I’ve been on this journey (loathe that word) for almost 30yrs and at one time stayed sober 9yrs…but of course I got cocky and the temptation is always there. I’m 62yo and since before last Christmas I’ve seriously wanted to stop. I don’t enjoy drinking anymore and I certainly don’t enjoy the morning after which was filled with remorse, regret and all the other negative personal feelings that go with it! I broke my collarbone and had three months off work and I live alone… I like my own company and I am a homebody but all that time to myself is when the drinking really got bad!! Gave myself an uppercut and am now under the care of my doctor and CADS which is if you are not from New Zealand it means Community for Alcohol & Drug Services. I am feeling positive, in fact I went to a west coast beach called Piha and watched the sunset. A big thing for me but I achieved it. I have set myself a task or two for tomorrow which of course I will try and do so when I go back to work Monday and someone asks (but doesn’t really want to know) how was your weekend… I can say with pride ‘Amazing, thank you’!
Hello,
You deserve a life of sobriety and you deserve happiness.
It is hard giving up the booze, it is always in there, looking for a way out. But nothing positive brings with itself.Only depression, sadness…
This wonderful sunset is the beginning of your new life. A life of enjoying sunsets, sun, rain, happiness, sadness, anger…but always sober.
Good luck! best regards.
Welcome, Sheralee! Your story resonates with me. I had a long time of striving, sometimes to stay sober, sometimes to drink the way I wanted. After I did get sober, I realized that I was never able to drink the way I wanted - I either overshot the mark or I found I did not enjoy it! Alcohol worked to shut off my thoughts and cares for some number of years. It stopped working for me long before I stopped trying to make it work, though.
If that CADS program means enforced abstinence or at least holds you strictly accountable for staying sober, that could be a good thing. I had a similar circumstance when I got sober. My accountability was administered by the courts and police, but it was what I needed, a daily requirement to prove my sobriety backed with the threat of jail. I did that for daily for 5 months and it was a huge aid to my physical recovery from booze. I had another 2 and half years on house arrest and parole after that, with random checks on my sobriety.
Being a drunk is hard work - it was a full time job for me, and I already had a job and family responsibilities. And getting sober and growing my sobriety was not easy, but it was far easier than continuing with the booze.
I have learned there is a world of difference between abstinence, that is being dry, and being sober. Sure, sobriety requires abstinence, but for me, being dry without a program, a plan, a team, was impossible. That’s one of the things I love about Talking Sober - it gives me some of the connection that I crave and sought under booze. Growing my sobriety, in addition to my sentence for drunk driving, included being on disulfiram, going to individual counseling, going to AA, completing the court ordered outpatient rehab program, and these days, daily participation on Talking Sober.
I’ve been blessed with the grace to stay sober for a lot of days in a row, but all I really have to do is stay sober today until my head hits the pillow tonight. I adopted that attitude early on, and it has served me well. I believe that you can have sobriety, peace of mind, and happiness. You deserve it, for sure.
Blessings on your house 
as you begin your journey.
Welcome Sharalee! 
Thank you for sharing a lil bit about yourself. A lot of us can certainly relate. Glad you’re here and hope to see you more.
Wishing you the best on your journey.