The Brave Babes Carry On Past The Easter Booze Offers.

[NotTheMessiahJustMouseface]

Hello,

I'm Mouse, well, I am usually!

Welcome to the Brave Babes Bus.

This is a journey of sobriety, started almost a year ago by the wonderful jesuswhatnext. So why not come aboard and find a seat. There's heaps of support on here whether you are sober, drinking or somewhere in the middle.

And, for those of you who want a bit of history, here are the Previous Threads

Morning Babes

qo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - Bloody well done you! I bet you felt so much better for just opening the door and taking a few steps out.

So, what's the plan for today? Is it nice enough to go for a walk or to sit out in the garden, reading? Or can you do something indoors?

Ma - I hope you're okay. Been thinking of you xx

Morning all

Qo, I'm glad your DD got away ok, and it's so lovely to hear you sounding so much better than a couple of weeks ago.

Thornrose, how are you doing today?

Thurso, glad the party went well in your absence, ditto whoever said you must be so proud x

All well here. A small but significant positive about not drinking hit me this morning; the school run is SO much nicer without a hangover. So much less snappy at the poor DC, and no averting my head when talking to people for fear they'll smell booze on my breath .

Hi Brave babes, just a quickie as am at work. Day 8 for me which is the first time I've done this long for about a year. Weekend actually wasn't too bad and am feeling quietly chuffed with myself. Only thing is I feel really tired, can't stop yawning. Is this normal?
Thornrose I remember you from before - I think you were around before I sneaked off the bus as well. How are you feeling? If you're past day 4, you're not going to start any horrible withdrawal symptoms now as you're well past the danger point for that. I was getting a lot of headaches as well but they're starting to go now. It's probably your body just adjusting itself to not having alcohol in it. Well done and keep going. I'll be back later.

Day 1 for me again. Today I will NOT be drinking.

Just checking in to say hi. Well done qo. You did it! You seem much less depressed than you did initially. I hope that is the case.
Whilst I hardly boinged out of bed this morning, neither did I crawl out with a dry mouth, banging head and that horrible, disappointed anxious feeling.

Am chuffed I made it through the weekend. Thanks for your support everyone. I feel "safer" today as I never drink on Mondays. Unfortunately that's usually because I am too hungover and disgusted with myself. Not today! It's lovely and sunny here in London. I've cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom and going to going to spend the hour the couple of hours I'll have to myself when both kids are at nursery reading my book in the garden.
Hi to Thornrose. Hope you're feeling better today.

Sorry for gibberish typing. DD1 is chattering to me!

at gibberish typing luci, I'm like that when distracted.

Hello to Thorn

Ma xx

afternoon!

well done qo! - what are you doing to pamper yourself this evening?

im sitting in the office freezing my doodahs off!, its so hot without the aircon and bloody icy with it on - dh and i have a silent fight over it every summer, just like the thermostat fight in the winter - i turn it up when he leaves the room, he turns it down when i go out and so we go on! - i love our mature relationship and the perfect communication methods we have developed!

Hello Ladies
It's lovely seeing how supportive this thread is. Am hoping to get to know everyone a lot better very soon. Sorry not got my head round doing personal replies yet...
Day 3. Did a mammoth intense day at work. Even when I made a fairly nasty error, and the thought came in to my head immediately to DRINK this eve, I have not and will not. Instead, got home, made soup with leftover veg ( very calming that) cuddled with my kitteh and am now waiting for some salmon to finish cooking for dinner. then bath and early bed.
I think changing the routine, even in a small way at the drinking time, is really helpful, do you?
I've also written down a list of bad things that have happened or might happen if I continue down the drinking road, and good things that will happen if I stay sober. That feels really empowering! I will NOT let this thing destroy my life - it might be big, but I am bigger!
Glad you're back on the bus, too DementedMa

Sorry I haven't been on today - am filled with disgust at myself for drinking . It made me feel really good (up to a point) and so i repeated it last night which was very silly. grr. Ah well, start again. Sounds like everyone is feeling really up today which is great stuff! The weather certainly helps doesn't it. I had to 'sign on' today which was horrible - God they're so patronising - I got given a 'special booklet' into which I may write all the efforts I have made at my 'jobsearch'. Honestly! Onwards and upwards! x

hey 4c4good and well done on Day 3. i find it's the trickiest one.
I have had one spritzer but as there is no more in I will be going to bed shortly.

Woo hoo, I'm on day 5. Thanks to everyone for the support (too lazy tired to namecheck. Well done to everyone else on their various stages of our journey.
I'm still having headaches in the evenings. I also feel very tired. I've been eating mints all evening until I feel sick, it helps strangely!

I went into a cafe/bar yesterday, the sun was shining, the sea was beautiful, perfect time for a glass of wine. I had a tonic water while my friend had a G and T. I felt so "empowered", if I'd had a drink then I would've blown it I know how easy it is to slip up. I really want to try this time.

