How to Make A New Life For Yourself After An Addiction

Here is how to make a new life for yourself after an addiction from my own experiences with drinking and abusing alcohol.

I drank alcohol for the majority of my life, but in October of 2009 I had had enough of the life I was living and was pissed off at myself for what I put my wife and children through all the years I drank and abused alcohol. SO what did I do to fix this?  I STOPPED DRINKING ALCOHOL!

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU GET THAT URGE TO DRINK AFTER YOU HAVE BECOME SOBER ?

Here are few things I think about when that urge to drink alcohol comes over me, and hopefully they will help you to say NO when the urge and temptation comes over you.

• Remember how you felt when you drank.
• Remember what you looked like from drinking and using drugs or alcohol.
• Remember what you did and said to the ones you loved and cared for.
• Remember how much money you spent on your addiction.
• Remember those huge nasty and painful hangovers.
• Remember when your drank and drove your automobile under the influence. 

Lets just say you are sober, and you go somewhere that is serving alcohol and your mind starts to spin out of control thinking about all the so called good times you had back when you drank alcohol. Were they really good times or just the alcohol saying to you that life is so great being drunk and stupid?

You need to think of all the times you felt so sick and what you did and said to people that you loved and cared about because the alcohol was making you say things you would normally not say being sober.

How many times have you said something nasty, and hurt the ones you loved? I can count many times for myself.  Would you really say those things being clean and sober?  I bet not my fellow friends!

Making a new life for yourself after an addiction to alcohol, or even drugs for that matter will be hard to get adjusted to because  you and I have been living with this addiction, and that addiction was a huge part of our life, and now that we became sober it will be a new life to get used to. Where has our friend and crutch gone?

A life of sobriety is the best thing in the world, and you will then see what your life is truly about when you get and stay sober.  It will be loving and respecting yourself, and loving yourself when you hated yourself and your life when you were using and drinking alcohol for so many years of your life.

You and I need to keep ourselves busy each and everyday in order to keep our minds off the addiction that we just gave up.  Keeping your mind and body busy will indeed keep your mind off of your past addiction.  I know it helps with me to staying sober.

Writing is now my passion, and knowing that I might just help one person in the world realize that there is a beautiful life out there being sober means more than anything to me.

Alway keep that Positive attitude and keep telling yourself that you will continue to beat this addiction you once had.  Your attitude in life can make or break you in anything you try to do, and that includes getting and staying sober forever.

Spend that quality time with your family and friends that you never did when you were drinking and abusing alcohol and drugs. It will be like a breath of fresh air to you, as it is to me right at this moment.

The best thing I had ever done in my life was to get out of my denial and stop drinking alcohol forever.  Sure, I will always be an alcoholic, but I will never let my past addiction to alcohol take control of my life and the lives of all the people that love and care for me.

Alcohol Addiction And How It Will Effect Your Life And Others

So many people have this huge problem with alcohol addiction.  We all need to really sit down and think of our alcohol addiction and how it will effect your life and others in the future and right as of today.

We get so involved in our addiction to alcohol and we tend to forget about our life and what our addiction is doing to others that care and love us so.

The more we drink and abuse alcohol the more we are getting addicted. I know from my experience of drinking alcohol, that as each week passed by I needed more and more to get to that point of being satisfied with the buzz I was out to achieve.

We tend to get blinded by our own addiction.  We think more of alcohol than our own life and others that are being effected by what we are doing.

Do you think you are just a social drinker or do you think deep down inside you may have an alcohol addiction?

HERE ARE SOME TELL TALE SIGNS THAT YOU MAY HAVE A DRINKING PROBLEM.

• Do you try to hide your alcohol and pretend you don't drink as much as others think?
• Are you ashamed or feel guilty by your drinking habits?
• Does your family or friends worry or say things regarding your drinking?
• Do you need to have alcohol in order to get through each day?
• Do you drink alcohol in order to relax?
• Do you disagree with what others say to you regarding your alcohol intake?
• You never know when to stop drinking.
• You think of alcohol, and when you can have your first drink of the day as soon as you wake up.
• You drink alcohol alone.
• You are embarrassed of your addiction.
• And you live in denial, thinking there is nothing wrong whatsoever by what you do.
• You use alcohol to try and solve problems.
• You relationships are falling apart, but you do nothing to stop drinking. 
• You refuse to attend a function that alcohol would not be served.
• Continue to have trouble with the law (DUI) etc.
• You make any excuse to drink alcohol.

