I gotta quit drinking.

[elkduds]

#2 The same guy that heads up a few groups took a turn and burn trip with me to Moscow Idaho to pick up an engine. I did a straight through from here, Central CA. to Moscow Id. When we get there it's some sort of busy event thing going on and there's no motel rooms within miles. I called the guy I'm supposed to meet the next day and asked if there's somewhere safe I can park for the night and just sleep in the truck. He says we can sack out in an old motor home he has. He said it ain't great but it doesn't leak. So we get to his place and settle in and there's a little placard on the counter of the motor home that has a saying from AA. The guy comes out to check make sure we're doing okay and my buddy says "So you know Bill?". I have no idea what he talking about but the guy says "Hell yes". The guy asked us into the house for a cup of coffee and the two of them start in with a one on one AA meeting! I guess that Bill must have been a pretty famous guy in AA. I went to bed and the two of them yapped and bullshit for most of the night. It seems that if your in AA your welcome anywhere.

What does Bill mean in AA?


“Friends of Bill” is a phrase often used by members of Alcoholics Anonymous to refer to other people who are in the recovery process, particularly those who share a connection with Bill Wilson, one of the founders of AA.

 

[Cammy]

I got to the point that I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. Family crumbling as now ex decided that she couldn't live like that anymore. All alone 3000 miles away from her and the kids and no hope of seeing them anytime soon. Stumbled into an Air Force Chapel and met Gordon Schneider, an Air Force Chaplin. That 30 minute meeting changed my life forever and was the foundation of who I am now. Sadly Gordon passed a few years ago and I never got to share with him how much of an impact he had on my life. I won't say I have been perfectly sober since 1995 but I can say that my once a year "deer beer" after successful harvest hasn't caused an issue. I have a loving supportive wife (who went through hell with an alcoholic ex husband of her own (not me)) who has been a great partner for nearly 30 years.

All of that to say this. You can't stop an addiction for anyone but you. Shit is going to suck for however long it takes for you reprogram your brain to live without alcohol. You will loose friends. Those who do not actively support you in your journey are not true friends. You will find new friends but the ones you find will be true friends that support you and look out for you. You can't go to the places that you used to go (in the beginning). No more "pool leagues" at the local bar or dance nights where alcohol is served. At some point you find yourself somewhere and see the "I love you man" drunk and realize why you quit.

 

[corndog1]

AA for me. Fifteen and a half years.

 

[Elkmagnet]

I have no Idea what you are dealing with. I wish you the best in your efforts.
My only advice as an observer is.
When someone offers you a drink be direct in saying - No thanks I quit. If people don't respect those words you might rethink your relationship with them/ current location.
Good friends will immediately respect your efforts. You will learn a lot about others from your self improvement.

 

[Stocker]

I quit drinking by popular demand. Use your will power. Tell yourself your going to quit and do it. Tell yourself that you can do it and don't lie to yourself.

Yeah, the same. My kids got older, everything I want to do requires some level of physical fitness, my wife was less than impressed when I over partook, which I always did because I’m an all or nothing person. So I just decided my kids didn’t need to see their dad dumber than I already am, my wife wouldn’t be aggravated with me and I could stay in better shape instead of being hungover and lazy.


Idk if you call it wisdom, maturity, or what but I just quit. Some people handle booze just fine, I don’t. Whatever I do it’s always to the extreme, so when it came to drinking it was never just 1-2 drinks, it was 0 drinks or stumbling, bumbling idiot.

Just look at the downside of drinking compared to the positives of not drinking and just will your way through it. I don’t even ponder it anymore after about a year.

 

[Redmt]

I think a couple things that helped were one, I got miserable head exploding stomach turning hangovers. There was a point between being shit faced with no side effects and being shit faced and miserably sick. That point was unknown. It wasn't worth it, as I mean terribly sick. I used to smoke a little weed now and then. There came a day when I developed an allergy to it. It would literally have me blowing chunks. That was another that was easy to quit. I never smoked much anyway. It was more of a social thing.

 

[Stocker]

I think a couple things that helped were one, I got miserable head exploding stomach turning hangovers. There was a point between being shit faced with no side effects and being shit faced and miserably sick. That point was unknown. It wasn't worth it, as I mean terribly sick. I used to smoke a little weed now and then. There came a day when I developed an allergy to it. It would literally have me blowing chunks. That was another that was easy to quit. I never smoked much anyway. It was more of a social thing.

The hangovers got me too, never did any kind of drugs, I always told everyone I had a hard enough time just with drinking and that was true.

 

[Redmt]

The hangovers got me too, never did any kind of drugs, I always told everyone I had a hard enough time just with drinking and that was true.

I did some stuff back in the 60's that was down right fun! It was so much fun I swore I would never do it again! From what I remember from the 60's and 70's, we had a lot of fun, I think.

 

[noharleyyet]

Raised in a small dry town with a wet county line oasis 25 miles away...sinnin' was whatch'a did when you could get to it. I never developed a taste for beer but a good smooth bourbon sure had it's appeal. No problem yet no mas...maybe a few glasses of vino.

 

[Outlaw99]

One time when I was in Vegas for the National Finals, my flight got delayed a hour. That gave me an extra hour at the casino bar before I had to leave. I drank a full bottle of crown by myself that hour before we left. The crown Royal girls were impressed; my wife wasn’t, she left me for good within a week of returning home. I’m exactly like @Stocker, no moderation button.

 

[Nick87]

I’m exactly like @Stocker, no moderation button.

My brother and I always explain it like most people have a dimmer switch. I don't have a dimmer its on or off.

 

[MNElkNut]

Well how about a funny story just to put a smile on your face? A son of a friend was working customer service on a cruise. A couple came up to him and asked where the meeting for "Friends of Bill W" is located. He looked at his schedule of activities and just couldn't find it. After a bunch of searching, he told them there is no meeting for "Friends of Bill W". They were dismayed, but left. He felt really bad so he sent a complimentary bottle of wine to their room........Then he found out who Bill W is.....oops!

 

[efw]

I tried to quit drinking through will power and it never lasted. I could never drink just a little. I’d go a whole without alcohol to prove to myself that I was fine then convince myself that I could drink normally (whatever that is??) and do so maybe a couple times and then lose control.

I didn’t get into much trouble and was holding it together job wise but when I did get into trouble with friends or girls it always related to booze and/or drugs. My use wasn’t destroying my career but it was slowing it.

I knocked a chick up and decided I needed to quit for good and couldn’t but there’s been some men who seemed happy and normal and who’d invited me to meetings. I went and haven’t had the urge to drink or drugs since; that was over 27 yrs ago.

My observation is that, generally speaking, 12 steps are something that people won’t do unless the alternative is death. They don’t require dogmatic religious faith; just a humble belief that I’m not the most powerful thing in the universe. Obviously alcohol had me defeated so that wasn’t hard to believe.

I still go to meetings and help new comers. My entire life and family have benefited from the humble pie alcohol & drugs served me. My kids love me and I have respect for myself today.

If you find that will power isn’t sufficient to keep you sober, or if you’d like to be happy and not just dry, in my experience a 12 step program can help.

 

[Matthew57]

Rooting for you Brian! You've got this.

 

[Outlaw99]

My new truck less than 2 weeks old. Got hammered and wrapped it around. Telephone pole. Unloaded all the guns out of it hitched a ride and got away before the cops showed up. Had a couple beers to settle down when I got home. Kept up my daily drinking for another 2 years after this. $50k damage and it still couldn’t stop my self destruction. It’s a pretty intense demon to get away from