I’m 23 days away from my 1000th day of sobriety. I have an amazing life I have worked my ass off to get. I’m in school I work full time often 60 hour weeks. I’m in the best relationship I have ever had. Everything is going great for me but for some reason I just can’t get the needle off my mind lately. Do I think I would actually act on these relapse thoughts? No I don’t but they still are there in my ear constantly reminding me of what addiction is. 1000 days clean and here I am still looking into the past like these 3 years have meant nothing. I don’t understand these feelings.
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Welcome to TS. I don’t have nearly as much clean time as you and my DOC is alcohol so maybe not the same thing but I find that the thoughts of drinking (or using in your case) can appear at any time no matter how good things are going.
I’m in the same boat as you…my life has been amazing since I stopped drinking. I still have those thoughts of “ahh the good old days” every once in a while. The best I can do is just remember all the reasons I quit and make sure I don’t pick up again.
This probably did help much but just wanted to say you aren’t alone.
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The three years don’t mean nothing. The three years are why u are reaching out here, why you won’t actually act on the cravings. Milestones bring up reflections, and with them, cravings. The voices will give up and slink away eventually.
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I had three years sober and slipped on Friday it’s horrendous but not too late for you as you haven’t done it yet.
My advice from my recent experience is assess what’s changed in other areas of your life. What you are or are not doing now that’s changed from the last three years.
God bless 
. Please don’t give in to that bullshit mate
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I think this is a good reminder that material things are not what keep us sober. What were the tools you used to get yourself to 1000 days? Those are things I would be going back to focus on now. For an addict all the good cash and prizes of recovery do not matter if we have gotten away from our recovery. From my angle it looks like you are quite busy and may be losing sight of the recovery. It’s tough to balance all of those things under good circumstances, much more diffucult while still remembering recovery. When I took over my new position I was working 50-60 hours a week pretty regularly, making time for family and the kids, but I always made sure to keep time for my recovery, because I knew that if I did not those intrusive thoughts were going to return.
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There is no time frame to our addiction. We are addicts for life and work always has to continue with our sobriety
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I’m 5 yrs and sometimes miss the euphoria adrenaline rush I would get
Now I just drive fast cars instead
Imo the needle is its own monster in it’s own
That’s one thing I struggled a lot with
But knowing now how far Ive made it makes me wanna keep going even more . Adventure and fun times are ahead . I don’t want track marks anymore. I find fun in other things now 
Maybe consider tattoo therapy? It helped me
Are you going to meeting do have a sponsor? I go to a lot of NA meetings I’m in service I have a sponsor I work the steps and I have a higher power that understands me. This is what works for me. It’s just a suggestion 
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