The giving up/cutting down alcohol support thread!

dazron

I'd like to sign up for this thread as I'm in the same boat... I'm borderline alcoholic, although i'd temper that with saying it's mostly alcohol dependancy I suffer from. I can't do a day of work without hitting the vino every night. If I do one night 'off' i feel like i've genuinely achieved something! Also I very much believe that this dependancy has cost me an awful lot of money, missed opportunities, and has contributed to a sense of continuing apathy - which has led to me going further and further into debt.

I'm at a stage now in my life where I need to break this pattern, for my health, sanity and quality of life.

I admire all those in a similar boat and add my support to their struggles also.

winebox

Morning all.
Today is, I hope, AFD 1 - first in ages - there's no white wine in the house & from now on every time I'm tempted to pick up my "2 bottles for £7.50" on the way home it's going into my "money not spent on alcohol" jar. I hope that seeing it physically build up will keep me going. The habit gets ever more expensive - have just had to buy new trousers for work as cannot fit into anything in wardrobe. Maybe I should just wear the wardrobe it's about the same width as I am :rotfl: (not funny!!).

Stupid as ever I "had" to finish off a wine box last night, it was much better to drink it than pour it away. I think it was less than half full (er, just). Feel OK today, luckily.

Bis your phrase "half life" is so true.

There have been a lot of posts about picking fights with OH when drunk - as we don't live together I only have this problem at weekends (not for a while though - chucking that pint of water over him weeks ago shocked me into submission) - it's just too damn easy to drink every night at home cos there's nobody there to see me, DD is too young to realise. She asked me the other day if I've "ever been drunk" - bless. Please may she never see for herself.

Welcome to dazron. Huge welldones bis & MP, & hope you're OK eselt. And Jo - glad to see you back if not glad about the reason - hope you're OK? Stick at it shoppy. Hi to all I've not mentioned, too many brain cells killed off

Catch up later - good luck to all today

jo1972

biscotte wrote: »

Very interested about everyone's feeling depressed with booze - I wonder if it's one of the causes of my bouts of 'depression' (not really bad but still a black puppy if not a full grown dog).

Alcohol misuse caused my depression rather than the other way round. It surpresses all your emotions and blocks out so much stuff you don't want to think about and kinda makes you a bit 'dead' iykwim

Still running after that wagon, please slow down for me....

shopaholictiedtheknot

Wow, it has got busy on here of late!!

AFD for me yesterday :T and having another today, been keeping myself busy listing on ebay and greenmetropolis!

My ankle is KILLING me and my foot is really bruised and I have had to wear a support bandage to work today Thanks for the hugs Eselt I need them!! Oh keeps telling me to take painkillers but I feel I deserve to suffer:o

:rotfl: winebox at the wearing the wardrobe thing - I may join you, perhaps we could set a new trend:rotfl:

Welcome Dazron and fay and good luck on your missions
Bismarck congrats 500 days :eek:

To all my fellow 'strugglers' lets hope we can keep our halos shining brightly :A at least some of the days this week :beer:

SiannieLaz

Morning All
Winebox-I don't think I could even fit in my wardrobe any more!! Someone at work asked me if I was pregnant last week:rolleyes: I carry all my beer weight around my waist and to be honest, haven't done anything about it for ages. My doctor has even told me I need to lose it as it's making my hiatus hernia worse. Decided yesterday I would start running again, and was determined to get up early this morning, but couldn't manage to heave myself out of my too-comfy bed!
Jo - I'm the same, it definitely caused my depression, I started binge drinking at weekends from the age of 12 (fell in with a bad crowd) and the depression started at age 13. When I've stopped before it just lifts off me, but that's the danger time for me. I start feeling really positive, think I can control it, have a drink, wake up feeling low and start drinking again - horrid, horrid cycle.
Bismark - you're amazing, a total inspiration.
Shoppie - hope your ankle recovers quickly
Everyone else, have a great day :smileyhea and big cheers for all of us. Trying something, however successful, is better than never trying at all (((()))))

Wanna_Bee_Free

:wave: Eselt, Biscotte, fellow delurker Fayjmck and everyone else,

Well I drank lots of wine last night although I enjoyed it at the time I'[EMAIL="I@m"]m[/EMAIL] not feeling good about it this morning, annoyed with myself as I was planning an AFD.

