Congratulations on the 15 days sober! As well as the weight loss. I think you have the right idea on staying busy doing physical work and planning fun trips on your days off. Good luck to you over your mini vacay from work and let us know how it went. Hugs to you!

Underlying cause ? Dear, do not waste your time with the psycho babble BS. You are an alcoholic because you can't stop after 1. the only thing you need to concern yourself with is what you are going to do about it now.
Not trying to be less than understanding. Even if you can find this mysterious cause, you will still be an alcoholic. Medicine/science has been searching for this mysterious gene for 100 years. Keep on with what you are doing, AA meetings are the best tool, you get to find out about your disease from people LIVING with it, and they have many tools to show you, ways to deal with it other than trying to constantly busy yourself. That will become exhausting in the future, but it does serve a good purpose now. I need to lose 10 pounds, or 30. Perhaps busying myself, rather than sitting here typing would be more beneficial..

Congrats Shan!!!!! You are inspiring me. Keep the thinkiing short term and dry. :)

I have to disagree with #2. I applaud you for going to therapy to identify underlying issues that cause you to reach for a drink in the first place. Hopefully you will learn some healthy coping skills through this process.

AA can be helpful to some extent, but the people there are not trained professionals in the areas of mental or physical health.

Wow 15 Days!! Well done!! I also have to respectively disagree with thomas gee's comment. I agree so far that you can only drink one drink, and focus on what you are going to do about that. But I also think that people drink for many reasons, and part of becoming and staying sober is working on the emotional and physical issues that could exacerbate an alcoholic. So yes, accepting you are an alcoholic and realizing you cannot drink again is part of it. But so is dealing with the underlying issues. Have fun on you vacation!! God bless

I would just offer with the yard work...don't overdue it...there are 2 days in the weekend....I wouldn't push my self to exhaustion

H.A.L.T.
Watch out for being Hungry, Angry, Lonely and TIERD.

All triggers.
Congratulations and so happy you are doing well and feeling better.

Ring the sober bell ding ding!!!
1is2many

Thank you all! It truly is a wonderfu feeling to have come this far even if it's only a few weeks sober.

how have you been able to get thus far??

Hooray! Great job on 15 days!

Enjoy your four days off. Sober is way better than drinking.

Glad you are going to see a counselor -- that's a good move.

1is2many....honestly I've just done it, mind over matter. I come to this forum everyday and read posts and see other people being successful and feel encouraged that it is very possible. To hear and feel the sadness in my families voices and faces when I told them has made me want to stay sober, not only for myself but for them as well. It's a struggle, last night after a rough work week I was in so much physical pain I wanted nothing more than to stop at the liquor store so I could numb the pain, but I drove past it somehow and had a warm bath with Epsom salts instead! Seeking counselling is going to be a real help too as I know I have issues with depression and anxiety that enable my past drinking habits. Very thankful I'm here and sober today

Thomas GEE'
Powerful message, right real medicine speak. Of course, not that popular with the 'industry'. Which makes it all the more true. It is the blunt, bitter interface with current reality and its embrace. And learning the dance moves to skip, hop, shimmy and shake all over the slippery terrain of temptations. Good to hear some straight talk for a change instead of rehab counselor goobledygook. My last alcohol counselor (many years ago) asked me to buy a bottle of wine and bring it to her home, actually her then boyfriend's home. On an evening he wasn't there. I didn't listen. AA did me proud, like you say, from those LIVING it.

MeeMoMo,
Also not that popular with those rerouting relapse.
Not many people left who understand the program is in the literature.
"How'd you do it ?"----Good God, what the heck is that, an ego booster seat at the pedestal cafe ?

Hi Shanbanan, Congratulations on your 15 days (actually 17 now). I am glad you waited out the urge and took a soothing bath instead. I wish you well in counseling. Yes, I will always be an alcoholic, but counseling and meds help to make my sobriety more likely, happier, and productive. Co-occurring mental conditions in alcoholics are much more common than many think and treating them together gives the best outcome..

Good god... it's great to press the hide button SB is driving past the liquor store not boosting. Wtf?

And tg, Epsom salts help with all that

1is2many