Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Monday, October 16th

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Monday, October 16th

    Good Monday Morning Abbers

    Sorry if there are any punctuation problems with my post; my keyboard is misbehaving. This will put a real crimp in my style, as you know how I love my exclamation points. That key is only working sometimes.

    At any rate, Mike and I will be sharing Mayoral duties this week, so that he can have a bit of a rest. After only 5 days of abs, I mean sobs, :H , I?m feeling pretty good. I?m glad my last slip was just a short one. It was easier climbing back on the wagon this time, and it felt so worth it to just get back on and stop sulking and wallowing! Yay, my exclamation point worked!!!

    At any rate, I?ve been thinking about how I came to MWO. I had been thinking about stopping drinking for a long time--a couple of years, actually--waking up many nights in a sweat thinking, ?God, you?ve gotta quit, you?re going to kill yourself with drinking,? but I had never really made a big organized effort to do so before MWO. I was filled with fear and felt helpless to challenge that fear. I had gone to AA a number of times, but I don?t do very well in groups. I had managed to not drink for a day or two, but always caved in. I had even been on topamax before finding MWO, because I have a very enlightened psychiatrist who actually suggested it, but unfortunately, I was taking my topa AFTER I finished drinking at night, so it wasn?t doing me much good. Neither of us knew the proper dosing schedule and how to use it to the best advantage.

    At any rate, since finding MWO last December, I have still thought an awful lot about drinking, but hope has replaced despair. Yes, I have had my moments of despair, but it hasn?t been chronic. I?ve tried moderation, and I wouldn?t exactly say I?ve had stellar success with that. But I sure did learn a lot. (Damn, where?s my exclamation point when I need it?) Over time, I have become more committed to a sober life and more hopeful that I can achieve it. Last December, I started to have hope. Over time, that hope has become more stable and more solid. I can feel it in my bones. I?m not saying I?ll never slip. Heck, I just slipped last week, once again. But I am saying that I don?t envision myself going back to the person that I was last year at this time. I can see myself evolving and growing through all of this. It has been quite a process. I don?t want to sound overconfident; my many slips are ample evidence of how tricky this whole process is. Nevertheless, my experience with sobriety has opened the door to a whole new world. Last year, I was afraid I would never have access to this new world. Now I have hope.

    Hope is our topic for today. Tell us about hope. The hope you have, the hope you have a hard time having. What ever you think or feel about hope and sobriety.


    Love to all,

    Your Honorable (and rather silly and enjoying it too {exclamation point})

    Young At Heart:l


    AF as of August 5th, 2012

    #2
    Monday, October 16th

    Good Morning everyone,
    Good Morning Kathy, I'm not saying Mike hasnt done an excellent job, the opposite infact, but it is nice to see you Kathy starting todays thread.!!!!!!!!!(sorry just showing off)
    Yesterday was the end of a very hectic week for me, and it would have been the perfect excuse to wind down at the weekend with a drink...But i decided to jump head first so to speak into my fishing.Its proberly the only activity that i do when drinking dosnt even cross my mind. (Apart from the other obvious one). I think i just get too engrossed with what i'm doing...Proberly a bit like your sewing Kathy.

    My hopes...Hmm....My main hope is that i never revert back to the way i was say this time last year...Others include..Well...Just being able to run a semi normal life if that makes sense..I know my addiction will proberly be with me for the rest of my life..I think i just worry to which degree it will affect me in the next 5...10 15 years...I know its going to get easier...but how much?...Will i be able to go a week without thinking about it?..Or am i still going to be thinking of it every day but less often in that day...I think i just hope for normality....Its not a lot to ask......Is it?
    I don't care who you are...Your not walking on water while i'm fishing..
    One drink is too many... A thousand is never enough...Sober since July 2nd 2009

    Comment


      #3
      Monday, October 16th

      How true, how true

      I agree with you guys. It's not easy to remain sober. For me, I was able to make it for about 10 days, and then a huge problem came up, and there I went and started all over again.

      I'm convinced that there is no such thing as controlled drinking. It'll all be ok for a few times, then I become sure of myself. Then, sure enough, I over-consume again. I came to realize only complete abstinence will do the trick for me.

      This is my second day sober. Probably the fact that the doctor this morning scared the sh..t out of me, telling me that taking anti-depressants with alcohol is not the best mixture. I knew that, but I could really feel the last few days that my nerves kind of had reached their limit.

      Anyway, hang in there all you Abbers!

