I haven’t been posting often on this site as I am journaling privately and attending Zoom meetings every day at least once. I still check in here and wanted to let any newbies see how far I’ve come from my first post to now. You can do it! It does get easier and it is worth it, and you are worth it, too. I needed to find meetings and a recovery program that worked for me and then commit and immerse myself in that community and I’m doing the work of recovering—instead of just white knuckle abstaining. I also read a lot of sober lit and a lot of other people’s posts.
I’m still here, going strong. My online community, Women For Sobriety (WFS) has been where I go to online meetings every day (there are no in person in my area). They have an online forum and threads I participate in. I think I read that at 90 days, my brain’s dopamine levels are almost reset. So, yay!
FOUR MONTHS! I think this is my longest stretch without even a single sip in decades. I’m very excited about this new threshold. Aaaaaand I’m solidly hanging out in triple digits at 123 days. And that feels good.
I saw a New Moon meditation I wanted to offer here (we just started a new moon so hop on board!) It’s a kind of Manifestation Meditation. Write down a wish list of what you want—mental, physical, spiritual, material—you name it! Date it for today, and write it like a Thank You list as if you ALREADY have it for one month from now. Dare to dream; it’s yours for the taking.
Next, take that list (which you probably typed on your phone didn’t you? Lol, I think that’s fine, as long as you are doing it), take that list and get moving: go for a walk or get moving in nature, put your upbeat energized music on, and really visualize your Thank You list. How does it feel having your wish list come true? Picture it!
That’s pretty much it. Doable, right? And it’s not even New Year’s Eve.
My Wish List/Thank You List:
Thank you
-for my healthy pregnancy
-for my drama free relationship and for my stalker to stop
-for continued mental health as I take my medication daily without fail and notice if I need to adjust any dosages
-for accomplishing Five Months of sobriety.
-for an A in each of my three graduate classes thus far
-for ease in comprehension in my three graduate classes while still being challenged and curious in my thinking and learning
-for two new friends via my local graduate classes so I can hang out IRL with more like minded people
-for my substitute teaching to continue to go smoothly and may I gracefully and creatively and respectfully meet challenges with lesson plans, technology, students, fellow teachers, administrators, and parents
-for financial comfort and security
-to be an inspiring positive role model to my WFS sisters
-for all my holiday cooking to come out just the way I want and for me to be happy enough without those eating it to celebrate the deliciousness
-for safe driving in inclement weather
-for remembering and behaving WOLAR and working those 13 statements for the long holiday stretch with my great big boisterous overwhelming family
Congratulations Keira! Four months is really awesome and you’ve come such a long way. Keep going, one step at a time and your milestones will add up faster than you can count
At six months! Feeling the PAWS (Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome) so I kind of have the stagnant blues. I’m moving and shaking and working hard to make things happen in my life, but I seem to be in a holding pattern, which is getting me a little down in the dumps. At least I’m not drinking.
Maybe it’s a case of muscle weighs more than fat and that’s why the number on the scale isn’t changing.
"I know everything there is to know about getting and being drunk. If I drink today I will discover nothing. But sobriety, on the other hand, is a total mystery to me. I have no idea who i’d be or what I could become if I continue to be sober. "
That idea, that simple question, is exactly what kept me sober in the beginning. If nothing else, stay curious about yourself. Stay interested in the changes that ARE HAPPENING every day. You ARE changing. And you cannot imagine what you are changing into, but I feel pretty confident that it’s someone you’ll really love being.
You’ve taken the first steps. Just put one foot in front of the other and stay with us on the path. Your body will follow. It knows what to do once you stop poisoning it.
I promise you you’ll be glad that you did.
