The Brave Babes Battle Bus - Go Sober For October?

[Mouseface]

Hello, 'tis me, Mouseface, welcome to the Bus, aka Gerarld.

We're a bus full of various Babes, from those who are as dry the Sahara, those who drink in moderation, those who binge drink and can go for weeks without a drop and then fall arse over tit (pardon the french!) straight off the bus and into the sidecar, and then we have Babes who try every single day to give up.

The thing is, we all do 'this' ONE DAY AT A TIME and with passion too. You have to WANT to stop with every fibre of your being.

And that's what this bus is about. We support each other. No matter how many times you fall of the Bus, we'll always be here to scoop you back up and listen.

So, come and join us. Lurk, or grab a seat, make sure you're comfy and enjoy the journey as we talk about the dreaded drink, plus everything from how expensive Tena Lady's are, to what's in the slow cooker!

We don't judge, this isn't a competition, it's our lives.

And if you'd like to read the last thread, HERE IT IS

Plus, if you'd like to see where the Bus started out, you can RIGHT HERE

Hope to see you soon xx

MsHoolie I'm sorry I've only just managed to catch up on the thread. You will get through this. I know what it felt like to withdraw. I used to feel terrified too but it will pass. Do you have any alcohol left? Just a small amount like pp said to stop the dts. It will pass, you will be fine. You might not get much sleep, I used to find getting up to make a glass of water or brushing my teeth helped. My heart goes out to you. Plenty have been where you are and come out the other side.

I hope you are OK MsHoolie.

Hi ma! Was lovely when I saw someone remembered me - thank you, you made me smile in amidst a shitty evening.

cardigan have you explored a medical detox? I know it may seem a mountain to climb but they are available confidentially through DAAT teams but you have to push yourself forward. I’m here tonight - I’m 8 hours behind the UK.

Oh and I believe the best advice for tapering is to do it on beer - wine or spirits in the amount you crave will just get you pissed again.

Would you like me to look up the quantities/timings for you cardigan?

I have had a bottle of beer and feel a bit better. Thank you all so much, I don't deserve your help. I'm going to go home tomorrow and will get some proper help.

Good and thank you for checking in cardigan

You do deserve help and you can do this - you are overwhelmed and need some support. Don't hesitate to seek it out.

Btw, my brain must be addled - I'm 5 hours behind, not 8! So I will be off to bed soon with my new knock me out stuff and a cup of Valerian tea. I hope to God they work tonight - last night I had the most horrendous stream of nightmares which culminated in me sobbing in the loo at some ungodly hour.

If you can share where you are going to stay I will try to help you with self-referring to DAAT/SMART if you like?

I really am going to bed now. Thank you all so much x

Morning hope you are feeling better mrshoolie
Some good advice there from tangfastics and if you can get through one night then you can do another today.

I think you need lots of sugary drinks and snacks to get through the next few days, might help. Hope you are through the worst now.

How are you today Mshoolie? Been thinking of you lots. Hope you got some sleep and that you are able to access some help today.

Thinking of you this morning MsHoolie. Hope your feeling better. You do deserve help

Hey MsHoolie I hope you have managed to get some sleep. I shall be thinking of you today.

Thank you all so much, you're so lovely. I feel pretty shit TBH but I'm still here. I'm going to try to get home today. I'm not going to give up.

Yes MsHoolie fight it like fuck! You can do it and your life will change for the better forever. I believe in you

Hope you get home today MsHoolie and get the help and support you need and deserve.

Hope we all have a great weekend!

Yes! Time to take this fucker down MsHoolie. Do you have far to travel home? Make sure you stock up on fizzy pop, water and sweet snacks for the journey. You can do this. You CAN!

Oh God, you're all so wonderful. One of my mum's just called by who happens to be a GP. She's gone off to get me some B vitamins. I literally haven't eaten a single thing for about 10 days. I really can't tell you all how grateful I am. I will beat this.

Mum's friend. I only have one mum.

