Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

[NoSugar]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Nar, maybe you can re-listen to the BH podcast with Dr. Kelly tomorrow. His logical, science-based explanation for why it is so important to protect your healing brain persuaded you last time and now that said brain is even healthier, you'll probably pick up on little things that didn't seem important before and end up even more convinced!

Good job on coming here and acknowledging what you've been thinking. I don't think that addicted voice can succeed when we broadcast the lies it is telling us. Enjoy Stampede Week - it sounds fun!

[wagmore]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

NS - On my non-paddling days I do other workouts, including yoga, partly to try to keep everything balanced out and reduce the chance of injury. I love some types of yoga, others not so much. I wish I could find a good place to swim, as that would be something I also love and could do through many injuries, but pools in this area aren't very convenient.

Ava and Pav - 7 months is incredible - huge kudos to you both, and thanks for your inspiration!

Nar - Enjoy the Stampede, and protect your quit!

Jane - Glad you found a mood tracker that looks useful for you. I'll be curious to hear what you think after using it for awhile. Hope you're starting to feel a bit better, both physically and mentally/emotionally.

:groupluv: to everyone!

[little beagle]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Narilly I think that stampede sounds like a blast. I've been thinking about you square dancing. Have fun.
Remembering why I stopped drinking is one of the tools I use. Visualizing that last binge makes thinking about ever doing it again repulsive.

[narilly]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Thanks everyone.
Lil B, Wags, Daisy, Ginger. You ar e all so helpful.

Hey, I was listening to the new bubble hour on a Freedom. One of the things they talked about was having drinking thoughts in the back of you're mind. Thinking that you have quit AL But if xxx happens you will give yourself permission to drink. We have to make sure we are not hiding these kind of thoughts in our head. We need to be ready to deal with life AL free and really Feel the emotions we have to feel. That's life, right?

I know a small part of me thinks I am going to drink. On the weekend, my cousins couldn't believe I quit. They were asking me if I was sure and it should be ok for me to have one. I think this started my AL brain going.

Thanks NS, I will listen to Dr Kelly again.

Pat, so glad to see you here.

Well, goodnight sweet Loamers.

[lifechange]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Good morning, Ladies!

Nar, You are doing exactly what I've neglected to do in the past and will need to do again in the future. Admitting that you are having thoughts and facing them head-on, not ignoring them, pushing them away. Super!!! I will listen to the Dr. Kelly again, too--

Last night I went out with my best girlfriends and the thought crossed my mind for half a second as they all ordered wine--but I knew I would drink sparkling water with lemon. One of my friends writes a blog and said she wanted to write about best friends--she asked me if it was ok if she wrote about my al addiction (her whole blog is anonymous), how it's affected our friendship, how we've been able to talk openly about it, how she has been able to support me and how I, in return, have been able to support her with her life problems. I feel so lucky to have such close friends.
Then on my walk home at midnight I was able to stop and help a foreign woman who was being harassed by some drunken asshole from our neighbourhood park. If I'd been coming home after drinking too much, I probably wouldn't have even noticed what was going on. Very thankful for my state of mind last night.
And very grateful that I have all of you to share with!!:l

Today is a long day at work again--and after, since I don't have plans tonight, I will try to get to the gym. Or go for a light run. And I shouldn't forget to stay in the present moment.

Wishing you all a wonderful day!!

[daisy45]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Hi all.....Lifechange, so nice that you were available to help out that lady.....makes you wonder how many situations in our past that were missed. Being present in our lives does not just affect us but has a ripple effect on society.
I am so grateful for you ladies.....reading here just now gave me a good start to my day......a wee thank you, in case you didn't know.......

[little beagle]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

LC I'm glad you have friends you can talk to. And going out :goodjob:.
Daisy good to see you.
Wow ladies I am tired today. Another air conditioning job with hubby last night. Now all we want to do is sleep over the lovely holiday weekend. But we will get our second wind. Fireworks in the country and a stay at the dude ranch are my plans. Lots of fun. And no regrets.
This is our freedom day. Freedom from alcohol, regrets, anxiety, self loathing, yeah.
I am celebrating more then our country this weekend as you can tell.
J-vo glad you are going strong on your wonderful vacation. :l

[wagmore]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Congrats Ginger on 60 days - woohoo!!!

[narilly]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Ginger- 60 days!! Yahoo!!

Hey Lil B- Freedom sounds great! I hope you have a ton of fun at the dude ranch...that is kinda like Stampede

Life, that is awesome that you were able to help that lady. I bet she was glad you were sober! It is amazing what we might have missed in our former drunk lives.
How awesome that your friend has embraced your recovery and is blogging about that. You are one lucky gal!

[NoSugar]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Nar, you don't drink. That little part of you is your Addicted Voice, Beast Brain, whatever it is you want to call it. It is because of the development of our rational brain that we are humans - we can do much more than simply chase what "feels good" at the moment. But once we've listened to that addicted voice (as clearly, all of us on MWO have ), it takes effort and commitment to quiet it. Just think - some people have never ever even heard it and don't even know it is within them. The great thing is, you know enough now not to listen to it.

Great job on 2 months of success, Ginger. Sounds to me like way too much to lose ...

LC, what a great story! I'm kind of jealous of you, though. For one thing, you have 3-D friends who know your full story. Plus, I wouldn't feel like I could walk home alone at midnight. Maybe I could if I lived in a bigger city where there were always lots of people around. I don't live in a dangerous place but people (women) don't generally walk around alone at that time of night. I love to be in the dark so I know I would find that very liberating and relaxing.

