Welcome, Amanda! You show a lot of bravery for coming here to tell your story, to look for support, and to get help from the doctor. We have a lot of similarities - though my husband only brews beer as a hobby, it became what he spent a lot of time doing when the pandemic hit and he couldn’t play music in a band as his hobby. We also moved across the country after I quit my career in health care administration following burnout (exacerbated by drinking to cope, as well as the other reasons you described), then my husband was laid off and made the choice to move closer to family in 2019. Leaving a party lifestyle behind but also all our friends to somewhere we had no connections. We tried to make friends here but then came COVID. Tough stuff! This forum and the support I received, and then was able to give back in turn, made a huge difference for me in starting my sober curious journey. It took me months before I got the courage to go to the doctor and start some treatment in the middle of the pandemic. Good on you for getting your health managed!
Depending on the support you’re getting from your husband, there are some threads around related to dealing with partners who still drink that have helped me in the past, and I’m in the camp of being married to someone who doesn’t have a problem drinking in moderation. It just doesn’t work for me and I have stuck with starting each day committing to not drinking TODAY instead of thinking too far ahead. There are lots of resources out there for additional support, too:
Have a read around and if it helps at all, I’ve written quite a bit about my journey on my thread:
I look forward to seeing you around!
Rosa