Benefits
You should have a little list growing of the benefits of stopping drinking by now.
If you haven’t stopped to note this down in your Sober Journal, then this is your time.
Benefits can be small things or big things. If it pops into your head, then note it. These benefits will be helpful if you ever think about drinking alcohol again in the future.
WARNING - Side Effects (takes about a month to kick in):
Great skin.
Dizzy with extra energy.
Warning!! You will sleep like a baby.
Abnormal Behaviour – May bring out your real, authentic self!
Self-love may cause nausea (but no vomiting!)
What is this wonder drug I hear you cry? How do I get hold of it? Did I mention that it’s also completely FREE and will SAVE you money? Are you SOLD?
I love this because I think it’s so true. We are always looking for things outside of ourselves. Sometimes, we have to stop doing something to ourselves to feel the real benefit. No wonder drug needed.
I still have moments now (they are few and far between), but they sneak up unexpectedly sometimes, where I feel the urge to have a drink. Maybe I feel like I need to shift my state or drown it out, and I want a shortcut rather than doing the deeper work, scared of what it might reveal and knowing that it won’t be easy to sit with uncomfortable feelings.
The self-sabotaging critic within me shouts every so often to see if I will listen. I listen and hear it, but I don’t act on it.
I stop and think about why it is coming up for me now, working with that newfound awareness.
I don’t think that will ever change, but I am mentally prepared for when it happens. The Charity Challenge ended for me after a year and I chose not to drink after that moment. This hasn’t been a ‘challenge’ for me for the last few years; this is a lifestyle choice and one that I am proud of. I know my life is better without it, and I wouldn’t go back. Not to test if I could moderate, not just for one last hurrah… I know that this positive change has impacted every part of my life for the better, one that I need to maintain.
Write down anything that comes up for you on the BENEFITS page of your Sober Journal.
The more that you rewire your brain and positively associate not drinking, the easier the Sober Journey is.