DRY 11

[TeapotDictator]

Time for a shiny new thread.

Old thread here

I feel bad because I am really hogging this board but I am struggling a bit today. I feel that the novelty of not drinking is wearing off and my motivation is slipping away. Today is Day 15 and the most I have ever done is 16.

Hi vxa
Treat yourself! Remind yourself why you are doing this, and push on through - it gets better again, but you don't want to go black to the beginning I am sure! Read back through your posts to remind yourself of how far you have come.

What are you doing today? I'm having a late start at work then quizzing this eve - pub quiz. This is one of the evenings I would binge - not too bad in the pub but everything in sight when I got in, IF that mood took me (you know the one!). I love waking up on a Friday morning clear headed and ready for anything.

Hang in there and post up here if you need support.

X

Hey vxa, you are doing so well. Take some time out if you can today. Getting towards a personal best is a huge deal.
don't worry about "hogging"! I hope everyone posts as much as they want to or has time to. I certainly do...

I am such a wimp. We had one nice little visitor over yesterday - a 5 year old friend of dd2 - and she is very nice but the hecticness of how three children behave together just destroyed me. I was literally looking at my watch waiting for it to be time for her to go. Afterwards I did think out of habit, GREAT! now for a drink, but of course I don't now, and that was fine too.

I do always stack tasks up for myself and it makes it hard to relax. I need to get over it

Vxa it's the wine witch just doing what she does best...that's all, so you need/have to starve the bitch . You're addicted, it's such a powerful drug, so of course you're going to have your difficult times right now as it is still very early days for you.

I can only speak from my own experience but the Andrew Johnson "Quit Drinking" App which is on both I phone and Android devices is worth a try. Yes it's a bit "different" and you might think but I honestly think it's what has helped me massively and it has also helped others on here too, so it's worth sticking with it for the recommended 3 weeks. It's less than £2.50 so surely worth a go?
Also, the "Mummy was a Secret Drinker" blog is worth reading. I find that she is just so good at explaining everything.

Take care my lovely

vax you're not hogging the board, you are staying sober with great help and advice! You really can do this. x

Thank you Howbad and fuzzy. I have called the alcohol support service to see when my support coordinator might be allocated and apparently I have to have a face to face assessment with a nurse now. I think this is because I have epilepsy (fully controlled). So now I've got to wait for that. The woman I spoke to was pushing me to go to an AA meeting and didn't get it when I said I am not ready.

VXA no need for any 'guilt' about 'hogging' the thread - please - post away. This thread has been so important to me - sometimes one can 'give' offering support and other times - when its tough one needs support- that's completely totally fine....

its bloody hard to 1. withdraw 2. break the habit 3. deal with the emotional fallout that's generated. You are doing GREAT !

I feel that the novelty of not drinking is wearing off and my motivation is slipping away.

do you have a LIST ? or things you have done, reasons you decided to quit ? Could be a useful time to start one if the novelty is wearing off.... Another list, of the positive results of not drinking might also be helpful ?

for now x

Sorry I only said thank you to some of you. Somehow I missed some of the other posts so thank you everyone. It means a lot. X

vxa keep on posting... ten times in a row if need be!
Two bottles on the go (one red, one white ) was my 'trick'
that way you never finish a bottle!
If it helps I am struggling this week too and I am months in! I haven't been able to do any of my sober activities this week meaning I am at home from 3.45 until bedtime.
I haven't been fighting the urge for the off licence but I have been feeling flat and 'is this it'?
Keep on going. You will find the sober excitement again soon but until then keep posting.
I posted all the time at your stage! It really helps

How you doing vxa?

Hope everyone else is having a good day. Quiz cancelled here so a quiet night in for me - probably just as well after the week I've had!!

I'm Ok. Haven't had a drink and have just kept busy. Have eaten a lot of crap though ! Going to try and go to bed soon.

Great, well done you. Fave pjs, nice hot drink, cuddly toy perhaps? Look after yourself.

Am not being funny btw, I am sitting here with a furry hot water bottle and a posh soft drink! I have learned to be nice to me

Vxa good on you, really well done. You put up one heck of a fight there and you well and truly won that battle

Fuzzy that night in of yours sounds awesome

Keep on sober warriors X

Donaj, hope you are feeling a bit better. It is going to be the lack of activities that's making you feel a bit flat isn't it? Just hold on, life will soon get back to normal when you can do some stuff for you again.

checking in guys. Day 35. joined the gym last week and have been using it +++. SO good for distraction. someone gave me a bottle of wine yesterday .... I have hidden it and plan to take it to a dinner party we are going to on Sat.

That will be hard, but I have my strategies.... and DP has agreed to "cover me" .. is it rude to take your own diet coke ?

Fuzzy, Vxa, hurricane, donaj, boodles, waves and sober Friday hugs ; Matron and Flossie -- stick with us .. come back ....

