Some people drink more than others, but core of the habit is always the same. Once the drink is in your system, it can sometimes be difficult to stop. The writer of this week’s story flipped the switch when her children started to suffer from it too. A great moment for a nice decision, if you ask me:
What do you do in everyday life?
I work as a personal counselor at a mental healthcare institution.
What did you mostly drink? And how much/often?
Beer. I drank daily and my favorite was a strong dark ale. In calm periods I drank two or three a day, but often more and on weekends I often drank six bottles or more.
How long have you stopped drinking?
Now exactly 9 months.
Was this your first attempt?
No. I also tried it six months before this attempt, but then I was only able to last a month. I then promised myself to drink only in social circumstances, but that always lasted only for a short time.
What made you finally turn the switch?
It was a process I had to go through. I often had thoughts of quitting. And my drinking started to bother my children as well, that was the deciding factor in the end.
What have you experienced as great advantages so far?
Everything! Never to be broke again, always clearheaded, happier and more cheerful… And what is at the top is that I feel everything again so that I can respond to the needs of my body. It makes me feel mentally stronger. My concentration is much better and my confidence has grown. Where I used to need alcohol to be social, I now do very well without alcohol.
What do you miss the most?
The spontaneous actions I had with booze.
And also: what do you miss the least?
That I couldn’t always remember everything and that I sometimes did strange things, such as calling people under influence, which I later regretted a lot.
What do you drink as an alternative these days?
Tea and an occasional 0.0 beer on weekends.
How do you plan to deal with alcohol in the future?
So far I have not had a difficult moment. I feel so good that my choice is very strong not to want to drink anymore.
Do you have any tips or advice for people who also quit alcohol
Quitting alcohol will eventually give you a lot. The first two months are the hardest, but after that it just gets easier and you get a lot in return.
Finally: what do you want to say to anyone who is still in doubt whether they should stop drinking or not?
I really had ups and downs for the first two months and it was boring and flat at times as I imagined before, but it got better! And to this day I am so glad I made this choice and persevered. It is an enrichment of my life.
And don’t we want that enrichment for everybody? I sincerely hope that your experience will inspire other people to take the same step as well. Thank you so much for sharing this story, and keep up the good work!
Thank you so much for your story and this nice contribution to the ever-growing collection of experience stories for AlcoholFreedom! If, after reading this story, someone else would like to share his or her experiences about quitting alcohol: please let me know! Just leave your e-mail on this page and I’ll contact you as soon as possible
Have a nice weekend everyone!
