I’m sat here procrastinating and worried about the future, I’ve read that roughly 60% will relapse in the future. I just wondered, if anyone has been sober for over a year and how do you deal with the cravings or thoughts of going back? At the moment going back is the last thing on my mind but I worry because I want to be done for good.
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Hi Matt. I have just over 5 and a half years. Thinking about the future is a scary thing to do. It sounds so clique but it really does help to take it a day at a time ( a minute at a time if needed) The days rack up! I try and stay on the present and think I won’t drink today. I will do what ever it takes today to stay sober. Then tomorrow I go with the same principle. It also sounds clique but the longer you stay sober the easier it gets. I really do promise. It sounds like you have decided that you do not want to drink anymore and this is a great decision. Remember to take it one step at a time. Work on why you felt the need to drink. And start to put plans in place in the times when you would have drank. Think about picking up a hobby, something you used to like to do for fun before booze overtook everything. Or maybe something you’ve always wanted to try. If you put in the work it will be worth it. I spent a lot of time on here in my early sobriety. This place is my only sober support and I am so glad I have here. Keep going. You are worth a sober life! 
there are some great quit lit books out there. I read this naked mind by Annie Grace, it explains why we do what we do and how to deal with the early days. The other one was Allen Carr. The easy way to stop drinking. That one is fantastic and helps understand how we got stuck. You could download from Amazon or get the books. Both really helped me 
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My advice: don’t future trip. I am sober 1200 days, I think, and for all I know, I can’t be certain that I will be sober next year. All I can do is stay sober today.
One step at a time. Keep moving forward, you hit this. 
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Hi, im 2.5 years i agree with not future tripping…keep working at your sobriety each day and take it a day at a time, i found that by working on my sobriety my thoughts on staying sober changed and grew over time, i still get hard days sometimes but ive plenty in my sober tool box to deal with those including reaching out on here if i needed support.
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As others have said, take it one day at a time. It’s like anything really, trying to figure out the future for any part of your life can be daunting.
Always remember why you quit, write down all the crap that has happened to you when you were not sober, remember how you felt, remember all that you lost or almost lost because of it. When cravings hit, your brain will romanticise drinking (or whatever your doc). Have that list available to read as a reminder of what will actually happen if you drink/drug again.
Tell yourself that you are done for good, but deal with it in the smallest steps - just don’t have that first drink.
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I have been sober 8 years and I don’t have cravings or desires to drink. I also agree with the others…staying in the present helps…not that it is exactly a piece of cake lately. But I cannot predict what is going to happen…but I DO 100% KNOW I am not drinking today. That helps keep me sane. Keep going. 
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live in the day makes it easier and time will go bye and life will get better , if id thought about how id be weeks and months down the line id prob had problems staying sober but here i am in my 39 years this sept sober , you only have the day so stay in it make the most of your sobriety wish you well
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If you try and live in the future you’ll cause yourself all kinds of stress.
Keep the focus on today, work at your sobriety, create a life you don’t want to escape from, have a What if plan… What if I get a craving… Ill call a friend, check in here, make sure Im hydrated and have eaten… etc.
Cravings, or any feelings at all, are temporary. Just learn to ride the feeling and know it’ll pass.
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Now that’s material to print on a tea towel 
That says it all. As annoying as the ODAAT saying can get sometimes, it helped me stay present in the beginning of my journey. And now, with just over 2 years sober, I live it daily without questioning it.
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Hi Matt, wishing you well, and you may find this thread helpful too.
It is possible. It always involves learning and change and accountability, and it is possible.
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7.5 years here. I went to AA, got a sponsor, worked the steps. Step work has taught me how to clean up my past wreckage, stay present in my current moments, and gives me strength and acceptance to take on future problems as they arise.
I have not had a craving for drugs and alcohol in many years.
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Thank you and congratulations on 8 years! Wow!
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39? Now that’s impressive and inspiring, thank you!
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Thank you, that is sound advice. I’m proud I made it to day 5 and all this time I had about 12 cans of beer in my car, just gave them away and let’s just say it made me very popular when I did the tip run aha.
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I have been sober 7 years this past Sunday. First dont dwell on the 60% what iffs…dwell on the 40%.
Getting sober went far past “just not drinking”. I had to learn how to live. I went to AA, recovery Dharma, and various other things to help me live differently.
First and foremost…I lived on here for the first 6 months.
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Good you got rid of those cans. It’s good for nothing to hold on to booze you might have left over. I know some people early in sobriety keep some in store, to ‘prove to themselves they can do it’. Recipe for disaster.
My six year sober annie should be coming up in June. Which will be my achievement and my recovery work. Which I keep doing one day at a time and which is no punishment but a reward instead. Learning how to live my life as I should have lived my life all along.
The past is gone. The future is not here yet. What we have is today. Together with our fellows, and the whole of humanity today we work on a better future. It’s daily work but it’s no chore. It’s a work of love. .
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Thank you and congrats on almost 6 years!
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