Congratulations to you guys for continued sobriety. I'm feeling reflective today, it's been about 2 years since I started going to AA. I've seen that everybody's journey is unique to them and I appreciate hearing their stories.
For me, I feel like AA helped me connect to God, who, along with God's help through other people, has helped me do what I couldn't seem to do on my own. At one time I thought I would never stop drinking. Living my life in a different way has given me some transformation that I so desperately needed. I really thank everyone along the way.
I'm Stephanie and I'm an alcoholic.

250 days!

I am just finding this thread and wish I had found it long ago. I have been sober since January 8, 2017. At that time I was 50 years old and had been drinking since 6th grade, when I would have been 12 when I took my first drink. Once I got to high school, it became an issue, but I was smart, popular and had a really amazing guardian angel because I was able to do well, avoid big problems, and ended up at TAMU in 1984. I discovered other things to alter my consciousness in addition to alcohol and pretty much lived like Charles Bukowski for 4.5 years. But then, I met a woman who asked me to quit the other stuff, so I did. Alcohol remained a big part of my life, however. That woman and I went to law school together and got married and started our lives together. Thirty years and two now grown kids later, we are still married and by the absolute grace of God, I am sober. God worked a miracle in my life by simply taking away my desire to drink, so I never struggled with staying sober once I quit. He gave me a gift I didn't deserve and I will honor that gift until I die by not drinking ever again.

I share all that to share this with those who are newly sober or who are working at being sober: for the first few years after I quit drinking, I REALLY struggled emotionally to deal with any stress or upset in my life. I became a ruminating worrier and was prone to rage and melancholy. I realized that for the previous 35+ years I had been using alcohol as my most common coping strategy for dealing with difficult psychological situations. I didn't have good, safe, healthy coping strategies and skills developed because alcohol had been that for me.

So, if you are newly sober or just working through trying to be sober, please be aware that you are going to need time and support to develop good, safe, healthy coping strategies. For some, being in a community like AA or another type of support group might be how you learn to do that. For others, it might be faith and surrendering to God and learning to follow His ways. Or maybe it's a combination of that and more, but please just be aware that you might suddenly find yourself having very intense emotional/psychological experiences and you might not feel adequately equipped to deal with them. Seek help for that as well in whatever way you feel called to do so, but don't just suffer quietly. If you work at it and be patient with yourself you can do it.

Finally, make sure your loved ones and friends are aware that you might be going through a process of learning new coping skills as you live soberly. This will help them to help you and be patient with you during those times that you act out in ways that they might otherwise not understand.

Just a few thoughts that might be helpful.

Of course you can pray for me. I need all the prayers I can get.

Unfortunately, the nearest AA meeting is 40 miles away. I can't believe a church around where I am at doesn't host one.

Hoose,

I am 544 days in. And let me tell you, I didn't think I'd ever see more than 2 or 3 at a time and that was usually only after something bad happened or I felt like absolute death.

It's possible. You have been a huge help to me with lifting. I look at not drinking the same way I look at lifting - it's a personal challenge for me. I did tons of reading, stuff like this thread and just surrounded myself with the ideas and thoughts of others who quit, just like I do now with lifting. I made it a lifestyle.

I saw a quote one day that basically said you don't really change until you become something, rather than do something. I used to work out as an activity. Now I consider it as a part of the core of who I am. It's a slight change in your mind and mindset, but it's incredibly powerful once that switch flips.

Best of luck man. We are all rooting for you.

Celebrating 2 years today. I remember when I started my journey and thank y'all for the tips and tricks. Love y'all!

Listen to this learned man. He knows of what he speaks.

Hoosegow, submitted for your approval. If you had to travel forty miles to chemotherapy or dialysis, you'd be on the road as often as required. Alcoholism can kill you just as dead as cancer or diabetes.

300 days

I get out of a 28 day inpatient rehab tomorrow. Been sober a little over a month. My first AA meeting on the "outside" is tomorrow night. I've read most of the Big Book, and like someone else said it really doesn't seem like the Cult I made it out to be.

