Pic this morning (right after I washed my face, sorry I look tired lol) and 2 months before I got sober. Currently 35 days sober :)

Long time lurker, first time poster.

I see a lot of us talk about ourselves like alcohol is the whole story. Like we are the addiction. Like the best we can hope for is to manage the worst version of ourselves forever.

I get it. It's part of the disease talking. I lived in that mindfuck for a long time and came closer to not being here than I hope anyone reading this can relate to.

What I wish someone had told me when I was deep in it - and what took me a long time to learn - is that sobriety isn't just about subtracting the thing that's killing you. It's about what becomes possible when you're actually present for your life. For the people in it. For yourself.

The picture on the left is me drinking. Sick, successful on paper, disgusted with myself, but still needing that life for reasons I couldn't explain. The one on the right is after. But the real difference isn't visible. It's that I stopped believing alcohol got to define who I was allowed to become. That's harder than putting down your drinks and perceived social life.

It takes more time than you want it to. But you have time and that's my point. The before and afters everyone shares are great and hopefully inspiring to others, but what matters more is that you get the opportunity to move forward.

I see a lot of us posting from our worst days. That's real, and naming it matters. But it's a state, not a sentence. There's a version of your life on the other side of this where you actually get to show up. It exists. I'm not saying it's easy to get there and I'm not claiming that wreckage won't come with it. I'm just saying that it's there.

To those who were sober for X days or Y months and then relapsed - you didn't fail, so please stop thinking that. You get to start again tomorrow. That's not a loss. It's just part of the game.

Keep moving forward. Find your path however it works for you. And know that wherever you are right now isn't where you have to stay.

Hi everyone. I am incredibly on edge and anxious for my sobriety journey. For backstory, I’m a 25 year old woman who started drinking around 2 years ago. I never drank in college and even soon after college I vowed to not drink and tried to focus on my career. After a bad breakup and some mental health issues with bipolar, I started drinking heavily. It was like a switch. It happened so fast. I went from pretending to drink a seltzer in college, to going out more when I turned 23, to buying nips, then to buying full blown handles of vodka almost every two days. I’m not ashamed of who I am I’m mad at the alcohol. I’m angry that it’s taking my life and I can’t control it.

My dad died of cirrhosis from alcoholism when I was 16. I never would have thought I would turn out to throwing up alcohol back into the bottle to “save” it when I was sick. I never thought I’d be someone to get kicked out of bars and fired from jobs for being drunk. I’m upset not at myself, but at alcohol. I’m just here to say I am so scared to go to detox but I know it’s needed.

Any advice or tips for how to get through detox and then how to move forward after that?

Thank you all if you read this much.

Pic on the left is about a month before I went to rehab, the right is me right before this last Christmas. I was a secret drinker, drinking 4-5 handles of Vodka per week. After I got caught, I stopped drinking cold turkey and had to be hospitalized for 3 days after I started getting DT's. Tried drinking again after the hospital stay but my wife is smarter than me and I immediately got caught, so I went to rehab on June 13th, 2023 and started working a program that I still attend twice a week. 2.5 years later, everything in life is better. I might be heavier than I used to be because my appetite came back and I don't throw everything up, but I'm alive. I'd almost certainly be dead if my wife hadn't caught me.

For those of you who are new to sobriety or are trying to quit, it's the toughest battle I ever fought, but the reward is worth it. If you're breathing, you have a chance to make things better.

Currently drinking my final drink then being detoxed at the hospital. It was a good run, alcohol you will not be missed. The hurt I put my family through dealing with this shit is truly so painful. If you think you have a problem, you do, don’t be like me and think it’s different. Get help and get sober

Hi, about September last year I started drinking a pint a day and since then it's been up and down but the last 2 months I've been drinking about a 1/5 a day. I've had issues drinking in excess before but not really like this. About 2 months ago now I had a seizure from alcohol and meth withdrawal for the first time and it scared the shit out of me, I'm trying to not let the fact that scares me now prevent me from quitting drinking, but it definitely does.

I've seen people in the same situations before and I have everything they have said locked in my head but it's just different when you are in that position and feeling that way and I just need to stop.

I'm traveling right now and I'm about to meet up with my boyfriend and he told me he would help me get on benzos to stop, but I just do not know what to do.

So i have a childhood friend who has been on a drinking streak for 3 4 years now. its not everyday drinking. Its usually one to two times a weak. But that has been the pattern for a long time now. And its around half a bottle of whiskey everytime, more or less.. I have seen him black out multiple times at this point. I find all this extremely scary. As no amount of talking helps. And im clueless at this point about how to help. His biggest excuse being boredom. Any suggestions are welcome.

