Anyone?

bethmach -
You might want to try AA again in spite of yor misgivings. The stories won't have changed, but I guarantee they are not half as tiresome as looking in the mirror and hating who you see. Look to the eventual alternatives - Institutions, prison and a miserable death. Doing the thorazine shuffle, rooming with bubba or an early dirt nap just might make boring look good...
Hugs,
Dennis

Thanks Dennis, I appreciate it. My biggest fear is the "early dirt nap." My liver can't handle much more of this. If you don't mind me asking, how long have you been sober and what helped you?

There are lots of programs, lots of help available. But they all have one thing in common -- to quit, you have to stop drinking. I know -- duh, of course. But I say that because looking for inspiration isn't going to be enough. And hearing the same old stories? That's because alcohol kills us all the same way. And yeah, it will continue to ruin your life as long as you keep drinking.

So how do you go about quitting? You can go to AA and work the program, not just go to meetings. You can check out Women For Sobriety or SMART Recovery -- two other very good programs.

You can do what I did and wake up morning knowing that you can't live this way, that it is a living death, and stop on your own.

But you have to make the decision to quit or no program or method is going to work. "Willing to try again" isn't good enough. You have to want it in your gut. And even that isn't enough. You have to be willing to work at it -- to not pick up a drink even when every fiber of your being is screaming that just one drink won't hurt.

Keep reading, check out the programs I mentioned and maybe something will click into place for you.

Do whatever you have to do to get sober if you are ready. Being around sober people definitely helps, and it also helps to be able to confide in someone for support. AA can be part of this but a good friend or family member might be able to get you started too.

It all starts with Day 1. Not sure how bad your problem is or whether you need medical help getting through the first few days. But try to be around someone who can help you through it.

AA will work a lot better if you get involved and participate in it. When I came back after a 9-year relapse, I was pretty much willing to do anything and jumped in with both feet. There's always coffee to be made, chairs to be put away, people to talk to. A smile can brighten someone's day. Little things add up.

I got busy with a sponsor and the 12 steps and I am as enthusiastic about my recovery as I was two years ago. Dennis is right... for quite a few years my reflection sickened me and yet I couldn't put the bottle down.

Give it another shot through a different set of eyes this time. See how that works.

You have to be ready. Look at all the negatives in your life caused by drinking. For me, it was arguments with my family, feeling like crap for the next day, being nasty, saying and doing things I wouldnt do sober, things I would normally regret...it leads to nothing good in life....then look at all the great things of being sober...improved health, being honest to yourself and loved ones, saving money, and most of all, a better outlook on life....there are many ways to get through this...we are all here, but you must be the leader of your own destiny. Stay strong and do it. Everyday is another day...and can be another day sober...it starts becoming that you challenge yourself...first a week, then a month, next 6 months...and on and on....Im only 8 days today, but feeling great. You can do this.

It'll be 5 years in May. The primary thing that got me unscrewed was doing the steps. Let me back to a relationship with God that I'd lost. Tis a good thing for this drunk...

Check this site out...may help...may not. What I have learned is the more resources you have the better. They for sure saved my life


http://www.dailystrength.org/groups/alcoholrecoverywithout12steps

You might also want to look into getting help beyond AA or any of the other options here. Your body and mind can use other support to get you to a better level. For example a sound multi-B vitamin, Omega 3 and some others are widely used to support bodily functions wacked out by alcohol.

I can only share my experience in AA and how I recovered:

Go to meetings (a bunch of different meetings, 90 in 90)
Get a sponsor (you can fire them if you don't like them)
Read the big book (simple explanation of the disease)
Don't drink (this was the hardest, that's why you need the first 3)

Everything else (spouses, money, jobs and life) will work out as it should.

Someone on the Alcohol Recovery board just mentioned an herbal product that I'm going to look for that supposedly helps reduce cravings. I take detox pills, and drink herb detox tea, and try to keep busy and not think about drinking. It's so hard. You're not alone here.

Welcome. What other suggestions are you looking for? I am trying to examine my motives so am just passing on what I'm learning through being asked? There is no quick fix, or happy pill. AA was/ is enough for me as its somewhat endless. You get out of it what you put into it.
I've had a bunch of friends I've met in AA and a few have had multiple relapses. We have the same program availalbe, and live in the same city, yet they say they can't possibly make meetings...
Another feels isolated and that no one includes her but hte reality from my vantage point at least is she never returns calls, texts, or makes meetings let alone the women's social gatherins.
I drank daily. I need a daily program. AA works for me.
In addition to AA I do yoga, I read other books, I reach out to non AA friends all the time, I talk to my husband, to my children (not about alocholism but about THEM), I run, I ride.
Do what you can do to get out of yourself. If yourself is anything like myself....it was/ is a not so friendly place to dwell in alone in early sobriety:)

Beth...I seem to remember you being here. You said the same old stories got tiresome? Did you have a sponsor? Did you work the steps? Did you go back to drinking? What were your expectations of AA? There are certainly other programs but I know from my own experience there is no easy way. You have to be more than inspired you have to want sobriety more than drink itself....until I was willing to do whatever it took...until I was willing to admit I can't drink p e r i o d. until I accepted the help of a sponsor and took the program seriously I couldn't stay sober.

Today after almost 3 years I don't have a physical or mental craving for alcohol. I don't use alcohol to bury issues, I am much more at peace with myself and my life. Absolutely there are times when a fleeting thought "gee a drink would be nice" passes thru my head....but I'm able to let it pass on by. I wouldn't trade my sobriety for a drink to save my soul.

I understand your fear of a drunken "dirt nap"...I'm closer to that final nap than you are and have lost friends...too many it seems lately. I'm so glad I won't die a drunk. Remember this IS a progressive illness and doesn't get better by itself, if you can stop now think of how far ahead of the game you will be. Wouldn't you love to have no more hangovers...blackouts...embarassing moments of "WTF did I do?" realizations. Life has so much to offer us but our time on this earth really is short....don't let alcohol rob you of the rest of yours.