Looking for some tips. On Friday the English premiership football season starts and Manchester United are live on TV at 8pm this would normally mean a lot of beer for me. Really don’t want that. Any defence tips helpful. Avoiding and not watching is not an option
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Well, you can read about the game in the papers the day after. Protect your sobriety first.
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I love my football. Really want to watch. I will watch at home and not in a bar
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Unless you’re playing in the game it most certainly is an option. I read the other day this season is going to long with all the extra tournaments. Is watching one game worth your sobriety. Man U is one of the richest franchises on Earth. They aren’t going anywhere. You’ll have thousands more games to watch sober.
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100% get this. I felt exactly like this at the beginning of my sober journey.
Looking back at that moment, i laugh at myself…because nothing bad would have happened to me if I missed my college team playing.
What I did, since I had to watch. I stayed home, and watched it. I spent the day cooking and preparing some really good food to enjoy during the game. I also had this forum up on my phone, and was active on here during the game.
What I found out? 1) i didnt need the beer, 2) the game was just an excuse to drinl, 3) sports really dont grab my attention…
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Everything you do is a choice you make. Ensure your sobriety or test it? For the sake of one game? You make the call.
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That’s the kind of thing I’m looking for. I watched a game last Saturday and before I really wanted to go and get some beers. I even got changed to go out but I fought it off and just drank water whilst watching it. It’s just the Friday night thing. . Thank you
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I would like to try and test it. If I get past that. It will be a massive step
And if you don’t get past it you’ll be stuck in a relapse? Seems like too big of a risk for me. Good luck
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I’m pretty confident I will. I watched a game on Saturday afternoon and got through it drinking water. It’s just the Friday night aspect of it. Thanks for replying
If you are at the point of “testing” it…you are not ready. Read around here, you will find more stories of testing it and failing.
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One of the biggest things i learned in my sobriety that if i have to question myself if ill be ok to do something or not i usually know the right answer. And the other thing is that absolutely nothing is worth losint my sobriety over… idc if i have a best friend who says he will never be my friend again if i dont attend his wedding blah blah or missing a christmas party, if i think my sobriety might be in danger then i will absolutely say hell no to those other things. I did alot of testing myself and can definitely say the biggest thing i learned is that there will always be another time. But with sobriety there may not be another chance.
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I will be at home watching it
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I don’t think I’ve watched a game in a bar since I quit drinking five years ago. It’s just no fun being in a room with a lot of loud rowdy drunk folks. Just never appealed to me once I quit. I do go to the stadium at times (Ajax fan here) and I don’t miss the drinking there, though I might have been tempted the first time I went there sober, which was allready quite some way into my sobriety. So there’s a risk and when you do go better be prepared well.
Being at home, with no alcohol there, and an absolute resolve not to go out and get any, or order it, is best. In general these sort of things (football, music gigs, festivals, concerts, theatre), all are much more enjoyable for me sober. For one thing I know what’s happening and remember it clearly afterwards. Enjoy your game, curious how many Ajax lads will be playing and how they will perform in the Premier League.
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That’s what I’m doing. Staying at home. Getting some food and I’m determined not to get any drinks. I’m pretty sure I can manage it. Thank you for the reply. Yes we have a few ex Ajax players now, and the manager
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If you are serious about not only getting into recovery and being well but in staying in recovery with no relapses (I have over 30 years in recovery, no relapses), you have to be willing to do whatever it takes. Quite literally, whatever it takes.
How hard is it for you to simply take this season off and not watch the games? Is it that hard? Maybe you are not as serious as you think you are about getting well. Have you considered attending AA meetings in the evenings when those games are televised?
We are talking about watching TV here. Are you going to allow your addiction to TV destroy your recovery?
Do you have a sponsor? Then meet with them on the days the games are on TV and meet them during the time you want to plop down on the couch and watch TV.
What is your recovery plan? Do you have one? If the answer is “yes” then you already have a plan to deal with this type of situation. Trust me, this is not a hard challenge for a recovering person. Wait until you lose someone close to you or you lose your job or you get a serious health problem. Those are the challenges that test your recovery program.
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Don’t know if anyone remembers my post about the Man utd match and worrying about drinking. Most of the advice centered around avoiding it all together. I had to watch it and… I did it!!! Didn’t even really think about drinking. 
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That’s brilliant news, well done 
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thanks for that 
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