      Patrick
      Paddy
      Time's fun when you're having flies. - Kermit the Frog - eace:

      Comment


        #4
        Monday, October 16th

        Happy Monday! Great post and topic Kathy. Thanks to all of you wonderful mayors! Welcome Paddy. It's nice to have you here! Glad you had a nice weekend fishing Macks!
        Hope....hmmmm. It's the only thing keeping me going. I lost it last night and had a brief episode of despair...feelings of shame, worthlessness, remorse snuck back into my head. There are SO many feelings to process in these early days of sobriety. I was able to pull myself out of it by redirecting my thoughts and actions towards my boys' needs. I must have read 15 books to my 5 yo Aaron.
        I hope for peace of mind someday, that I truly believe in my heart that I have value. Ouch! That one opened the flood gate again. Good thing kids are still sleeping right now.
        I hope to restore and rebuild my relationship with God, my family and my friends.
        I hope to be the mom my boys deserve. One they can be proud of.
        This has helped to remind me of why I am doing this. Thanks Kathy!
        Hopefully, I'll hear back from my old boss at the hospital today. Haven't spoken with her since she said I could have my position back. She was out sick all last week. In a way, I think it was probably good I had all last week off to help me get a good start on this journey. But now I am getting anxious and antsy to hear from her! Starting to worry! My job interview for my "fun" job (laser esthetics) went well. I'll probably start that job in 2 weeks 1-2 days/ week.
        Have a happy day absville. Gina

        Comment


          #5
          Monday, October 16th

          Checkin in guys. Great to have ya back in the mayor's mansion Kath. Awesome job Mike. Hi cute mack, and mrs mack. Welcome Paddy....I know I already told ya that. Happy day 2. Gina....I have days like that too. : (
          Hi everyone else that hasnt signed on yet. Jane get your butt on here!!!
          Liz....prayin for you too. (see there....my bad side and good side all in one breath....oh dear) gotta run hope to be back. Love ya all...
          Gabby :flower:

          Comment


            #6
            Monday, October 16th

            Hello Mayress Kathy and All

            Thanks for pathing the way today and sharing

            We all have hope maybe we dont recognise it in ourselves all the time but when we come on here we give it to others.

            I joined in before but still cant sort a name. I checked in this weekend and it was good to hear you all Thank You. I did have a bottle and a half this week end but from where Ive been thats something only you lote know about that since I started 3 days before then this time. Day 3,the 1st time for too long left the shops with out any heavy basket even had pockets rattling from vitamins bought I only took cash but still had enough left over even so choose checkout furtheswt away from the 5 isles of U no what. Felt dazed by the time walked back no one you walk by knows how big these things are except you lote here SO MANY THANKS AS BEFORE ALL OFF YOU THIS WEEKEND FOR BEING AROUND and sharing Hope.

            Still a Farmess (dont even have a gold fish though but like growing things)

            Comment


              #7
              Monday, October 16th

              Morning, Absville!!!!!!!!!!!! (Ok, the boys apparently have to rub it in, Kathy! We never grow up, do we Macks?)

              Patrick -- a hearty welcome to you -- and congrats on day 2. Mornin' Gina, always good to see you. And Gabby, I love it when your angel & devil sides both come out at once!

              Hope. What a great topic, and very appropriate.

              I can tell you that I started trying to control my drinking ca. 1995, and then I started trying to quit in 2000 with AA. I had a good run (9 months) and then got too cocky and fell hard. Since then it has been a rocky road of drinking and half-hearted attempts to quit -- but the progression of my disease has been astonishing. What I considered to be my low point (or "bottom" as they say in AA) back in 2000 would have been a good day earlier this year. And I never would have envisioned myself doing some of the things I've done. I've been able to maintain a good job, keep a roof over my head, and stay out of major legal trouble (except for that one DUI, which I learned my lesson from), but I also lost a lot along the way. I lost self-respect, I lost a lot of brain cells I am sure, I lost six years of potential happiness and freedom, and over that time I lost hope.

              I am not exaggerating when I say this, but earlier this summer I would just come home and either a) drink myself to blackout or b) watch tv until I went to sleep. THAT WAS MY LIFE. I live in the middle of a National Geographic magazine here -- a place that people wait a lifetime to come visit and it's all at my doorstep. And what do I do? Retreat into my little depressed alcoholic world. I had no hope, really, that I was going to get any better. In a way, I had lost my will to live. That may sound dramatic (Ok, call me a drama queen) but what else would you call it? Nothing really mattered to me.

              Finally it occurred to me that I was going to will myself to death, right there on that couch, or in a snow bank on the way to the store for a second bottle of vodka, if I didn't get off my *ss and do something. I knew that my life depended on it, because while I wasn't exactly suicidal, I was dangerously close to just giving up on life.

