Hey everyone! My husband just got a job offer down in North Carolina and he's taking it. We live in Ohio now, so it will be out of state. I have lived in this area my whole life and I've always wanted to move (long before I became an alcoholic.) So this is exciting! My sister lives down there too, and she is my best friend besides my husband, and my #1 supporter in my recovery.
However, I know that moving is very, very stressful. I don't want to use this as an excuse to get drunk every night because I'm stressed out. If anything, I'd like to be sober during this whole process. I don't want to look back years from now and wish that I hadn't been drunk and forgetting everything when something so big was happening in my life.
So, I'm going to get to as many meetings as I can. I want to go to meetings. I want to be able to live in the moment and experience everything as it's happening--stress and all. I can't do that being drunk all the time.
I'm scared. I'm afraid I won't be able to manage living in another state and I will go much further down the scale than I've already gone.
I just want somebody to hold me, tell me they love me, and that everything will be all right. I can't remember the last time anyone's done that for me--even my husband. I hate the unknown. So many emotions. Surely, someone can relate, right?
Yes, moving can be very stressful. When I first came to AA I had to move house. I wasn't moving out of the area, but it was still a move and it unsettled me.
I spent lots of time with my sponsor and with my AA friends and told them about how I was feeling. I went to as many meetings as I could make. It all helped. During the physical move, I made sure that I knew exactly where my Big Book was and made time to sit and read quietly. It all helped me.
I made a decision that my new home wouldn't ever see me drunk and that my neighbours wouldn't know anything about my alcoholism. I decided to make it a new start in my life. But, I only did that for one day at a time.
One beautiful thought for me, is that no matter where I go in this world AA is there, too. There are people who can inspire and help me in the meetings. For me, in AA, there is no such thing as a stranger - only a friend that I haven't met yet.
I'm sending you lots of cyber hugs and much love. Please keep posting and let us know how you are feeling, won't you?
Take good care of yourself and have a great weekend.
Carol
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Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss
Some online resources you could dig thru- http://www.soberplace.com/northcarolina.html meetings, etc. My family came from North Carolina generations ago. I'm told I have streets and libraries named after us down there, never been. We privateered against brit shipping during the revolutionary war, before that, we saved Mel Gibson from the British, then had to leave Scotland. I figure it was just resentments. Same reason I 've left most places and hopped on a greyhound bus. Mel Gibson, man! Braveheart! Kick -Your- Ass! heheh. Time to go to wooooooooooooooorrrrrrrrrrkk..........
Hi Heather.....NC, huh? We'll be neighbors! ....... You just hang on tight.........It's gonna be ok. Think of it as a new lease on sobriety. For me, preparing and packing for a big move would keep me too busy to drink.......so, keep yourself busy getting ready.
My suggestion, go ahead and find the local AA and meeting schedule. Prepare yourself in advance.
Here's a (((((HUG))))) and it's given with much love.
Jen
-- Edited by Doll at 08:57, 2006-08-26
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Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... It's about learning to dance in the rain.
