Brave Babes - Wrapping up for a Wonderful Winter

[venusandmars]

Hi, I am venusandmars and I've been on these threads for many years.

It can be tough at this time of year when the adverts are full of families cheerfully opening bottles of wine and good cheer, when work parties are alcohol fuelled, when distant friends call round with a bottle in hand.

Maybe you're trying to cut down a little in the pre-Christmas weeks, maybe you are struggling to know how to continue with a longer period of abstinence, maybe you are waking up after a Christmas Party feeling sick and covered in shame (or even feeling shame and covered in sick).

Whatever, whenever, if you want to stop, or cut down, or simply share your struggle with others who also feel the tug..... please join us.

Usually our lovely mouseface opens these threads, but the poor mouse is sick in hospital and so I am overcoming the technophobia that a 50-something feels.... (well done me ). Our last thread is here if you want to read the last few posts

And if you want to read the story from the beginning (you'll need a few weeks) HERE is where it all started when Jesuswhatnext posted in May 2010.

Welcome one and all x

Evening All

Gorilla welcome lovely, could you say that you're doing Dry Jan and you've committed to it and would like to see it through?

Beeches hello lovely, well done for Day 4, we'll get those weeks under your belt Work was ok, staff moral at an all time low. Several of my fave people are looking for other jobs. I will be doing the same, it's just not for me anymore, brings me down too much now. Keep going lovely you know you can do it

Nuff loving your posts, thank you. I hope DD got back to uni ok and DS's NY party was a success x

Isinde I can so relate to half a bottle just not being enough, what is the point? Day 4! Keep going lovely ODAAT x

South I'm the same, in that I can't moderate, I want to drink it all, what is the point in having a couple of glasses??? It's all or nothing for me. So right now it's 'nothing' but that really is ok Keep going Babe you are doing really well. I found the more I struggled that this bus and the babes on here helped me dust myself down and start again, one day at a time. Soon you will feel so much better, your skin, hair, sleep will all feel different, that I promise x

Sweet Hellooooooo Happy New Year lovely one. Good to have you back and already Day 4, Good. Work sounds tricky but you stuck by your guns, you were proved right (which rocks by the way!) and now you have to take one day at a time, do the job to the best of your ability with the wisdom that your contribution counts It may be tricky and awkward around your boss for a while but you will work it out and the sober new you will see things in a clearer light. Hugs

Right, I'm doing my normal of typing in the dark (yes I am in bed already) and I don't want to lose what has now become a looooong post back in a bit x

Hello babes. Crawls back on bus and waves. Had a very pickled December. Today is day one. Committed to dry Jan then we will see. Feel slightly insane , headache, twitchy , anxious , craving sugar. But know I can do it if I dig deep. The boredom scares me the most. Need to commit to exercise too but the dark nights don't help. Or the rain. Will find a yoga class I think. Love you all. Need to remember to stock up sweets. That really helped me the first time you babes advised it. Nearly 9 o clock. Only an hour to go. Counting minutes here. all round.

I suppose having DJ straight after the Christmas chocky fest is a good thing, we can feel virtuous about eating it out of the way, (and saving everyone else's waistline) whilst using the sugar to deflect from wine . I generally find I can replace the chocs with nuts after a week or so, then my blood sugar starts to regulate better. Gorilla don't you find a colourful salad drawer is a relief after Christmas?!

Spanna, you are doing SO WELL, hope you can find a perfect new job for a new year. Wish I could go to bed, but DH wouldn't forgive me for leaving him alone with my parents, -still, only a few more days

Pop, why do we do it eh? Get an early night. How is project 'move school catchment' going?

Just saved a vole from the cat, Pup is now going crazy sniffing its scent trail. Much easier to catch when not pissed!

sweet hello! Missed you. And sorry to hear about your work shit . Missed all of you. DP is currently filling in solicitors forms for the school move project. In theory we have sold and bought but the bureaucracy and reality of it are all up ahead. Likely move date late March before school Easter hols. Cannot even begin to imagine packing up my beloved home. Could go on but would bore you all senseless. Am having a surreal sober moment where everything is momentarily in weird twitchy technicolor. My poor body and mind are probably wondering where the nightly booze flood is. And DD1 unable to sleep again. Boy , life piles it on sometimes.

Hey all
good to see you again sweet
Anyone seen joey?
I have eaten a family sized bag of minstrels

Lovely to see you back evil , work and sweet

Flipping well done on pouring the half bottle away isinde, you're a stronger woman than I. I was cleaning out the fridge today and found a forgotten bottle of voignier that I didn't know was there. Dry January is over for me. Technically anyway, I do plan to hop straight back on the bus.

gorilla, isnt full fat yogurt the best thing ever? I started buying it for toddler DD and now will never go back.

Hello and waves to all. I'm sorry I couldn't manage 4 sodding days, but I'll be out of the sidecar and back on the bus soon.

Hi gang, posting in the dark so won't namecheck as it's a short one.

Well done to the new joiners (even if you are old timers!) and those struggling on.

Oh, the anxiety. Exhausting is the word. Completely and utterly overtaking exhaustion to be on edge all the damn time...this will pass. Trust me.

Day 4 over with and I am in bed. Found myself raiding the kids' cookies earlier (sorry not sorry!!) so sugar cravings are here. But that's better than pounding one (at least) bottle of calorific wine down my throat...

