No one knows how rewarding life is when you take the journey of sobriety. I grew up in alcoholic/addict single parent home. Only thing I knew was alcoholism and abuse. As I grew up and got a family of my own I knew I wanted different for my family then I had. When my marriage ended I turned to the one thing I knew alcohol and drugs to cover the pain. I made a decision after hitting bottom to take the journey of recovery. I never knew there was a better way. Sobriety has been amazing. My family was reunited and I spend my days and nights meditating and always helping a fellow alcoholic/addict as they start their journey. I have a website that reaches thousands of people fighting the same battle as myself. My past does not define who I am today. I am a mother, a wife, an active person in the community, a friend, also I am a recovering alcoholic/addict with almost 2500 days sober. Extremely grateful and loving my life, family and it’s what I love to do is help and talk to anyone needed help starting the journey of a new way of life.
I’d love to hear your journeys
Well life is awesome I’m 5 years and 4 months today I’m very greatiful to god and my family and all of y’all for y’all help and support and love and understanding I hope that helps someone !!!!!!!
I know my journey so far has been awesome I love my new life if sobreity!!!!!!!
Of my bad lol!!!!!!!
After being in the rooms for a while I realized the pain we talk about is self inflicted.Today I no longer concern myself with my pain but focus the pain I have caused others.We are not the victims as the sooner we learn this valuable lesson we can start the amends process and clean up our side of the street .i spent so many years drinking the pain away .Today I realize if I stay connected I will never be alone again and will always have my brothers from AA
The rewards of sobriety have been endless. I was a self centered falling down drunk at 14 sober at 26. Tough and amazing journey, 37 years of a sober life God willing in January. The most wonderful decision I ever made. Thank you Kayce and friends in recovery.
Ur awesome Janice !!!!!!
I have 1year and 5 days so grateful for aa
Welcome trellis welcome!!!!!!!
All my life I gave up on everything. But eight years ago I gave up on one last thing and I haven’t given up on anything since. That one last thing was booze.
Looking back, I grew up with every advantage–loving parents, comfortable home, pretty good school. And yet this disease is indifferent to all of that. Anxiety and self-loathing (based on self-centeredness) led me to the first drink at 13, and I was a blackout drinker from the beginning. By 21, I was in bad shape, and I went to my first AA meeting six weeks after I turned 21. The topic was turning it over, and that was exactly what I needed to hear. By the grace of God, I haven’t had a drink since. It has not always been easy, and I have had some bad phases in sobriety, but they have never been as bad as drinking. There’s always something to be grateful for today, and there is always a solution that doesn’t involve seeking oblivion. By loosening the bonds of self, the program has given me a life worth living, a life I couldn’t have imagined in August of 2001. I am of some use in the world today. For that I am truly grateful.
Great story. Keep up the great work.
I am approaching 1 year, and still waiting for life to get better! Still have a husband and adult kid living with me, still get attitude and accusations! I refuse to pick up that first drink, but often feel like a whole bottle would do the trick
No mk no drink it will get better just pray god will help u !!!!!!
When I was laying in a hospital at 28 years old not knowing if I had pancreatitis or pancreatic cancer I asked the doc what my options were.
He bluntly told me my best option at that time was prayer.
Then he sent in a specialist who told me I had to stop drinking or I would die painfully. I said ok I quit! He said I think you might need some help to do that.
I accepted the choice to go into a 30 day treatment place and was introduced to AA.
It took some time for me to realize that without that help I would not have made it. I kept going to meetings when I got out. I thought that the talk of miracles would happen was all bullshit. It wasn’t. I got a job found a career, met a woman that loved me and we had be 3 sons. Now I have 6 grandkids.
Has it been all skittles and rainbows? Not a chance in hell. But through all of the realities of life. ( numerous visits from the oh shit fairy) I haven’t had a drink.
I feel fortunate to have been blessed without a relapse.
Life has been challenging the last couple years with an addict son but I keep trying to get through each day with the help of my higher power and all of you.
Without the fellowship I don’t think I would have made it this far.
