DRY 17

[Loubilou09]

[This message is actually from Sober Sarah! She wanted this thread to start with links everyone will find useful. MNHQ]

If you're quitting alcohol for a brighter sober future come and join us here. A very welcoming bunch supporting ebach other every step of the way. smile
We have put together some helpful info and links, to help you do this Smile tiredofthinkingaboutdrinking.com

Tired of thinking about drinking, Belle's website filled with free stuff as well as subscription courses and an account of her four years sober.

joinclubsoda.co.uk/ Club Soda - to help you make the change you want.
www.sobersassylife.com Sober Sassy Life - A Selection of Articles, Blogs and Freebies to get you unstuck, and on the way to your Sober Sassy Life! Also has paid for courses.
thesoberschool.com/ - an online hub with the mission of inspiring and supporting women who are tired of feeling hungover

www.blogtalkradio.com/bubblehour - podcasts on a huge range of issues relating to addiction and recovery

www.smartrecovery.org.uk/ - an alternative to AA. Meetings nationwide and online.

Useful meditation or relaxation apps
www.headspace.com Headspace for calming the brain chatter
www.withandrewjohnson.com Andrew Johnson stop drinking app
Helpful blogs from people who are sober
sothisissober.com/ our own vxa's blog
www.alcoholfree2016.com our own Lily's blog
www.alcoholfree2016.com our own Lucy's blog
www.sobergrowing/blogspot.co.uk our own Sober Sarah's blog

All of these blogs contain links to loads of other brilliant blogs.

Sobriety counters
meetnomo.com/index.html
www.pilanites.com/streaks/

Hope this helps you ! Love Sober Sarah and Vxa

Hi Arty. day 3 here.

Hi AntiGrinch. :)

Day 16. Feel pretty overwhelmed by negative emotion today. Dreading a holiday next week with family I've not seen for a while. Will of course involve a lot of booze. I will do my best not to take part.

Anyway day at a time today I won't drink.

Hope you are all well

Morning...

Struggling with diet generally at the moment, subsisting on a diet of crap, with extra haribo for good measure... Trying not to be too hard on self, as bigger picture says staying off the booze has to be number one priority, but it's not helping my general mindset...

Although, to be fair, many things are not helping my mindset, all the reasons for drinking to excess are still there, and I need to deal with them...

Trying to move house at the moment, to the other side of the country - for good reasons... but of course moving is not without it's own stresses and tribulations, so I know (in my logical brain) that it's no surprise I am struggling a little... It just always seems to be "something" - always something as an excuse, or maybe not an excuse, but something to push my buttons emotionally...

Just heard I got the flat - so more stress for me, but hopefully positive stress - if that makes any sense whatsoever!!

Trying to suck it up...

Onwards

Agree with you on about the bigger picture BGJ43. And still having all the reasons there (obviously I'm still really early days) I'm not even sure what those reasons are yet!

Congratulations on the flat!!

Day 17. Really had to be firm on myself to not get wine today. Kept thinking about buying wine..... I didn't but it's been tough.

You can buy wine tomorrow, always tomorrow...

Unfortunately I do know the reasons behind my drinking - they are many and varied, and seemingly increasingly so...

But, in a relatively good place in that I know drink won't make them less varied or complicated... and for now (I've never said forever) that's ok...

But it is hard, it's entirely engulfing, it's counter culture!!

So I keep on keeping on...

Onwards!!

You are so right.... always wine tomorrow!!!!

It is engulfing. I'm pleased you are in a good place x

Morning ladies. Patchwork I am one of the oldies from the earlier threads - Dry 10 was my first I think when I was trying to stop and kept deciding after a few days that I could moderate - which of course I couldn't.

I am coming up to 15 months dry. Still looking in on this board often to see how everyone is getting on. x

Hi ladies, can I rejoin you?
I first tried quitting way back on thread 10, did ok and then fooled myself into thinking I could control it. It got quite out of control again, so I'm now on day 2.

I know I need to do this. Wine is responsible for every single problem I have, or at least not helping.

Wine has a lot to answer for MayDupp.

Vxa2 15 months that's amazing. Do you have any tips? I am thinking more and more maybe I could moderate but I know deep down this isn't possible for me.

