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Mumsnet has not checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you need help urgently or expert advice, please see our domestic violence webguide and/or relationships webguide. Many Mumsnetters experiencing domestic abuse have found this thread helpful: Listen up, everybody

Brave Babes Battle Bus

999 replies

Halleberry · 29/05/2016 13:25

New thread girlies as the other was about to run out ... Hope you all find this one xxx

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34
SweetLathyrus · 20/06/2016 18:33

Sorry, Lala got to dash, but I'll be back later.

Elba84 · 20/06/2016 18:42

Evening all,

Today was going to be day 1 again, but met a friend for lunch as was so hungover and anxious so had two ciders. Of course having had them I'm drinking again now, have to work tomorrow so will have to stop soon and force myself to go to bed early. So stupid, after a really good run of AF days last week I've spent the whole weekend hungover or drinking, feels like I'm back at square one yet again.

I'm very aware that I'm becoming much more 'all or nothing' as far as drinking goes...don't know if that's good or not.

baby the retreat idea is actually quite tempting. I'm waiting for a little inheritance which was completely unexpected and have been trying to figure out what to do with it. I want to do something really positive with it, it was so unexpected and something like a couple of weeks away being looked after sounds very tempting. Just need to get a bit more of a grip on the drinking first I guess.

sweet good luck on day 1, you sound determined. Hope you enjoy the theatre tonight. I'm a bit worried that I will end up off work anyway, like you said, feel like I'm just firefighting and delaying the inevitable really.

lala hope you're enjoying your puppy walk. Weird isn't it how it's so much easier to 'talk' here than in real life...a lot of things I've said here I don't think I've ever verbalised. I think I would be totally lost at the moment without everyone here.

Regarding mindfulness, I've downloaded the headspace app which seems really good, just need to make myself get into the habit of doing it every day. I have also found adult colouring books really good, they definitely helped get me through the first few AF days, again just need to make myself actually do it! Hope you enjoy your AF night...weirdly once I actually manage to get to the point of being AF and in bed they have started to feel like a bit of a treat to me!

Anyway hope everyone else is ok, lovely sunny evening here but I'm already in my pyjamas...stupid how bloody tired drinking makes you!

Lalaladida · 20/06/2016 18:51

elba it's so true! It's exhausting drinking all the time. Lovely sunny evening, tried to take puppy for a walk, but had a full on panic attack about ten mins in, so had to get home as soon as I could. Obviously as soon as I got into the house, I felt better. Haven't had one that bad for months, mainly because I have mostly been drinking. Proper racing heart, shaking, wobbly legs, the whole thing. I hate this Sad stupid how alcohol causes the problem, yet is the only thing that solves it. Yet we still do it. WHY?!?

I am going to try and wear her out in the garden instead. Felt so bad for her as she hasn't been out much today. Maybe I'll try again later, but the fear of having another panic attack just seems to bring them on.

Will give the headspace app a go...

Elba84 · 20/06/2016 19:08

Yep it is totally exhausting isn't it? I've just had three days off yet I look and feel like shit rather than all refreshed...why are we doing this it's so bloody pointless?!!!

Panic attacks are horrible and totally self perpetuating...a few years back I pretty much became agoraphobic apart from going to work from the fear of having a panic attack when out. Much much better now, thanks to medication and a bloody fortune spent on cbt, but it still lurks. I did find the CBT really good though, and still use bits of it now...I wonder if there's an app or a good book on it you could try? I sympathise though, it's horrible.

will are you still out there? And halle??

dementedma · 20/06/2016 20:09

Checking in. Tough day.

aliasjoey · 20/06/2016 20:17

How are you doing ma ?

dementedma · 20/06/2016 20:26

Shit.
Spent the day with CEO of our parent company, discussing insolvency and how we manage the PR. Shit!
Visited dad again after yesterday's horrible visit. He was a bit calmer today. More or less recognised me but not dh. More shit.
So am drinking. Because that will help Confused

aliasjoey · 20/06/2016 20:48

Oh ma, I am sorry. Wish there was something I could say, but there isn't - because you're right, it is shit Sad

soberisthenewblack168 · 20/06/2016 21:19

Checking in and catching up xx

dementedma · 20/06/2016 21:37

Hey sober good to see you again

Fairenuff · 20/06/2016 21:49

Hi sober Smile

Ma so sorry, you really do deserve a break x

SweetLathyrus · 21/06/2016 08:20

Morning All.

