The Power goes sober

Life in Recovery
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There’s a lot of truth in this. Getting sober for me meant learning how to be comfortable with things without putting things in my body.

Sometimes that meant staying away from certain situations while I got used to my feelings sober. Eventually that meant learning how to push through the discomfort or do things differently.

It’s worth it though. The space where I’m comfortable sober has gotten so much bigger and rewarding again, because I’m truly present and aware. A recovery program taught me that courage.

Like parties. For a while I skipped them. After a few months I went to a wedding. One of my strategies to not drink was to put my focus on other people there. To ask them questions and get to know some new people to stay out of my head.

And it was great! It was uncomfortable at first. But I found myself quickly making friends and dancing with some friends of my buddy’s I’d heard of but never met. Instead of just getting drunk and making a fool of myself like I usually would.

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That is very interesting. Your 89-Day-Streak is nearly the same as my 93-Day-Streak that i made last year. I trained for the Marathon, and there were nearly no activties with many peoples like Football in Stadium because of Corona. And i didn’t played dart. And the sobriety had a time limit. It worked, even without any medication. And now, i can’t achieve more than a month anymore, not even with pharma support.

So i guess the “whys” are obviously…I’m using alcohol as sedative…

Thank you, your posting helped me a lot👍

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Just to clarify…I didnt drink at 89. I chose to protect my sobriety and walked into AA on day 90.

For me, I protect my soberiety. It is the most important thing I have, without it I will die.

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I have degrees in pyschology. I get pharma support, brain chemistry, ect.ect ect…

For me alcoholism is a case study in Pavlov’s Dogs. Ring a bell, and a dog eats. We are the same. The bell is any of many outside stimuli…we drink.

For me, I had to reverse the pavlovian experience, and…once again, for me, no drug could do that. I had to experience life and relearn how to live it

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The why is actually deeper than that. You are escaping something. Addiction is about escape and avoidance. It’s about taking the easy route - numbness, silence, avoidance - instead of facing what intimidates us most, and working through that.

Working through whatever is at the core of your addiction will open up power in you that you never thought possible :innocent:

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Well, ok so then i have misconceived this. Sorry.

I guess you’re right. Of Course, Baclofen can’t remove the bell. But it can mute it.

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Of course, the break from the reality is a pleasant side effect. And i must admit, i love the feeling after the first three or four drinks, espacially after a longer break. A feeling of freedom. But this is not the main reason. I can also achieve this with sport.

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In a way saying alcohol’s a sedative is right then Matt. It sedates everything. Thoughts, feelings, initiative, responsibility… However, there is something very strange about alcohol and how it works. The first couple of drinks it actually works as a stimulant. This is why it so popular with ‘normies’. If you don’t drink (too) much it makes you looser, easier in social interacting, faster in your thinking, more spontaneous. Only when we drink more, alcohol starts to sedate. We are only sedated when we get drunk. There’s no other drug known that does that same trick.
So I don’t think with playing darts I think it works as @ThePower thinks. Sorry. I think you are extra nervous because you crave alcohol. You think alcohol will help you calm down while in fact thinking of alcohol and wanting it makes you extra nervous. If you are physically dependent too you’d be withdrawing too, although in this case you were long past physical withdrawal.
By drinking a couple of beers you took away the craving and the extra nervousness and you could concentrate on the game and not at wanting to drink. IMO that’s the reason you played better afterwards, not the fact you had alcohol in your system. It’s all in the mind. Unless you are physically dependent and I don’t think you are. You are addicted to the effect. Just like me actually.

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Freedom from what?

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Yes! So alcohol (or whatever DOC) is a sedative to numb the emotions that we never learned to deal with. From reading here, and certainly in my own personal experience, it’s a lot to do with fear. Fear of not fitting in, of not being good enough, of being uncomfortable, of being myself… Of course drinking didn’t help any of these things. Ultimately I did not like myself. And that was a scary place to be. Drinking gave me something to do instead of dealing with that stuff.

Uncovering all of that and facing it took time. I didn’t really socialise for a while. I did lots of meditation, yoga, walking. I spent a lot of time on the forum, contributing was of course important but what was really invaluable for me was reading the experience of others. I read so much. I saw other people articulating stuff that I was feeling. And I saw that they were changing by understanding their fears, accepting them, and making the changes they needed to.

I was hit pretty hard with depression after about 5 months sober and it lasted a couple of years. I knew that drinking wouldn’t fix it though. It’s been a long road but having seen so many others go through it, I knew I could too. Learning to not just accept, but embrace my limits - I realised that honouring my physical and emotional boundaries is how I start to like myself.

