Want to quit drinking

I've been drinking about three days a week. On my sober days, I'm trying not to drink again. My husband is a daily drinker and that doesn't help. However I had seven years once and he was still a daily drinker. I've been having a lot of family stress and that's another reason I drink. Plus being bipolar doesn't help. I would like to hear what people have done to stay sober in the beginning. Thanks

For me it's always been a frame of mind. When I started seeing alcohol as a poison I stopped drinking (over 10 years ago). Also, I don't want to be a slave to anything. I can't even stand the smell of it.

You want to stay busy, and if you start thinking about drinking distract yourself. Ultimately, you have to view alcohol in a different light.

I have to distract myself. When I first stopped drinking I went to a lot of AA meetings in the evening, because that's when I normally drank, when I was home alone, so I had to get out of the house. I no longer use AA as my program of recovery, but if all else fails, I know I can always go to a meeting.

Now when I feel like drinking, I write about it, either in my journal or on a couple of alcohol recovery support sites.

I also knit. I learned to knit lace, which is beautiful, but it requires my full concentration. There's no way I can knit and drink. So I knit, until the craving passes.

Sometimes if the craving is really bad, I just declare the day over and go to bed really early with a book or some DVD's.

It can also be helpful to have people you can call to talk to when you want to drink. I have a couple of good friends I can call and talk to.

splitimage

Signing an agreement with my doctor that I won't
drink while we're working together helped me because
I won't go back on my word on something like that.

Great ideas. Evening is my drinking time too. I will see what I can come up with for distractions. Right now I like a sober recovery forum a d I'm reading a great book. But I know I need more. Thanks again

If you had 7 years at one time, you know all the dos and don'ts. The biggest one is surrender and asking for help. Now it is seeking support to talk to and bounce things off of. Get a sponsor, one or two if need be. If you cant make meetings here is a wonderful link that i just love
aa-alive.net - Home
tc

I was also an evening drinker (with the exception of some weekends). The first week or three were quite hard. Psychologically. I had no physical desire to drink at all. I am one of the lucky ones that gave up without too much trauma despite drinking for many many years. My husband is also a daily drinker. In the beginning he would not ask me to pour drinks or buy his alcohol. Out of respect I suppose. But now it doesn't bother me at all.

I've just gone 8 months sober and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I will not drink again.

In the beginning I drank loads of water (still do). I posted here a lot too.

Hang in there.

My best advice would be to take care of your mental health from the get go. In my case after I got sober from alcohol, i thought I could do it on my own. Huge mistake and it didn't help that I'm also BP. I fell into one of the worst depressions so far, turned to other substances, and I'm still struggling to get myself on track. Most of this could have been avoided if i went to a rehab or got professional help from the moment i put the alcohol down. So just DONT do as I did! It's been almost a year and because I only replaced the alcohol I'm thinking about finally looking into that rehab.

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Couldn't agree more. It is so much easier with support from loved ones.

I basically did the same thing...I told my psychiatrist to randomly test me..it helps a GREAT deal. There are many times I WOULD have drank in the last 2 months..but didn't because I don't want to let HER down.

I work in a restaurant and we get a free drink at the end of our shift. I have become a custom to the habit if having more than just my one free drink. It frequently leads to taking shots and stumbling home wasted. I've recently become aware that I'm drinking to much and have no control over it once I start. I've been trying to not have that first free drink, but after a long shift it's tempting. Today I was able to leave after work and not have that drink but all I've been able to think about since I've left is getting drunk. How do I control these temptations? I know getting a new job would help but the money is good and I'm not sure I could afford to leave.