So there are a few things I can think about, and what effected my life regarding my own addiction to alcohol.

If you think you may have a problem with your drinking, then really consider making a life change and seek living life clean and sober. Believe me, lots of your drinking buddies will say something to you about your decision to quit drinking alcohol, but never let that stands in your way of sobriety.

Let them continue to kill themselves as your life begins to improve and you get healthy and happier as each day passes. You will never regret living a life of sobriety.  As I said many times before, "all of us here on Earth have but one life to live," so why would we shorten that one life with an avoidable addiction to alcohol?

One thing I have learned that helped me get sober and stay sober is having a positive attitude. It has changed my life in more ways than one. You need to continue to tell yourself that you Can and Will get and stay sober. No negative thoughts whatsoever, and that means anything you do in life, not just getting sober.

Having The Urge To Drink While Trying To Stay Sober

For all those that are trying to get and stay sober sometimes having the urge to drink while trying to stay sober is a tough thing to handle.  Getting sober could be short term for many, but staying sober is the key to long term sobriety.

Is there a secret to staying sober?  I don't think there is any kind of secret, it's if you want to stay sober and have the strength to turn down the urge and the cravings to consume alcohol.  I write and speak from my heart and from the experiences of drinking alcohol and just how I found sobriety on my own with no 12 step programs, no AA or any kind of meetings, only the willingness and the help of God to get me sober and to remain sober.  Staying sober is the hard part, but only has hard as you want to make it.  "I am by no means downing the 12 Step or AA programs because they do work very well, although I was fortunate enough that I could get sober without them.  This is not true for many people addicted. They will need Professional help and the proper care and counselling to detox in a safe and healthy way and to be guided in the right direction in life and towards getting clean and sober."

I would imagine if you want something bad enough and you are willing to do anything in order to achieve your goal or dream, it will happen, not only with getting clean and sober, but anything in life.  I have learned this while I started on my road to recovery, and believe me, if you want sobriety in your life you will do anything it takes.  You have to change our outlook on life and start thinking positive and continue to tell yourself that you can and will get sober no matter what it takes.

Many alcoholics, including myself has had many urges to drink maybe a few times a day, but you need to stop that urge in it's tracks and say that most important word "NO" I can't break and take that sip of alcohol.  I will not let my inner demons control my life anymore.  These demons that bring that urge to drink will be with you throughout the rest of your life.  They will hang inside of you just waiting for the moment to strike, but you must be stronger than them.  They will appear at the least expected moment.

If and when you get that urge or strong desire to drink alcohol, stop what you are doing right away and think of what you will have done to yourself if you take that drink or one sip.  Think of all the hard work you have
done over the last months or years and to ruin all you hard work for a sip of alcohol would be devastating.

You will be so mad at yourself and so disappointed that you gave in to those demons, plus then you will have to start back at day number one of trying to get and stay sober again.  You Must not let anything that happen in your quest to stay sober, and if by chance you do satisfy that urge you will never forgive yourself.

I know for a fact that I would be devastated that I wasn't strong enough to say "NO" to my addiction and demons that think they have you right where they want you.  Stay Strong.  Stay Positive and believe and love yourself enough to stay sober and enjoy this great life of Sobriety!

How A Positve Attitude Helps With Getting Sober

Have you any idea how a positive attitude helps with getting sober?  For many people that are suffering from an addiction to alcohol sobriety and getting sober is the last thing on their mind.  Why, you may ask?  When an alcoholic has been drinking for so many years they forget just how sobriety and being clean and sober feels.

They have a hard time with excepting that they may have an addiction problem, and don't what to admit that they are living in denial and think nothing of drinking and partying, just like it is the way of life for everyone.  Well everyone in our society and in our world drink and abuse alcohol to the point of getting addicted to it.

When I finally said, "enough is enough" and surrendered to my addiction to alcohol is when I realized that a positive attitude has had a huge impact on my sobriety and has helped me to get sober and using that positive attitude continues to keep me sober as well.

Can you imagine walking around with that chip on your shoulder and thinking nothing but negative thoughts, saying why me?  How in the world can anyone get sober thinking negative and telling them self that they will never be able to kick their addiction and get clean and sober. Thinking is this manner no one will ever get sober.

