I felt this a beautifully balanced piece of writing, thank you.
And to the lady asking... Yes you really can have a lovely holiday without drinking alcohol. I've had 3 now. First (3Months sober) tricky, felt it helped to say that out loud to my partner and to treat myself with lots of ice cream and to discover soft drinks I like and to be honest with how hard it felt.. 2nd and 3rd holidays first day tricky the odd impulses and triggers, for sure. However I feel such an overwhelming sense of pride and cleanliness and, hand on heart,I truly feel I enjoyed my holiday more whilst sober, for so many different reasons.
I'm one year and 3 months now, it can be okay!!...... More than okay.x
I love your point about making a plan for when you need a break. When my brother was able to string together a few months of sobriety, he’d try to be comfortable with everything too quickly. Looking back, it’s clear that either he wasn’t fully honest — or didn’t know how to articulate — when he needed a break from being around people who were drinking. You could see the looseness of people drinking around him chip away at him until a relapse happened. Knowing when you need to remove yourself from a boozy situation seems so crucial. Thanks for writing this one, Katie!
I felt this a beautifully balanced piece of writing, thank you.
And to the lady asking... Yes you really can have a lovely holiday without drinking alcohol. I've had 3 now. First (3Months sober) tricky, felt it helped to say that out loud to my partner and to treat myself with lots of ice cream and to discover soft drinks I like and to be honest with how hard it felt.. 2nd and 3rd holidays first day tricky the odd impulses and triggers, for sure. However I feel such an overwhelming sense of pride and cleanliness and, hand on heart,I truly feel I enjoyed my holiday more whilst sober, for so many different reasons.
I'm one year and 3 months now, it can be okay!!...... More than okay.x
Thank you for your kind words and sharing your experience!
I love your point about making a plan for when you need a break. When my brother was able to string together a few months of sobriety, he’d try to be comfortable with everything too quickly. Looking back, it’s clear that either he wasn’t fully honest — or didn’t know how to articulate — when he needed a break from being around people who were drinking. You could see the looseness of people drinking around him chip away at him until a relapse happened. Knowing when you need to remove yourself from a boozy situation seems so crucial. Thanks for writing this one, Katie!