Since starting TSM Thanksgiving weekend it obliterated my tolerance from day one. I have heard of the honeymoon effect but it has been 2 months for me. I am still in my mind no where near being cured. One of the biggest things I am noticing and this keeps creeping up very very slowly and subtlely, I am begining to see my old pre-alcoholic mind work rationally and healthy again. I am not in therapy. My plan was to get alcohol under control or down to managable levels and start therapy but now I don't think I am heading back to therapy. I have had a few MAJOR life events occur and have reacted like my old self in a very healthy and rational way and it is coming natural like before i went off the deep end with alcohol. I really noticed it this past week with my neice being molested by my sister's ex-husband.

The anger was there but the thing that dumbfounded me was my intial reaction that popped into my mind was DO NOT DRINK WHATEVER YOU DO and i didn't. This is a complete 180 and it was effortless...I keep seeing very small changes in my thought process and it's fun and exciting. It's almost like seeing an old long lost friend that I haven't seen in a good 10 years called myself.

I am wondering if others who are cured or close to cured are going through this or have been through it? It seems like a slow process which I am A ok fine with I never imagined it would be like this. Hope I am describing this right.

Crown - this is Larry. Your experience is very similar to Roxy's. She is just fine with the process at this point because she sees the light at the end. Her ability to deal with issues with some inner strength is a complete miracle according to her. She knows she is not "cured", but the word keeps popping up in conversation.

Thanks for the post.

Crown -- I'm SO HAPPY you started this thread. There is nothing to be gained but anxiety and frustration from comparing ourselves to the experiences of others here.

Your experience is valid. It may not match what many -- even most -- have experienced. But IT IS YOURS AND IT IS REAL.

There is a subtle pressure to track and report numbers. Some of us (including me) prefer not to report our numbers. Some of us have results faster or more slowly than what we've come to expect. I hope no one feels pressured to post or report numbers if you do not feel that is helpful to YOU. You do not owe it to the community to report numbers. Besides, it is easy to mis-use reported numbers, because they are anecdotal and not empirical.

The most important thing to me about this board is that it's a safe place to report and share experiences. From this, we all may get information that enhances our results. We are in this together and we need to be kind to one another and not judge one another.

I'm so happy for you each time I read of the life changes TSM has given you.

It's so awesome to hear this from you both. So happy for your "miracle" and the great changes you've seen. It really is amazing - and very hopeful, I'm sure for so many. It does work!

Thanks guys

I would never have thought 2 months ago I would be were I am today NEVER. I really belive, and even had an MD tell me on my little involuntary trip to detox and the nut ward, based on the volume I was drinking prior to discovering TSM, I would have been dead within in a year or two. Of course that doctor was emphatic after detox that I go to rehab and then AA. Part of me would like to stop by and see him and drop off a copy of The Cure to Alcoholism for him. He was 100% positive I was a walking death sentence without rehab and AA, it was just a matter of when.

Lena, I agree with the unit thing now, but when I first started TSM 2 months ago I knew I was dumping a bizzare amount of alcohol down my throat so it was a yard stick I guess..meaning comparing my abnormalities with alcohol to the US standard. I really thought the end result would be abstinence made simple in a few months or 6 or 9 months or whatever. I though yeah, you read about the freedom from alcohol but I truly could not imagine what that was 2 months ago, clueless, it sounded good though, so units were everything to me. Now I just dont care. It is now becoming more the fact of not going to bed drunk in a black-out and waking up hung over and repeating the cylce and damn it feels good.

I had a lot of crap happen in the last 2 months - lost the fiance of three years, the holiday with a fresh break-up, my neice's crisis, finances tight - but I was not smashed crazy drunk once. But really the best thing that has happened to me during this TSM journey was the thing I mentioned above: In a bad situation my mind automatically thinking in a nanosecond NO MATTER WHAT DO NOT DRINK...LOL I had to pinch myself and was like what the hell did your inner voice just say. Before, in any bad situation, I would be taking stock in the liquor cabinet as I was having a drink, to make sure I had enough to get through a couple days.

Having been in AA in my youth for a long time I have been conditioned a lot to their way of thinking. I have been questioning am I really sober or alluding myself because I still have a couple of drinks. I am sure other's go through these thoughts that have significant others who are still with them and watching them still drink. I was talking to my uncle who has been sober for 35 years the AA way. He doesnt go to meeting anymore but beleives and knows the program cold. He said to me hell yeah your sober, no black-outs, no crazy behavior etc. I guess having been so conditioned to sobriety, which I am only now learning is really freedom from alcohol hell, was only acheived thru abstience. Simply not true. Thank you TSM.

Agreed. I think we all do have our own experiences and journey. As I was in the middle of my TSM journey, I kept trying to identify with one of the personal accounts in Dr. Eskapa's book or someone else on this forum who was seeing success. Up until not too awfully long ago, I had this fear that I was in that 20% that couldn't be cured with TSM, so I was looking for other accounts similar to what I was going through. Problem was, there really wasn't any.

If there's one thing I think most of us here run into, it's expecting results too soon. Part of this isn't our faults, as Dr. Eskapa's book sets us up to expect an outright cure inside of 4 months. If I were placing a bet on average times, it would be more out in the 7-9 month range.

9 months is a REALLY long time, and that's what makes TSM difficult.

As far as numbers go, it really depends on the person. I really liked tracking my progress and gained quite alot of personal support and encouragement from doing it. Bob is another guy in this category. We're both tech types, so maybe we just like numbers. Further, the pros recommend you track your progress. For most, I think there is real value in doing this especially in the first 3-4 months. It sets up a type of accountability and gives you the opportunity to apply some will power to reduce intake.

Q

Hey Crown,

It's really inspiring to read about such dramatic changes (for the better) in lives that were once so damaged by and enslaved to alcohol. And as Lena pointed out, the experiences with TSM are unique to each individual, and there is no "right" way to do it. I track my numbers because however slight, I see an overall improvement when I look at the big picture graphically - I need a visual representation of my journey to understand the process. For me, it has been, and continues to be a crazy rollercoaster ride. But the numbers aren't the important part for me. As you've expressed, being able to handle extremely difficult situations without relying on alcohol is HUGE! The truth is, I never learned how to live with out drinking, since I started before I was an adult. I was 11 when I had my first drink, so it just became a part of who I am as I grew up. Now I'm learning to truly become a responsible adult - but it's actually foreign to me, and I think that's why brain is making it a lengthy transformation. It's like struggling with a rebelious teenager in my head, when I've already got 2 real ones at home to deal with!

I'm so happy that you've gotten remarkable results in such relatively short period of time. But for those who aren't getting there as quickly - don't give up! We're all different, and the changes you're seeking might be just around the corner.

I should add that I very much enjoy reading the numbers and viewing the graphs of those who choose to post them!!

Numbers are cool!

Your numbers are cool