Sparks Journey after OWI

This weekend is my first weekend sober. I am on day 3. I survives my Friday. But my husband and I have dinner plans with my mother and her boyfriend. I usually drink at this place and I always drink around my mother. It’s going to be a tough night. Mom knows i am going sober but doesnt know the real reason. My first OWI.

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Congrats on 3 days. Advice keep your sober journey first thought. If those around you know you aren’t drinking may help. Have a non alcoholic beverage in your hand and make it something you really like such as favorite soda, water with lemon or a sparkling water. Check in here before you falter. I am glad you are here. I love living sober.

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Thank you. Thats exactly what I needed to hear.

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Hello Sparks. Look forward to being sober with you!!! Get through this weekend with lots of rest, water, eating well, embracing calm thoughts, and distancing yourself from alcohol. ODAAT

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Welcome to the community and Congratulations on 3 days. Like @tailee17 already said keep your non alcoholic beverage full and in hand at dinner tonight and keep the goal of hitting that pillow tonight sober your top priority. You can do this!

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Welcome to TS family! 3 days is awesome! Just stay strong, you got this!

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Dinner in old drinking environments is one of the hardest early tests, especially around people who don’t know the full story. It’s totally normal to feel anxious about it. Just remind yourself, this isn’t about them. It’s about you doing what’s right for your health and peace. Maybe come in with a plan (like a go-to nonalcoholic drink or even a short script for if someone offers), and if you need to leave early, that’s okay too. Proud of you for making it to Day 3 and for being honest about the challenge. That kind of awareness is exactly what gets you through nights like this.

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I made it through dinner and 40 minutes of music on the lawn. Then broke down in the car and cried.
Thank you everyone for your words of encouragemnt. It really helped me get through.

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That’s stellar!!!


The stuff in that bottle is no longer your friend

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Good job flexing your sober muscles! You may want to pause going to triggering locations while in early sobriety so you arent so stressed. Why make it harder on yourself. Be kind to yourself as youre nelavigating this. I wish i had stopped after my first owi but i continued to spiral lower and lower for another 13 years. Pick your bottom!

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Congratulations! In the very beginning that is hard. One thing for dinners get something in your stomach real quick even if it’s breadsticks. Or something like that. For me anyway there’s something biological that happens when food hits my stomach. Don’t you feel much better in the morning? We all could put together 10,000 reason why being sober is better. But I would have to think the number one answer is feeling fresh in the morning instead of feeling like death warmed over.

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How are you feeling today?

Welcome to Talking Sober :waving_hand: :innocent:

I made it! Sleep wasnt great. But I got through. Today I have to catch up on all the work from my work I have been putting off. I am tired. But clear headed and got out of bed before noon on a sunday. It’s a great start.

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Darn right! Good for you :raising_hands: :innocent:

Being clean and clear is worth the effort. It takes humility and learning, and it takes a lot of communication and reaching out, but it is possible, and it is worth it.

Keep it up!

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Tomorrow I have my assessment. I am doing it before the courts tell me to because I know I need help. And I have my first counciling appointment with a Substance Abuse Councilor.

Both make me very nervous. Plus an extremly busy week at work. I work in the professional sector so there is a lot of pressure for me to get my work done.
One day at a time. First sober weekend in a long time. And determined it will not be my last.

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When I got sober, it was following a driving while intoxicated charge (not my first or second or third charge, but my fifth). I immediately started 1:1 counseling, complying with the daily required breath checks, went back to AA and started on Antabuse. I put all my efforts into getting sober. I am also a professional worker and at some point, I think after sentencing, I had to tell my boss that I would need to adjust my work hours to accommodate the state ordered treatment program. This was in the days before telecommuting or remote work. There was a risk I would lose my job, but I had to get and stay sober first before anything else.

I was ready for sobriety, I surrendered to it. Although I still missed drinking and had thoughts and cravings for about 6 months, something was changed in me, and not by my hand. That made me ready. That change was my way of starting a lifetime of single days of sobriety. I did not drink “pillow to pillow”, and that made it easier for me.

This is an opportunity for you to learn about your readiness to get sober. If you are ready, you will be able to make it your #1 priority. We are sober first, after that we have the privilege of participating in human relationships.

Blessings on your house :folded_hands: as you begin your journey.

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Made it through my assessment. It was a shock to the face to be labeled as a steady far advanced drinker. Scheduled for outpatient treatment and MAT.

First therapy intake today to. Every Monday for a few months. I am commited to this. But exhausted.
One day at a time.

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Great work @Sparks

Great job! Way to deal with this head on! Yeah, it’s amazing how we used to rationalize how much we drank. For example, I used to drink about a 12 pack a day. I didn’t think that was that much. But now when I think about it, that is insane. After I have one soda or fruit juice, my stomach has had enough. In other words, I can’t imagine drinking 12 of anything including water! But I am so much happier now, and you will be too! I promise, the beginning is hard, but you’re gonna see drastic improvements, and only a few days. And sleep? Get ready, you’re about to have God sleep!

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Thank you! I am so thirsty for water all the time. I always feel like I am dehydrated. And a lot more hungry than I was before. I still cant fall asleep easily but I am hoping all of this will pass and I will not give up.

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