Becoming Sober (Page 29)

Congrats to Yanti and Hilde!  Very awesome and inspiring to hear about your long term sobriety.

Erica {MELON PRESS} you inspire me every single day.

Thanks for your answer Triaya; it makes sense.  My ^%$#@! has also brought me the gift of humility and then of course the stumbling block of,

" HUMBLE OH SO HUMBLE YEP HUMBLEST OF 'EM ALL THAT'S MEEEEEEE ... oh, wait. " 

Funny how that works!

Another question for y'all:  Why did sobriety finally catch on for you?  Why did the initial attempts not work?

Ebshot, I hope you are hanging tough.

Ponzinelli, I enjoyed that article.

It's two pretty simple things for me.  

1. I finally wanted to NOT drink more than I wanted TO drink.

2. I was finally ready to accept that *I* did not have the answer; I needed help.

It's Step 1.

This.  Step one.  I finally let go and admitted I couldn't fix this by myself.  I totally let go and went to meetings and did what was suggested.  Things couldn't be better now..

On a side note, please pray for a still suffering friend of mine.  They found him outside at night, he had been there for 4 hours unconscious it was 25 degrees out.  Two days prior and two days after it was well below zero, A higher power must have been at work.  He was in ICU for 4 days, and can't move his right arm (He was laying on the nerve).  He so badly wants to beat this thing, yet looked what happened.  It is cunning, baffling and strong !

Cgregg and Triguy,  how long from when you first thought you might be alcoholic to when you (I suppose I mean you, god and every support system you could find) managed to make sobriety stick?

I've heard of old timers at AA telling beginners that they might not be ready to stop drinking.  From what is being said this seems true.

And I also know plenty of people that went to their first meeting and never used again. That's not my experience, but it's theirs. You actually get to choose what yours is.

oh, hey... A.M. Happy B-day to me.

Happy Birthday! Congratulations! It's so beautiful to see it working for those who work it Here's a cake for you. We don't make much fuss about birthdays here, most meetings don't even ask about them. But we should! Perhaps I should start a tradition.

For me?  About 16 years.   I really do not recommend that approach.  

For that long, I *knew* (whether I would fully acknowledge it or not) that there was an issue... but I kept BS'ing myself that I could handle it - it was just youthful exuberance, or I just needed to learn how to drink, or simply "this time will be different".  In hindsight, I can now see that it was simply that I didn't want to give up the drink. I was willing to lie to myself about the truth as long as it allowed me to keep doing what I was doing.

It was finally just a matter of getting to the point where I could no longer hide the truth from myself and completely Accepting what I'd already known for years. Unfortunately, pride and ego made me try all the ways that DON'T work before I was willing to try the one that does.

HAPPY HALF A CAKE, Erica! I am so thrilled with and inspired by you. I thought of you and your family today in prayer like I do every day.

Heck, I *still* think I can drink in moderation sometimes. Definitely the disease talking ... as a general rule, non-alcoholics do not sit around and wonder if they are alcoholics, or obsess about drinking. They just drink, or don't.

First year was really tough for me. The Big Book and Dr. Bob's story also make it clear that he struggled a lot with the desire to drink for a couple of years. It does happen--sometimes the removal of the obsession is slow, but it always comes and if we ask for it I guarantee we are given the grace to stay sober just today.

THAT'S HUGE!!! Happy 6 months!!!

EB... I was ranting one time to a lady, and she just looked at me and said maybe I was nt done. I was like WTF? "This isn't enough. Do I have to loose everything"... she said, "Ya, you just might". And that is what I proceeded to do for the next two years... and at the end of it, I was told the exact same thing I was told 2 years earlier.... go to meetings, get a sponsor, work steps, help others. It's really that simple. I look back at that first year and it seemed like such an easy time... I didn't have to fix anything, I didn't have to figure anything out...I just had to make it 24 without drinking. My head was a LOT clearer at 6 months. Theres no going back. Nobody is making me do anything, and I got all my stuff back and more. I can go do what ever the heck I want and nobody can stop me. I freely choose this way of life, because after trying both, this really is the easy way. You are on your way EB, one foot in front of the other.

WOOT WOOT! Thanks TA.

You should. It's important. Not the cake part, bu the milestone/reflection part. I never need a reason to eat cake.

Took me two tries.  I was probably a full blown alcoholic for about two years (Meaning hiding bottles, lying, telling myself this is a problem etc)..  I went o A.A. the first time and lied, never worked the steps, never got a sponsor, stopped going to meetings.  I lasted 9 months before I drank again and when I did drink, there was no control.  I blacked out on Christmas Eve..  That was it, I went to a meeting and "Gave Up" I just listened and did what they told me.  I now have a year and two months, and things are going good...

I used to think that everyone was like powerman described: "go to a first meeting and never used again".  This thread has been eye opening as far as realizing how ding *&^% dang *&^% blasted difficult that first year is and probably beyond the first year for many (not to mention the years when life is just tough and requires a re-commitment to sobriety).  Because of this, I have a new found respect/awe for what you all have been through and what Ebshot is doing right now.

Happy birthday to all and many more to come!

Ran into a person I used to party with on Tuesday.  She was actually the speaker for the meeting.

It was kinda neat to listen to someone else's lead and realize that I was there for some of it; it brought back a LOT of reminders of why I am where I am today.  It was a nice little gift of perspective

ebshot - 2013-02-15 5:00 PM I picked up my 6 month coin last night.  It's a nice blue.  I like it. 

Cool!  Congrats

ebshot - 2013-02-15 4:00 PM I picked up my 6 month coin last night.  It's a nice blue.  I like it. 

Way to go!

Congratulations Ebshot.  From what you have said, that blue chip was not easily acquired.

I do hope things will get easier but either way, please keep posting and I for one will keep flinging electronic accolades at you.

I am deeply grateful for the courage, strength and persistence you have shown as it helps so much with my own struggle.

Hello. I've seen this thread for the past year, but never opened it until today.  Today marks 6 days sober for me.  I'm not sure if I am an actual alcoholic, as alcohol never gets in the way of work or anything else that needs to be done and I never have a drink until the day is completely done, but I would guess that I went to bed (somewhat) drunk at least 75% of the nights in 2012.  I'm not sure if that makes me an alcoholic, but it must be close.  What is also interesting is that I was able to train for and complete two IM's as a (borderline) alcoholic.  That is what confuses me about my problem - am I a full blown alcoholic or do I just need better balance in this area of my life?  I am also having relationship issues with my wife and we knew alcohol was an issue, but did not know how much.  We just had a great alcohol free weekend and we know being sober will help us immensely in the long run!

I gave up alcohol for Lent and I am fairly certain I will be able to stay sober for the 46 days of Lent as I made this commitment before God, which is more important to me than any sip of alcohol.  I have not had any real urges or temptations to drink since I decided to stop last week, but I have a work function where I will be tested.  However, I feel very strongly about my promise to myself and God during Lent so I should be fine with diet coke tonight.  

My goal is to come out of Lent as a social drinker and would like to teach my body that alcohol is the exception and not the rule.  If however, after Lent I start even leaning towards my old drinking habits - it is off to AA I go with complete sobriety the next step.  

We will see where this journey brings me.  I would like to believe that I am the master of my own domain and I can control what I put into by body.  But if I cannot, I am prepared to stand in front of a room and admit I have a problem.  

Thanks for the support and good reading in this thread.