One year sober

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I first got drunk when I was 20 (even though the legal drinking age here is 18.) I liked the feeling. I discovered that I liked drinking when I was out with friends.

I went from social drinking, to social drinking combined with problem drinking. I was often binging, with or without friends - yes, I didn’t really have a problem with drinking alone. I drank when I felt bad, and I felt bad often. For a few years, I even kept a liquor stash in my room. Alcohol was my medication. I was never a full-time alcoholic, but there was definitely a problem there.

A few years ago, I gradually began to drink less. (This was combined with me getting help for some of my problems, though the alcohol problem itself wasn’t being addressed.) I got rid of my liquor stash and didn’t drink alone anymore, and I didn’t drink all the time when I was with friends. In the past few years, I liked to think that my drinking problem had gone away, and that my drinking was under control.

On December 10 of last year, I drank some sort of amount of wine at an office party. I’d thought it wasn’t a lot - but the next morning, I got up at 3 or 3:30 and puked until 6 AM. That’s when I finally said to myself, “This has got to stop. This is finally it. I’m not going to drink again.” I realized that I had turned into that person - the person who gets drunk at the office party. I realized that I had proven, time and again, that I couldn’t control my drinking. So, even though alcohol had been an important part of my life for a time, I decided I was not going to drink again.

And, since then, I have not gotten drunk.

I quit drinking quietly, and didn’t tell many of my friends at first, but lately, I’ve been a bit more open about it. I guess I didn’t want to tell my friends at first, in case I relapsed or something, or because they might think I was judging them for still drinking and that I was being self-righteous about it. I’m not - other people can drink, it’s just that I myself had to give up alcohol.

Sometimes it’s been a real struggle for me not to drink. But sometimes it’s not too hard.

I hope I can continue not drinking.

2

Congrats!

3

Thanks, ddsun. :slight_smile:

4

Good for you. And good luck in the future. Too many people hurt themselves with drink.

5

Good job. I come from a family of alcoholics. I finally came to the realization that every instance in my life that I behaved like an asshole or embarrassed myself, it was when I was drunk. I still drink, but it’s on the order of a glass of wine or a glass of beer once in a while; and by once in a while, I mean perhaps once or twice a month, if that.

6

Thanks, guys. :slight_smile:

7

Hearty congratulations to you! Well done!

8

Cool.

FYI, my girls loved the cards you sent. The little one promptly covered herself in gingerbread men stickers and then giggled madly.

Thank you.

9

Thanks, all. :slight_smile:

LavenderBlue, glad your kids liked the cards. :smiley:

10

Very well done.

11

Another round of congrats on me. Ain’t easy but its worth it.

12

Félicitations! Congratulations! Gratulojn!

13

Good job, EmilyG! :slight_smile:

14

Hang tough. You are on the right track…

15

WTG, Emily!

16

Recovery is hard. And booze is a bitch to give up. So well done, you. Don’t think you need to keep quiet about this - it’s easier with help.

17

Thanks, everyone. :slight_smile:

18

Cheers! (grape juice) Be well.

19

Thanks, kayaker. :slight_smile:

20

Congratulations on your 1 year anniversary EmilyG!

Yeah, 3 hours of throwing up is an attention-getter. I’ve always been grateful that I can barely tolerate the taste of alcohol. It tastes like what I’d imagine poison would, so getting hooked on it was never in the offing for me. Someone who did, recognized what it was doing and then put an end to it - that’s awesomeness of a very high caliber. Good for you - literally! :slight_smile: