I can’t do this for you.

I can’t be the only one you are accountable to.

You say you’re ready, but are you truly ready for this?

Are you willing to deal with the discomfort that you will have to sit with?

People are fallible; please tell me you will find a good support network—the craving and desire to drink come on like a bomb. Will you be ready to admit you can’t do this all on your own and that you need help?

Needing others and letting people in is part of this journey. We tend to isolate and be secretive, but now it’s time to be seen. Admit our defects and how we’ve gone astray.

We no longer need to carry our burdens alone.

Release and let go.

It’s okay to be powerless and, actually, that’s the point. Surrender.

I learned a long time ago that we only have a daily reprieve from alcohol—we must be diligent about doing the work daily to clear emotional baggage, speak our peace, and take care of ourselves and our sobriety.

One little dispute with a stranger or loved one can lead to resentment, which can lead to a drink.

Our brains will tell us we deserve a drink; we will drink at that person while they have no idea what they did to offend us.

Drinking for us seems to be the only way out of our anguish, but drinking is actually causing our anguish.

It’s not the second or even the fifth drink that gets us drunk. It’s the first. Taking that first drink sets up the craving for more and away we go.

Finding others that enjoy a non-drinking lifestyle can be the first step toward a life of recovery.

Sobriety is possible. There are many before us who have committed to this alcohol-free lifestyle and succeeded. They will tell you they didn’t do it alone, and if they did, I can tell you from experience, it’s much easier when you let people in.

They say in AA that is important—to be honest, open-minded, and willing. That is the how of staying sober. The minute we close our minds, start hiding, and telling lies or becoming secretive, we are in trouble. They ask if we are willing to go to any length to stay sober. Most of us at the point of arriving at the doors needing help for our drinking say yes, but it’s an important question to answer.

Will we be swayed easily by one person making a negative comment about our sobriety? Will we be able to say no thank you when offered a drink for the first time? Will we remember the reasons why we wanted to quit in the first place?

Keeping our “last drunk” at the forefront of our minds is imperative to us remaining abstinent. We can easily trick ourselves into believing we weren’t that bad or it won’t be like that this time, but if our ultimate goal is long-term sobriety, we must stay diligent one day at a time.

There are many support networks online for sobriety and a recovery lifestyle. Please reach out if you are struggling to find abstinence.

I wish you the best on your journey of self-discovery and a life without substance blurring our view of reality.

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