Reflections on ten months of total sobriety.

I have not been about much as life been pretty hectic but thought I would share a few things.

Last boxing day I got drunk for the last time. I will not go into the reasons in detail right now but there were many and as some will know I have been battling alcoholism my entire adult life and the docs gave me 10 more years tops if I continued and I chose life as Renton once suggested.

I also started taking ssri's and the combination of those two things has really changed my life. My anxiety is pretty much gone, OCD is well under control and for the first time in memory I am kinda happy and positive.

I don't know if it's right but I no longer really care for conspiracies or the occult, there are no illuminati overlord reptilian overlords or chemtrails, magic is no longer real, there is no reincarnation life after death or anything spooky like that to me any more. On the plus side I can now interact with the world I live in and I actually quite like it.

Not sure what else to say right now other than to anyone battling addiction or mental health issues there is a light at the end of the tunnel and I am here if anyone needs a hand.

originally posted by: nonspecific
I have not been about much as life been pretty hectic but thought I would share a few things.

Last boxing day I got drunk for the last time. I will not go into the reasons in detail right now but there were many and as some will know I have been battling alcoholism my entire adult life and the docs gave me 10 more years tops if I continued and I chose life as Renton once suggested.

I also started taking ssri's and the combination of those two things has really changed my life. My anxiety is pretty much gone, OCD is well under control and for the first time in memory I am kinda happy and positive.

I don't know if it's right but I no longer really care for conspiracies or the occult, there are no illuminati overlord reptilian overlords or chemtrails, magic is no longer real, there is no reincarnation life after death or anything spooky like that to me any more. On the plus side I can now interact with the world I live in and I actually quite like it.

Not sure what else to say right now other than to anyone battling addiction or mental health issues there is a light at the end of the tunnel and I am here if anyone needs a hand.

Hey buddy, from another recovering alcoholic, let me be the first to congratulate you on a job well done. I used to medicate myself with alcohol. Alcohol was absolutely devastating to my life, but I kept on using it. I could go on and on with what using alcohol cost me,not to mention those around me, but that's for another time.It really wasn't about having fun, it was about trying to feel ok. It's a real accomplishment that you have been sober this long. CONGRADULATIONS!!!!!

a reply to: nonspecific

Not sure what else to say right now other than to anyone battling addiction or mental health issues there is a light at the end of the tunnel and I am here if anyone needs a hand.

Well said, and congratulations. The above quote has the potential to save lives.

a reply to: nonspecific

Enjoy the steak, Cypher.

(But sincere congrats on your sobriety.)

a reply to: DictionaryOfExcuses

You know what stopped me posting about this before on here?

The knowledge that I have done exactly what Cypher did in the matrix and it was a hard pill to swallow (pun intended).

It took until now to accept the truth and the truth is that this steak tastes pretty damn good to me.

Congratulations. I am a recovering alcoholic. Have been going to AA for 20 years. Sobriety is a beautiful gift.

a reply to: nonspecific

Breath in and breath out and don't drink in between. Keep up the good work. It's a great feeling. Remember that your mind can be like a bad neighborhood .........don't go in there alone. Over 28 years here and I wouldn't give it up for the world.

a reply to: nonspecific

Congrats. I'm over 25 years off the booze myself. Don't miss it. Still believe in conspiracies, even more so than when I was drinking. Cheers.

a reply to: Tarzan the apeman.

The bizzare thing is I don't actually miss it like I thought I would. I assumed the remainder of my life would be a constant miserable battle to not drink with periodic remmisions and regret bit it's just not going that way.

My stepson was killed in a road accident back in march and everyone assumed I would hit the drink like the good addict I am but I did not or even struggle to not do. I can sit with people from king or go to a party or bar or pub and not drink and it's not hard like I assumed it would be.

Weird.

a reply to: nonspecific

Good for you and welcome back.

I didn't know about the alcoholism. Bit of a shock.

Been on antidepressants twice before. They do work, don't they?

Congrats brother. It’s been about a year since I’ve had one - last years work Xmas party.
Didn’t get drunk. And no plans on it either.
It’s 1 day at a time.

You're all nuts.

I'm getting wasted.

Congrats!
3 1/2 years here.

Alcohol was my drug of choice for many years. However I discovered that I didn't have a drinking problem, I had a thinking problem. Just because you aren't drinking, doesn't mean you're sober.

Ever heard the expression "dry drunk"?

a reply to: nonspecific

Congradulating you on your quest long tough battle but well worth it to get control of your life,and quit letting the bottle do your will,you'll find people you hung around with will call you boring and such,but as the years progress you won't be one hauled off in an abulance

a reply to: nonspecific

"I may not be where I Should be, I may not be where I Want to be, but I thank God I'm not where I Used to be."

I saw that, or something close to that, painted or stenciled on a wall when I went to visit my stepdad in inpatient treatment and it really stuck with me.


As for myself, I used to have a bad drinking problem. Heroin cleared that right up for me. Actually i started my opiate addiction with pills, but heroin is what it led to and was where I stayed for years and years and years. And it sounds more dramatic to say it that way...

But yeah, I never had any urge to drink when I was on heroin. It fixed my alcoholism. And gave me opiate addiction instead. I havent used heroin or any illegal drug in a year and a half, but I still take opioids (a little diff technically from opiates i guess) every day. I'm a patient at a methadone clinic. *sigh* I may not be where I Want to be...

I'm glad to hear you seem to be doing better than you "used to be". I hope this upward trend continues until you die peacefully and happily of Very old age.


Ok what about Brexit? Are you still fired up about Brexit? Asking for a friend.

a reply to: 3n19m470

I am pretty lucky in that I have managed to kick a habit without gaining or worsening another one. I know lots of folks who have quit drinking but just smoke absurd amounts of weed instead and somehow think they are better off lol.

As to Brexit I'm not really fussed to be honest, I can't change the big picture so I find ignoring it is beneficial to my life and just focus on the little things that I can change.

a reply to: nonspecific

Well done nonspecific fantastic going a whole new world opens up to you , If you can come through a tragedy like loosing your step-son and stay sober you are on the right path

a reply to: nonspecific

I am pretty lucky in that I have managed to kick a habit without gaining or worsening another one. I know lots of folks who have quit drinking but just smoke absurd amounts of weed instead and somehow think they are better off lol.

What if instead of smoking it, it was made into an edible and then consumed would that still be bad in your opinion ?

Oh and nice work on the getting off the booze, I'm not off it but I have cut down considerably as my gf hates it and I like her more than the booze....

a reply to: hopenotfeariswhatweneed

I was not trying to be negative about the weed as o know it has benefits to some people.

I was pointing out that decreasing one dependency by increasing another is not actually solving a problem.

Alcohol and cannabis are not bad but total dependency on them to function is.