I would say self-care - treat yourself as something precious to be cherished because that's what you are. Get enough sleep, eat as well as you can but don't beat yourself up if you eat junk. Have sober treats planned - a bubble bath, reading, buying some flowers for yourself with the money you save.

plan - especially when you have something coming up which may put you at risk of drinking - think about what you are going to drink and even practice saying it out loud. Have a response ready for if someone asks you why you aren't drinking and have an escape planned so that if you need to leave you can.

When you have cravings play the tape forward to the morning after and imagine how you will feel if you don't drink (fantastic and proud) and if you do (crap).

Ask for help - online but also in real life if you can. Read sober blogs, listen to the Bubble Hour.

I could go on and on. It's a really tough journey but it is worth it - my life is SO much better. The support here is fantastic. I still have cravings from time to time but I know they will pass. I still take one day at a time.

You can do this ladies- keep going and if you have a wobble get back to it. Feel free to PM me.

Thank you vxa2 that is so helpful x

Can I join you? I've had enough of drinking my way through problems and adding to them. I'm so fed up. Can't say much more right now but I'd love some support.

Hi everyone

I did well on this thread last year and then started back with the odd drink. No disasters but I want to be sober. I feel so much better physically and mentally when I don't drink.

So I'm doing Belle 100day , reading her daily email.

I run a lot so I've been listening to Rich Roll podcast he's an ultra runner in recovery, he has very interesting guests.

So I'm day 12 today.

Hello welcome semi urban!

Efc I run ... not ultras though so thank you for that podcast recommendation!

Day 19 today. Have a family holiday next week lots of alcohol will be drunk just not by me. No way out just need to have lots of reasons when asked if feel ok saying.

Day 1
Thanks to this thread I've just discovered Belle and have signed up for the 100 days sober challenge.
Feeling crap today. Jetlagged and hungover and full of self loathing. Enough.

Hi urban I've just bought Belles book- she posts it from France so nice letter with interesting stamps! Felt like a bit of a treat.

Semi hope you enjoy it. Most I've ever run is 17 miles in one go. I like half marathons best.

Hope everyone has some nice sober plans x

Hi everyone.
I am now 20 days without a drink. I posted a couple of weeks ago asking about af beer and that is basically what has saved me from drinking along with fizzy water. If I have a craving for a drink I have a fizzy water first. If that doesn't curb the edge I have a cold becks blue. Physically I feel so much better but I'm assuming my body is detoxing from 30 years of booze because my face is erupting in new spots every time I look in the mirror. At nearly 50 I have more zits than I see on the local teenagers. Does anyone know how long this detox lasts. I want to be able to see improvement as well as feel them.

Hi hamsterannie I am 20 days af today too!

My skin is ok but I still feel exhausted most days. I wonder if that's still my body getting used to not drinking.

Hi saywhen. I didn't really think much about how I was looking until I saw a friend yesterday (we see each other only 2 or3 times a year) and she commented on it, asking about hormones and if I'd been to docs for it( we are / were close and she wasn't trying to be negative) But it's only been the past couple of weeks that my face has been like this so assuming it's from the lack of alcohol. Am googling face cream and peels as it type to try find something to help. Hopefully in another week or two I might start looking a bit more like me

Someone up thread said about alcohol impacting our hormones as I've been pretty emotional as well. So I would expect skin to be effected as well.

I am shocked my exhaustion persists it keeps reminding me and not letting me minimise the amount I was drinking....

There is a podcast by bubble hour about alcohol and hormones- very interesting it was an eye opener to me how hormone balance is altered by drinking.

Day 3 here. Managed a family event yesterday and of course it's Fathers Day today. My DH has offered me a glass of wine a few times and I've turned it down. Am feeling positive after reading some amazing stories on here.

Interesting read about the hormones - I'm going to listen to that when I get a chance. I have PCOS, but thinking back, the symptoms have become steadily worse since I started drinking in a non-sensible way.

Hamsterannie I went and got some AF beer this weekend as I was struggling with it all feeling so boring without my usual 'reward'. It worked really well for me! Still felt like I was having something 'weekendy' but without the getting smashed and the horrors of waking up wondering what I'd said or done. And of course feeling bright and energetic in the morning rather than dragging myself around in a groggy daze for a few hours.