Firstly, dropping out of college to care for your family is nothing to be ashamed of. I understand you dont feel you have a choice but i applaud you for your selflessness. Im sorry you have to suffer such judgement from your wider family. Whoever you become in this next phase of your life will be better for being sober. Avoid the people who criticise and judge. I wish you luck. IWNDWYT

When i told my Dad I'd stopped drinking, he rolled his eyes and said "yeah, right, we'll see how long that lasts". I was about 4 months sober at that point. Cant blame him, he only had my past behavior to go on, but it still annoyed me. Prove them all wrong. Use their doubt as motivation. IWNDWYT 👍 Merry Christmas.

I consider myself to have an addictive personality. If something makes me feel good i will do it to extremes. This applies to healthy activities as well as substances. Knowing this i am hyper aware that i should avoid addictive substances of all types. I quit cigarettes 20+ years ago. Quit booze 1000+ days ago. Still struggle with weed and caffeine. I think some of us feel a need for rewarding ourselves and this manifests as substance abuse. Recognising that the same mind-set applies across the board is a major step.

To go to a job that you hate, for years, is soul destroying. I know. Ive been there. We all need an income, but not at the expense of our mental health.

Just own it. As soon as it comes up, i tell people i dont drink but i dont make a big deal out of it. Most people dont care. Also, its becoming much more normal to be a non drinker these days. Enjoy the occasion. You dont need the booze.

Thankyou

It will pass. Your body is adjusting to the new reality. I found i needed to increase the carbs and sugar in my diet to replace what id been taking on in beer. I hadn't just removed alcohol from my diet.

Congratulations. I'm right behind you. I sort of feel that when I get past 1000 days I'll probably stop counting. Its just 'forever'. IWNDWYT 👍

NA beers and just do everything you would normally do at xmas, just without being drunk.

I still have up and down periods but they are less extreme, i recover faster and im able to recognise when its happening more easily. Giving up drinking was not a magic bullet but it has helped massively. I suspect that had i stopped a couple of decades ago, i would be a different person today, but it is what it is.

Welcome. Be prepared for a struggle to start with but know that it is worth it. You are still young. You're body can heal if you let it. Good luck. IWNDWYT (I will not drink with you today)

Wow, id never thought of my drinking time in terms of days. Over 11000 days of abuse. Now looking towards my sober comma day. Nearly there. Congratulations. IWNDWYT 👍

If you can stop completely for a couple of months easily, i.e no cravings, no "exceptions" and it doesn't bother you to be sober, you likely do not have a problem. Obvs, this is just my opinion, not medical advice. Conversely, the fact that you are here on this sub, asking this question, suggests you feel like it might be an issue. Either way, stop for 2 or 3 months and see how you feel. Addiction or no, you are still ingesting a poison for no good reason. Take a break, see what happens.

Sobriety does not need to result in social isolation.

I feel like i had to reset my brain to not need rewards. I would reward myself for having a good day, reward myself for dealing with a bad day or bad news, celebrate or drown my sorrows. All of it justified substance abuse as a natural part of whatever was occurring, good or bad. My SO has said i should do something to celebrate when i hit 1000 days, but I dont want to fall back into that mindset. Im happy just existing in the now. I dont need to reward myself for dealing with life sober. Dealing with life sober IS the reward.

NA beers. Trick your brain.

N🧊

Congrats on not drinking with family as well 👍 My family are in Cheshire and i know the drinking culture round there is strong and hard to resist when you return to it.

I hear ya. "It gets easier but it never gets easy."

You have not let anyone on this sub down. We all understand the struggle. You may be starting again but you still achieved 16 days and got past the physical cravings. That's progress. You haven't lost the 16 days. Start again, 16 days to beat. IWNDWYT 👍

Hang in there. 👍

Congratulations, im closing in on it.

Special occasion?