Brassic - how you doing? You feel strong enough to help a fellow alcoholic?

[dandycandyjellybean]

Just to say how are you doing? I have been following your progresss and am very, very, indescribably impressed. So much so that I have decided to follow your lead. I am cutting down gradually over the course of this week, as I am a 90 units + kind of girl and have been for a good ten years. Have tried absolutely everything and have decided that the only way is to give up altogether. However, picked up on the fact that total cold turkey from that level of drinking was not advisable so my plan is to have my first non alcoholic night on Monday, after cutting down gradually, does that sound about right?

should have added it seems very hit and miss to me how much damage the liver sustains

but that is just in my not very wide experience

hi thanks guys - my liver has been given a clean bill of health by my gp astoundingly enough. Thanks for all your input guys and don't feel bad if you can't help right now, tiz the way of life!!!! Good luck, and tata to you all.

Cubby I don't know if you saw all the questions I posted for you earlier? Do you feel like telling us a bit more about your situation?

hi there,
i used to be a 50 - 70 units kind of a girl, for the last 10 yrs too. i guess i describe myself as a functioning alcoholic!?!
i managed to stop when pregnant and just have the recommended 1 unit a week (i know 0 units is recommended more, but i was really glad i could do it). im lucky in that my dp, and my close friends all did drytime with me to support me when we went out.
now i am on about 20 - 30 units a week so keeping a close eye on it to keep the levels down. i am fairly hopeful i can keep it low, as my baby is 9 mths and im still coping.
before getting pregnant i did 2 weeks alcohol free here and there, and these are the things that helped:
yes, to the fizzy water! its a bit like gin and tonic in that its a bit bitter and you dont gulp it down as fast as a flat drink!!!
cut down on caffeine: this really helped me, cos if i drunk coffee i would be hyper and anxious and then NEEDED a drink to relax. its still the case. i dont drink coffee anymore, cos it was a vicious cycle of boozing, coffee to get going in morning, anxiety, boozing.
get some good herbs in: valerian is really, really good as a nighttime drink for relaxing you and sending you a little bit dreamy. motherwort also helped during pregnancy cos its stronger than chammomile and makes you feel nice and woozy. have a look online, or talk to neals yard or a herbalist if you have one in the area.
dont make any grandiose "this is forever! never touch a drop again!" statements. i found that i had certain times i really, really wanted to drink, usually between 6 and 7 my desire to start was strongest, so i would put it back: im allowed a drink at 10 i would say, and then by 9 i often couldnt be arsed to go out and get some, cos i was ready for bed. and at your most yearning time, get on mumsnet and post how you really want a drink.
get someone to do this with you. your partner?
these are just suggestions that worked for me, dont try them if they dont fit comfortably. and dont kid yourself. for me, i have been able to cut down a lot. you might have to give up completely. its not one size fits all.
good luck! keep us updated!

Cubby hi, did ask on this post before where you were. Sorry you are not so good but as always you have come to the right place. I too am struggling so much with drinking at the moment and have not had a drink free day for ages. I find that at about 7p.m. I physically need to drink. I need to get my liver checked out but don't want to go to my GP - she already thinks (knows) I'm loopy. The problem in our house is that DH also likes a drink and when I say about my drinking he tells me not to worry. He doesn't realise how concerned I am even though I go on about it. He is great in all other ways but not a great support with my drinking. Sorry to go on about me just want you to know you are so not alone. I am going to try not to drink tonight. Keep posting. XX

Thanks guys. The cutting down is not going brilliantly, as usual I seem to be driven to guzzle more when I think I'm not going to be able to (bit like the pre-monday-start of diet-binge i suppose!!!) Guess I'm getting cold feet too, so was hoping that this thread would just die the death, but was just reading the recent posts and thought, before I start on tonights drinking, I would post and perhaps that would be another added reason to follow through on my goal. The biggest part of me wants to do it, but then there's this little monster inside of me that keeps pushing all the positive, reasonable thoughts away, and puts the vision of a crisp, cold glass of Pinot Grigio, or a lemony gin and tonic, or the lovely golden warmth of a glass of whiskey firmly at the forefront of my consiousness and I feel my will just melting away!!! Arrrrggghhhh!!

Flowertop, thanks for the post. So TOTALLY know what you mean about physically needing a drink come post-baby-bedtime! If it's any consolation, I very recently had a blood test for some meds I'm on, and my (lovely) gp ticked the LF test. I was crapping myself, even though all during my pg 2 years ago my LF had come out fine. But i figured i was drinking extremely lightly if at all for obvious reasons, and have completely caned it since ds was born. Anyway, my LF was fine, which I couldn't believe, and although I know that there can still be problems even if your test is fine, it did help to stop me from having such terrible panicky thoughts (which bizarrely (sp?) tend to make me drink more!!!???). Hope you have a good night, and thanks so much for posting.

Hey Cubby, you can do this. Go on, fess up, how much have you drunk tonight? There are lots here who will sepport you. You can do it, you can

So far 2 shots of whiskey and 1/3 bottle of white wine...... actually really good for me.....

So, am going up to bed now to watch some old re-runs of Rosanne with dh. Taking the remains of 1/2 bottle of whiskey with me...............

Cubby PLEASE take care and cut down gradually or get some help to manage stopping medically

it can be extremely dangerous to withdraw from alcohol too fast and I can't tell from your posts whether you know this or whether you're just planning to stop altogether on Monday

I certainly don't want to put you off your goal of being alcohol free, but I believe you should seek advice from your GP or one of the many alcohol advice services before trying to stop cold turkey, or to give you support and advice while cutting down