Hi Gwenyth, you are most certainly welcome to post here
I didn't have an AF day Thursday, I succumbed to the pressure! I arrived to a party at a pub a little late and I got caught up talking to a bunch of friends before making my way to the bar for a drink...I had planned to get a diet coke. One of my very best pals decided to bring me a very large glass of merlot...hmmmmm..I suppose she felt that I needed to have drink in hand to be socializing. So there I am standing there with a big glass of red which probably cost her 10 bucks... (she's a beer drinker so I couldn't say no thanks, you drink it.). Thankfully I had Nal in my purse so I discreetly popped a pill with a sip of wine and sipped the drink over the course of 4 hours.
If any more pub nights come up I'll have to remember to get there early and go straight to the bar and get my drink first, before chatting it up with my buds.

Generally not drinking around most of my friends isn't an issue, but I do have a couple of close girlfriends who are big drinkers and insist that I need to be drinking right along with them, because this is how it has always been. If I decline they don't think I mean it and will pour/buy me one anyway. They have no idea that I'm an alcoholic, they just think I'm a great partier.

I have learned that at the bar, if I get myself a drink as soon as I get there, they leave me alone. If I go to a house party and bring something non alcohol and pour myself one right when I arrive, they don't pay too much attention. They might ask why I'm not drinking but as long as I have a full drink in hand they are happy. It's when I'm empty handed or my drink is almost empty, they notice right away and feel the need to "top" me up.

Anyway, I am back to AF. I don't feel that I'm finished with TSM, I still think I have lots of triggers still left, but I also think I need to break the habit that has been a part of my life for 30+ years. I think forcing AF is the only way to do that, the longer the stint the better. Again this will depend on my craving level, but I know I can do 4 days with no problem and hopefully a good many days more than that. The plan is, if I do have a drinking day within this 50 days because of intense craving and making sure I don't go into ADE, I will get back to AF straight away and not let HABIT or festivities dictate.

It's only booze and I don't need to have it to have a good time. I need to get that through to my friends

Hey Katie

Great to see you've found you can break habits.

I've actually inadvertently done 7 days AF this week, and I've had lots of reasons to drink. So many that I did hanker after my old 'escape' however the thought of opening and drinking the wine in the fridge just turns my stomach.