Read About Beth’s Inspirational Story From Addiction to Recovery

I’ve found more effective ways to relieve stress. Part of that is taking proper care of myself in the first place so there isn’t as much stress that needs to be relieved later. Cutting alcohol from my diet has been a marathon, not a sprint.

I lived for the weekends, when I knew I had a few days to drink with my friends and have it be acceptable. I looked forward to Fridays and Saturdays all week, as I considered those the days I was “allowed” to drink. Before long, though, I began drinking on other days as well. I could always come up with a reason if I tried hard enough. However more important things I’ve derived from sobriety are that I’ve learned to rely on a higher power.

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I called in sick, the first time ever in my life. The second night, I began to have diarrhea with old, digested blood in it. The next morning I awoke with my heart racing, unable to get up off the floor, realizing that this was the end of the run. My relationship sobriety stories with my wife, both emotionally and physically, was absent. I was unable to participate in any kind of family activity, especially if it interfered with my drinking. My family would watch TV in one room and I would be in another drinking to oblivion.

• We grew up in a small town in Eastern Massachusetts where, on our mile-long street, we only had a few neighbors.
• So sobriety for me is like a bridge back to a normal life.
• Research suggests they often thrive in long-term recovery, reconnecting with family and enjoying economic success.
• Despite my increasingly frequent substance use, I excelled as a student.

And I don’t want people to think that — that’s not sobriety to me and is certainly not my experience. I feel more connected with myself and with others than I ever could have imagined. The day I decided that I needed help was when I was in the https://ecosoberhouse.com/ bathroom and looked in the mirror and asked myself what I’m doing to myself. It was the first time I admitted that I had a problem. I called my mom and told her I needed to go to rehab. It turned out to be the best decision I have ever made.

Sober Story: June

Soon, I drank daily in isolation, hiding the quantity of my drinking from my wife, secretly replenishing the supply in the liquor cabinet with bottles I hid elsewhere. I still didn’t think I had a problem with alcohol since I had never missed a day of work and continued to excel in my profession. I was unhappy and disinterested in our marriage, and my attention started to wander. I had a brief extramarital affair that lasted a couple of days while I was on vacation in 2003. It all happened while the children played together outside on the beach. They asked me if I had a problem with alcohol, which I flat out denied.