              I think that is why I am taking this sobriety business so seriously this time around -- because I KNOW my life depends on it. I don't have the luxury of doing it halfway. I can't just give in at the first sign of temptation -- I have to fight tooth and nail if it comes to it, because I have been down that other path and it scares the living daylights out of me.

              That is where the hope comes in. I can't know that I am going to make it this time. I might crash and burn at 2 months, 6 months, 9 months or a year. But I do feel that things are different this time. I have a level of commitment that I have never felt before. I have a level of acceptance that I have never felt before. I accept that I cannot ever drink again. Moreover, I accept that my life CAN be full and complete without alcohol. It is not a dark, dismal future ahead of me without cocktails and fun -- rather, it's a bright future full of possibilities. The dark, dismal part is behind me. At least I pray to God that it is. I only wish I had come to these realizations sooner. But it takes what it takes -- and I'm glad I am where I am now.

              So thanks Kathy for reminding me of hope. If I were to have a daughter, I think that's what I would name her.

              Have a great day, all.

              Mike
              "Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance." -- Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784)

              Comment


                #8
                Monday, October 16th

                Day1 for last time

                Hi
                I have been reading this site for a while and find it very inspiring. I am on day 1 for the last time. This is it, I have had enough. Something had to change in my life as I have become completely miserable and I am not naturally a miserable person. I am reading and reading about life in sobriety and it sounds so much better than mine at the moment. I haven't got past day 4 before, well at least in 5 years - SO HERE GOES.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Monday, October 16th

                  OK I just looked at my post and it kind of bummed me out! When the intention of it was to say that I have a lot of hope today, as opposed to any time in the past 6 years. So here is the hope that I have in my heart, thanks to stringing together a few days' sobriety ("sobs" ) and keeping a positive attitude about it:

                  - I have hope that I can maintain long term sobriety, one day at a time
                  - While it will take attention on my part in the long term, I do expect it will get easier for me as time goes by
                  - I have hope that I will feel better physically, emotionally and spiritually the longer I remain sober and work toward my goals
                  - I have hope that I can build lasting, meaningful relationships -- friendships, community relationships, and even a life partner
                  - I have hope that I can get my act together enough to buy a home and travel to some places around the world that I've always wanted to see
                  - I have hope that MWO will be around for a very long time to help alcoholics and problem drinkers in the future

                  So anyway, that's a big difference from where I was just a few months ago....

                  The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades!
                  "Few things are impossible to diligence and skill. Great works are performed not by strength, but perseverance." -- Samuel Johnson (1709 - 1784)

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Monday, October 16th

                    Hi all
                    I have hope that I will maintain contact with each of you for a long time, that we will each maintain our goals, will stay healthy and strong in our goals and aspirations.
                    I have hope now because I can go home and not feel such a desperate urge each night to have a drink.
                    I have hope for a bright, successful future, full of promise, and not deceit, disappointment, lies.
                    I have hope that each and every day, week, year that passes will get easier.
                    Thanks for the topic
                    Love you all
                    Jen
                    Over 4 months AF :h

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Monday, October 16th

                      It is good to see you all here, and yes, young men, you really can't resist rubbing it in about the exclamation points, now can you??? I'll be off to get a new keyboard later, hopefully, and I will throw so many exclamation points at you that your eyes will go zowie {EP}

                      Hey Macks, I'm glad that fishing does take your mind off drinking fully. Please don't forget how stressful it is having a house full of young ones, no matter how much you love them{EP} It is so hard to find any time for yourself with kids around. Remember that "normal" for you was drinking. It will take a while for "normal" to mean not drinking, but it will come.

                      Hi Patrick! Yes, the drinking really decreases the effectiveness of the antidepressants a great deal. Keep hanging around with us. Sobriety will become easier with time. Welcome to you!! Oh, my exclamation point is back!:yay: Well, sort of.....for a moment....

                      Gina, what is it with us?? I KNOW that you have value--it is just so darn obvious to me. I think that our low self esteem fuels our drinking {people who feel good about themselves don't abuse themselves this way}, and then the drinking fuels our low self esteem. Yikes{EP} It's a vicious circle. At any rate, I think you're a love, and I wish you all the best as you try to get your old job back and start at your new "fun" job, sweetie.

                      Gabbsters, it is clear that you are starting to work more. I'm missing seeing you around as much. Don't stay away too much, okay? We NEED YOU around here {EP}


                      Hey Farmeress, good for you, it sounds like you are moving onto the right path, and growing things is good for the soul. We all love our Nancy, the other farmer gal here in Absville. At any rate, stay close here on your journey.


