Considering the GI issues alcohol often causes, is it any worse?

Oh and very much pleased for you. You are part of the sudden bloom of successes! Yay!

Hi UKB and everyone, I'm at an airport and actually sober! I still drink some but can stop at will. The same goes for AF days. It's no issue at all for me to abstain. I don't consider myself cured, as I will drink to excess if enough anxiety provoking issues pile up at the same time. Over time I've realized however that drinking to postpone dealing with problems only exacerbates the problems. My drinking is permanently changed. My goal of a cure upon my Mid October year anniversary practicing TSM is definitely in reach.
All the Best,
Retread

Wow this is so encouraging to read! I've got to go back and read your other posts, now. Congrstulations!!

It is all sounding really good Retread - I am SO happy for you !! And it so gives hope to those of us who are not as far in but still struggling - well not struggling but not 'cured' !!! Way to go for you !!

Hugs, Maggie x

Amazing I'm so pleased and happy for you. The drinking to postpone stuff realisation is good news. It doesn't make anything go away - or make you feel better in the long term.

Retread - great going - what does one do at the airport if they are not in the bar? I am planning on getting to that point so enquiring minds want to know? I am not that far in yet but I find it very inspirational that those who are not the quick responders have stayed with it. I believe that is another reason I like this road we are all on. No one is perfect and to ask a life long drinker to just stop - and don't ever drink again is setting them up for failure. Here you relearn at your own pace - and if you follow the rule and keep with it you will get to where you want to be - which is in control.

Great job and thank you

Awesome job! Glad it is working so quickly for you!!

Hi Angelgirl (and everyone else!), My recent success did not come quickly. I am 9 months in to my second attempt at TSM. Back in 2010 when my ex wife and I started the long process toward divorce I just gave up. I stayed away until last October, so nothing has been quick. I'm Italian and Irish, with many relatives who struggled (some died) from alcohol addiction. I learned to drink in my uncles bar in my teens, sneaking beers in the walk in cooler and then hiding the cans. For years I was a weekend warrior, however gradually my drinking became a daily affair. Being self employed I would drink early, about 3pm, and be home by 7. Less likely to get a DUI that way. I never did get a DUI, even though many a time I had to drive with one eye shut. I've crashed motorcycles, cars, sunk a boat and would have crashed a plane if I knew how to fly. Regarding what I do at airports, I still go to a bar, log on to the free Wi Fi and order a club soda and cranberry. An AA guy told me many years ago that no one cares what's in your glass. It's quite true. I'm 62 and back to my college weight. A life long weight lifter my body has escaped the ravages of long term alcohol abuse. I get so much support here. AA might work for some but it made me feel like a defeated bum. AA made me more likely to drink, and from what I saw over many years the compulsion to drink is replaced by a compulsion to sit in rooms full of people you likely would not want to be caught dead with. I'd rather be truly free, and if I want to pamper my lady with champagne and caviar I take a NAL and go for it! All the Best, Retread

Retread - I love that last post! I am also irish and Italian and all my relatives have died from either drinking or eating! And I am also an afternoon drinker - but I never seem to get home before 7 PM. More like 2 AM. And I am a great driver -except when I drink! Which is always. I have several DUI's, smashed a boat or two, golf cart and a bike or two. No plane wrecks thankfully! Not bragging - cause each case was a very big ordeal at the time. And each one of those ordeals eventually led me to this forum. Which is the only forum I follow on the internet and I can honestly say has helped me get control on my drinking.

Being 50' I am in between the internet and the rotary phone crowd. And although I am rather hip to a lot of things - I have to admit I would take a rotary phone over the internet forums. And although I am doing better - the last two nights have been more like pre NAL days. Seven beers two nights ago and last night I lost count after going to happy hour with momma and then to a friends tiki bar. Awoke this am with that "what the **** did I do and say feeling" even after taking a pill and then another half at 10 PM. Looked over on the side of the bed this morning and my clothes were there - with the shirt still buttoned and shoes still tied- two signs that I drank way to much.

So it is good that you remind me and everyone else the cure is not quick or easy. With AA I would be considered a failure -here it is just part of the journey to the cure. What happened last night was an every night thing for me just a short time ago. Now it is a rare event and I feel remorse for F*#$# ing up. Something I would have never done in the pre NAL days. In fact, by this time I would have had a couple of drinks to level off my morning.

Congratulations on your results and please keep us posted on your journey as your path is followed by a lot of us who are looking for a way out of this addiction.