On day 2 here without drinking. Just want to be a better me again. More happy. More content. I quit for a while before. Here’s to taking it day by day. I hope all you guys are doing ok! Staying strong! Much love everyone. #wegotthis What do you do to kick the cravings?
Hello @HeiltsukWarrior, and welcome to the forum! You’ll see it all over here “Never crave alone”. I’ve heard in AA the saying that my mind is a dangerous neighborhood that I shouldn’t go into alone - pretty much the same meaning. We drank because on our own, with only our own personal resources (which can be formidable, don’t get me wrong) we could not resist the urge or craving or inner demand to consume some alcohol. And of course, once we start, the phenomenon of craving becomes stronger and even more intolerable.
You can check out an AA meeting or something similar (SMART Recovery and Refuge Recovery are a couple of others I’ve heard of). At an AA meeting, you can get phone numbers of people who will absolutely welcome your call, anytime day or night. You can make the connections to draw strength from when the cravings come.
That’s pretty much what I did and it worked for me. Other folks have other experiences, so keep poking around here and I’m sure you’ll find more. There are threads just for newbies, use the search tool for “newbie”. Blessings on your house and you start your journey.
Thank you so much! That is great advice! And I very much appreciate it. This couldn’t be a better place to reach out and talk to others on similar paths. Much respect and blessings sent your way as well.
I’m currently sitting on day 2 as well, today was a rough one. But I’m sure like many it can and will be done, one day at a time. I recently started reading this book called “the naked mind,” it’s a gives you a great understanding. Stay strong! We got this!
Hey and welcome. Achieving a better you is a great motivator, isn’t it? Can’t do that when you’re drinking. I know I tried to better myself for years without getting far, because my alcohol use sabotaged every effort and result. Since putting down the drink and leaving it there, I’ve made way more progress and I’m happier than I’ve been in a long time.
The further away you are from alcohol, the easier it is to say no. No craving lasts forever – if you can’t make it go away, you just need to outlast it.
At the beginning, saying no was at its hardest, so I made it as difficult as possible to access alcohol – staying away from anywhere alcohol was available, and leaving my wallet with someone I trusted so I couldn’t buy any.
Once I’d adjusted more to not drinking, I didn’t need to do that so much. I mostly kept busy doing something whenever a craving came. Being busy didn’t keep me sober in itself, but it kept me a few steps further away from grabbing a drink than I would be if I had just been sitting there bored or wallowing in my feelings.
Eventually the cravings became very few and far between. My brain didn’t really feel an alcohol-shaped hole anymore, so it stopped asking (craving) for it to be filled nearly so much. Alcohol was just not a relevant part of my life anymore.
So that covered resisting cravings in the moment, for me. Equally important, though, and I can’t stress this enough, is that I had to change myself in order to stop seeing alcohol as a solution or necessary. Recovery is more than just not drinking. I want to be a me who does not want to drink, a me whose goals are wholly incompatible with drinking. This is harder but far more robust than just not drinking. This is where following a program is immensely valuable. It can be AA, SMART Recovery, something else, some people even roll their own path, but whatever it is, it’s wise to follow in the footsteps of people who have been successful for a length of time. I fell flat on my face trying to just follow how I wanted to do things.
Just some things to consider. Good job on day 2, that’s the first sprint out of the way. Nothing great is accomplished without a beginning
This is a list I made to stay sober. There’s also something in it about kick the cravings:
- No alcohol in my house
- Refrigerator filled with nice food and alc. free drinks
- Telling my spouse about my sober plan
- Avoid alcohol related activities and friends (at least in the beginning)
- Having a day counter
- Avoid wine/beer section in the supermarket and avoid liquor store
- Taking a strong vitamine B complex
- Taking melatonin to help me sleep
- Be gentle to myself, like go to bed early, taking a long bath, etc.
- Doing relaxing activaties like meditate, yoga, walking, etc.
- When I have cravings: I don’t pick up that first one but I walk, run, work out, eat chocolat, watch Netflix, clean, study, whatever.
- Ask for help when I need it.
- Be here every day to read and check in sober.
Hope to see you around here often! I’m here every day since my day 1 and now more then 10 months sober, you can do that too!
Go for it!
Try a AA meeting they help wish you well
Thank you guys for the insight and experience you share. Reading these helps me feel so much better and inspired. I look forward to using this daily. Much respect and gratitude for sharing your knowledge everyone. I hope your day is going well today.
- “Telling my spouse about my sober plan”
This was a big one for me. Because part of me didnt want to tell my girlfriend or family about it In the beginning because I knew they would treat me differently, and by treat me differently I mean help me. But part of me didnt want to make it known because I really wasnt sure I wanted to let go of something I loved so much (alcohol) and letting the people around you know about your problem may prevent me from drinking in the future when I wanted to. I ended up relapsing on that stretch of sobriety. So it is very important to tell people if you are serious about getting and staying sober. Now I’m glad I told my coworkers my lady and my family because when I get a really strong craving I call one of them and they remind me how well I’m doing without it and do i really want to go back to all the bullshit that comes with drinking and start over, bc I’m the type of drinker that when i drink i drink full time and say screw everyone else and everything else job ect. In my opinion it’s important to tell someone, it builds another support system. Well said on the list
Congrats on the 2 days that’s no small task. In the beginning, I just focused on anything that would take my mind off drinking for any amount of time. I mostly veered towards entertainment, television and video games. Keeps your mind busy doesnt require you to make any moves in life, just kick back relax eat drink water. Not drinking should be number 1 and if you are doing that you are winning in that moment. Sometimes when cravings would get really strong I’d eat until I was so full I couldnt think of putting anything else in my body lol not the healthiest approach but it worked for me on more than one occasion. Try to think about what you liked doing before you drank. I skateboarded alot when I was a kid so I tried picking that back up for a bit helped me through some cravings.
Very kind! I am happy to say day 3, in the books, wasn’t too terrible, there were sometimes but I’m headed to bed, feeling good.