“You will win back a piece of you that you forgot you had. It is the single greatest thing I have ever done for myself and my proudest accomplishment.”

The blue links in this table of contents will take you directly to the different parts of the sober milestones section of post, where more blue links will help you find all of the Boozemusings blog posts in our pocket guide to your sober journey.

“What is different this time? Well, I’ve been thinking about that as I believe mindset is where it is all at. Firstly I struggled to get past day one for several months. I desperately wanted to stop drinking. Every morning when I woke up I promised myself ‘today is the day’ and then had a glass of wine in my hand by 6 pm latest. If it was a weekend then probably lunchtime! But I kept stopping and one day it stuck.“

“I’m in the early days of sobriety, 30 days sober today, so please understand my warlike mentality. I feel compelled to find my own inner version of Athena who is goddess of war, strategy, and also peace. I need to know what is at my six. What is positioned in a way that takes aim at my sobriety, whether it’s designed for a slow chipping away or is targeting for a direct hit. I fought my way here and I do not want to lose any ground……..“

30 Days Sober – Watching my 6 and Protecting my Quit!

“There is a bottle of Bourbon in my freezer which I should have poured out when I started my Alcohol-Free journey. I pulled it out of the freezer the other day, pulled off the cap, held it to my nose, and took a deep breath (psychologists would refer to this as “dangerous behavior”). Yep, smells like Bourbon, all right. Other than that … nothing. No desire to have a drink, no desire to numb myself, no desire to start down that path again. I put the bottle back in the freezer and said, “I’m not afraid of you anymore.”

read more here

Day 45 Alcohol-Free

“I don’t feel like I have to perform so much at home, to convince myself that everything is getting done, despite my habit. When I was drinking, I felt bad about how much stuff I let go because I was drinking or hungover, so I would either be berating myself about that, or pushing myself really hard to try and stay on top of things. Like a poor little mouse on a treadmill, running but not getting anywhere.“

read more here

Day 65 sober – Being not Doing

“All drinking did for me was bury who I really was. It stole my peace. Being accountable to myself, accountable for my well-being, doesn’t include alcohol anymore. I don’t want to ever give up that peace I fought so desperately to find!!”

Where Dreams are Lived – the Road from Fantasy to Reality

“Every moment is a moment worth living now. A moment to fight for, to be at peace with and to be grateful for. When in the grip of alcohol it sucks away from us our very life force, our natural vibrancy and energy, our joy and our peace. Now I can find the strength within to face difficulties and challenges in a much better way. So thankful and willing to continue“

Self Care Does Not Come in a Bottle – A Newly Sober Mum Reflects on Loving Living Alcohol-Free

“I feel a strong sense of calm optimism about my future, my career and my relationships in a way that I never have before. (and I got a lot of crazy shit going on in my life, so this is saying something). And truly, I do feel like the real me gets to shine through way more often. And that is a gift.” 

Where’s my Miracle?

“100 days sober Part 2! I’m “Walking Away From Wine O’clock” This time with more conviction
Because we’re all worth so much more
Than the misery of addiction!“

100 Days of Thinking – Not Drinking!

Viva la vie!!

It is sometimes easy, mostly frightening, and definitely taken moment by moment with openness toward what would be shown to me. Its been done in silence and alone. … with the help of a few friends in this online community

My Uber Alcohol-Free 2020 Project Report – 100 Days Sober !

“Not picking up a drink when I was triggered was sooo so hard and seemingly impossible a year ago. I am eternally grateful to those who helped me pick myself up after slips and slides again and again.

Thank you.

The best way that I know to say Thank You to the community that has helped me get to this point is to reach back with what has worked for m. Let’s start with TRIGGERS!“

Celebrating 100 Days Sober by Reaching Back With Tips on Tackling Triggers and Slips

“In honor of my 100th day alcohol-free, I do not want to risk complacency, so I’m going to go back and look at my headspace on my last day one.

100 days ago when asked this question – If you can think of one thing that scares you, or scared you most about sobriety what would it be ?“

Tales of a High-Functioning Drinker Told to My Newly Sober Self

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Our 4 Months Sober Archive is below

“When you decide that it’s time to go alcohol-free it is easy to hope that there will be a quick fix to the problem. Just stop drinking and stay sober right? Stopping drinking for me has not been about simply stopping one activity or changing one habit. These first 4 months alcohol-free mark the beginning of a new journey for me. One which today, I choose to stay the course, even though I’ve had to learn to ride out a few storms. I accept that some days will be easier than others, I accept that life will happen, I accept that there are things out of my control, and I also accept that some things are in my total control.

I choose to continue to learn, I choose to take it one thing at a time, I choose health and happiness, I choose life: I CHOOSE ME, I CHOOSE CHANGE.”

“This is not my first attempt at sobriety but it’s the first time I have been happy with my choice to live alcohol-free. When I tried sobriety before, it was because I knew my drinking was causing trouble, but I always thought I was missing out on something when I gave up alcohol. After a solid Dry January 2021, I’ve now started my month 4 sober, and while I’m struggling less with cravings, I’m thinking more about what it means to be tuned in to life, rather than checked out. Present. Connected. Rethinking my drinking has finally allowed me to change my station. If I don’t stay connected, my AF station could fade into my old drinking frequency.“

“I have learned in the past 4 months that there really is absolutely nothing solved by drinking. There is no relationship or event improved by including alcohol. Really.

It takes a bit of time to realize that. Each time you ignore the little voice in your head that encourages you to drink it will get quieter. Starve that little voice and it will die.

At this point I don’t crave alcohol anymore. But I will never drink again because I know that I crossed a line and am addicted.

I want everyone to feel as proud, focused, calm and centered as I do today.“

“Time is of the essence.  

I am 75 and have struggled with booze for a good number of years.  I did not get traction until I found ‘The Alcohol Experiment’ on the web and committed to the 30 day course for one to two hours each day.  Watching videos and doing written exercises began the work.

Then began the ‘Day Ones’ for three years.  The struggles, the screaming, the smashing of glasses, melt-downs, sweat, headaches, diarrhea, the torture of addiction.  

All through this shit I began to learn about alcohol, my brain, and address my childhood hurts.  The process can be agonizing.  A year or so ago I found Boom or it found me?  The struggle continued but now I belonged to a community of caring people who shared their stories of struggle and I no longer felt alone.  My knowledge increased along with tools to help me succeed in being independent from alcohol.  

Finally I got more traction that was holding, and days AF turned into weeks, and now weeks into six months Alcohol Free!  Six Months is a lifetime, but I can pour a glass of wine for my wife yet not indulge.  

Free, free at last, I feel like Martin Luther King, for I have seen the glory, the mountains over which I can fly…. I struggle on with tiredness and depression but my mind is clear and free. ” 

“On my six-month sober anniversary, what can I say to help if you are trying to stop drinking? I can tell you alcohol lied to me. It told me it was helping me. I believed it for way too long. Then I started to listen to my truth-telling inner voice which said… “

“Being a drinker became part of my identity at age 15. It quickly became who I was. Since it was a part of my identity it was very hard to imagine not drinking. Since quitting alcohol six months ago I have questioned so much. It has turned my world upside down. It has made the obvious and unshakable, precarious and changeable. Slowly, days have gone by, weeks and months, and I am starting to see little glimpses of a new life. Like my mind rehearsal the other day where I heard myself saying “I don’t drink.” Even the pictures in my mind have changed. They’ve become more clear and focused.

When I pictured my future non-drinking life seven months ago, it was hazy and it seemed like I was picturing someone else’s life. I wasn’t attached to it. It scared me even. But I was drawn to it the same because it sparked a hope inside me. I prepped and I planned, I read and I listened. I reached out for support. Most importantly I took a leap of faith. I held that shaky, blurry picture in my mind and I leapt towards it. I had to have trust that everything else would fall into place if I kept my focus on that picture. 

I look at things in a new light, like a child. Time moves more slowly but that means I get to savor more of it.“

“Alcohol seems to promise to make everything all better in good times and surely in bad times. It does drown away bad things and light a party on fire temporarily. But it is also inflammatory on the other side…a vicious cycle keeping success and contentment at bay. In fact, alcohol deters success even in good times because of the time it steals away.”

L”ast night when I was talking to a friend she told me she’d not rung me for a while because she didn’t think I’d be up for late-night calls fuelled by wine and slurry words. I said I’ve made my decision, I’ve walked away from my wine o’clock routine, but I don’t mind if you drink! I’m ok with it. And I am. Talking to my friend while she’s drinking doesn’t trigger me like it used to.“

The thing is though, although I’m strong in my choice to not drink as I’m nearing 6 months sober, I’m struggling to find a balance in my life. I’m not in a zen zone, not at all. My moods are up and down, happy then sad, angry then resigned, tired then energetic, creative then majorly procrastinating. The last few months have been quite hard, and I just feel emotionally burnt.“

“At 6 months sober I’ve become disciplined in my daily life… prioritizing what is *really* important to me. Showing up as close to my morals and beliefs as possible and it all started with one thing; not drinking. Drinking goes against everything I believe in – it’s horrible for my emotional, mental, and physical well being. It takes me out of the present moment, disconnects me from myself and from everyone and everything around me; it makes me lazy, unmotivated, and careless. It numbs me.

I want to live with passion, optimism, with a clear head. I want to be goal oriented, fun, enthusiastic, open hearted. I want to live with dedication to myself, my loved ones, and the environment. I want to be fully present and feel ALIVE. This is what I’m disciplining myself for!”

“This is simple but it is not always easy . There is a bit of magic behind that “No”. The magic formula I used to make it 6 months without alcohol, here it is:

I will do whatever it takes to make sure I do not drink today.

I will go to bed early. I will sit in the shower until the water turns cold. I will eat an entire bag of candy, a pint of ice cream, and so many french fries I feel like I’m going to puke. I will lose myself for hours in video games. I will chain smoke cigarettes, even though I quit smoking cigarettes in 2017. I will obsessively clean my house. I will read post after post on BOOM. I will read article after article on Boozemusings. I will scroll social media for far longer than is healthy. I will go for a walk as long as I know that my feet won’t take me to the liquor store. I will give my debit card to my aunt and tell her to lock it up until I’m not worried I will buy alcohol. I will smoosh my face into my cat’s fur until she starts grumbling. I will hug my son until he starts complaining. I will do yoga videos. I will do sit ups, push ups, and squats. I will fall down the YouTube rabbit hole. I will cry. I will scream. I will do anything and everything I can to distract myself, because I will do WHATEVER IT TAKES to make sure I do not drink today.“

“Remaining alcohol-free is easier – it is easier to say no, it is easier to stop the negative thoughts, and it is easier to get through social and work functions without worrying about being tempted to the point of giving in.  After six months sober, I have also been able to let go of intense cravings while driving home from a stressful day at work.” 

“Yogis control their thoughts words and actions… ideally. We practice. But thoughts are extremely powerful and they lead to the words and actions. I think that is why sobriety has worked so well for me. I changed my mind, not just deleting the act of drinking but truly taking charge with the right thoughts.

I had a great list of things to look forward to thanks to Boozemusings, the Boom Community, and this terrific post, Guide to your First Month of Sobriety: Why and How to Quit. It all came true and more.“

“Tomorrow I will be 6 months sober. It will be 6 months since I stepped away from the misery, from the sleepless nights, the worry, and the guilt that alcohol gave me. It will be 6 months of reading, learning, struggling, saying NO to going back, writing, clinging, and of joy.  6 months of joy and pride in finally doing something I’ve known was needed…for years.  It literally seems like a dream – I’m doing it!  I’m doing it!“

“Sitting with my emotions and thoughts has not been easy. In fact, it has been downright excruciating at times. Feeling them has also held the utmost jubilation and healing moments. I am ten months sober in just a few days. I had to dump all my alcohol, get rid of all my paraphernalia, and change my spoken word to past tense.”

“My 9 month old sobriety journey is transforming. Like the newborn, it needs to be nurtured, but I cannot let it become the center of my universe.  It needs to know that it is important to me, but it cannot become the only reason for existence. It needs to recognize that while I’m the primary caretaker, people around us will help protect it too… I see new signs of support, like when my husband stocked up the pantry with new alcohol free drinks, and refills my candy jar with my favorite dark chocolates.“

9 Months Sober – My Transformation

And slowly I realised that basically alcohol is a drug. and if I allow this drug into my body I vanish and another person emerges. It’s not rocket science. It’s a drug. This drug is no good for me, my body doesn’t need it, it never did. I had just been conditioned to think that this particular drug was acceptable.