Just catching up and sending much love to MsHooliesCardigan

Hello babes, I'm a lurker delurking to wish everyone well and to offer encouragement to MsHoolie in particular. I got sober via AA 3 years ago now, and my life is so much better. I'm an academic and term has just started, so I'm a bit of a mess with anxiety (as usual), but I'm so happy not to be drinking. Through AA I've learned better strategies to cope with stress (meditation, better self-care, etc) -- it's a journey!

Anyway, I just wanted to butt in and say to MsHoolie that based on your recent posts, I think you would really benefit from going into detox and/or rehab. In my area there's an organisation called Turning Point that can refer you; your GP can refer you too I think. Detox is a short-term stay in a facility where you can gradually get sober under medical supervision; there is moral and psychological support as well. However, detox doesn't always enable people to stay sober in the long run, so many people choose to go on from detox to proper rehab (which lasts longer and gives you a stronger foundation for your recovery). I have seen people who are unable to eat for days and unable physically to go without drink -- then they have got themselves into detox and it has turned their lives around.

You CAN have recovery if you want to, but it's dreadfully hard to do it on your own once you have reached that level of physical dependency. Please reach out to professionals for help, as dementedma and other babes have suggested.

Love and and opal fruits to all

Good luck MissHoolie you are in the right place here for some really amazing support.

Mixed news here. I got some news about my divorce last night and fell off wagon. Had a couple of G&Ts to celebrate. Bad I know. But at least I am beginning to be more aware of what is going on. I use alcohol as a reward when things go well and a comfort when things go wrong. And Ive had 3 AF days this week.

On the plus side, I have lost a bit of weight and have gone below the lowest I've been in 3 years. I still have 22lb to lose to get back to my target weight which I was in 2011/12 before I started piling it on. It probably coincided with me starting to drink more, when I think about it. I was on a bottle of wine a night so thats quite a lot of calories.
Need to buy multivitamins and start taking them. I read that alcohol stops your body absorbing certain minerals as well so thats another plus for cutting back.

Evening! Hope everyone is OK? I'm having a glass of elderflower fizz. Very nice . DS woke up feeling ill this morning - he was off school and I had to take the day off work. I'm on call all weekend from tomorrow morning so a 'cheat' weekend in terms of not boozing. And boring. Very boring. Poosticks.

Well done on the weight loss ruby
tang this bus moves so fast that you just can't name check everyone. Glad I spotted you.
I treated myself to a fabulous facial tonight before my trip to London on Sunday and the big event on Monday. The lovely lady gave me a free face pack to use on Sunday night too.

MsHoolie glad you are OK and please get specialist medical help. Not everyone can just stop drinking without it being not just uncomfortable but potentially dangerous. It's not necessarily just about how much you drink either, different people have different metabolisms and other physical factors which mean that stopping is going to be initially a medical as well as a willpower issue. Some people on 100 units a week may be able to come off without medical help, some on 50 may need the medical intervention.

As for me, Day 7 and I will not drink today. Last night was a bit hard, DH could not believe that I was not going to drink, "But it's Friday!". And then he drank a bottle of wine. I drank ginger kombucha and tried not to get into an argument with him. It was quite hard when he was a bit drunk and kept repeating himself, which was annoying, I suppose he always does that but I don't usually notice it because I am drunk.

Tonight will be harder, we have a social event and I am quite socially shy without the booze. And I will be surrounded by quite inebriated people. But I am taking my bottles of kombucha with me and I will keep reminding myself that I was able to socialise when I was pregnant and I didn't drink then.

One day at a time brave babes!

Go Silver

Day 6 here, survived Friday by keeping busy and not sitting down until 8pm. Got my first decent nights sleep aka no dripping in sweat, tossing and turning, palpitations etc

All in all feeling positive today, day 6.

I’ve got a bottle of ginger kombucha in the fridge - I really must try it!

Have a good sober day babes!

How are you today MsHoolie?
I drank a bit too much last night. Maybe 3/4 of a bottle of white wine. Didn’t sleep well at all, I’ve been sleeping so well lately since moderating and it just underlines that I must keep up the moderation or it’s a slippery slope. At least I left a few inches in the bottle and went to bed. A few weeks ago I’d have thought “may as well finish that”. Tiny steps and today is a new day. Being exhausted and stressed (which I am) is no excuse!