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So its been a year since I broke my 8 month non drinking spree. I quit for the entire month of june but I went back to it again. I like to drink vodka in the morning and beer throughout the day and im sick of this nightmare circus and would like some helpful advice. Im assuming this is the place where people like me come to start fresh and try to walk a different path. Im drinking a pint of vodka in the morning plus 4 or 5 24 oz steel reserves on weekends, and about a half pint of vodka and 2 24 oz steel reserves after work on weekdays. the weekends are the worst. Oh and this has been going on for a long time so im kinda sick of it. not feeling to good these last few weeks. Any advice at all. thanks. 



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MIP Old Timer

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I don't have much advice as I was told long ago by my sponsor to not talk about that which I didn't know.   What I do know was that when I stopped drinking all forms of alcohol and got into the program I heard, saw and acted differently than  when I drank and I liked me.  It was called sober and I liked me sober. From my experience, call the hotline number to AA central in your area and find out where and when the next meeting is and then go before you have the next drink not after.  When I did that I could see better and hear better and do better.  Keep coming back here also.   smile



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Hi SelfDestruct,

I used to call myself that!

Well if you're truly sick and tired of BEING sick and tired, you've come to the right place. If you think you have a drinking problem, we can help. As Jerry recommended, find a meeting, go and introduce yourself, and I think you'll find some friendly people there who will help you stop and stay stopped. While your at the meeting, get yourself a sponsor - just ask.

Things WILL get better. Come back.

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MIP Old Timer

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Welcome to the site SDS...I guess when I got to the point that I could clearly see my way wasn't working.....I started to listen to people that had solved this problem. Where did I find them? Meetings.

The description of the alcoholic in the Big Book was a real eye opener for me.....Why? Because it was me. Get yourself a copy. Read The Doctors Opinion and the first three chapters....See if you can relate to that. If so...Our program of action is laid out in the first 103 pages....I can only tell you it worked for this once hopeless alcoholic. Here it is online till you can get one. Glad to have you with us. We can help.

http://anonpress.org/bb/



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When all else fails...Follow the directions.



Newbie

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yeah, I went to a meeting last week. It was very unsettling for me. I wouldnt or couldnt speak, I sat there with my arms folded and hit the door when they started to pray. Im not usually shy about anything but for some reason im really embaressed about the whole thing. But Im gonna Die young if I keep this up. I watched this dude on youtube who drank about as much as I do but he handled it alot worse. he went to rehab and died 17 days later. He was only 28. im 32 and now im concerned about my health cause im all shaky all the time. but today im fine cause I diddnt drink much yesterday. Im gonna try to get through the day without any.



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MIP Old Timer

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It was pretty unsettling for all of us. Here is a thought. Don't speak. Listen. I don't think I was embaressed....I'm sitting in a room full of people with the same problem I have. I think it had more to do that I was finally getting honest with myself that I couldn't solve this problem on my own. That's a big deal. Let me ask you an honest question....See how committed to this you are. Do you think you could go to a meeting a day for 90 days? Simple yes or no.



 



-- Edited by Stepchild on Saturday 23rd of August 2014 09:04:48 AM

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MIP Old Timer

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Hey SDS.
I felt awkward and embarrassed at first, too. But I also felt like a lot of people in the rooms were telling my story and saying what I needed to hear. I tried to quit a lot of times on my own and I could do it for a while, but I could never stay stopped till I came to AA.

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SDS,

No need to be embarrassed or ashamed about having a drinking problem. If you cannot stop drinking when you want to, or you cannot stay stopped, then you may be an alcoholic. Alcoholism is a disease (so say the people who have attended medical school).

Alcoholism is chronic, meaning once you have it, it never goes away. You can't change a pickle back into a cucumber. It's also progressive, meaning it always gets worse over time. But the disease can be arrested through abstinence, and our program makes that process pretty comfortable, even joyful.

In simplest terms, you don't need to say much more than your first name at a meeting. But keep your ears and mind open. Listen and learn, and see if you can identify. If I were new and had this disease (or any disease for that matter) I would want to learn all I could about it.

If you don't like what you hear at meetings, they will gladly refund your misery. But truly, this IS the easier softer way.

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Just another Bozo on the bus...



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AA is the last thing that I wanted to do and I nearly died trying to find an easier, softer way.

I wasn't embarrassed at the meetings in the beginning .. I was scared $hitless. I knew the jig was up. The cat was out of the bag.

The answer for me was right in HOW IT WORKS www.aa.org/assets/en_US/p-10_howitworks.pdf

All the best.