Day Two and a decent sleep last night (so despite slipping over the weekend, the booze has not seeped quite so deep yet).

Lala I did mindfulness as part of a CBT course. I've done loads of different talking therapies over the years and CBT is the only one that has fully worked for me, I think the practicality of it speaks to the way I function. Anyway, the mindfulness part is about concentrating only on the moment (obviously a bit watered down from the original Buddhist practice), and in doing that even for two minutes, you allow thoughts about the past (regrets or guilt) or the future (anxiety and paralysing fear), to flow away. If they pop into your brain, you acknowledge them but don't dwell. With practice, this helps you to quiet those thoughts and focus on what is happening now. On my course, this was tied into the concept of 'worry time', that you allowed yourself a certain amount of time everyday to consider those worries (I know probably sounds a bit weird out of the context of the course), but it acknowledges that some thoughts are legitimate, or that you can deal with them in a more rational way. Hope that helps. I try to practice when I'm walking the dog, focusing only on what is immediate - which is easier, when it's a dog just 'being'; try it with your pup Smile.

Elba exhausting is right, hope you're better today.

Love and strength to everyone else, Ma, Claret, Sober, Fox, Faire, Wry, Pink, Mouse, Hope, Joey, . . . Catch you all later, SweetDog is getting twitchy for a run.

fadingblonde1 · 21/06/2016 10:49

Day 2, I'm trying to do an 800 calorie a day diet as well. Totally setting myself up for failure. I didn't have any cravings for wine last night but one I did notice I felt really antsy. I just wanted some peace away from h and the kids, just an hour to myself to unwind. I daresay it's partly why I sometimes drink.

venusandmars · 21/06/2016 13:40

For those thinking about mindfulness....

A lovely mindfulness expert once said to me that the trick was about your mind being FULL of the right things - and not some kind of empty-minded faux zen like stuff.

We did an exercise where we first went out in the garden and made a list of all the things that spoiled the perfect scene - the weeds, the bits of concrete, the dead flower heads, the litter.... etc. We came back in and listed it all down, then we went back out specifically to spend time examining some of those things in detail - really, really looking at how a dandelion is structured, seeing the amazing sparking texture of a lump of concrete. It was incredible how much beauty was in all of those things that we'd previous thought of as spoiling the garden.

In addition to refocussing my mind way from all the things that were irritating me in the garden, the 20 minutes spent in total focus on looking at something in detail left no space in my mind for anything else. I had a mind-full of looking and seeing and wondering, and a total break from any worries.

Of course the background worries didn't go away or get solved, but after the mindfulness exercise my brain felt relaxed and rested and more able to think constructively about the issues. And it was a hell of a lot better than alcohol as a way of taking myself out of it.

MaryMungoAndMidgies · 21/06/2016 21:27

ma fit like the day quine? Tried to post last night but I couldn't log in for some reason, but I was thinking of you. My grunny had dementia, it broke my heart. She was so focused on my dad at the end, she would hiss "why have you brought her? I cannot thole that besom!" whenever I went to visit. In the end it was decided that me visiting upset her too much and affected the time she had left with my dad. It is always more painful for the people left behind, even if that is not behind after a death, but behind the memories of a life without you in it. I'm sorry if I am babbling, my heart knows what it's trying to say, and that is I wish you strength my dear friend , it's coorse what you're going through, and painful, xx

sweet I tried your mindfulness lesson on my walk with Miss Counter Terrorist. I got to the park and spotted all sorts of potential 'terrorist hazards', kids with footballs ripe for bursting, folk eating chips, folk with ice creams, next door's with their bitey collies hogging a whole section of dog area with a chuckit, and felt anxiety bubble up within. So I found a bench, and waitied for the park to clear a bit.

