Marie - YOU CAN DO THIS!!!! Hang in there - breathe - read your list - write a new list...Don't let that demon alcohol beat you!! Drinking does nothing good for you - only bad - keep repeating "I am a NON Drinker now - I don't need alcohol in my life!!" I am off to work - enjoying the clarity I have this morning because I don't drink anymore :] Savoring my coffee instead of gulping it and praying for relief. BIG Hug to you!!
coyotes? coyotes? I live a very sheltered life :-)
And thanks for your message sally - it's 11:30pm, i'm off to bed, feeling very pleased with myself. Woo Hoo!
Thanks for asking Dragonfly. I sincerely hope you're doing better than me.
Welcome, Olivia and Brie- I recommend that you go back and start reading through old posts, just to see what others have done and been through. I too, (and probably all of us) used to "quit" every morning, only to change my mind every evening. The difference this time, for me, was the quality of my decision. I know you know this, if you managed 4 years sober! I wrote in my journal all the stupid things I did while drunk, so I couldn't talk myself out of it, and I told my family about my decision so it would be harder to back out! Good luck to you!
And Olivia, if you can't find another counselor, keep coming here or going to other online places, because there is a lot of support out there. AA isn't the only way.
Hi all - will read posts later when I have more time, but just wanted you to know it's Day 3 for me and I'm feeling great. This really is a war, and I want to WIN.
Thank you. Today is a new day and I look forward to what is ahead..one day at a time. I am glad we have each other for support. Look forward to sharing our journey together and appreciate any support and feedback.
Thank you Ruth....I have been reading through the old posts as you have suggested and as sick as it is...it feels so good to know that I am not alone in this sickness. Without a place like this to come I often feel 'crazy'...like no one understands me. I intend on spending a lot of time here and have committed to a 30 day challenge...today is day one. I have to talk to people who truly understand what I am going through or I keep everything bottled up inside as well, it is important to have accountability and connecting with a group of people who may be different in so many ways....are also just like me. Makes it a safe place to be. Today I am grateful to have found this site.
Kim... welcome back.Animals totally understand, more than any human ever will! I'm not a 'cat person,' but yes, even cats.
Hey gang. Quick check in to say "do not give up!!!".
Bill - I am at day 74 and still struggle with chronic exhaustion. I think it's getting better, but frankly I'm not sure. I came home early yesterday, a treat as work has been kicking my a$$, laid down at 1600 and woke up today at 0700. Then today I just finished a 4 hour "nap". I've been through blood tests and physicals 3 times in 45 days. Blood is all good though protiens are a bit high (indicating something is swollen. I'm thinking... Umm... The liver??). Anyway, while my normal doctor is baffled, a nurse practitioner my wife knows from AA said it's very common and part of the withdrawals. The body literally is trying to repair itself and needs the energy. The bad news is that it can be 6 months or more! So hang in there mate. Eat good. Take a vitamin with solid B, C, and carotene. This is supposed to be super food for the liver and I hear, though it's uncomfirmed, that Ben and Jerry's is very high in all three. Imagine that! Keep faith.
Keep strong friends.
Hi Kimber, I read your post and hear myself. I am not in any position to offer advice as I too am having 'another' day 1. I can say that I am so glad that we are here..it takes a lot of courage to reach out and I just want you to know that your sharing is very helpful to me...I also started the 30 day challenge...we can do it...one day at a time...hope to see you here lots. xo
Connor, I'm starting to think you either work for Ben and/or Jerry, or hold shares of stock in the company. :P Either way, I'll take your word for it that it's health food!!!
Connor & Bill Smit, I did some googling on alcohol withdrawal and fatigue and ran across a great site http://www.goaskalice.columbia.edu/6186.html. (For us older folks, "go ask Alice", imagine that. . . ).
Excerpts follow but here's the executive summary for those who don't want to read a long post: exhaustion may be due to disrupted REM/deep sleep & usually gets better after 3 months and/or may be due to dehydration! I had not correlated dehydration & fatigue.
"Fatigue . . . may be due to a disrupted sleep cycle, a typical symptom of both chronic drinking and the early stages of withdrawal. Both heavy drinking and its cessation can alter the circadian pattern of sleep, increasing the ratio of REM stage sleep to the more restful deep stage sleep. It's also possible that as your changed sleep cycle causes you to wake up periodically throughout the night, which could make you feel more tired during the day. This alteration of the sleep cycle is usually reversed by 3 months of sobriety, if not sooner.
"Your exhaustion could also be due to dehydration. Alcohol dehydrates the body, and the last few years of heavy drinking may have significantly dehydrated you. During this early period of sobriety it might help you to drink lots of water. Eating nourishing food, getting enough (but not excessive) sleep, and treating your body well in other ways can help your body better deal with and recover from withdrawal symptoms."
Sounds like an awesome deal...Kim...Looking forward to getting to know you better...hang in there...just one day at a time..Originally Posted by Kimber
Glad to see you back, Kim, and glad to hear so much positive energy here! Connor, not to shill too much for a product, but I started making fruit smoothies with frozen fruit and almond milk, with a spoonful of "Vitamineral Green" supplement- it is basically dehydrated leafy vegetables, and it really seems to boost energy. Still, fatigue may just be part of the process. Glad you are seeing the doc, though, just to be sure.
woke up feeling FINE!! Love that feeling.....
great to catch up with all the posts overnight... what a wonderful place to visit, anytime, and often.
the world is fantastic today.
Hooray to all of you! Day 3 coming to a close. I did it. Keep up the good work, everyone.
Congrats Connor on staying sober for 74 days.
I'm close to you (79 days) and I also feel tired at times and my energy is not up to par yet. I keep believeing that one day I will feel energy packed again. Until that day I am grateful to be sober and don't have to deal with hangovers and all the other crap associated with heavy drinking anymore !
Keep on keeping on everybody.
Another 30 days for me yesterday! Now another 30 ahead. Stay calm, breathe deeply, meditate, pray for guidance, stay focused, relax, drink decaf with cream, zero tolerance for the romance, eat dinner right away when I get home, then find something else to do until turning in for the night. Read, cross stitch, embroidery, laundry, crossword puzzles, feed the critters, garden, talk with the neighbors, ANYTHING but drink!
I wish Blessings for you all, pray for me too!
Juliet
I just joined moments ago. I've been struggling with giving up alcohol for the past 8 months. It's been an issue in my life for the past decade. In the past 3 years it has become detrimental. I haven't had a DUI in the last 8 years, i haven't lost my job, but i've lost people, and time. I've gone a complete month without drink only to allow myself to reward myself, and start all over at square one. Right now i'm two days sober and having horrible withdrawal. I'm looking at different programs and things to stay assist me in staying sober. I've been to 4 AA meetings and never felt comfortable in that situation. I work and deal with the public daily, so i know it's not that i'm shy. I set up a one on one session with a substance abuse counselor. I hope this and actually reading all of the books i own on addiction and substance abuse give me the strength to never allow alcohol ruin a single day of my life again. This is actually the first time i've ever posted any any comment/statement on a thread or any website. Reading through some comments is like hearing my own words.
TL99....You are not alone. All of us here read about our own lives on this forum every single day. We all have posted our own truth for the first time in our lives, at some point, here, or somewhere else. We here are all looking for help, love, acceptance, salvation, truth, recommendations, and grace for the will to stop the pain, and regain a life with sanity, purpose, and most of all love and forgiveness toward ourselves, and those we care most about.
You are so welcome here.
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