when I do.

How was your walk, TrodIn? Hope you were warm and dry, kicking leaves around in the sunshine on this last day of British Summer Time!

(From pre-op to post-op I’ve forgotten my password & now have only got access to this app - how frustrating… guess this is what it’s like to be drunk 😆)

Congrats @Texanchilli on staying strong , it’s difficult once you’ve got it in your head that you want a drink.

@HotTiredDog I hope you’re starting to feel a bit normal again , be kind to yourself for a couple of days as GA’s can be vicious.

So work only took 2 hours this morning so I then managed a trip to B&Q, IKEA and the farm shop. Walked the dog this afternoon between showers and then a long phone call with DF. He had radiotherapy in July for prostate ca and is still suffering from the after effects ( you don’t want to know, I get tmi every call). It’s really tough though as it’s making him pretty much housebound whereas tbh he is 83 going on 53- retired at 49 and has pretty much spent the last 30+ years rallying all over the world . I think he’s starting to get a bit depressed which is worrying , and a small amount of memory loss which I’m putting down to not enough else to think about at the moment 🤞.

DH’s working but I’ve got a chicken on for when he gets home and then we’ll carry on with Riot Women and I expect I’ll finish my bottle of Nozeco that’s open.

Stay strong everyone only one more week!!
As @HotTiredDog i’m going to try to make this a bit of a reset. We are out on 1/11 and ill decide then what i do that night , but its the drinking at home which is/was the habit.

What a productive day, Nearly! So sorry to hear about your DF. It must be a massive change for him after three decades of travel & excitement - no wonder he is feeling down. My DPs both take meds for anxiety & depression (sertraline) which definitely helps them to deal with DM’s conditions; would your DF consider that, too? I believe it’s quite a common prescription. Does he have much of a social life? That’ll make a difference to his memory etc - if there are any local Rallying groups that he is (or could be) involved with, I bet they’d love to hear his stories, photos etc formally or just to chat. Would he do that?

@HotTiredDog - thank you for the suggestions, I have been possibly considering AD’s but will see how he goes.
His social life is very busy and he has lots of rallying friends, friends at the pub etc. It’s just that the side effects have made him pretty housebound at present which is the opposite of everything he’s ever known.
How are you feeling this evening?

Sorry to hear about your DF @Nearlyadoctor must really suck to be housebound and dealing with all that.

Using this as a reset too. For me (and DH) the trouble is/was drinking at home, mostly in front of the TV. Working out the rules but it will be a mix of only certain nights and only a certain amount.

@darkmoor thank you.
Your rules sound like they might be along the same lines as ours. It’s the drinking at home that seems to be the most problematic.

Hhmmmm Nearly, that’s a tricky one - is it not having the inclination to leave the house or is it the ability? (Not asking for tmi, I promise!) If it’s the inclination then the ADs may well do the trick.
I can understand if concerns about your DF have resulted in you drinking more, especially with those upsetting phone calls. You’ve done so well to manage for so much of this month.
I know we have all got challenges in our lives, particularly if we are in the “sandwich” generation where everything around us seems to be causing anxiety, demanding more or changing in a way we don’t want it to change.
I realise that alcohol has helped me to bury emotions or facts on so many occasions - only temporarily, in the main. I guess learning how to handle that is part of maturing - viewed from a different angle, I’m looking forward to turning into a wise old crone!

(Getting better, thanks. I suspect it’s to be slower than I’d anticipated but there’s no choice now!)

Hope we all sleep well & enjoy staying up late or having a lie in!

@Trodincatsickagain you’re quiet, everything ok?

Morning All!

Hope everyone is enjoying that extra hours sleep - although personally I do wish they’d finally put an end to messing with the clocks once and for all!

Well, less than a week to go now and it has felt at times this month like I’ve got through this by the skin of my teeth 😁. I have no plans to drink once this challenge is up but I still can’t say never again… I want to enjoy myself at Xmas and have a drink to celebrate, so for now I’ll just keep taking it a day at a time.

Sorry for those that have the pressure of elderly parents and the worry that causes. it must be very upsetting and stressful when life is still so busy in other ways, but hopefully going AF for the last month has helped and given you a bit more energy to deal with these pressures. 💐

Well done everyone and let’s keep on keeping on 💪 to the finish line!

@Trodincatsickagain morning 🌅

Thank you for all your support through this thread , as you say only a week to go. You have done amazingly to have had no little slip ups.

Im meeting a friend for a walk this morning , then moving dd’s furniture out of her room for the decorator tomorrow. Just a chilled day really with pizza for tea.

I hope everyone has a nice / relaxing Sunday planned ?

Just checking in, sadly still from my post-hysteroscopy bed rest. Definitely not drinking tonight!
Hope anyone who can walk (don’t ask!) has been out in some dry autumn fresh air.

Sorry to hear that HotTiredDog but make the most of the rest, as frustrating as it is and don’t get up and about until your better!

Like Nearlyadoctor, I got out for a very early morning walk at 7 - it was lovely and quiet apart from the squirrels going mad up and down the trees and the odd dog walker. Fairly chilly too but I see the milder weather is due back this week - means I don’t have to out the heating on at least!

@HotTiredDog sorry to hear you’re still below par but hopefully you’re warm and snuggly as to be honest it’s bloody miserable and cold outside.

Glad to hear you got out for a nice walk as well @Trodincatsickagain whilst the weather was dry this morning.

DH has just got in from work so looking forward to a lazy evening with a couple more episodes of Riot Women.

Apologies You’re! Not Your!!!! Honestly I do know the difference 😁

Hi. Can I join in? My drinking was becoming a huge part of my thoughts and although I'm not completely sober I'm having a couple of drinks a week compared to drinking alot every night. I've started to sleep so much better (12 hours last night!) and I'm feeling much brighter first thing..

@raspberrytart - welcome!! Great to hear you are already feeling some benefits from cutting down.

Some of us just want a reset, perhaps drinking less at home , others may want to totally stop. There’s no rules

Good to have you on board 😊

Welcome @raspberrytart - that sounds like a really positive step and I’m glad you’re noticing the benefits already!

Thank you!
I've been replacing booze with hot orange. Anyone else have strange alternatives.?

Wow - that is strange 😁

I did go through a stage of eating cheese footballs and TUC biscuits but I’m pleased to say that phase has now passed!

Used to love that as a child 😂😂

Hi - welcome to the club, @raspberrytart👋🏻
Not going to focus on hot orange (whatever gets you through & all that!) but on your successful reduction in your overall alcohol intake - really well done, it’s such an important achievement, and so much harder than many people would imagine.
Also - 12 hours sleep is fantastic!

Day 27 - We are almost there People!!!

Has it really been almost a month? Am I just getting old and time seems to be flying by? 😁

Here we are Monday morning again and it’s pretty blowy here but feeling positive after a good nights sleep and I hope you all got a good night too?

Here’s onwards and upwards as we limp/sprint 🏃‍♀️ to the finish line and I hope that everybody has a good day!