No it is not rude to take your own diet coke, or anything else you want.
If I were you I would sort out an exit strategy: come up with a reason why you might have to go before the party is really winding down. Do you have a child or animal that might be being babysat and unwell? is there someone you can line up to send you an "emergency text" with a reason why you have to leave? For me I find turning up and asking for the first AF drink a hurdle, then once that's over (it is always fine) I am good for a while; then at a certain point I get tired and bored and want it to be over. If you can find a polite way to "need" to leave, that really helps - and then you'll be fine to drive and in your own space and on the way home to the rest of your clear headed weekend before you know it :)

Well done vxa!

I saw an old friend last night, which was lovely. She is pregnant, obviously not drinking, really lovely evening. Didn't think of alcohol at all (partly because the restaurant serves green tea which I love)

Got home and dp was a little fuzzy after a couple of beers. It takes very little now for him to look noticeably blurred to me. We were once both like that nearly all the time. Weird thought that people (me!) go through so much of life not really fully compos mentis or at proper functionality. What a waste. No point in thinking about that now.

definitely take your own diet coke or anything else you please! I often use the excuse of driving and take Fentiman's rose lemonade. Mmmm.

well done vxa. :)

Gradually thinking about my life and 'stuff'. I am dissatisfied in my job and am wondering about going back to study, and looking at something in alcohol and addiction issues. Just a vague thought for now.... not a coherent thought yet.

AA meeting today. Have two more before my 5-meeting review.

lily I think it's absolutely fine to take your own Diet Coke, sound like you are well prepared and what others say about an exit strategy is a good idea. It will allow you to feels in control which if you are like me is really important.
35 days - that is fantastic

not feeling great - now have my assessment with the nurse booked for Wednesday. I have managed to get a GP appt this afternoon. She knows what is happening but I'm not really sure what she can do.

Boodles you are a couple of days ahead of me. How are you getting on ?

I take my own sparkling water and Diet Coke! Totally acceptable

Well done vxa you pushed through. That's all you have to keep doing - just one moment at a time.

Please new sober people, be extra kind to yourselves? Do what you must to care for YOU. Going to bed at 6.30 worked for me. Treats are good! Eating is fine if it stops you drinking. Reading sober blogs is good too. "Mrs D is going without" is a particular favourite of mine.

Thinking of you all, fellow soldiers!

Ok here comes a whinge, apologies in advance

I am so over today and it isn't over. I have to go out to a boring thing in a very cold place right now (posting this is making me late). I really want to go to bed, I think I am coming down with something, I have a stinking headache and am full of cold and viral aches. Dd2's birthday was today and it was awful. She got up far too early and woke up her sister, who has been a complete brat all day about it not being her birthday, and they have been uncharacteristically at each other's throats. They refused to go out to the idea I had and I didn't make them because they were so tired and ratty I thought it would be counter productive. Poor dd2 didn't realise properly - which is my fault - that her party isn't today and although she is having a party on another day, she was suddenly really disappointed about today and that "no one came!" (She is 5) She just sobbed and I felt terrible. We had pizza and cake planned and her grandmother planned to come over so I reminded her about that which cheered her up, but I feel awful that she had such a rubbish day. I just felt like crap the whole day and still do. Her meal out to her favourite pizza place was rubbish because the waiter was a complete dick. MIL wittered on at me constantly with her speciality, which is a series of incredibly confusing and self centred non-sequiturs, that I was just too exhausted to keep up with. DP makes no effort to even try so it's all on me to try to work out how to respond to the latest entirely mystifying gleeful little comment about who the fuck knows and their fucking puppy.

The thing I have to do now is a regular thing. There is an hour between it and something I have suggested dd1 do. I feel so overwhelmed at the moment that this is my life, lurching from thing to thing, with none of it enjoyable and my attempts at all of it totally unsuccessful. I really feel pretty low about the reality of trying to keep up with everything and how tired and low I so often feel.

Right it is now 4 minutes past the time I should have arrived. I'm going up to see dds and then I'm going.

Hope you are all feeling better than me or at least managing to bear up better

See you later have a good evening

Howbad I'm sorry you've had a crap day - nearly over though. really boring thing in cold place - fascinated what that is- ice hockey? Hope you're back home and it's all over.

Hi Howbad you have absolutely no need to apologise. You sound like you have a huge amount on your plate and I'm not surprised you are feeling overwhelmed. It's bloody hard going.

Don't beat yourself up about the birthday. I bet she didn't really have a rubbish day. She won't have noticed he waiter was a dick and she's got her party to look forward to as well. She also has a lovely sober mummy.As far as your MIL is concerned you sound like you have the patience of a saint.

If there any chance for you to get some rest this weekend ? You've had a really busy past few days by the sounds of it and you're not feeling well either. You need to take care of you.

I hope the rest of the evening goes ok and you can get some sleep. Let us know how you are.

Hope your evening gets better fast howbad.

Night Sober Warriors. :)

Thanks everyone. Home now which is a big improvement.