Reflecting. 200 Days Ago I Decided to Quit Drinking.

200 Days Ago I Decided to Quit Drinking.

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This milestone snuck up on me, I remember I was so excited for the 100 day mark (in fact I blogged about it) & now this “I’ve quit drinking” thing, it feels normal most of the time.

It’s amazed me how much more ‘me’ I could feel. It took a few months to settle in and a few more to feel a real difference but now, now I feel more like me than ever.

Last week In Love with a Stranger came on and I realised the stranger I was associating with was myself. I have been, at times, a stranger to myself. I am a me I’ve never met before but me all the same.  The stories that I’ve told myself about me, that have linked together to make me, that have formed other peoples opinions of me … they don’t fit who I am any more.

They are part of my past but not part of this present.

I’m more comfortable in my skin, I know myself in ways I didn’t when my go to solution was wine. I’ve got better at looking after myself and better at managing my anxiety (again, much easier without the wine & additional hungover fear).

It’s not for everyone but I wish I knew two years ago, a year ago, 201 days ago what I know now. I wish I knew that once I’d pushed through a few awkward meals and odd conversations, the sober first date & the first few ‘terrible’ days that things would be so much better. That I would feel so much better. That not drinking isn’t the most terrible thing in the world, that it’s an eye opening adventure and I am not – and have never been – alone in it.

One of the best things I did in those early days (and the thing that made this different from all the stop/start times before) was to create this blog & my ‘gram to talk about it. I stopped hiding what I was trying to do, I started talking & writing about it & the support … the support from all of you – from the communities on Facebook, on Instagram and those who read my blog, I couldn’t ask for more.

Not every day is roses but today, today is pretty good.

Some things that helped me on my journey to quit drinking:

• Telling my friends and family I had quit drinking, accountability is key
• Talking to my friends and family regularly
• Connecting with new people on this not drinking/alcohol free/mindful drinking journey
• Talking to the new people I met
• Baths, lots of baths
• Chocolate
• Sleeping when I needed to sleep
• Leaving parties early
• Reading (for inspiration take a look at books that changed my life)
• Walking lots & podcasts & audiobooks
• Writing every thought and feeling down
• Having an alternative option to drink planned whenever I went out

If you want to know more, I wrote a much more detailed post on stopping drinking: How to stop drinking? 7 things that might help

Celebrating 200 days, and looking forward to all of the days to come.

ps. 2021 update: I’m now over four years sober!

pps. If you need more support, contact your GP and consider the services of a detox clinic.