If I make it to November 28 I will be blessed with 30 years clean and sober.
Only because of surrendering to live and be loved.
Dave. I hope I make it to 30 years, nice going
Awesome Dave w !!!!!!!!!
Amazing story. Thanks for sharing
MK, just keep putting one foot in front of the other.
A dear old friend of mine I met in a cardiac rehab unit, yes I had a heart attack also, who had 43 years sober at the time said iit’s simple Dave if you don’t drink you don’t get drunk. Just do the best you can.”
Sounds simple but…..
What worked for me was to stay connected to other alcoholics. The accusations etc. may hurt but you just do what you need to do.
I am no saint or holy roller but I will keep you in my prayers.
Awesome Dave w!!!!!!
Awesome.
Day 97 and I’m actually accruing sick days at work! Some days I feel like the luckiest man on earth, others the biggest loser in the galaxy. All I know for sure is this too, shall pass
Good job !!!!!!
Hi everybody. I have 73 days today…I was on my last life when I was forced into rehab…I was just going to detox from alcohol and dope and hit the street. I ended up spending 40 days and my Higher Power opened my mind and my heart…and I know I’m a newbie… but I’m so happy and thankful for everything that’s going on my life today. Thank you to AA/NA. God Bless you guys.
Also thank you to my sponsor & my Higher Power. For sure.
Hello Ryan welcome to your beautiful journey !!!!!!!!
Yes sobriety is a wonderful journey with a lifetime of rewards. Keep up the good work
That is great! I’m a newbie too . I have 257 days. Keep up the good work!
Welcome Ryan glad you are with us.
How are going Dave w u ok?!!!!!!
U doing my bad !!!!!
Thanks for asking brother.
I am hanging in doing the best I can. Struggling with stress.
I miss my garden, working about 70 hours a week at new job.
But grateful to have one again and be digging out of debt.
I still try and get a few moments each morning and evening to thank my higher power.
I hope you are well,
Good work Dave w!!!!!!!
Today is 5014 of my sobriety journey! Thank-you Kayce for this website! I read more than I respond. My alcoholism was more the subtle variety! Meaning the cunning, baffling, powerful showed up in the way of illusion & disillusionment. I, too, wanted a different life! Seemingly I got that for twenty-two years! Married, three daughters and a full life. My disease was always there doing push ups, just waiting! I married an alcoholic but we helped each other over the years by covering up and hiding behaviors. Even when I went into recovery, it took twelve years in AA to see my reality. Also, ten years in Al-anon. I began the process of consciously uncoupling with my husband of 45 years, two years ago. Recovery has allowed me to give dignity to a sick man who is stuck in this disease. As long as I trust God, clean house, help others I can stay sober! I did not want to quit our marriage before the miracle of sobriety for the only man I have loved and known for 48 years. My HP/God has given me courage and strength to do the next right thing, one day at a time. We are divorced. Once our house sales, we will each move on. This slow, progressive disease wants us dead; those of us who get recovery work for it. My recovery journey is not what I thought it would be. It is what I have been given. I am the miracle. I celebrated my sponsor’s 25 years recently. I have grown up in the rooms & will continue to practice the steps, traditions and concepts. Recovery is a way of life that has saved my life.
Stay on track wonderful story thanks for sharing. Strength is power
Glad your sharing Gayle. What you said is powerful stuff.
Thank you
I appreciate that Dave W…being second generation in recovery is amazing & seeing third generation come in is beyond! So anyone who is the first in your family, know it matters. This disease is the only disease that tells us we don’t have it. We can build a life on that!! I am free today.
Ur awesome gayle u are strong sister !!!!!!!
Thanks Thomas!! We all are strong & of good courage!! We don’t do this alone! We get to do this together! This sobriety journey is truly awesome!
Yes it is I love mine I feel free and full of life !!!!!!!!!
I am blessed with 10950 days today. My anniversary date is the 28th of this month.
Thank all of you so much for helping me. Without each other I wouldn’t have made it this far.