Bugger me, I am nae kidding, by the end of our walkie I was all about the now, the air, the sky, the fresh cut cricket pitch, the daisies and buttercups, the bees, it was so freeing. Today's hurt just washed away, the dread of going in tomorrow ceased to exist. I could have wept with happy. Then the Terrorist ran up to a small spaniel she knows, sat on her head and started humping her. I need to practice this a lot more but I get the gist, it's fab! Thank you! xx

venus I came back from our walkie and sat in the garden with a ginger beer. Did the watching and looking thing. The holes she dug in the grass - the blackbird was getting his tea from the freshly dug mound of earth. The two plants she uprooted earlier that had shrivelled - I soaked and replanted with faith. The fucking great big scary spider who lives under the Cotoneaster arch - the web is a work of art and symmetry. The new Colditz fence - starting to soften with tendrils of greenery and my lovely dog rose. I wish I had a dandelion to examine but I have a dog who eats them. More peace ensued. There might be something in this for me you know. Dare I try to apply it in work tomorrow? Or is it something I have to practise when not too stressy? Thank you, it really is mind quieting, xx

lala your horse is beautiful, one day I shall have one of my own. That is my dream. We lost our land to compulsory purchase years ago (and got shiting peanuts) thanks to the bypass. I couldn't afford to replace it as it was within walking distance of town, and land here goes for ridiculous amounts nowadays. One day though. How are you today? You need to give yourself time darling, love will find you, you need not to be looking just now. You need to heal first. Find your smile again. The garden is good for pup, and you can gain your strength there, xx

fading 800 calories?! Oh god, I reckon that's one and a half butteries. Blush Do you feel energised or weakened? My boss has a pack up of two apples and a banana, I think I would feel wabbit with just that. Or would I? Does it give you more energy? Is it like feeling the "fear"? I know I need to stop bread, it just makes me sluggish and bloated. As does the wine, but that's a given. You are welcome in my virtual garden any time for a moment of peace and tranquility. xx

faire, elba and sober hello chickadees! How are you? xx

mouse glad you are off on some hols! Sounds fantastic! You must be proper excited, bless ye, xx

joey hiaye quine, fit like a day hiv ye hid? Mine wisna o'er bad, I caught folk spikkin aboot me today, which is nivver fine. I could roar wi the coorseness o it 'a, but I can rise abeen it. I'm put in mind of venus when she spoke about the concrete. Aiberdeen looks dreich and grey in the weet, but fan the sun comes oot, oh! The granite sparkles and looks unco bonny. Forgive my doric haverings quine, but I think we are all capable of a sparkle, no matter how dark things get for us. We all shine. We just need a chamois. Thank you for letting me haver, it brings me comfort to gie it laldy in ma mither tongue. And you ken exactly fit ah mean, xx

I am going to try and post this, but if it disappears yet again I think I'll roar. The site has been kicking me off my login for most o today, so here goes....

Big, bosies from me and hoond, xx

dementedma · 21/06/2016 21:43

Oh wry you understand everything and then just make it better.
I need a wee bit o sparkle so if you could just get over here with that there shammy!
I will try the peaceful mindfulness thing tomorrow - when I meet my Marines!
I just got offered a placement at a stable yard for one of my boys. So happy. He can help with building and fencing and grooming, and they will help him with love and headspace and rebuilding. I may be down and out but at least someone will benefit from the matches I can make for them!

MaryMungoAndMidgies · 21/06/2016 22:00

Oh ma! Such a fine thing for your lad! Horses are great healing cretturs, they really are. You will ken aboot that though wi yer soldiers. Met some folk from Horseback UK when I was at the horse trials. Hope they are there again this year. Grooming itself is so therapeutic and builds a strong bond. I am really happy for him and you!

Perhaps you could bond with a marine if you give him a quick wipe with a sticky roller or summat. Or polish his button.