Just think about it.  Negative thoughts give negative results and positive thoughts give positive results.  Sound right to me, how about you?

I can certainly say from my experience with drinking alcohol, and then getting sober, that my positive attitude helped me to get sober, and without thinking this way I would still be stuck in my little world of my own addiction and self destruction.  Our minds, and we all have one I might add, can and will do anything you tell it to.  If you want to live in a world of addiction and telling yourself you will never get sober than that is exactly what your life will be.

Now, lets turn the coin and say you are thinking nothing but positive thoughts and thinking with that positive attitude telling yourself that you can and will get and stay sober no matter what it takes to achieve your sobriety.  Which of the two attitudes do you think will work the best for you?  I have my answer, how about you, do you have your answer?  I think the answer is a no brainier in my opinion.

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Ways To Help You Stay Sober During The Holidays

The Holiday season is upon us and with the giving of gifts, having Christmas and New Years parties become somewhat difficult for those that are in recovery from their past addictions.

There are many ways to help you stay sober during the Holidays such as your thinking and your mental attitude.

In the beginning of your recovery you are really fighting to stay sober.  Your body that has been so used to alcohol in your system and then to have nothing alcoholic is a bit of a shock to your your system.  You go to that Holiday party and watch as those that are drinking and thinking they are having a wonderful time, and I am sure they are, at that moment.

You mouth starts to water and wishing you can have just one beer, a glass of wine or a nice mixed drink.  The problem with that is you have made a pack with yourself, (I hope) to never pick up a alcoholic drink again.  This pack or promise to yourself to never drink again should have been made when you finally surrendered to your addiction.

You took the right steps in getting clean and sober, and now the huge job is to stay clean and sober. The Holiday seasons are full of temptations to the alcoholic. I know for myself when I quit drinking alcohol, the first few months were torture to me. I surrendered to my addiction in October of 2009 just two months before the Holiday party were to begin.  I thought to myself, " how in the world will I ever be able to go to these holidays and parties and watch people drink while I remain sober?"

The way I handled those temptations to drink are as follows and I hope they will help you through this Holiday and many days and years to come, not just Holidays.

• I began to prepare my mind and my feelings of what would happen to me if I were to break and relapse.
• I thought  to myself if I were to drink at these Holiday parties what I would be ruining and all the hard work I did to get where I was at that moment and sober.
• I said to myself that every minute I remain sober at these parties I will be closer to leaving the the temptation to drink.
• I stay strong and determined not to drink and keeping that promise to myself that I made some two years ago.
• I mad sure I had enough coffee to hold in my hand as I sipped it slowly as I was having conversations with all that were drinking alcohol.
• Before I knew it the end of the night was near and I remained clean and sober.
• Ever since those couple of parties I went to it has become so much easier to be around those that drink alcohol and my urge to drink has passed and it doesn't bother me one bit now to go to parties and watch other drink their brains out.  In fact, I watch them now and just how they change with each drink that was drank.  I often wonder to myself, "was that me two years ago?"  If so, I was a mess as those that are pounding them down and thinking they are having a blast.
• I go home sober and awake with a clear head with no hangovers.  I wonder how they felt after their night out drinking?  I bet not like me!
• I continue to tell myself just how proud of I am of my own self and I should be, just as every person that had an addiction and surrendered to it and now living a life of sobriety.

So make your Holidays safe, sober and fun.  Remember, you don't need to drink alcohol in order to enjoy this time of the season with Christmas and New Years right around the corner. In fact, I can truly say for myself, it is much more fun being clean and sober and the best part of it is that you will remember the night to be remember.  Don't blow it and take that one drink for if you are like me, you will be back right your started at day number one and I know I don't want to start all over again after working so hard to get where I am today and you should feel the same way if your were smart.

Don't drink and don't give in EVER!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE AND ENJOY THIS SPECIAL TIME OF THE YEAR BEING CLEAN AND SOBER!!!

Fulfillment In A Sober Life

Fulfillment in a sober life is a story I can share with everyone that has or had an addiction to alcohol as I did over two years ago. 

From my own experiences being addicted to alcohol and now clean and sober.  From one alcoholic to another I want to say that there is always hope and to never give up on your dreams or give up to a sober life.  Sobriety is a wonderful thing and anyone that has a drinking problem should really consider changing their life and find sobriety once more.

