On a mission to moderate or absolutely abstaining, no judging, keep on being strong, new thread autumn 2024

[Nowstrong]

@Amdone123, @Freezingfeetwarmheart , @Bigbus,@Flumpywoo , @FiveShelties , @ForeverTipsy, @Hohofortherobbers,@Jbob1976,@walliedug,

Wanted to post and old thread wouldn't let me, so took the plunge...
Please tag everyone, don't want to leave anyone behind.

Still AF here and even starting to enjoy it. Nearly 2 months. Will write proper post later..
Hope you are all doing well. Stay strong. Wet vibes, 'cos it's raining.

@ERN79 youve got this!

@HorrorFan81 im hoping I can carry on sober but with a bit less focus on days etc - I’m already feeling like it’s not the hard battle it was at the very beginning. I am not planning on staying sober for the rest of my life, but feel no real desire to drink for now - I suspect summer may be more of a test …
@Addictforanex it’s not always easy but it is achievable and so worth it. I was really a heavy drinker and do not miss any of it now

So turns out I didn't have it... 🤦‍♀️ I didn't really moderate.
I drank too much. But I'm not feeling too bad at the moment.
So 🤷‍♀️ We try again next time!

Ach never mind maybe next time 🤷‍♀️

Did you have fun??

Yeah it was a really good night. 🙂

Excellent 🤣

Went out for my DHs birthday dinner last night to a smokehouse and we shared a MASSIVE platter of meat. It was immense and I enjoyed it sooo much. They had my favourite drink, margarita, on the menu and I would have had at least 4 (adding £40) to the bill and I would have ended up feeling over stuffed with the extra liquid in my belly. Came home and had my favourite AF aperitif (previously I would have had at least another bottle of wine) and had a really good sleep. Now having a long, non-hungover sunny walk and might go for a run later.

Hope everyone else is having good Sundays, hungover or not 😁

@ERN79 having a good night is a good thing!

@HorrorFan81 very good!

Have a good Sunday everyone

Yeah was a good night. Drank a fair bit. But actually not feeling too ropey today. 🙂

Morning all! Still here. Still sort of being AF and moderating when not. Will not lie, I have had my ups and downs lately. Had a big downer on Saturday. A friend came for lunch and left 10 hours later. We chattered, gossiped, laughed. Drank. Yesterday I was feeling awful. I definitively did not get drunk. Just overdid it. No longer used to too many tipples, we shared 2 bottles.

My intestinal health is shot for at least a week. Slept OKish last night, so that should be back to normal pretty quickly. Still feel "not right". Have upped my water intake to rince it all out.
I have now vowed the famous "never again". Might even mean it this time.
I could gradually feel the AF slipping into moderation and then the moderation slipped too. But I must admit I was not expecting to feel so bad, not only physically, but mentally. Especially mentally.
SO!!! Back to AF for me.
Will see how long I can stay completely teetotal for. I'm setting my goal on long term.
So I'm reading this thread again and will most probably monitor my progress, or lack of.
Wishing you all strength and a happy Monday.

@Nowstronghappens to the best of us! Its crazy how long one night can affect you isn't it.
Affects me for a week too. Rubbish isn't it.
I drank Saturday & I've another social event this Saturday, at the moment I can't think of anything worse than drinking. 🤦‍♀️ So we'll see.
Hope you have a good day!

@ERN79 well you drank but you thought about it and it hasn’t taken you back to step 1.

@Nowstrong you are doing so well and I bet if you compare where you were to where you are now, there’s a world of difference.

tbh I’m at day 99 and I’m scared of even having 1 drink - sure I can go from 1 to 5 without even thinking about it! I also don’t really want to be a sober bore (which I feel is a danger) but I’m crap at moderating. Stressing about trip away and going out every night but I just need to commit to not drinking for now!

hope you’re all ready for another great week (raining and windy here so gonna repot some tomato plants) and I will not drink today!

Amazing @Seenoevil33

@Nowstrong yeah if it's really knocking you so much for a six, it seems a no brainer. It's frustratingly hard to be AF in our drinks drinks culture though!

I've lost track of my days or weeks but I'm 100 something days, and I've dodged quite a few bullets when it comes to triggers and associations and events. I'm not complacent but I think at this point I'm going to keep going to my birthday at end of June. I'll try!

So much to catch up on!

@BezMills I had to Google rakia, never heard of it (I clearly need to get me some Bulgarian friends! Or maybe not if I'm trying to quit drinking haha). Well done on your stamina on that evening, fantastic.

@HorrorFan81 the meat platter sounded delicious! And great when you can reflect on how much money you've saved by being AF, and not feeling grim later/the next day. What's your favourite AF aperitif btw please?

@ERN79 I think we're in similar places right now. The summer socialising season has definitely started. I ended up having three cocktails and a couple of small wines on Saturday night and seriously paid for it yesterday. I'm glad you had a brilliant Sat night too though 😊

@Nowstrong I have the same issue as you by the sounds (IBS triggered badly by alcohol + immune system compromised) as I felt rubbish yesterday and now have a sore throat and feel like I'm getting a cold. A stark reminder these were two of the main reasons, along with poor sleep and needing to lose weight, for me giving up! It sounded like you had a fab 10 hours catching up with your friend though, and two bottles of wine over that time between you is very good in my book.

@Seenoevil33 congratulations on Day 99 (maybe even 100 by the time you read this!). Whoop whoop! You do sound very conflicted about your trip though, which is totally understandable. In some ways it's easier just to say "I don't drink", but if you're the only "sober bore" then it may feel different for you and the others. I guess you've just got to see how you feel when you get there?

