Why is this extremely hard? Here’s to get another start over
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It’s like gravity, but with your mind.
In the beginning, the mind, is heavily drawn to substance. It is the object of mass that wants that stuff. However, in order to knock it back out of orbit is to get away from it, and do things that will make your mind more gravitated towards activities like hiking, walking, photography, writing, reading, drawing, painting, etc. Make sure you can give your brain some kind of dopamine hit for healthy activities. If going hiking, go during golden hour and bring a camera, or just go, find a secluded but sunny spot, hear the birds chirping, and meditate. Kind of hard to do now since the northern hemisphere is in winter right now…but I find Journaling helped me a lot. Same with changing my habits, and forcing myself to do previous habits sober.
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What are you doing to stay sober/clean? Just not using your DOC?
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I am trying nock the habit of stopping at the liquor store every single night.
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You need to feel like it is worse to have a drink than not to. There has to be a tipping point.
In economics it’s called the priciple of utility. When does it become a burden?
The example that is always given is a pizza. That first slice is awesome. The second almost as good. The sixth and seventh not so great. At ten and twevle hopefully we’re full and no longer want that pizza.
When do you feel like drinking at any time is the same as that twelfth piece if pizza?
Is it after I’ll just have one turns into a case of beer plus a fifth of vodka, a blackout, and a trip to the icu? Or a DWI?
Are you ready to admit you are a drunk and/or an addict? That’s usually step one.
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What i was told in AA was that i could go out there and keep trying to manage or control my drinking. It would eventually land me back in the hospital, jail or kill me. After several trips back in the Institutions and jails i figured it was time to do the work and take my recovery serious. It wasnt that it was difficult to stop the trick for me is to stay sober and actually want it. Its life or dealth and today im chosing to live. Some of us have to loose everything to see what alcohol really does to us, some have to parish because the burden is to great to part with. Others dont have to go down that road, your here so you must be ready to make the change. Just stick around, take it easy and take care.
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Hello,
I think one factor that makes it tough is the fact that it is not legally considered a drug or prohibited substance. What’s more, it’s easy to find and cheap
Then, no less important, is their social acceptance and their connection to meetings, friendship, fun, etc.
And with regard to oneself, it is difficult simply because it is addictive, it is a dangerous, silent drug, but very addictive.
Good luck!
Your not the only one brother, am finding it tough myself, am just trying to fight it though the day, one hour at a time
Anything else? For me it involved a lot of things to enhance my sobriety. Not picking up is a perfect place to start.
Some of what I did:
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changed people. If the people I hung out had to drink when we were together, then I stayed away.
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changed places. I stopped going to the places that had alcohol. Obviously the grocery store was tricky…I absolutely made sure I didnt go near the aisle with alcohol. I found stores that sold groceries that didnt have booze.
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changed things: if it had dealings with booze I stopped. For example, watching sports. I simply didnt do it.
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I live on talking sober. I was active. I read everything, participated in all the threads. If I craved, I cam here, if I was pissed, I cam here…
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I devoted 2 hours of the day to read everything I could about addiction and alcohol.
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I walked…5 miles, at least a day. Got me out…got me thinking…got me tired.
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I filled every second of the day that I wasnt working with things to do. People on here are quick to point out that “chores dont make you sober”. For me, they helped. I scratch cooked every meal. I made a list of every single chore, project, fix that I had to do…I made sure my days off were crazy busy. Chores might not make you sober…but boredom always got me drunk.
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I wrote a list of every siangle thing I ever wanted to try or do. This was my time! I was re-learning how to live…so…I lived life.
That all got me to 89 days sober…and I knew I was about to cave…I knew I just couldn’t go any further.
So
I did the one thing I swore I would never do…day 90, I walked into AA. And the rest is history.
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I went to an in person or zoom sobriety every night after work. Still do most nights. That’s a challenging time of the day for many. . . “The Witching Hour”.
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