4c4 you are completely right - if you have a 'time' when you normally start to drink then anything that you can do to break that pattern is good - whether it delays you for 10 minutes, an hour, or whether it just throws you off your stride completely for the evening, it's good. I've found that if I can get pat the 'difficult' time, the rest of the evening is so much easier (but if I give in to 'just the one' it's all donwhill from there). So approaching the difficult time, do anything to occupy your hands, your head, your mouth: whistle, knit, write, do crosswords, jigsaws, masturbate (this is courtesy of MIFLAW's list), dance, chop vegetables, chat to friend, anything. Just delay, and delay, and delay, and delay the time when you might have otherwise poured your first drink. If can avoid the first one, the rest is easy

hi to JWN and ma and other lovely friends xx

thornrose hi and many many congratulations on day five!
Hello to all the babes. i got to day 5 & spoilt it all by a couple of drinks after work today which i did enjoy but certainly wasnt craving. Bah.....and the reason for ruining my longest stretch of sobriety in recent years? Signing up to do a 10k with the girls in the office. whats that all about eh? a bit of cameraderie and sisterhood - offers of help with training - and it ends in the pub albeit for an hour an a half.
bad bad bad mrs r.
id best head off to bed & start again tomorrow.
Babes Im sorry to have fallen off the bus so soon but if you will let me I will be back tomorrow.
Much love babes xxx

thornrose yes, isn't it great. I am continually surprised that life's lovely moments are no less wonderful without the accompaniment of a glass of wine.

Hi mrsr, starting again tomorrow is the best thing to do, this was just a blip. I'll be here tomorrow, take care.

Evening Babes.

MrsR - tomorrow is a whole new day. Your ticket is non refudable on here, nor will it increase in price, become invalid or be out of date.

The Bus is always here, even if there are days when are not.

Off to set up a new thread

refundable

Me again

I'm off to bed so thought I better set up the new thread for any night owls we may have.

It's HERE

Now then Babes, remember to fill this one up first so that any newcomers don't get lost or missed.

Night all xxx

Ah Mrs R there always seems to be an excuse that seems too tempting or difficult to turn down ... new day tomorrow (and all that) ... but also - if you are serious about this, you need to start working out some good strategies for 'impromptu going to the pub occassions': here are mine: ALWAYS know what your fist drink is going to be - orange and soda, lime and tonic, appeltise - doesn;t matter what, bit DON'T be left at the bar going "oh, eh, em, eerr, oh well I'll just have a glass of wine". Also ALWAYS know how you're going to deal with the next drink e.g. "mmm that was great, I think I'll have another before I get started into the hard stuff" or "mmm I'm so thirsty in this hot weather (or need a coffee in this cold weather), I think I'll have another orange and soda.."

None of the above means that you never have to drink with your friends again, ever, it just means that you've got some good delaying tactics, And who knows, sometimes once everyone else is 2 drinks down, you might decide that you just don't need to join them. Then look around, and see that mostly everyone else isn't getting pissed either. It's OK to be sober, and it's actually quite nice.

Forgive me for experimenting here... I'm trying to do something, let's see if it works...

Brave Babes Threads:
JWN?s original thread
thread 2

OK ignore that post.... hmmmm (very long pause).... (venus is thinking).....

OK

Speak to you all in the morning x

evening!

venus is spot on as usual! - i like to go and have a drink in the pub with friends, i just know what im going to order as soon as i walk in - right now my drink of choice is cranberry and soda with a slice of lime, perfect for hot sunny days and bang on trend! - i also find that im becoming a 'good influence'! (for the first time in my life!) all my girlfriends say they are more aware now of the amount they drink and are more than happy to stick to one or two for the sake of their health!, most of my gfs are in their 40s and watching their weight/bone density/menopausal symptoms etc and all say they are feeling the benefit of cutting down - i cant believe im such a 'cataylist for change' but they tell me its down to me and my 'alkie honesty'! i scared them to buggery by admitting the problem and now they have moved from supporting me to actually joining in in the sobriety stakes!

if there is now a downturn in the hospitality industry it just shows what a bunch of boozers we all were!

Evening Campers

Right

I haven't been posting for the last few months because I am going down a slightly different route than most of us. I have just done a round trip to Edinburgh (from Manchester) to see a Doctor privately (against all my social beliefs!!) in order to get a prescription for naltrexone. I have been reticent about talking on here about it, because until today I have only ordered it off the internet, and didn't want to mislead anyone into thinking that it is a simple solution to abusing alcohol.

If you are interested then you can google 'The Sinclair Method' and that will give you as much information as I had two months ago.

I took the tablets that I got from India or wherever they actually came from (at the cost of about £150 for 30 tablets) and personally noticed huge differences, not necessarily to the amount I am drinking, but to my MENTAL ATTITUDE to drinking. (BTW my second order of tablets never arrived at the above ridiculous cost so beware.....)

I went to see Professor Chick, as he appeared to be the only Doctor in the country that would prescribe naltrexone for alcohol abuse - it was originally developed for opiate abuse but has since been licensed in pretty much every country, other than than the UK for treatment for Alcohol abuse.

I am very unsure about posting this, but I MISS TALKING TO YOU ALL SO MUCH, I just felt very odd about posting while holding back something that I regard as huge in my personal battle with the demon booze.

So Darling Babes - I will fill my prescription tomorrow and keep you all updated with my progress.

Please please don't think that I am pimping this as some kind of cure - but for me it is life changing.

What I am trying to say - is that the above is the reason I have not been posting (although I was always under the back seat - you slatterns never cleaned under there in my absence otherwise you would have found me - tut tut)

To all the new lovely Babes - welcome - I follow your progress every day and I'm sorry I wasn't here to say hello.............

To all you old farty pants.............

Big (((((((hugs))))))))))))))))

Love you all xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx