Yesterday I had a real "aha!" moment, and also 3 aus, which is a very odd number, indeed...

I got caught up on writing some posts, and in organizing my thoughts on paper, (er, rather "pixels"), I recognized that yes, I've been careening into Happy Hour w/o a plan of any kind. Which is crazy! I was musing whether I should be applying more "willpower" to my TSM program, but it occurred to me that a better FIRST step would be to have a plan, set some small goals...well, DUH. Yeah, TSM gives me carte blanche to drink, which is a real treat after the years of struggle we all understand, but STILL...if my Dr. told me I could quit worrying about calories and cholesterol, I would not start going to the Cheesecake Factory for lunch every day, c'mon!

I decided there was no harm in setting a small goal for myself: 3 aus last night...which I did! I am SO encouraged, because it was very easy to stop after that...a little deja vu of the honeymoon. SO wonderful to recognize that increased sense of control, to feel the difference. Even though I still crave, there is this BIG difference.

And that difference is summed up well by the number "3", a paradox I first noticed during the honeymoon: before TSM, I would either have "0" aus (once in a very great while!), manage to stop @ "2" (oh, so hard!), and then the next possible # would be 5 - 7+, but never 3! If I couldn't rein myself in after 2, it was off to the races, & the inevitable conclusion of shame, guilt, hangover.

The small light at the end of the tunnel, is maybe this little LED over my own head...

Chrissie

Hey there,
I have also found that 3 is the magical number...anything past three and it's definitely a DRINKING night, not just a couple of social drinks.
And yes - plans are important, even on TSM. also something I've realized you don't need to throw out all your moderation techniques

Great idea, Chrissie!

To add to the old saying, "You take the first drink. The second drink takes you. The third hurtles you toward hell."

Thanks for posting that Chrissie - what an obvious idea I'd not considered! I keep shrugging off the suggestions of "coping strategies" et al using the lame justification that the Nal will just work "magically" without any effort on my part.

First, the man takes a drink. Then, the drink takes a drink. After that, the drink takes the man.