First Christmas party hurdle...

[stollies1]

Hi all,
I am happy to report I passed the first hurdle with flying colours.I went to my partners Chrissy party and drank soda water all night with not even the slightest desire for a drink of alcohol. Its funny Louise,I thought of you often last night and I did one better than taking the number of days on a piece of paper to remind myself...I printed your post to me the other day and had it in my evening bag....:thanks: Day 61 today..exactly 2 months.
Im going to use Neil as my mesuring stick....
Thanks again Louise:h
Victoria xoxoxoxo

[weemelonhead]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Stollies...I bow down before you...I have just declined an invite to my partners xmas do as I really don't feel that I can stick with this at the moment with that sort of temptation....so I am an admiring little melonhead to put it mildly. You must have felt GREAT the next day...waking up with a clear head and a thorough knowledge of EXACTLY what you did last night...In the words of Irene Cara...What a feeling!!! (don't you just love the 80's)
Well done Missus...I'm anticipating being able to do as well as you, but not 'til next year (here's hoping)

Lots of love ......Melon xxx

[Popeye]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Well done stollies.
I have my work Christmas do on Thursday. I don't really want to go but we are only a small group...there are only 5 of us....so I think I'll just go for the meal and make my excuses before the drinking starts. I'm limiting my drink to once over Christmas and once over the New Year. I am going to order the meds and CDs so that they arrive after the hols, if I can, and then I'm going to go AF. Definately!!!!

[irishlady]

First Christmas party hurdle...

VICTORIA I AM SO PROUD OF YOU.

It's 9.30am here in the UK and I am rushing my breakfast, as I start work at 10.00am, but when I read your post Victoria, God it made me so happy for you. I bet when you woke up the morning after, instead of being full of regrets and trying to remember the night before, you must have felt so much stronger in yourself for not drinking.....Now, if you can do it once, there's no reason why you can't do it again, is there?

Congrats on 61 days, and if your feeling good now, imagine the feeling when you hit YOUR YEAR, I can almost hear the fireworks and cheers already....Oh my God, must go, or I will be late for work, keep up the good work, I shall be following your progress.

Love Louise xxxx

[vinophile]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Victoria,
Great job!! I love the idea of printing an inspiring post and keeping it in your pocket. I'm going to do that. Thank you for that wonderful idea.

Janet

[mikeupnorth]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Congratulations, Victoria! Sobriety is achieved by winning one battle at a time. You face what is right in front of you, do the right thing, and gain strength from making that decision. Then you are even better prepared to do the right thing the next time. Like Louise said, you'll be celebrating your ONE YEAR before you know it! :thumbs:

I once used an analogy of two paths in the woods to represent sobriety and drinking in our brains. I've spent so much time drinking that the sober path is grown over with weeds and shrubs: I can hardly see that there is even a path there. That's why was so hard for me to find it, and once I did, it was hard for me to stay on it. I can easily stray from it because it's so overgrown. I have to contstantly chop down the growth and make my way, but the original path, the natural path, is there. The drinking path, on the other hand, is so well-worn that there is no vegetation on it whatsoever. Not only that, but I've walked it so many times that I've worn a groove into the ground and it's actually a trench -- I am walking along the path with dirt piled up so high on both sides that I can barely see over. Of course it's easy to stay on the drinking path when I'm on it, and it's bloody hard to get off it. I'm practically trapped. I have to climb and claw my way up to get off (out of) this path.

Staying on the sober path takes some work at first, but the view is much better. Since I'm not walking in a trench, I can see the beauty of the forest all around me. I can see where I'm going. And the longer I walk on this path, the easier it gets, since I'm clearing the vegetation away. Once I go through a Christmas sober, I've cleared that vegetation. Next Christmas, there will be less vegetation on that part of the path. So it gets a little easier each time I go through a situation and stay sober. Practice makes perfect.

The other thing is that I can choose to go back to the drinking path any time I choose. It's always there. It is so well-worn that it will never completely fill in and go away. It might get grown over with grass and vines, but that trench will remain, and if I fall back into it, I'll have to scratch and claw my way out of it all over again. It was so much work to do it before, I don't want to have to do it again. I tried and tried so many times before, and just as I thought I was going to pull myself out, the earth would crumble and I'd slide back down and walk another mile (or ten). No thank you, I think I will stay where I am and walk on this path. It's beginning to feel a lot more comfortable now.

