Desparate Times Call For.....
Well, I had a heck of a Memorial Day Weekend, ending with a raging party Sunday night into Monday morning that had me stumbling over to Benton's couch to sleep the effects off. Drink-wise, I figure I had the equivalent of 5 beers & a shot of Schnapps. I've had worse, but I was also drinking on a near-empty stomach that night. Prognosis: I felt rather skanky all day Monday, including the early hours of my shift that night.
I suppose this was the straw that broke the camel's back. Somehow in driving from the bar to my house to Benton's house, I scraped the edge of a curb and lost a hub-cap on my car. I felt like CRAP for over a day, and realized I did it to myself. I had been slipping on my plan to stick to 3 drinks per night out, and even after I asked my friends to help me keep it in check, they let me down there too. Hindsight shows that friends who drink aren't the best gauge to keep oneself from drinking too much. :P
So, I have one last chance to curb my drinking before I'm going to the clinic for professional help. The alcohol I had early Monday morning is the last drink I'm having until Labor Day Weekend. An entire summer without drinking is my challenge. If I can make it on my own for 3 months, then I will have this thing beaten and I can slowly reintroduce alcohol into my lifestyle. If I don't have the willpower to go ~100 days without giving in, then I am going to assume worst-case scenario of an addiction and go straight to the clinic the day after I drink.
I tried toning it down, and it didn't work. Now I am going to cut if off for an extended period to judge just how much the stuff has been playing a part of my life. I don't plan to become a hermit for the season; I'll be out at the bars drinking soda or water to socialize and drive people home. I will just politely decline the offer to drink and let people know in person what's going on. We've all seen someone take a dive due to alcohol or drugs, so I know I can count on my friends to support my decision. They might be a little skeptical that I can go the whole summer, but they will definitely give me encouragement.
I certainly have the motivation to beat this. I have a promotion coming on August 1st, and the base commander has let everyone know that any alcohol-related offense will result in demotion on the spot. I barely qualified for this new stripe, and I don't want to lose it so quickly. I just started dating someone I really like, and I don't want this to develop into a problem that pushes her away. Lets leave that to the things OUT of my control. ;) Lastly, I've started to develop a bit of a beer belly, so I hope the lack of beer for a few months thins me down a bit with the exercise that the pool & warm weather promise to give me. :)
I can do this. I may indeed have a problem with alcohol now, but this should tell me if it is something I can handle on my own, or if I need outside help to get the monkey off my back. I'll keep everyone here posted throughout summer with updates. Wish me luck! ^_^
-Tom OUT(Detoxing)
I suppose this was the straw that broke the camel's back. Somehow in driving from the bar to my house to Benton's house, I scraped the edge of a curb and lost a hub-cap on my car. I felt like CRAP for over a day, and realized I did it to myself. I had been slipping on my plan to stick to 3 drinks per night out, and even after I asked my friends to help me keep it in check, they let me down there too. Hindsight shows that friends who drink aren't the best gauge to keep oneself from drinking too much. :P
So, I have one last chance to curb my drinking before I'm going to the clinic for professional help. The alcohol I had early Monday morning is the last drink I'm having until Labor Day Weekend. An entire summer without drinking is my challenge. If I can make it on my own for 3 months, then I will have this thing beaten and I can slowly reintroduce alcohol into my lifestyle. If I don't have the willpower to go ~100 days without giving in, then I am going to assume worst-case scenario of an addiction and go straight to the clinic the day after I drink.
I tried toning it down, and it didn't work. Now I am going to cut if off for an extended period to judge just how much the stuff has been playing a part of my life. I don't plan to become a hermit for the season; I'll be out at the bars drinking soda or water to socialize and drive people home. I will just politely decline the offer to drink and let people know in person what's going on. We've all seen someone take a dive due to alcohol or drugs, so I know I can count on my friends to support my decision. They might be a little skeptical that I can go the whole summer, but they will definitely give me encouragement.
I certainly have the motivation to beat this. I have a promotion coming on August 1st, and the base commander has let everyone know that any alcohol-related offense will result in demotion on the spot. I barely qualified for this new stripe, and I don't want to lose it so quickly. I just started dating someone I really like, and I don't want this to develop into a problem that pushes her away. Lets leave that to the things OUT of my control. ;) Lastly, I've started to develop a bit of a beer belly, so I hope the lack of beer for a few months thins me down a bit with the exercise that the pool & warm weather promise to give me. :)
I can do this. I may indeed have a problem with alcohol now, but this should tell me if it is something I can handle on my own, or if I need outside help to get the monkey off my back. I'll keep everyone here posted throughout summer with updates. Wish me luck! ^_^
-Tom OUT(Detoxing)