There’s no magic number - after xyz days sober everything is OK. We all have our own journeys, lives and contexts. I do remember @Meggers saying that the first five years is ‘early recovery’ and I agree with that. It helps me put my progress into context, it’s just the beginning!

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Ok guys, i will try to answer you later. Its too much at the moment for me…Sorry

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100% correct.

So I guess the questions are: 1) do you want that bell muted or gone? 2) if you are using it to mute it, so as your sobriety grows you will be stronger when it no longer muted…what are you doing to prepare for that?

Personally, I feel those are deeply personal questions and understand if the answers are kept to oneself. However, we are here to help you discover those answers. I think some reflection on those will give you great insight into your journey and help you maintain and enhance your sobriety.

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A person is allowed to change their mind. Something that you thought to be right, true, fair or accurate may prove not to be, and that’s okay :slightly_smiling_face: we tend to ‘dig in our heels’ and hold on to something for fear of how it may be perceived if we admit we were wrong, or mistaken or that we’ve changed our mind. It’s takes vulnerability to do so, but vulnerability is a good thing.
Something that you once professed with a kind of certainty, or a deep belief you held, you’re allowed to change, it’s okay to do that. With experience we learn, grow and evolve. So, don’t be scared @ThePower if you want to concede to the notion that maybe your way of doing things is not working. Maybe the suggestions of others can now be received openly and willingly with an understanding that people are sharing what’s worked for them, and maybe it can work for you too; even if you were opposed to it initially.

Things that help me stay sober -

  • following the advice of other sober ppl (who’ve been sober longer than I)
  • Have a sober support group / community
  • Being honest with myself and working on all the underlying issues of not feeling “good enough” and lacking self-worth and confidence.
    Learning to love who I am and seeing my value has been such a gift of sobriety, even though it was so hard at first.
  • Taking it one day at a time
  • Playing the tape ALL the way through
  • Saying NO to the drink that matters - the first drink! Then there is not a 2nd or 3rd and so on
  • Talking to my loved ones about my decision and gaining their support through honesty and communication
  • Coming on here and reading A LOT
    Sharing and asking for help, and then taking action, daily.
  • Gratitude - especially for sobriety and recovery

And, I remind myself EVERYDAY that
Sober life = my best life for sure :raised_hands::100:

Good luck, mate.

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Just go to a meeting see how others stay sober, Action desire , effort , Talk till the cows come home it ant going to keep you sober . but as ever i wish you well

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Ok Guys, i have something impoetant to say today…

Thanks for all your posts, your support and that you followed my way with baclofen so far. It mean a lot to me…

It was an interesting way so far, there were highs and lows. I was fighting, i was believing that this is the right way. But the last couple of days, when i reflected the way so far, this thread and my feelings, i began to doubt. Yes, the cravings are gone, but the side effects are partly massive:

  • Anxiety/panic-attacts in safe situations
  • Zombie-Feeling (Brainfog)
  • Strong Mood swings (Cool and tough like James Bond to a nervous wreck in no Time and in vice versa)

No, that can’t be the right way, that doesn’t feel healthy. There must be another solution. So tomorrow, at my next appointment at the doc, i will discuss with him how to stop the baclofen therapy and looking for better solution.

I really would like to tell you more details, but it would take hours because my english-skills are simply not good enough for this. Sorry that i couldn’t react on all of your posts, but you can be sure that i read them all and considered them by making my decision. Thank you for your time, it doesn’t go without saying that.

Last, some words to those who want to try baclofen: I’m still thinking that this medication could help to save lives, there are many positive examples. Unfortunatly, its not the right way for me, but maybe, it could help you. But again, if you do this, do this only under medical supervision, it can be dangerous.

Ok, now lets see what the next day will bring.

Have a nice day and again, thanks for your support.

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Keep us posted. Hope all goes well with the doctor

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More common

  1. Confusion
  2. constipation
  3. dizziness, faintness, or lightheadedness when getting up suddenly from a lying or sitting position
  4. headache
  5. increased need to urinate
  6. nausea
  7. passing urine more often
  8. sweating
  9. trouble sleeping
  10. unusual tiredness or weakness
    Meetings dont have any side effects just sobriety if you want it , hopefully the doctor will put you straight that maybe your looking for a magic pill well ive news there aint wish you well
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Ok Mc Laren, i got the message, its enough already. Have a nice day.

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Thats good wish you well you can cal me RAY

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Wow, all this hard work, all those hours i invested here, and the most liked post is that one that i stop😏

Ok, i guess its all said. Elvis has left the building.

To me, we can close this thread.

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