The only drug we have in our society that people question you if you DON’T take.

“In 11 months since quitting drinking the changes in my life have been nothing but positive !

At least for me- my decisions and my feelings don’t get better with alcohol. It’s taken me too long to realize that alcohol made me tired, got me sick, made me cry, made bad memories emotional, and stole days upon days of productivity away from my life. It never let me let go of those feelings, I wallowed in them and how bad my life was. And when it got worse, I drank more! That’s how brainwashed we get.”

“All it takes is one drink for my nightmare to start again. After only one drink it starts. The anxiety and tightness in the chest feels almost like a heart attack.

The demon screams

“you need another drink! Only more alcohol can ease your pain”.

This of course is a lie. One of many lies that alcohol tells me.

This blog post is to remind myself of what it is like to drink the poison known as alcohol. I am starting to forget the horrid things about drinking and FALSELY remember fun and relaxing times. At the end of my drinking there were NO fun or relaxing times. Only regret, self loathing, horrid hangovers.“

“For me, sobriety is the most empowering experience of my adult life. I have not been brainwashed or hypnotized and I don’t think that alcohol is demon’s poison. I just know that my long and illustrious drinking career is over and I am thrilled with the result. Rather than waking up blurry, hungover and grumpy I’m up at six ready to rock. It turns out that every occasion that I once thought required a drink is actually more fun, less stressful, easier, and more genuine with a clear sober head. “

“It was my self that was lost and this process has been one of trying to find my way back. The longer I’m sober, the stronger my connection to my real self and the world becomes. Now that I have it, I never want to lose it. “

“At one year alcohol-free. It’s weird to remember that not long ago, if there was a Gold Medal for drinking wine I would have won the title and battered you out of the way in my victory dance to the podium. And that habit wasn’t going to be broken that easily.“

“I found, for me, that the changes, the really big ones, happen slowly. Its a patience game. There aren’t these cataclysmic shifts, but slow gentle ones. But looking back to a year ago, the changes in me feel real and powerful. ” 

“Yes, the first few months were tough. I skipped business travel for two months. I had to learn how to do everything, all over again, from scratch. I had fear of how I could even do things anymore (concerts? movies? work mingles?). Even going to bed at night, alcohol was such a habit. Personal growth was hard. I cried. A lot. I was frustrated. A lot. My problems didn’t go away.“

“I am not like everyone else, and neither are you. I became even more human this past year, recognized I need kindness like everyone else, and so will you if you decide to stop drinking and start feeling. It’s a small list, my one-year sober list, and strangely abstract. It’s the truth, it’s what I’ve learned to do, and I’m going to share it with you now. “

“I let life happen around me, but this time, without a glass in my hand. I found there is joy and laughter that doesn’t need the spark of alcohol to ignite it. I confided in my family and closest friends that I kicked the can, and the love they poured over me strengthened my resolution.“

“The first couple of months alcohol-free were a seemingly never-ending endurance contest of detox. The brain fog, nausea, cravings that clung, fatigue, lack of sleep, sweating, anxiety, depression, self-pity, fear, insecurity, self-loathing, self-recrimination, guilt. Okay. That’s enough! However, those that start the AF journey, have some of these. I wrote all the withdrawal symptoms down and kept them by my bed, chair, in the car, purse, and bathroom drawer. I no longer cling to this list. It’s gone. Obsessive? You betcha! Had to be.

Then I found Boom.“

The problem with my “me time” coming in a bottle is that it eventually took much more than it gave.  …  I have heard it said that sobriety offers everything that alcohol promised and now I know it’s true ! 

“Those first few days and weeks sober were awful. I didn’t like feeling uncomfortable at all. I didn’t like feeling my emotions at all. I didn’t like the uncomfortable mental battle it took daily to not drink. Society would tell me, well if you don’t like how you feel fix it. And there I was standing at the gate wondering which ride I should choose next…the familiar merry-go-round again or the speed car of sobriety. I chose the speed car and I’ve never looked back. I couldn’t. I knew I couldn’t. But one year later, at the end of this first year sober, the uncomfortable is turning out to be rainbow magical sobriety. I wouldn’t know this if I was unwilling to get comfortable with being uncomfortable in the beginning.”