Welcome to all of the newcomers and thank you to the old timers as well for the shares.. my sobriety date is August 22, 2013 and I never thought I could stop drinking for a day much less that long.. it was overwhelming at first hearing about all of the time people had and I remember thinking they couldn’t possibly know or feel how I do so no wonder they don’t drink.. but like someone said I put one foot in front of the other and took it one day at a time sometimes an hour at a time and I listened and I continue to listen!! I try to stay willing.. open to suggestions so that today I won’t want to take a drink.. I continue to work the program of Alcoholics Anonymous to learn to live life no matter what comes my way and staying sober and keeping serenity… I love this program and all of you and today I am happy to say I’m recovering drunk and I’m grateful for each day.. my higher power is God and he’s with me every second of every day…I used to want to die but not the case now
Awesome!!!!!!
Great stuff. Never give up.
Chloeb you are loved here. And in the rooms.
I said it before in a diff post here. A Chaplin once told us “healing happens when broken meets broken” keep sharing it helps all of us heal.
Yes it does!!!!!!!
Thanks Dave!! One of the old timers always said at my meetings “if no one said I love you today, I did and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it”… you never know what you’ll hear that will stay with you! But one thing that does is the unconditional love I’ve gotten in recovery.. I only used to get that from my dogs and they really didn’t like me drunk either!! 🙂
Lol. You are loved.
We are all loved !!!!!!!
🙂
There’s a guy in a meeting I go to that says the same thing! It may be true but I don’t think he likes me very much. Day 115
We like u Scott!!!!! Be happy brother
Keep going Scott . There are lots of meetings and not all are the same.
Not all of us get along all the time but we do have a common goal.
Yes we do brother our happiness 🙂
My name is Susan and I have 4 days. I enjoy checking after midnight to see the number change on the counter!
I am 52 and came from a single parent home and my mother and older sister are both alcoholics. When I was much younger, I did everything I could to get my mother’s attention…clean the house, pit myself through private high school by working 40 hrs/wk plus get great grades. Put myself through a great liberal arts private school, did research for 5 years then decided to become a Doctor. So here I am 20 years in to a high power career, no family, few close friends, a bad relationship with my boyfriend of nearly 4 years and found myself drinking to make him seem like the one and then after 4+ drinks arguing with him about how wrong we were for each. Rinse and repeat x almost 4 years. I reached a bottom with myself and trying to understand the relationship between the excessive drinking, my decision to keep going back to something that was familiar but brought nothing to the table time and time again. These past four days have felt amazing without alcohol or him (he is a trigger for me) and I am not letting him back in my life until I have my life headed where it needs to keep going or until he gets his personal health, (80pounds overweight, has health problems including Thyroid, high cholesterol, prediabetes) and he smokes pot nearly every day. He’s always tired and works crazy hours because of Hines business (running a new Hoagie place in Notrth Phila). His family comes first, then the Hoagieland, than himself, then me. That wasn’t feeling good.
I am actually so grateful to my Hp to have guided my through these very difficult days. The clarity I wake up With in the morning now is so easy!
Welcome Susan the program is awesome because I have 5 years and 8 months god is almighty and powerful god bless to all!!!!!!
After drinking for 24 years I have been sober for 2377 days. My life has really become more amazing than I ever thought possible. All I have to do is JUST DON’T DRINK clean house and help others when ever I can. Helping others is so rewarding, it always puts a smile on face when working with a sponsee. Watching them develope is a great thing to witness. Thank you God for saving my soul.
” It better than it was”
Awesome Shawn u can do it!!!!!!!
I’ve been sober for 2086 days I feel great!!!!!!
Hello all, my name is Brandon and I’ve been sober for 335 days.I was a alcoholic from almost the beginning of my drinking.I struggled for so many years with the obsession and the constant thought that I was robbed of drinking normally and would” get it right this time” , or I was right to drink.I am working the steps today and practicing dependence on God and not between my ears or my emotions.Self seeking and or self centerdness became norm and still cause me pain.I am slowly building up friends and support at my meetings and some Serinity.I do not have the obsession to drink today!One day at a time.
How’s life now Susan I hope your doing good!!!!!!!