Well this happened yesterday! 
I truly cannot think of a single situation, good or bad, that a drink would make better.
I was actually out at a bar when the timer ticked over, having a good dance in the early hours with friends. We had been out for a meal earlier and were saying goodbye to a friend who is about to go travelling. Some lovely memories made. Compare to five years earlier, coming out of a blackout at 2am, on my own in a bar crying having lost most of my stuff…
That all seems like a lifetime ago now! The last five years have been a rollercoaster as sobriety has coincided with mental and physical health challenges, a global pandemic, a big house move and some big life decisions looming. As well as all the day to day ups and downs in between. It certainly is not all rainbows and unicorn farts, although I like to think I appreciate them more when they happen thanks to being sober AF.
I am so grateful for this community, for all of the support and the opportunities to learn more about myself through other people’s stories. Life on life’s terms is hard but I see you all doing it and it helps me do it too.
Editing to copy a response I wrote further down the thread which might be useful!
I can remember reading around to start with and also having my mind blown by the idea of a year, let alone anything more than that! But it really just is a series of 24 hours, if you did it yesterday you can do it today, and if you can do it today you can do it tomorrow too! They all add up 
One of the most helpful things for me was reading other people’s stories - the successes and the relapses. It helped me to see what might be coming up for me and give me some ideas of how to naviagte that. I learned so much from people with different addictions and different lives, we still have a lot in common.
So to start with it was understanding that things would change and what felt difficult then might not always feel difficult, it was OK to take a step back and not put myself in situations that would feel awkward. Also that it is normal to have cravings and thoughts like ‘well you’ve been doing so well, one wouldn’t hurt…’. To know to play the tape forward and remember what really happens when I drink (some combination of blackouts, drunk arguments, oversharing, spending too much money, generally saying and doing things that made me cringe, then the anxiety, guilt, shame and regret the next day).
It was also super helpful that I knew about the pink cloud, that it was not totally unusual for life to catch up and for things to feel a bit shit after an initial burst of optimism. That has ended up being a journey through depression and anxiety which was always lurking but never dealt with as I drank my feelings away. I knew, from the stories of others here, that alcohol wouldn’t help to solve that. Having the lessons from all the recovery groups and personal wisdom that I read here has also been a huge part of working through that side of things.
! Thank you for all you do here and the help you’ve given me along the way.
I can’t believe it. It’s such a pleasure being on this sober journey with you. Thanks for all you do at TS as a MOD. Appreciate you.
