What do people mean when they talk about "years sober"?

[florencefifty]

It turns out, it is possible to have too much of a good thing. 

I had a little too much coffee today, and as much as I hate to admit it, too much sport.

AFL is a beautiful game in many ways, but in many ways, it is a very difficult game to watch. And it kind of drives me crazy. My God, the amount of turnovers in the GWS and Carlton game today.

The amount of fumbling for the ball. Given how fit the players are, the game itself is remarkably ungraceful. And the missed opportunities leave you extremely frustrated, like a player could be standing right in front of the goalposts and serve up the worst kick you’ve ever seen in your entire life. Multiple times a game. How?

Then I thought about it and I realised that every sport is annoying and a little tiring if you let it get to you. Like some of the rules and handling errors in the NRL, or the traditions and attitudes in the MLB.

Everything in moderation. Or with consideration.

On that note, I am re-thinking my approach on alcohol. I don’t really know.

How do you feel about “years sober” as a measure?

Do people mean 100% sober, no alcohol whatsoever? Or do they mean being able to control it, rather than letting it control you?

Just generally, thinking about the word “sober”, you’re either drunk or sober. There’s a VERY fine line between the two. At the moment, I am five days sober.

It’s been about six weeks since I have binged on alcohol. I don’t know which I should focus on keeping up.

[tyme]

Hey @florencefifty ,

Once again, thank you for your well thought out posts. I somehow am always so drawn to the way you put things 🙂

As I read this post, it made me think of this book, Quit Like a Woman. This link has a few preview pages you can access.

[MissA]

Hi @florencefifty 😊

I don't know about others, but to me being sober or 'years sober' means complete abstinence from alcohol. I completed a 13 day residential/medical alcohol detox one week tomorrow, so I have been sober for almost 3 weeks. For me, trying to control it was getting impossible.

P.S. Great work on 5 days sober!!! Is this something you want to continue with, or are you wanting to just stay in control of your alcohol intake?

[nervouswreck]

My understanding from hearing recovered alcoholics talk about it is that sober means zero alcohol. Just like quitting smoking, really 🙂

[balance37]

@florencefifty Thanks for sharing! Just thought I'd add my 2 cents as someone who has previously battled addiction. Sobriety to me means not drinking at all/ abstinence, because the risk is too great and I don't believe I can "just have one". That's just my addict brain trying to lure me back there. However, I also know people who see sobriety more as harm reduction, so they may drink, but not as much as they use to, or they slowly decrease their drinking until it is virtually zero except at a party, special occasion etc. I think it's really about what works for you. I know I am kidding myself if I think I will be fine picking up a drink again. I was drinking 100+ standard drinks per week. And it's just not worth it. Life is so much better now. I missed out on so much when I was drunk. But alcohol was also a way for me to numb trauma. The easy part is giving up, the hard part is facing what you've been trying to run away from. But it's worth it and so are you! Congratulations on having the five days off alcohol. I hope you're going well. 🙂