I am giving you the shine from afar ma never you fear, it's fab for me bingos. Grin xx

MaryMungoAndMidgies · 21/06/2016 22:02

fading this is what my garden looks like in my head come away in for a minute o peace, xx

Brave Babes Battle Bus
MaryMungoAndMidgies · 21/06/2016 22:13

This isn't my garden but it sure as shit is heading that way...

please stop raining please stop raining please stop raining

please stop digging please stop digging please stop digging

My family let her off with murder when I'm at work. I knew I should have lent her to the AWPR crew when the digging was in progess. She would have earned me gazillions.

aliasjoey · 21/06/2016 23:57

Wry all your talk of butteries/rowies had me licking my lips... So we finally booked a trip to Aberdeen in the summer! We're going North Grin I will admit your descriptions of hot buttered rowies probably was a major factor!

Then you let slip it's been pouring with rain, which is so NOT my vision of a bright, brisk day with the wind straight off the sea, and the granite sparkling in the sun Sad Sort it oot, will ye?

aliasjoey · 22/06/2016 00:11

Ma hope things are a bit better for you today? {t'interbosies}

Wry Sorry, I also meant to say glad you're feeling more positive, and yeah, maybe try that meditation at work; do a bit of chanting in the office, see how that goes down Grin

So, hmmm, my next challenge is to plan for Scotland holiday sober. I'm already worrying bout everything, and anxiety always makes me want to drink. Trying to organise it all, book accommodation, annual leave, arrange for kids and dog, make sure nothing clashes (it's getting out of my comfort zone we don't go away very often LOL)

I know, it's only Aberdeen, hardly a foreign country Wink but I haven't been for 4 years, and it's a long drive up. Plus thinking about being away from my usual sources of buying alcohol, I'm determined not to drink at all.

dementedma · 22/06/2016 07:28

A Scotland meet up is on the cards.....!

SweetLathyrus · 22/06/2016 08:06

Morning All.

Wry, glad it helped - as Venus said, it's not about emptying your mind, but about noticing and focusing on here and now - which is why it works so well for guilt and anxiety. I found exercises that lead you through different aspects useful - so it might be the sounds around you, or lying down and really focusing on your body. The one I couldn't do was eating mindfully - concentrating so hard on the textures etc made me gag!

But your dog-ravaged garden sounds lovely - even the spider on the Cotoneaster Arch (though I'll swap you fecking huge and scary for the not so huge but still fecking scary false widow in my greehouse that must be on holiday from the garage! I'm also contemplating how long it would take to get my own arch - it must vibrate with bees?

Ma, small victories Smile

*Joey, this is why I leave travel organising to DH as much as I can - I think it's about the stress of getting it right because a holiday is supposed to be perfect! Actually so many of my childhood memories are about how much we enjoyed the unexpected and even the rain!

Well, day three for me, slept really well, but have managed to put on two pounds Sad, and my rosacea is looking, and feeling, furious. I know I need to keep going; I know it's going to get better; but bloody hell why is it so testing?

I must go now, have to phone the vet because Sweet Pup seems to have scratched his eye running through undergrowth last night.

fadingblonde1 · 22/06/2016 09:57

I'd love that garden wry. The 800 calorie diet is not nice! I think you are supposed to feel energised after the first few days but right now definitely not. I've not felt too hungry - but that's not really my problem, I'll eat when I'm not hungry because I like food - but I do feel weak and ratty. The rattiness could be a not unwinding with wine thing, and just general stresses.

I've got an appointment today at the job centre and have to show I've spent 30 hours this week looking for work (I have been looking but it hasn't taken 30 hours). I'm tempted to just tell them to cancel my claim. I'm only eligible for contributions based jsa and thought I'd apply to see if I could access training/retraining courses. I think I can but the adviser told me that for all it's a contributions based benefit there was the 'expectation' that I not claim if i could support myself with my redundancy payment. I suspect I will be somebody coming straight off the unemployment statistic without being employed...

SweetLathyrus · 22/06/2016 14:32

Fading, 800 calories sounds excruciating, but I suppose at least there is no room for wine in that!