Gone thru several periods of sobriety then relapse the past 10 years or so. I'm ready to kick it for good this time. I'm am a bit frightened though, not going to lie.

1 day, 1 hour, 1 minute at a time...

I was apprehensive at first about going, but so glad I did. Felt right at home. There truly is a fellowship about people who just simply want to live life sober. Going to the 8 PMs every day for the foreseeable future.

350 days

I will not drink with you today

WillieAg08 said:

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Posting here to hold myself accountable. I've never felt I've "had" to drink, yet I've chosen to do so. I used to do so in access very frequently, but have for the most part had it under control for the last 8 years or so. I've let old habits sneak back up on me and I've lost control. Last night was the last straw. I'm done. Day 1 is today.

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Same. Last Feb I did a sober month and told myself I was good. Started out drinking low gravity beers like Mich Ultra. Welp, fast forward to December and I've slid back to daily vodka in amounts I don't even want to post. Total loss of control.

I'm done. No more. Alcohol is like that toxic friend you had in college. A lot of fun in the beginning but not interested or serious about getting a degree or the future. Sometimes you gotta separate yourself from a toxic friend and find a new one.

Let's do this!

I don't know that I heard this quote in the specific context of recovery or if it was in a different context and I find that I can easily apply it to recovery. Either way, it is one of my favorites.

"If it takes ten miles to walk into the woods, it's going to take ten miles to walk out."

To me, it's a reminder that this recovery thing isn't going to happen overnight and that it is going to be a hard but quite fulfilling endeavor. There are things that do happen overnight and many things that take way longer than someone like me would have expected or expect now.

I often have to remind myself that one of the biggest contributors to my drinking career was that I wanted what I want right now every single time. If I got what I wanted, then clearly I'm doing something right and therefore I could easily justify a drink (or 10). If I didn't get what I wanted, then it was clearly someone else's fault and everything was against me, and therefore I had to have a drink (or 15).

I conveniently missed the whole part about me and my selfish desires being the common denominator in either of those situations.

So, I have learned - and am still learning - that it's not about me, I'm not going to get what I want all the time, and the good things in recovery are going to take just as much or more time as all the bad stuff that I accumulated while drinking. It is unbelievably worth it, though.

2481 days today

Howdy, my name is Jim and I'm an alcoholic and a Texas Aggie. If my Aggie math is right, 4/4/24 marks a significant intersection of the two. As of 4/4/24 I have 12,000 days.

Also a shout out to a sponsee (sp?) celebrating 17 years 4/4/24.

I had a very similar experience to Rick.

I took a failry blunt approach to my relationships while quitting drinking and, what I thought at the time was, a selfish approach - that I'm doing this for me and if it affects someone else or my relationship with them that's more telling of their insecurities with alcohol and/or the superficial nature of our relationship. More or less, f 'em, this is about me. What I learned is that the decision was about me and not many other people really cared. Most of my friends were and are very supportive and our relationships really only changed from the standpoint of how late we hang out, haha. Sure, some relationships fizzled, but in retrospect those relationships were with the alcohol, not with each other, and added little real value to our lives.

I feel like I'm rambling a little bit here but ultimately I believe if you do what you think is best for the health and well-being of you and your family trust the rest will sort itself out. It's not worth the time and effort to worry about those things (other people's reactions) you cannot control.

All that said, today will be my 366th consecutive day without alcohol. I don't think that's happened since I was probably 15 or 16. I thought I would have some emotional revelation, breakthrough, or something today but I really don't feel anything but … normal, or how I think I'm supposed to feel not pouring poison in my body. I was more or less forced in to my journey to sobriety in February 2015 when I was arrested for a DWI, which I still struggle to deal with but in hindsight was a blessing in disguise. I've been "on and off the wagon" since but finally found what I needed to commit to being sober. This past year has been much easier than I thought it would and overall I would say my life is greatly enriched without alcohol. Quitting drinking certainly didn't solve all of my problems but I'm much better equipped to actually process and deal with them as necessary.

I feel like I'm rambling again, and maybe that emotional release I thought might come is on its way, but I thank you all for participating in this thread.

365 days!