                      And Hi Mike{EP}, my fellow partner-in-crime, um-hum, I mean Mayor. Did you all realize that Mike and I will be sharing the Mayoral Mansion? Giggle. We are going to have a FABULOUS TIME this week, maybe even REDECORATE. We are planning a dinner party and soiree, as well. So you all get ready for when we send out the invitations. It will be a town gala event {EP} AF, of course. At any rate, being co-Mayor with Mike is an honor.


                      Mike your story sounds similar to mine, just different couches, and definitely no snowbanks. The idea of slowly drinking yourself to death, alone.....boy, that really resonates with me. It CAN BE a sort of a passive suicide, in a way, that giving up on life. Oh, and I didn't find your post depressing, but very real. That is the REALITY of sitting alone and drinking every day. Thanks for your second post though, it was very uplifting.

                      A big :welcome: to you, HelenMary{EP}. Good luck as you start again. I can't keep track of how many Day 1's I have had.

                      Jenneh, I also hope that we will all be together for a long time. You are very inspiring in your enthusiasm, and you are doing just great, love{EP}.

                      And now, I've got to run and get ready for work. Then I am going to give blood after work. We're in very short supply around here, and I am O+. Fortunately, they don't mind the fact that I take topamax and all the supplements. Then.....a search for a new keyboard, HAH{EP}

                      I also have hope, so much more of it now, because I have all of YOU.


                      Hugs and love,

                      Kathy:l


                      AF as of August 5th, 2012

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Monday, October 16th

                        It is great to see all the positive words here.
                        I am back to day one again. So how many "Day One" starts are we allowed? I start each month with y'all doing pretty well, but I only make it about 5 AFD's and then I decide I "deserve" some beer. It is always starts at buying a six-pack but by the third day of drinking a six-pack is not enough. I just came off a 10 beer Sunday. YIKES, I don't like that.
                        Anyway, here I go again. Thanks for all your support.
                        Love and Peace,
                        Phil
                        Love and Peace,
                        Phil


                        Sobriety Date 12.07.2009

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Monday, October 16th

                          Phil....Just keep hanging around here. Eventually it'll stick! Peace to you! Gina

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Monday, October 16th

                            Hi Absville,

                            Wow.......it's almost noon and I still have my jammies on! That's ok though. It's raining and turning cooler and Belle and I are on our own this week! We'll be off for a couple of days fun time with a friend but right now it's nice to just "be still"...


                            Mike......the book you asked about (Freedom From Addiction) is the story of Mike and Julia Quarles struggle with hia addiction to alcohal. This is formated so that you get to hear from Mike and then from Julia. It really is an eye opener to hear what the spouse went through and how she tried to "help". This is the first about two hundred pages. The next one hundred fifty pages are Neil Anderson's instruction and advice on how to make freedom happen. He covers the making of an addiction, our greatest needs, the assurance of victory over "our problem", the battle for the body, and the battle for the mind.
                            The last part covers stepts to freedom, the overcomers covenant and materials.
                            It has some insight that I've never seen before.

                            Kathy, Happy to hear that the weekend went well.

                            Welcome back to the Mayors office. You and Mike don't have TOO much fun, now you hear?


                            HOPE..........I love this word. Like Mike, I think it is a wonderful name for a girl. There have been two women in my life named Hope. One was the nursing student that took care of me when my first son was born. And the second works at the spa where I had a massage a couple of months ago. They both had wings! Angels sent to care for me.


                            For me HOPE is believing in something that I cannot see and in knowing that it is there.
                            Websters dictionary says hope is " to look forward to with confidence or expectation".
                            I f a woman is "expecting " a baby, she is looking for a human child to come out and not a puppy! What am I expecting and hoping for? I'm expecting to be free from the addiction of alcohol.

                            Hi and :l to everyone. :welcome: newbies.....

                            And we have a Farmress! Great.....I can use all the help I can get to grow veggies for you guys.
                            Mike a growlight and indoor gardener! You sweet talker, you! Try some lettuce!

                            Love to all.
                            Nancy
                            "Be still and know that I am God"

                            Psalm 46:10

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Monday, October 16th

                              Thank you all - this site has given me hope and strength. Today for me is day 7... I even made it through a weekend which is usually where I fall hard. The longest I have ever made it is 21 days - with all your help I am hoping to set a new personal best. I can't moderate - abstinence is the only way for me.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X