It is a good life, this life without alcohol. It is nothing like I imagined it would be. It’s better. It’s fuller. It’s brighter. It certainly isn’t perfect, but I love it anyway. I saw a quote on /r/stopdrinking the other night that hit the nail smack on the head:

 “Recovery didn’t open the gates of heaven and let me in. Recovery didn’t open the gates of heaven and let me in. Recovery opened the gates of hell and let me out.” 

It’s nice out here. Won’t you join me?

“I won’t lie, it was a hard first 30 days, and the next year was a lot of work and self discovery. But I will say at almost 18 months sober, I almost cannot believe that was me. I almost cannot believe that I was living that way. I almost cannot believe the lengths I would go to in order to satisfy the need for my wine.  It seemed a big and scary idea to stop drinking.  I wasn’t sure what would happen in my life.  But I was pretty convinced it was going to be all bad things if I kept drinking. I took it one day at a time and tried not to think of forever.  Forever is overwhelming. It still is! “

“You may be reading this and wondering how to put together a couple of days sober. 1000 days with no alcohol is difficult to envision. It was for me in the beginning.

I counted every sober day. I thought about every minute, every day. I remember working so hard to get to 100 days. 100 days was a big deal. Six months was a big deal. One year was a huge deal.

And, then the days stopped being such a huge deal. Not drinking just became my way of life. Counting sober days and thinking about alcohol constantly just stopped. I am able to focus on other things and my brain is not all consumed about my next bottle of wine.”

 read more

“My sober practice right now, in beginning my third year alcohol-free, has to be flexible, agile, moving, but intentional and centered around harmony, truth, and authenticity. And that’s the thing for me about thinking about sobriety as a ‘sober practice’. The sobriety itself is NOT the end goal. The sober practice provides the foundations for a rich and authentic life. I know – people in AA have been saying this in a different way for almost 100 years – but for me, thinking about it this way is revolutionary! Sobriety is NOT the end goal, It’s the foundation. And for me, it is the foundation of a Sober Practice – practicing how I want to be in the world and of the world without substances clouding my way.“

“Before my relapse in early 2016, I had 5 years of sobriety under my belt, but I wasn’t happy being sober. I had always told myself I could drink again one day and that when I did drink- that I would be able to control it. I managed to stay sober for 5 years, but I didn’t have any help or support to do so, so after my relapse, I began to consider what I needed to do differently to succeed.“

“So now that I accept that I still have in me the seeds of my own destruction, it is time to find more creative ways of becoming harmonious me, starting with learning to articulate my needs and providing myself with my wants. In doing this, I will draw from the lessons that I learnt in early sobriety: I was afraid to stop drinking because I feared who I would become. I discovered that I am a much better person than I ever suspected.“

“I’m here to say you can make an absolute choice with no loopholes. It can work and it’s good when it does. 

For me, if it wasn’t simple I couldn’t do it. If there are any fallback positions, any get-out clauses or loophole, I don’t get past the first hungry/angry/tired/ecstatic moment – the old pathways are too well established. But a simple, always-on ‘no’ answer to any urge or question about drinking I can manage – so far anyway.“

“Whenever I felt like drinking I went onto the site for hours and hours – to read and comment and to get as much support as I could. By reading over and over again and having to accept just how much alcohol affected not just me but so many other people I saw the reality. -That this legal drug is causing problems for too many.

Slowly, very slowly, I moved onwards and I counted every day as another day I’d got my life back. And here I am at 5 years. Believe me, I’m as shocked as you. If ever there was an ‘if I can do it you can’ it would be me.“

“Many people fear when they stop drinking that life will be boring but my life alcohol free was very, very far from boring.

I thought I’d wasted my life.
I thought my life was nearly over.
I was 50 and what had I done etc etc

Once I started DOING something about my situation with habitual binge drinking my life opened up.
I’ve done so many things since I stopped drinking and best of all I enjoyed them so much more without the booze.“

“So, in a nutshell, my message to you is you are human. Apologise when you need to but do not carry your past on your back. Be loud, be proud:  in doing so you will not only be helping yourself, but you will be doing an immense service to others.

I chose emotionally freedom and heaven on earth.

What do you choose?“