And, although I absolutely believe that the positives outweigh the negatives, I also think that it’s essential that those of us who are sober talk about the bad parts too. Johnson described a moment when a pastor was calling people up to the stage who were in need of God’s love. Johnson made eye contact with Ortega, who was there with his family and shook his head. He didn’t want his two young sons to see him so vulnerable.
The Downside of Sobriety
You might also prefer to drink coffee, tea, a seltzer with fresh fruit, or a soda with fresh lemon or lime. Once you start to reap the benefits of not drinking, it may be easier to opt for alternatives since your body may be feeling better without alcohol. While you’re in active addiction, the life you imagine without drugs seems awful.
Ways Sneaky Behavior Controls You
Sobriety seems like a lot of hard work, boring, and downright miserable—not to mention impossible. And, when going to rehab demands stepping back from your life for a temporary period of time in order to focus on getting well, recovery can seem more like regression than moving forward. When you’re addicted to drugs or alcohol, the notion of getting clean and then staying sober over the long haul can be frightening.
You never know when an overserved person will trap you in conversation.
That was only one example of a life and friends I had to detach from to create a sober life. This subreddit is a place to motivate each other to control or stop drinking. We welcome anyone who wishes to join in by asking for support, being sober sucks sharing our experiences and stories, or just encouraging someone who is trying to quit. Please post only when sober; you’re welcome to read in the meanwhile. Any big life change naturally brings a sense of fear or unease.
Self Help Posters
- Sobriety can be an incredible way to shed relationships you’ve outgrown as well as find new ones that align with your new values.
- While you’re in active addiction, the life you imagine without drugs seems awful.
- I hated sobriety after my first trip to rehab when I had to be drug tested every few weeks to remain at Johns Hopkins and graduate on time.
- Relapse rates for substance use addictions are around 40% to 60%.
- Sometimes I feel like sobriety’s Andy Rooney – the ironic, curmudgeon of the blogging set, pointing out the pitfalls and snafus that no one else will tell the world about quitting drinking.
- My unique position has afforded me a rare glimpse into the behavioral patterns of the plastered, plowed, tipsy, smashed, buzzed, blottoed, and otherwise inebriated.
That being said, you might not be at a place where you want people to know you’re not drinking, and that’s OK. You can provide an excuse, like that you’re on antibiotics, or you aren’t feeling great or want to feel fresh for something you have going on the next day. And when I couldn’t seem to get ready in time, or when my purse was a tangle of wadded keys and gum wrappers I felt so bereft. I’m often reminded of how being “just sober” sucks. I have half a decade without drugs and alcohol, but sometimes I’m more miserable than I ever was when I was getting high. The difference between then and now is that I have tools to get back to true freedom–where all the nonsense I am putting myself through mentally has no validity.
Tips For Cocaine And Ketamine Recovery
Why do people, who have been sober for years, behave inappropriately with alarming regularity? Recently, I was asked this question in group therapy (the exact words have been edited as they were not fit to print). The person who posed the question felt she had been misled. She believed that, even after decades of recovery, some people were “still messed up and acting out their issues.” If you feel like sobriety sucks, you need more support. You can find the balance in recovery you need.
- Having a chaotic or disorganized lifestyle can also hinder your recovery.
- Eventually, the stable people in our lives move on and are replaced by people just as dysfunctional as us.
- Once you know what you’re struggling with, and have some ideas of how to deal with it, give yourself a realistic timeline.
- No one seriously challenged him, because no one seriously cared.
- That’s why having support systems in place is so critical to your success.
- It’s been over six years since I first started seriously questioning my relationship with alcohol and considered a life without it.
I hate being sober sometimes but the consequences of the alternative are not an option for me anymore. The truth is, these days I only resent my sobriety when I’m triggered. Similarly, there are many people who drink and use drugs because they feel more fun, daring, likable, and interesting when under the influence. Removing the thing that they believe gives them more charisma or self-confidence around other people can trigger the very real worry that they won’t like their sober self. It’s hard to face that stuff when you’re newly sober and it has hurled a lot of strong, well-intending people back into relapse.
- But one day, you realize the clouds have lifted a little bit.
- Many people drink and do drugs precisely because they don’t like who they are and want to dull the sensation of their shame, self-loathing—even self-hatred.
- Not only because not drinking is hard, but also because we live in a society where most everyone around us drinks.
- I think that’s fair to say for most people.
Finding Happiness in Sobriety
My unique position has afforded me a rare glimpse into the behavioral patterns of the plastered, plowed, tipsy, smashed, buzzed, blottoed, and otherwise inebriated. Here are 15 things I have learned by being the only sober person around. But then again, our social culture and traditions often revolve around alcohol.