The Freedom Thread (Continued) - Enjoying the positives of an alcohol free life *Title edited by MNHQ*

[BunniesBunniesBunnies]

Hello all,

This is a thread for people who have decided that life is much better without alcohol!🤩 These threads were started by @Drybird, and they have changed the lives of many people.

Some posters on these threads have been sober for a long time, and some are only just starting. We are a very friendly and inclusive bunch and we are always excited when someone new joins the thread. The only thing we ask is that our posters have given up alcohol completely. Talk of moderation can be triggering for some people, so this thread is not the right place for that (there are other moderation threads🙂).

I hope to see many familiar names on this thread, and some new ones too! We always welcome anyone to share their feelings, ask questions or simply “check in”🙂

I’d also like to thank @Breathmiller for hosting the last thread (and to ask for your forgiveness for shamelessly stealing your thread title😳) - Thank you @Breathmiller 💐

Thanks all!

Bunnies

Checking in👍

Morning all . Having a lazy day today . Was going to work an extra but decided against it . Sometimes my body just says nope!

So it’s going to be a “ potter” day

Morning! @Adm1010 sounds good - enjoy your pottering I’m off to the recycling centre so you’ve inspired me to come home and potter myself.

Checking in

@AlloftheTime Pottering is good for the soul

I’ve felt a real Debbie downer these last few days but really appreciated this thread chugging away in the background if that makes sense

Some sleep and decent food has picked me up slightly , plus I had a walk yesterday which helped .

Well done @Adm1010, a day of pottering will help too. And maybe another walk🙂

A day of pottering sounds ideal @Adm1010! We are not back to school until Monday so the kids and I are going swimming and achieving a number of mundane tasks.

It is interesting to read about others' relationships. Mine had to undergo a recalibration when I quit, we had been partying buddies since our late teens. I'm so happy that DH has cut down his drinking, I was more worried about his health than my own even though I was far worse with alcohol (often the way). The experience has shown that we were solid underneath the partying, and we still enjoy chatting and laughing together as much as ever. And I'm so much happier, which he loves.
My family of origin is another matter, and I've had some serious shite to deal with as the extent of the toxicity I grew up with has become obvious through my sober eyes. Alcohol was a big part of the dynamic in my family, I was trained to drink from an early age and I am beginning to realise it was a part of a web of control that my toxic parent exercised over us.

2 years in I'm still processing this. It took time and distance to see it clearly - there has been a lot to work through, and it's ongoing. But I'd never have achieved this perspective if I was still abusing alcohol.

Just checking in. I am so relieved that Christmas and New Year are done now. It's so much easier. I'm back on familiar ground now.

Congratulations to everyone passing milestones and especially @excitedemmi whose post struck a chord with me. The big numbers are all well and good but they aren't possible without those hard first few days and weeks.

I agree blackberryblossom

For those in the days or weeks tally, you should totally be proud of yourself getting through each and every one of these days, hours even. Because that's when the really hard work is being put in.

There may be moments of thoughts that I have but it is pretty much a dawdle now to get through days and watch them add up.

I'm not taking away from the achievements of the bigger numbers because we also did these harder first days.

But, don't feel that you are doing something less than. You are putting in the leg work now. And it's hard. But each day you get through and tick off is another day towards it getting easier.

Checking in 👍 21 days AF.
It does seem to get easier after the first few weeks. Glad Xmas is over.
The real test will come when I visit my mother at the end of the month, she's always got a drink in hand.

@Touty

Checking in 👍 21 days AF. It does seem to get easier after the first few weeks. Glad Xmas is over. The real test will come when I visit my mother at the end of the month, she's always got a drink in hand.

Well done Touty - breathmiller is spot on about every small achievement and victory is what counts now. You are building solid foundations and will in time feel easier. A few of us seem pleased to leave the holiday period behind! I managed a couple of occasions over Christmas and again this week with people who are daily drinkers and who I have always shared alcohol with. It was not as daunting as I imagined. I had done a few trial runs with other people so it didn’t feel quite so awkward. I was chuffed with myself and am pretty sure next time won’t faze me. Posting here to vent, ask for advice or simply to check in has had a huge impact on how my morning Nader has changed. Long may it last ….

On how my commitment!!
😂

@PrisonerofZeroCovid yes I agree , wholeheartedly! The Monday night is women only as well so I will be going to that one. Wish I could respond properly but have to hit the hay in preparation for returning to university stuff tomorrow. But I really wanted to reply because I just got exactly what you were saying and thought your post was so spot on.

Checking in 🙌

👋 @Adm1010 hope your day has been restful and potterish 💜

@Touty yes! Your doing so well, 3 weeks is fantastic, the first two weeks are some of the hardest you experience. Feel proud 💜

@Touty you total legend, you are nailing this! Hope you enjoyed a good potter @Adm1010

@ChampooPapi thanks so much, yes I think the first 2 weeks is dealing with the cravings and the habit of having a drink every night.

@AlloftheTime thanks yes, it was strange over Xmas I felt triggered by people drinking wine in films. I watched one film with a woman drinking red wine sashaying around her spacious apartment in New York - morning could almost taste that wine and I always wanted an apartment in NY lol!

@Adm1010 thanks so much for cheering me on, and you are doing so well too xx

Thanks @BunniesBunniesBunnies thank you so much for your time and help I really appreciate all your support xx

Morning all ! It was a lovely potter day ! So much so I’m doing it again today !

I work full time but I do a lot of extra shifts ( overtime ) it’s an expensive time with university years … I was going to do an extra yesterday and today and I’ve now cancelled both!! Money will be tight but do you know what ?? Not as tight as it used to be as I’m not buying wine every night!!! This has been a bit of a realisation this morning … yes most of my overtime is due to the uni years … but some was because I had to fund a 70 quid a week alcohol habit!

Madness

@Touty TV triggers me as well . It’s hard to explain isn’t it , I’ve tried to tell my DH but he’s a bit about it …. But it’s so true!! And for me it’s always the time … it’s so glamorised on TV and it makes me think why can’t I do that ?? Why can’t I pour a little glass and mooch around my pristine house in fashionable loungewear looking gorgeous.

But We know the reality

Wine not time

@Adm1010 @Touty yep TV is a trigger for me too. Watching 'And Just Like That' really triggers me...

Checking in 🙌

Let the work begin 💪

@Kindtomyself what’s , And just like that ?