@ForeverTipsy I am still thinking about that platter! Was so good 😁 The drink is Mother Root, I have it with sliced lemon over ice and some soda. So good!

https://www.motherroot.london/products/ginger-switchel?tw_source=google&tw_adid=591149789998&tw_campaign=16782183314&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=16782183314&gclid=Cj0KCQjwzrzABhD8ARIsANlSWNM4dQ3ESPXnZXAOPFkF4D3tk_vG0jWk0mgDf7OXXYkdzVY5PM_LTsQaAp3VEALw_wcB

Thanks @HorrorFan81 - that drink sounds amazing! Birthday next month so may have to put it on my wishlist 😋

Morning all! So I was extremely energetic yesterday, seemed to have caught up on my extreme downer on Sunday. Yes @ForeverTipsy our catch-up was great and at the end of the day, 2 bottles, it could have been worse. But, there is always a but, isn't there? Yesterday I did my hour training session and felt fine for the rest of the day. But have developed terrible sciatica pain, apparently due to too much glute muscle development, can't invent that...So I have a choice, a firm bum or pain. I eventually got up during the night (with difficulty) and took a couple of paracetamol. Then slept. But this morning I'm feel really tired. Am taking my time. Have put off housework etc., until later or tomorrow. Am indulging myself with a quite day morning.
Still AF (easy as early days), in fact day 3 today. But definitively sticking to it for a while. In fact most probably always.
Have lost nearly a Kg. Which is always good news. So staying positive.
Finding this thread helpful as a reminder of where I was, or in what state I was in, over a year ago. I think I found this thread perhaps 2 years ago and it took me ages to moderate, then abstain. So I do know that I can do it. Just have to start again and appreciate the benefits, and especially not forget the WHY I'm doing this.

Beautiful weather here, so will end up going for a relaxing stretching walk, plus visit the DGCs.

Thank you @BezMills, @Seenoevil33 and @ERN79 for your encouragements.
Thank you @HorrorFan81 for the ginger recipe, love ginger, will definitively give this a go.
Sending positive vibes to all. Remember to keep your glutes "en forme" 😉while staying strong.
The edit :
Oh! didn't realise that it's to buy, not make... will see if I can get it here. Still sounds delicious.

Morning everyone 👋
@Nowstronggo easy on yourself, have the leisurely Morning, jobs will still be there!
Good luck with the long term AF. I'd like to say I'm going to do the same, I feel I really should, I don't quite know what's stopping me.
I know it doesn't agree with me these days & that the usual aftermath isn't worth the one night of debauchery! 🤦‍♀️ Yet I continue.
I have no plan at the moment, I'd like to say I won't drink but I don't know if I will.
I've a night out on Saturday, at the moment I don't want to drink. If I'm honest I don't really want to go with one thing & another, so will see...

Anyhoo, hope you all have a lovely day!

Hi everyone. I hear ya @ERN79!

I am still trying to moderate and whilst I have cut down overall I still find myself binge drinking. Throughout April I had 22 dry days and drank a total of 64 units - compared to last April’s 18 and 103. Sounds not too bad, but for 3 weeks of this April I barely drank and then the Easter week on holiday I put away 48 units 🙄 - socializing, dinners out every night etc including with some big drinkers - felt like a total blow out mindset - enjoyed it at the time and then of course felt very lethargic, anxious and worn out afterwards. In May I aim to binge much less… am sure my liver is still recovering from my 48 week-er 🙁.

@Addictforanex the fact that you're still tracking your drinks is a sign you're being mindful and care. And you've been tracking for over a year? That's great!

I'm a classic binge drinker, too. Just checked my app as started logging last autumn. My worst week was Christmas/New Year when I clocked 36 units and only two AF days per week. So you doing 48 is impressive (I shouldn't day that haha). The important thing is that you know how bad it's made you feel and you're now galvanised to changing for the better again. You were on holiday, the rules go out the window, be gentle with yourself.

I was drinking 5 days out of 7, but have swapped it round so I'm NOT drinking 5 out of 7. Some weeks I'll be doing 7 sober days as it does make me feel like shit. I'm full of cold now because I drank at the weekend and it always lowers my immune system. So the only socially acceptable drug I'm bingeing this week is paracetamol 😂

I think its great you're tracking- i dread to think what my units would have been on heavy weeks especially over Xmas etc

@Addictforanexwhat's your app?
I don't track, maybe I should... I can go weeks without a drop, then one night out & I've done a month's units 🤦‍♀️ Well you get the idea.
Had to go for an unplanned blood test this morning, which amongst other things checked liver function 😶 All back normal! What a relief that was! 😁
I'm definitely planning not to go mad this month. Meant to be out Saturday but not even sure if I'll make it (issue with my foot) but if I do I'm absolutely determined I am not going mad. Too much on to spoil the rest of my long weekend.
X

I put all my drinking in my food tracker, so I have a rough idea, and it wasn't good!

I was more an everyday drinker. Weekdays every evening and weekends I'd start earlier because I could! I might have a cheeky one at lunch or even brunch (ffs). The binges weren't so common, but did happen.

I found it so shocking to realise that for women, 2 x 250ml glasses of wine = 6.25 units, and anything over 6 is classed as binge drinking !

I use the Drink Aware app for logging and really like it for that. You can create your own drink (for cocktails/something different you have often) so you don't have to type it all in every time, and it tracks all the data without shaming you. It does warn you when your drinking is increasing though, to remind you that your health risks are increasing.

Happy Thursday everyone!

@ForeverTipsyover 6 is binge drinking 🙄 Christ. 🤦‍♀️ I manage that in the first hour of a night out...
Oh well.

Happy Thursday!

Sorry! Here's my source:

https://www.drinkaware.co.uk/facts/health-effects-of-alcohol/lifestyle-effects/binge-drinking

It was mentioned on the Panorma documentary I watched a few months back, too.