That is all to say that we always have a choice. Drink or not drink. Whether it's Christmas or New Year's or some random day in April. Choose a path. If we've done the hard work of getting out of the trench and onto the sober path, why not take the easier way and just stay on it? It is so much harder to slip back down and have to claw your way back up. We can keep going back and forth all our lives if we want to, but we get much farther -- and we're much kinder to ourselves -- if we make the choice and stick with it.

~ Mike

[weemelonhead]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Mike.............you never cease to amaze me..have you ever thought about writing an inspirational style book??? Thought for the day???

Sending you some beautiful cyber flowers to plant on your sobriety path...frangipani and orchids for a lovely sniff as you go along, and dear little snowdrops, primroses and blubells, something I always enjoyed seeing in the woods near my home when I was a child.

Thanks for your vision Melon xoxo

[stollies1]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Many thanks all

Hi Louise,Mike,Janet,Paul and Melon,
Thanks all for your kind thoughts.
Mike What can I say :h
I just sat here for about half an hour, just digesting what you wrote.I have never read anything so beautifully appropriate about losing yourself to the endless fog of drinking.I am lost for words to thank you,adequately,for such an inspiring post needless to say I will be carrying yours around with me for some time to come:l .
I take great strength away from you guys here and I'm sure I would not have done so well without your wisdom and caring.
Your all just beautiful
Love to you all
Victoria xxooxxooxx

[southernbelle47]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Hi guys..........
I've enjoyed reading here tonight!
Your post are all inspiring.

It's been busy around here as we get ready to have all three of our kids and their spouses and four grandkids and three dogs for next week end. It's always fun and there is never a dull moment!
There are several games under the tree that we will all learn together! Probably a fire in the fire pit Sat night and smores and hotdogs! And a walk in our woods on the path!
Mike you would love the view...it's all cleared! It does take a big tractor to do it though! We have two tree houses to visit on our path and several streams to cross!
I have so much to be grateful for . I will be thinking of all of you as we go down our "path".....
:h Nancy

[Popeye]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Hello everyone,

Mike,

You've made up my mind for me.....

What is the point of waiting till after Christmas to stay sober. If I do that, then it seems likely that I would put it off until another time. I'm going to start my walk down the sober path today.
This is too important a decision to put off until another ( random ) day. So that's it.....decided!
Since finding this place, I have found a strength that I didnt know had. My drinking pattern has moderated considerably, enough for me to believe that I can do this. I have identified those times when I am most likey to want a drink, so I am ready, in my mind, to put up a defense against the cravings. I intend to get the supplements and the CDs ASAP. I'll make an appointment to see my doctor while I'm off work and see if I can get the medication that I might need. At the moment, I'm not scared or apprehensive about this, but I know that I'll need all the help I can get.....and I know where to get it .
I'll keep you posted.
Thanks.

[lushy]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Wow! Bravo Paul! Please keep us posted on your journey. I truly believe the key to all of this is that "click" in your brain that says, "I have had enough." I am glad for you that you found this site as well because it seems to have carried you to a great decision. Be well!

[irishlady]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Paul, just want to say, I'm rooting for you, you CAN do this, and if I was forming a squad to go and fight a war, you would be in it because your determination shines through every time....Go for it lad..

Love Louise xxx

[mikeupnorth]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Paul,

The hardest part of this battle is just making the decision. Once you do that, the rest is easy in comparison. That's not to say there won't be hard times, but the hardest part is making up your mind completely. Like Lush said, it's that "click" in the brain that says you are done with alcohol.

I have seen your posts over the last couple of weeks and thought you might be getting there... I'm rooting for you too. Don't ever doubt yourself. YOU CAN DO THIS!

~ Mike

[Popeye]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Lush, Louise ,Mike
Thanks again.

[dilayne]

First Christmas party hurdle...

Hi everyone! just flying by here today..week 11 Abs for me...I'll ditto Mike on the decision..it's the hardest part..but once it's made (from your heart, not necessarily from the ego) there is so much freedom in it, if you'll have it.

Congrats to everyone that is stepping up durin the holidays, and hugs to those who are struggling.
Love, Dianne