Bob R

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MIP Old Timer

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Hey, SDS. Welcome to M.I.P.

My very first A.A. meeting was a lukewarm endeavor if anything. It was a giant slice of humble pie 20 years in the making. It  felt like a strange adaptation of one of those old movies, unique as they are, including the famous one-liners. Actually, it felt more like an alternative version of "pay it forward" than some washed up movie script, just with a happy ending that's all. 

I also had a hard time dealing with the various personality types, not to mention their annoying counterparts. They would say things like: "Get honest", "Stick with the winners", and my all time favorite "take the cotton out of your ears and stick it in your mouth". It felt like boot camp all over again, drill Sgt and all, but why have it any other way?  

Here's the deal: I understand how difficult this must feel, believe me I do, but it does not reflect the A.A I've come to know. A.A. is famous for 3 things: Unity, service and recovery -not necessarily in that order. It's been their mission statement for years in spite of what you heard. Lets' face it: I would rather see you remain in recovery then to test those waters once again. It will only interfere with your desire to sober up, or worse. And besides, it's the only way to overcome that feeling of inadequacy, guaranteed. Onward



-- Edited by Mr_David on Saturday 6th of September 2014 06:24:53 PM

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Mr.David


MIP Old Timer

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Welcome to MIP SDS, ... I drank a lot like you did ... I kept going from job to job after getting discovered that I had a 'drink'n' problem ...

Be very careful about 'detoxing' yourself, you can easily 'stroke out' ... ... ... blood pressure goes thru the roof when we cut ourselves off from heavy drink'n ... I recommend detoxing under a 'doctor's care' ... and if you continue to drink, you'll likely be under a doctor's care whether you wish to be or not ... many of us don't make it ... I pray you'll stick around and learn the AA 'way of life' ... it's the best thing I ever did ... I'd certainly be dead today without AA ...

Pappy



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MIP Old Timer

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If you are anything like me, or any of the people I have known over the years who have needed to do something about their drinking problem, this is not the kind of problem that we should be trying to deal with alone, on our own willpower. Help is available. Take advantage of it. Yes, going to an AA meeting can be uncomfortable at first. So here's some advice that helped me when I was first trying to get sober.

Go back to the meetings. It may help if you get there a little early, before there is a big crowd already there. Tell the people at the meeting that you are new. Ask if they need any help setting up the meeting. Having something to do can help put you at ease and help you feel more comfortable. Stay for the whole meeting, and resist the urge to bolt out the door as soon as the meeting ends. After the meeting, if someone said something during the meeting that stuck with you, tell them 'thanks'. Ask the people there for a schedule of all the local AA meetings, and ask people if they can recommend any particular meetings that they like. Get a copy of the 'Big Book' of Alcoholics Anonymous (they should have some there at the meeting) and read it. And get back to another meeting the next day. Repeat this process. 



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MIP Old Timer

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By the time I reached the doors of AA, I was so desperate for a solution, that I would have paid any price for it. Despite myself and my warped emotions, I recovered. I took whatever was offered, because I had nothing. In the beginning, it was just dry sobriety, but it was sufficient to allow my sick brain to comprehend the depths of the AA program.
Today I keep coming back to offer that to the new man, who is like me.

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Hi SelfDestruct.  When I went to my first meetings I felt the same way.  I had a overwhelming sense of embaressment and fear, and I can totally relate to the fears of wondering about your health.  It sounds like your drinking a fair bit, and if your worried about it, the chances are you should seek some help.  This site has a lot of useful stuff, as along with the F2F (Face to Face) Meetings in your area.  My first meetings were a nightmare, but after practicing this program for a couple years, I actually enjoy going now along with the rewards of my sobriety that come from taking part.  If your finding your drinking and cant stop, you probably should seek help.  I questioned it for a long time before I started really getting into this, but Im glad I did.  Im turning 29 this September and my life is going uphill thanks to AA instead of the progression downwards that was only leading me to ruins or death.  Keep Coming Back.



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Hey Self-Destruct! Great step forward getting to that meeting. That first one was so hard for me. I felt like I needed to drink just to go in. I was so scared in that room. Hot and cold. Taking my sweater on and off. I felt so humiliated. I felt like they saw through me or something. It was hard. Here's the good news-it totally gets better. I walk into that same meeting almost two years later and that room is full of friends. I never thought it was possible. Just keep coming back. This is a great place to supplement your recovery in between meetings. Raise your hand as a newcomer and you won't have to go find people-they will come find you. Welcome! You have an incredible journey ahead.

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