Jane, that is the kind of Kombucha I drink - usually one per day. My favorite at the moment is Passionberry Bliss but that changes over time. Gingerberry was my previous fave and Trilogy is always one of the best. I like the fizziest ones and that depends on the batch so if the one I've been drinking isn't fizzy enough, I switch until a new batch comes in to the store (you can tell by the Exp. date). There may be a trace of alcohol in them but unless you are exquisitely sensitive, not enough to trigger a reaction. You could get more alcohol from a very overripe piece of fruit. All the "floaty stuff" is the scoby - it is fine to drink it although if you get a long strand in your mouth it feels pretty weird. Lav makes her own - given the price of the stuff, that would be a great deal and is something I'm considering doing.

[Eloise]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Early evening here but the sun won't be setting until 10:05... which means dark by 10:20-25?
Give me strength!!
Everyone is doing so great... I know it is not easy, but we are all doing it. Somehow... and it is worth it!

[NoSugar]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

It is in our grocery stores, health food stores, Whole Foods, etc. Different places seem to have different varieties.

[narilly]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Jane, Moreal (how the locals say it). Make sure you have some Montreal Smoked Meat and Poutine when you are there. YUMMMY! They are known for that.
Schwartz's - Montreal Hebrew Delicatessen - A Montreal Tradition Since 1928
Schwartz is supposed to have the best Montreal Smoked Meat.
Riding the Subway is fun and Old Montreal is really neat. I hope you have great weather when you are there Mademoiselle Jane. Put the kids on the subway and just walk away....haha...kidding

Yes, the Green Monster came out when I was drinking. That is what one of my old boyfriends used to call it. Now, thinking about that, I really put him through the ringer. That's ok, he had his moments too.

Hey NS, how is that Big Fat book? I forgot the name? I would like to read that depending on your review (no pressure!)
Yes, these frickin thoughts. I seem to think I can moderate somewhere in the little AL part of my brain. So, I just have to stay on top of it and discard the thoughts as soon as I get them. I will win! I don't need to have new AL memories, really, my old ones are bad enough!

Well, back to work.

[NoSugar]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Hi, Greenie
The book is excellent: The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet: Nina Teicholz: 9781451624427: Amazon.com: Books
Since I'm not new to the subject, I don't think I'm surprised by much of it but it is great to have all of the information clearly presented in one place. The one thing that is new to me is the monkey business going on with fats now that trans fats are no longer allowed in our food-like products. It is kind of like getting the BPA out of our bottles and cans -- it might be good that trans fats and BPA are gone but what they're being replaced with might be even worse. It is hard to know b/c for whatever reason, testing isn't required.

:h NS

[Pavati]

Ladies on a Mission: The Official Site

Hi, Everyone:

Ginger, way to go on 60 days! Doesn't that feel great?! Keep it going steady and strong.

Jane - I have worked with teenagers for over 20 years - my advice is let them not talk. I know it can be frustrating, but that's where they are... Probably everything you do or say annoys them, especially in the light of day. Teens tend to talk more later at night. One piece of advice I got was to set an alarm for about 11:30pm an on the guise of getting a glass of water, sit on the couch while he's watching TV or something. As long as you are not facing the same way, you might get some good conversation at that time (or if you're up that late anyway). My sister's daughter babbles (sober) to here when she gets home at night, always after midnight! Hikes or car trips where you're not looking at each other can also be good, as long as it is the right time of day! Also, they are at a point in life when they are deep down anxious and afraid, and they have to "prove" their independence to themselves by not being too connected to you. Of course, they have to be polite and engaging to strangers, and say if you're eating a meal together, but other than that, I wouldn't force the family bonding too much. Just my two cents.

Nar - good for you for posting your feelings here. I know that I went through some very flat and/or low moments around 90 - 150 days (and even longer) when I thought - someday in the future I'll be able to have a glass of red wine with a nice piece of steak... WTF? I didn't even drink red wine very much. I did what you are doing - posted here for support, listened to the Bubble Hour, red, and tried to cultivate gratitude (sometimes while remembering the bad stuff). Those thoughts still come floating by from time to time, but it did get a lot better recently. I feel more "up" regarding drinking than I have in a while. I LOVE square dancing - sounds like a great party. And now I'll reveal a darker side of me - sometimes I like seeing overly drunk people now - it is a reminder to me about how far I've come and how much I DON'T want to go back there. I believe that's called schadenfraued - pleasure derived from the misfortune of others. Doesn't make me feel like a good person, but whatever keeps me sober!

LB - I LOVE it - Freedom Day. We always have a party on July 4 that starts with a parade in our town. My SiL and I always hit the bar right before the parade and had a shot of tequila because we "deserved" it. I'll admit that 10am shot felt pretty great, but that was followed by drinking off and on all day (usually not to the "drunk" stage), and then the terrible sleep that always followed drinking during the day. Thanks GOODNESS I won't be going there this year. Let FREEDOM ring!

LC - Sounds like you have some good friends. I like being able to talk about my alcohol troubles in 3D as NS says - it feels nice to trust someone enough with my scary (to me) story. It also helps me try to overcome the shame that I still feel in "letting" this happen to me. I am getting better about that - accepting that I was vulnerable to alcohol, not that I'm a bad person - but it is a work in progress.

Eloise - I LOVE daytime. 10:00 daylight sounds delightful to me. Glad you popped by to say hi.

Wags - Hope you get some good paddles in this weekend. Do you to training out of the boat? I have a friend who paddles and even did the Molokai race in Hawaii - I can't remember how long that was, but a long time. The boat switches were unbelievable looking with bobbing heads lost in the trenches of the waves. I imagine the warm water was nice, though...

SL - Hope all is well. Love you and thinking of you.

NS - I used to drink the ginger kombucha for my nausea after drinking - maybe I'll try it now for my health instead of for a hangover. Might feel better...

OK, ladies. Off to the store for food for tomorrow. Happy sober Thursday!

Pav