Looking forward to getting kids off to school tomorrow and the rest of the house will be sorted.

Clean slate - until the party friday which will have it wrecked again, but I won't be (wrecked, that is) promise x

Hi South, I was going to ask you if you'd thought about AA. I started going about this time last year, after an awful drunken Sunday lunch which ended with me almost falling over with my 2 year old DS in my arms, passing out in the car and my DH having to carry me into our house in front of our DSs, and all of this before 6pm. Classy. The next morning I was in total despair so I got in touch with AA.

I found the meetings really helpful and to be honest if I want to be AF for good I think I'll only be able to do it with AA. The biggest problem I had with it is the time commitment it requires - they say that for the first 60 days you should go to a meeting a day, but with 2 kids under 5 and a full-on full-time job I just can't do it. I was going once a week which was great, and I loved hearing other peoples' stories and really feeling understood - it kept me sober for over 2 months but then I went to stay with my cousin at Easter, I didn't go to a meeting for over a week, my cousin put a glass of prosecco in my hand one night...and you can imagine the rest. I want to get back to AA but I already have huge guilt about not spending enough time with my kids...

Well done to all those who are on day 4.

And April, no need to be sorry about anything [hugs].

Day 4 done. It was a close call for some reason, my fuck it twitch was on super mode and nearly won tonight...i made a cup of tea with the idea that if I still wanted a glass after I drank the tea I could. Fortunately the tea gave me enough time delay for the craving to calm down.

See you in the morning babes, whether it is day 5, day 55 or day 1, lets do it together

Morning Babes.

Finally got some good sleep last night, in fact overslept, but for once, DS had got himself up - fed the cat, got showered and dressed, made himself scrambled eggs and apologised for being a grotty child yesterday. That is an amazing start to day five.

I am going to try to resist the sugar a bit today, but won't beat myself up as long as I stay AF.

Have a lovely day everyone.

Courage babes! Day 2. Barely slept last night. Roll on a better night soon. Twitching with minor withdrawals. These things will pass. Hoping to get to work in time to grab hash browns before a meeting.

It will get better in a day or two, Pop, hope the conveyancing goes smoothly for you. Is the new house all you wanted?

Isinde, I use 'I'm done drinking' to track my days, units, calories and money. It's American, so I had to do a bit of conversion to work out my usual drink size, and I just pretend the dollars are pounds, but there may well be a British version by now. I'm still at your restraint the other day, but quite right, half a bottle isn't worth it .

Very pleased to say that my skin is definitely looking fresher this morning, anyone else starting to see results?

Hi everyone. I'm new here. Day two for me and I've committed to getting through to April AF.
I do this from time to time - I'm definitely an all or nothing person and have tried for years to cut down or just drink at weekends. It doesn't work.
Gave up in 2014 from September to Christmas and last year for Lent and then all of September. I'm trying to get to the stage where I don't drink for more of the year than I do. One day I'd like to give it up completely.
Feeling OK today - just tired and sugar craving. Good luck to you all - it's nice to be here.

Welcome Whistle, are you doing the 90 day thing (can't remember the catchy title). I'm all or nothing too - much more all than nothing!!

Despite my intention to start cutting back the sugar today, I have already finished of a bag of Carambars (think French Maom sticks).

Isinde, people who walk away from unfinished glasses really piss me off (yes DH, I'm looking at you, especially when you do it in a pub).

Hi Sweet No I haven't heard of the 90 day thing - just don't feel a month is enough to lose weight, really make a difference to my health. Ultimately would love to stop completely. My birthday is in April so have decided to end abstinence then, but if I'm feeling really good may carry on! Let's hope I get that far.
I've had so much rubbish today it's unreal, but that's always the way for the first few days. that's why I don't lose any weight for ages

Good clip Isinde.

beaches well done for powering on through it. It's good to be reminded that the craving will go away if we ignore it.

Margie I'm sure they won't turn you away if you can't commit to going every day.

It sounds like some of us are getting some sober momentum going, so a polite reminder - don't fuck it up

Hello everyone. Day 5 here too, going ok other than frankly terrifying food consumption - but I know I'm not alone on that one. Hello to Whistle - you sound really focussed and determined, really impressive. Hopefully some of that will rub off on me!

And big hello again to Sweet. Its deja vu, getting to know you a bit this same time last year, enjoying making progress together - and then I fell comprehensively off the bus for the last six months. But I did think of you often, was just too ashamed to check how things were going with puss and pup and the garden and all. I am so sad to hear the last little bit has been tough - I really hope you are taking care of yourself and being nice to you. Very happy to see you again.

What's everyone up to this evening? And on a different note, has anyone watched Deutschland 83 yet? Worth a look if so? I need a new displacement activity and wonder if squinting at subtitles may occupy me a bit more than vaguely staring at Horrible Histories as I am currently doing with the kids.

Evening ladies.

Day 5 here for me too. Not craving at the moment but I did have a minute before when it came over me in a strong wave - caught me so unawares I actually (without thinking about it at all) just stood up to make my way to the wine fridge which I recently fully restocked with a case today for the party on Friday. I caught myself before I really got up off the chair, but what learned behaviour!

Fox I've heard about that programme, gonna check it out.

Whistle welcome, I agree, you sound like someone we need around here!!

Faerie indeed! Let's not fuck up!