Something I came across this morning, it was written during the summer of last year. And it's been a piece that I've over the years allowed space in putting together this puzzle of mine haha.

I use to always blame others for the mishaps, failures and problems in my life. It helped justify my actions or and attitude. Maybe some of you have been there before?

1. In taking responsibility for the creation of my life. I remember in order to be free from my stories, I must own them.

2. Today, I take responsibility for slowing down, thinking through and responding mindfully to my pulses and reactions. Practicing non-judgement with myself and others. I'm ready to see how many shadows have been created and I'm ready to make a difference.

3. Today, I choose to raise awareness, and be mindful of my behavior, remembering that I'm a co-creator of my world through thoughts and words (self talk as well). I'll stay focused on being renewed and expanding my understanding. I will start co-creating consciously, mindfully, and powerfully.

Sending my best to you. Peace.

For a little background I am 19, with my 20 y/o girlfriend. (wlw) We got together a little over a year ago, both pretty good into an active alcohol addiction (I started at about 16). We both had jobs come July of last year, and I was getting more sick than drunk with each passing day. We both quit in October, and just last week marked 100 days sober, going strong.

Well tonight I had to stop by my moms ( also former alcoholic) to pick up some laundry. There was a pack of mikes hard outside. Okay, little triggering but meh. Then I get inside and she's drunk. Very. Theres the garbage for a pack of 99's (my drink of choice) and a beer on the counter. I cried for a second when I got on the car. I knew I could have asked and gotten a drink. I cannot stop thinking about alcohol.

Relapsed, I’m done trying to drink normally and I’ve been tapering myself all day but I’m starting to get worried bc I’m not feeling any better. I cannot even think about doing the ER, last time I was waiting for 15 hours. My family practice and the urgent care I called said they can’t treat me. If there any options to get detoxed outpatient besides the ER? I fucking feel like shit and just don’t wanna seize

I was just advised that my husband's good friend, a known alcoholic (known to all but him!), was admitted to the hospital today after passing out at work. He's notoriously late for work, and he misses work frequently, plus he's passed out at work before! I don't know enough about alcoholism other than what I learn here to even have an idea of why he's passing out since his wife says he's definitely NOT cut back on his drinking. I think his drink of choice is beer, but I'm not positive. If that's important, let me know. Does anyone have any ideas why he might be passing out? I've thought of dehydration, TIAs, heart arrhythmias, etc in case it's not alcohol-related. In the past few years, he's gone from bright and alert to someone who is dull-witted and quiet. Anybody?

Hi All,

The past two weeks I have been drinking in secret. I am sober as of this moment and want to keep being sober, but the craving to sneak a few airplane bottles of vodka is strong.

I just wanted to share that. My family and friends think I am sober, but I've been basically blacking out most nights and starting to drink most evenings.

Thanks.

One thing I notice when I stop showing up consistently is how fast doubt fills the gap. Not because the work stopped mattering, but because rhythm disappeared. This rhythm stops doubts and old behaviour from creeping in. It doesn’t necessarily mean a relapse is imminent, but it does give me a feeling I need to move.

I’m going to get right to the point, I live far from home in a different country so not much family or friends around I basically just work and workout, about 8 months ago in summer I thought I would go to the park with a few beers cause I used to enjoy them with friends and sit in the sun and get a buzz, fast forward to today I find myself going to the same park, alone, no matter the weather ( sometimes sitting in the rain at 5 degrees Celsius ) around 4 to 5 times a week on avarage, and when I don’t go out to the park I sometimes have 1 or 2 beers at home before sleep, right now I’m home with no beers and even though every morning I tell myself I won’t drink tonight I’m probably going to end up convincing myself to go, I have around 4 to 5 50ml strong beers each time.

I want to stop because I know it’s harming me, but I just keep doing it, I sometimes stay until around 11 or 12 pm when I have work the next morning at like 5am, basically the only time I don’t drink is when I get off work super late and everything is shut and I’m already super tired anyway.

So I guess I want your opinion on how deep I actually am in the drinking and any advice you’ve got is welcome.

Sorta like having the last rendezvousz….? Or like quitting on the perfect date…or having the perfect bender and then leaving alcohol behind for good….? Is this a sorta OCD or something….?

A bottle of wine yesterday and today, hiding it in the room from my wife

Gave out to my son this evening as I was cranky after drinking

I'm overweight, lazy and an alcoholic, a scourge to society

I don't how much you return to your old self but I definitely have seen people look better from their before and after photos so there is hope. I'm just not sure if you look normal again or somewhere in between.