Hi Lost,

I have not heard that one. So I will it to the others to answer. I am on day 10. I am proud of you. You are an inspiration!

Thanks sad!! Not feeling very inspirational this morning....my darn cheerleading self must still be cuddled in bed :-)!! Time to wake her up!

Well, it will come back. Just stay focused on the goal. I know that for me quitting is like a bipolar disorder. Sometimes I feel I can conquer the world and other times I am down.

Hello lostnursetoo,

I think that this two week thing may be mythical rather than mystical. There is nothing special about the two week mark but as well as that monkey that you referred to in another thread you need to watch out for the parrot that sits on your shoulder and tells you that one little glass would do no harm.

It all comes back to the obsession that an alcoholic has for alcohol. People use their willpower to battle it and at some point their willpower may not be strong enough. For some it may be two weeks and for others it can take longer but if something is not done to change the way of thinking, that parrot will get very loud at some point.

Watch out in case you are already planning to have a drink and are looking for a way to justify it to yourself (two weeks sober, difficult week ahead etc.). Run the tape all the way through from taking that drink to having many more and all of the trouble that follows. Think about how you feel now about what you have achieved and about how it would feel if you were going back to starting again.

If you are an alcoholic you cannot drink safely and there are no exceptions to the rule. Your mind is still programed into thinking that you need alcohol and will be looking for ways to justify taking a drink. That is something that you can change and there are various ways that you can do it. Your body reacts abnormally to alcohol and that is something that you can never change. One drink will always set off a craving for more and will bring you right back to your worst days of drinking.

Watch out for that parrot on your shoulder.

Lost. Two weeks that is great. I have to have the same procedure done next month. Don't worry you will be fine. My father died of Colan cancer to. The two week point. I remember feeling at peace that I made it two weeks and my sleep was so much better and my guilt gone. When I have stress in my life just remember all the positive things about not drinking and remind myself they will still be there even if I drank and I will not let the outside world/things/alcohol take my peace.

Just try to make it tonite and put your head on your pillow sober.

You can handle just today. I believe in you.

1is2many

Hi nurse
I use to be under that delusion that if I only make it to this day or this month or this year I'll be ok and all of those things turned out not to be true. Time has never equated with recovery or with spiritual awareness. That every day is a day that I have to live like God is with me and what would he have me do. How can I best serve Him. By not counting days , months or years this time I have lived a life I have not designed and can be at peace with those around me. For me what I never knew was that the 12 steps of AA don't make me spiritual but remove everything that is unspiritual about me so that who I really am can come out, the man God has always wanted me to be. God speed nurse.
Dave

Milestones and benchmarks only seemed to lead more to thoughts of alcohol temptations. "I made it for XX long, maybe I can try to have a drink." I haven't. There has to be the same resolve, day in, and day out. I know what day it is, as do my kids, but I wake up every day with another day of not drinking. I haven't focused on any kind of benchmark. It would seem doing so, would be more of an abstinence mindset, and not one of sobriety.

Jeff, your wrote:
Milestones and benchmarks only seemed to lead more to thoughts of alcohol temptations.

So true it is to much focus on alcohol, but like someone like me who has a hard time making pass a week. it's still nice to know I have made it xx months. Just today there was a post from someone that is 20 years today. He still counts. But I sure do see what you mean, tends to make us focus on not only alcohol but the pass.

In my opinion it does not exist! I understand where that kind of thinking comes from, I had a mystical two year mark, then some mystical four month marks, then gradually reducing periods until it was the mystical couple of hours mark..

A few things going on there in my opinion - the obvious progression of the illness as willpower eroded, possibly some self-fulfilling prophesy -"Oh crikey, it's coming up to _____ (fill in the blank) I never to seem to make it past/ I've been warned about... " and other such fear induced rubbish.

I couldn't use fear (I had a cartload already), renewed resolve or good reason to stop me drinking. I am an alcoholic who needed much more if I was to stay sober in the long term.

Thanks everybody! Your support is so helpful to me. I had a little talk with myself and told myself that my fretting about the results of my testing on Thursday was not going to change the outcome of the test and was only serving to make me lose the peace that I have found. For every minute I spent fretting, I lost 60 seconds of happiness!

And PJ - starting to think I am running a zoo!!! Thanks for the visual! I think that darn bird pooped on my shoulder this morning :-)!!

Just take it one day at a time.You will be ok.

This is why I don't count as many may notice. Makes it to much about the measure instead of the ultimate goal. So for today no boo boo well see about tomorrow... That's not a yogi expression either.. lol...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pqyax6gwzQ

Never heard of the two week point being a difficult milestone to watch out for.

Good luck on your test. I'm sure you'll be fine, but I'll send a prayer your way anyway.

Congrats!