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?

I know that guilt all too well @Dexterrolledoffthesofa but you can do this, just a day at a time. Are you a nightly drinker?

Morning gang, here we go for day 2(+ for others - amazing @Trodincatsickagain you can give us all the “previews” of the positive effects whenever you like 😁)

Ive posted a fuller personal update on my “story” on the alcohol support sober October thread.

Is anyone else really thirsty in general especially for sugary drinks? Also hungry…I guess wine provides those empty calories we are now missing.

Well done @Youngatheart00 day 2 here we come! Yes, for me it’s chocolate I crave and even Haribo sweets as I walk past the aisle when shopping - something I never eat! Now’s the time for all that good nourishing food and I’m taking a general b vitamin too, can’t hurt.

I’ll go have a wander over to the other thread - thanks!

I'm a rarity on MN I've never actually got drunk on my life. I've never drunk to Access either,max was 8 units a week, but I have a hiatus hernia and acid reflux,had to give up cider summer 2024, now can't even drink anything alcoholic!

Well there are plenty of us that even with acid reflux would keep drinking - so well done! 😄

I did day one successfully & am so chuffed! Happy to show off about it, too 😆

It's funny, one day without drinking should hardly be a reason to feel impressed with myself. But I think when you say you're not going to drink, it starts to become all you can think about at first, so resisting the temptation counts as a success!

This exactly!!!

Well done everyone! - the first few days in my experience are really the hardest and although I now only drink at the weekends, I had many years of nightly drinking, so know what an achievement getting through that first night is.

You have something to keep building on now and it only gets better!

@Trodincatsickagain
I don’t actually drink that much or that often any more. I used to. It nearly broke my marriage up - the last time (May 24) he said if I didn’t get professional help he was leaving. I couldn’t bear that, so I did. I had a ‘friend’ (male, but nothing romantic in it - not on my side anyway) and we used to go out for 4 hr lunches and I’d drink so much I couldn’t stand. I got injuries I had no idea how they’d happened. This ‘friend’ just facilitated that - he didn’t judge, just drank with me.
I cannot believe how much danger I put myself in! It makes me feel so ashamed to think of how I behaved.
But when I drink now, it’s the whole bottle of wine, I can’t have just one glass and leave it alone.
And the hangovers seem to go on for days now I’m older.
I’m wasting my life and I don’t want to do that any more.

A bottle goes down all too easy! I sympathise as I said earlier, I drink to get tipsy and can see the day coming where quit all together. For now though, I just keep making myself have these times off the alcohol and I’m hoping that eventually it will become easier.

I do know that giving yourself a hard time is not the answer, just accept that it’s happened and jump back on board when you can.

Hi, poster, I would be surprised if anyone drank alcohol with the reflux I have experienced, sleep bolt upright, sometimes acid whooshes up, epiglottis shuts to stop it going into your lungs,you can't breathe in or out,it's terrifying. I wouldn't mind but have done nothing to deserve this,no risk factors. Saw my DF die of oesophageal cancer, multiple operations, and just fade away . Rather long waiting list for an endoscopy.

I came very close to drinking some wine last night. I really wanted to share a bottle of wine with DH and have a good belly laugh at some comedy on the tv. I thought I’ll delay starting by one day and carry on one day extra at the end. But DH ended up working very late so we didn’t do it and I stayed off the booze.

@Texanchilli - well done you!

@Trodincatsickagain Im the same- once I’ve had one glass don’t seem to have an off switch as I like feeling tipsy. Can remember the last time I was drunk drunk , but just like that chilled, merry feeling and the ‘initial hit’

That’s brilliant @Texanchilli, It’s been a good start clearly and on to evening number 2. I find that once I get past the early part, my craving for that glass of wine fades, especially after I’ve eaten too.

I’m so sorry to hear that @Nannyfannybanny, sounds miserable and I can’t imagine being in that much pain and discomfort but let’s hope that you get that endoscopy soon!

Yeah it’s that initial hit isn’t it? problem is I then chase it with another glass and of course never get that feeling back and just become more inebriated!

I want a drink whilst I’m cooking dinner. I’m amazed how strongly I feel that I “deserve” one. It’s that first hit that posters are referencing.
But the difference today is that I am NOT going to have one.
Strength and willpower to the rest of you you feel this way 💪💐

We got this 💪 @HotTiredDog and day 3 here we come!

Hope everybody else is doing ok this evening - I’m just about to start some knitting, something that I hadn’t done since about age of 9! I brought a cheap ball of wool and knitting needles from the £ shop and I’m just knitting row upon row of beginners stitches and it’s surprisingly therapeutic, that is when I’m not getting wound up by dropping stitches and confusing my knits and purls 😄 but it gives me something to concentrate on.

Thanks for the boost of confidence, TrodIn (not sure I can type your full name, too close to my feline reality!)
Dinner is cooking now so I’m having a quiet sit down with Bake Off for a few mins. And a large glass of soda water, which is surprisingly pleasant if I’m honest - the same mouthfeel as my previous drinks of choice.
Knitting is a good idea, I might have a bash at that one day this month.
Best wishes to the rest of you!

Well I've survived day 2, although if we'd had any wine in the house that wasn't expensive special occasion wine, I would have cracked. Everything was manic at work, I was baking cakes for school and somehow under cooked them and had to make more, DH was out drinking and arrived home with a kebab so the veggie chilli I'd made had to go in the freezer, DS is refusing to take any advice on his GCSE coursework and so on. Just one of those ARGH!!! days where I would normally reward myself with a glass of wine. But I didn't, so yay me!

I've tried to teach myself to knit so many times, I just can't figure out what to do when I inevitably drop a stitch, plus my tension is really wonky. But I like the idea of having something to do - I've got a half-finished quilted Christmas table runner somewhere, so this seems like the perfect opportunity to actually finish it and distract myself in the process.

I did it two years ago and haven't drunk since. I just completely lost the taste/urge for alcohol. I definitely remember the sugar cravings though - tangy haribo help.

I spent the month taste testing all the alcohol free beer/wine at my local supermarkets. Some went straight down the sink!

Well yesterday evening was a bit tough! Spoke to Dd at Uni ( started last week) and she was a bit teary and a bit homesick.
Had my haircut yesterday having grown it all summer and the hairdresser was a bit scissor happy so back to square one.
The hospital rang to offer me a guided ultrasound for this morning with steroid injection for my shoulder, so had to contact my secretary to cancel my morning clinic and ask her to drive me . Planning on doing my afternoon clinic fingers crossed.
DH came home and said “ ooh hairs a bit short” and then offered me a gin 😂😂. I did decline.
Pleased I resisted- onwards and upwards day 3.

@BookShark you did so well to get through yesterday evening without a glass! Oh how I remember those manic evenings where it felt like it was coming at you from every angle - my lot have now all flown the nest but I remember only too well reaching for that glass of wine for that quick switch off and relaxation.

@Nearlyadoctor those early days at Uni are always tough ( my youngest finished last year), but it’s all to be expected, she’ll soon be in the swing of things and finding her way around!

Hope the steroid injection does the job, nothing worse than a painful shoulder and so difficult to manage everyday tasks.

Well on to day 3, this a real achievement for those who have a drink daily, so well done! I have my Covid/flu jab later this morning which on the plus side means I won’t feel like drinking this evening, what a benefit 😄

For those of you that are struggling with your sleep, hang on in there, it gets better. Day 10 for me and I had the best night last night, slept all the way through and feel so much more refreshed and clear headed for it.