Ahh, well, time to get on and focus on today instead.

Have a good day everyone.

shopaholictiedtheknot

Right nosey question coming up

I used to buy 3 for £10 wine and they were always nice but of late is seems to be only really horrible vinegary wines that go into that deal and I find myself getting either two for £9 (which are still not great) or going for ones which are reduced to half price - paying between £4-£5 a bottle but getting a much better quality of wine (and usually higher abv :rolleyes: )

Just wondering how much everyone else spends (or saves on AFD's)??

Pippilongstocking

Me too, WBF- one bottle wine on table, got to 10'o clock last night, good movie on and then offered a glass to brother, and I just happenned to drink the rest - so annoyed at myself today, but I need to knock it on the head and get on - its funny how I can convince myself its 'ok' if i can actually function the next day, get up for work and get on with life. And yeah if it were a tablet your darn right I wouldnt take it. Makes you think eh?

-I had started to add the purchases of any alcohol into my grocery challenge stuff - then got too embarrassed - I mean a budget of 200 a month and the alcohol bit was peeking at around anohter £90+ if I was honest with myself.

Thinking about starting a jar today - I know the perfect one and putting in 'todays' money so if I want to get some wine I will have to take it out the jar. Kinda reverse logic, not reward self tomorrow, cos it will prob be too late, if I put it in the mornings I might look at the intention and stick to it??

I am thinking I can't actually have the stuff in the house, even wondered about hiding wallet etc. Problem is knowing when the reduced stuff happens in my supermarket its always later on after 8pm - so if I go out then I am so much more likely to spend on a bottle of wine. How do folks stop that purchase? I nearly put washing up liquid in the wine calling to me from the table last night or poured it down the sink, or put it in the freezer - to stop me drinking it - saw a food programme once with someone binging, the lady made up the food and then covered it in fairy liquid - to shock her into not eating it, seems to be such a waste but maybe I am needing to shock myself into the money I am wasting. Whether it goes down the hatch or down the sink.?

Trying for an AFD if not the rest of the week, cos I have so much on. Might attempt yoga tonight haven't been in ages and it always lightens my head up. Lightbulb moment last night was its probably been about 5 years since i was going regularily. I liked myself and the way my body was shaping up then. Dont normally go now cos I feel so crappy.

Spends on alcohol - me - shopaholic..... - £3-6 a day? Depending on which wine I get funny I dont buy it cos its necessarily the wine I like anymore, which I did do before - I stick to red or dry white - but use to pick the ones I really liked before

biscotte

Well, big wobble for me tonight - went to a 'function', nibbles and wine, result am slightly the worse for wear (got home and DH has polished off a big half of a bottle to).

Shoppy, I tend to buy nicer french wine, which here is blummin' expensive although I can get it cheaper over the border. So I'd say a good 10-15 € per bottle.

Sianne and Jo - i really identify with the depression thing - really. I also started binge drinking fairly young (I can still remember the night I pushed myself to the limit for the first time with a bottle of vermouth!) and have never been dry enough to experience 'normal functionment' since (except when pregnant when everything's wierd anyway). Goodness, can't beleive I wrote that but it is true - that's a bit of a shocker really - what is truely normal long term sobriety like?

fayjmck - really chucking it down the sink is not a waste - TBH, what we do to ourselves with it is a waste.


Suddenly feel very chastened.

See you all tomorrow

eselt

Hi all- hope everyone is OK, and the journeys going well. Welcome newbies- Fay, I don't think chucking the stuff down the sink is a waste- what I do think is a waste is ending up in hospital having alcohol withdrawal fits and with an inflammed liver, getting sacked for being drunk at work, having to ask my ex to look after my children, and my personality literally disintegrating (which all happened to me) was the biggest waste of a persons health and life that there can be. In the end it was a pretty simple cost/ benefit analysis for me- what could alcohol give me? nothing, what would continuing to drink alcoholically cost me?- everything. Its only now I've been sober since Dec 07 that I can think clearly enough to realise this though.

Best of luck everyone, noone likes conflict but this is a battle well worth facing head on. Take care.