As we know, the world we live in is full of ups and downs.  There are problems, wars, and so many things that would bring you down and get you depressed, but many of us turn to alcohol to ease the pain or try to make us forget our problems in our everyday lives.  Drinking and abusing alcohol is NOT the answer to any thing, believe me.  You are only masking the problems for a short time and when you sober up, guess what, those problems and pains are still and maybe worse.

If you truly want fulfillment in your life than take a good look at your addiction and figure out what you can do to surrender to it and start living a fulfilling, happy, healthy and rewarding life.

When someone is addicted to alcohol is their live really fulfilled or is there something missing?  The missing link is their happiness, their health and possibly a doomed marriage, but there is a answer to making all these things disappear and getting the life back you deserve and that is surrendering to you addiction to alcohol.

Life is all what you make it and if you choose to live it drinking alcohol everyday and abusing it, then you have a rude awakening coming.  Your life will only go downhill until the day you hit rock bottom, so why not try to fix whats broken and start living again.

Once you surrender to your addiction you will see how your life will start to change and start heading back up hill.  You will then be able to start to fulfill those dreams and goals you may of had before your addiction took over your life.

So You Want To Get Sober - What's Next

So you want to get sober what's next is something every alcoholic thinks of when he/she wants to change their lives.

What is the first step in getting sober and how can I start the recovery process is one of the many questions alcoholics may ask themselves, but many may not know the answer or how to go about it.

I know that one of the most important questions is, "do you really want to get sober or are you being forced into something you don't have in your heart to do?"  Are you willing to surrender to your addiction and start a new life of sobriety?


Are you willing to possibly let go of your drinking friends and start to live a normal life without your crutch and friends that may possibly put a damper on you succeeding in getting clean and sober?


So you ask. "Whats Next?"  You have taken your first step by admitting you have a problem with alcohol and want help and now it is time to pick your starting sobriety date in which will be the most important date in your life, and for the rest of your lives, as it is for myself.  I so look forward to my sobriety date to come each year and look back and say to myself, " I have made it through one more year clean and sober."

What a thrill and a huge achievement in an alcoholics life to have made it through one more year of sobriety.

Many alcoholics think they would never be able to get sober, but once they have made their minds up to at least try getting sober, they may surprise themselves by just how easy it can be to get sober if you really have it in your heart to do so.

Stay focused, stay positive and believe in yourself.  By doing these things and keeping a positive attitude in life you will be able to get and stay sober.  No matter what happens in your life while in recovery, don't back down to your demons.  Never let them back into your life again.  They, our demons, will always try to get back into our lives in different ways, but you have to be strong enough to put them away and say the most important word in your life, and that is the word, "NO!"

If you have the willingness, desire and the determination to get clean and sober, then it will indeed happen in your life.  Believe and you will achieve is my motto from now on in my life, as it should be yours as well.

Quitting Drinking Cold Turkey

So many people in our world suffer from either an alcohol or drug addiction and they have no idea where to start to get sober in a safe and healthy way.  I, fortunately never had an addiction to drugs, but made up for it by being addicted to alcohol for many years.

Many people that are addicted to alcohol want to quit drinking and often wonder to them selves if quitting drinking cold turkey would be the answer.  In many cases, such as my case, going cold turkey worked for me, but it is not the answer for many other people addicted to drugs or alcohol.

These people may be in danger if they tried to go cold turkey without the proper Medical help and guidance through the process of their detoxification.  You really have to see the proper Doctor and let him/her diagnose and examine the extent of you addiction and guide and place you in the proper Rehabilatation Center to get the correct care in a safe way.

If any alcoholic thinks and wants sobriety back into their lives again, I would recomend starting off first by preparing yourself for a lenthy journey and get ready for journey of a life time.  This journey will not only save your life, but when all said and done, you can be proud of yourself as I am of myself that you and I have beat our demons on our own.  

Don't get me wrong and don't be afraid of sobriety, but I must say when I decided to go cold turkey and quit drinking alcohol once and for all, I was scared to death and the reason was I have lived with my addiction to alcohol for many years, as all alcoholics do, and I didn't know how I would feel or react with the absence of alcohol in my body.

Would I be a happier person?  Would I get sick or get the Dts from having no alcohol in my system by just cutting off the supply of alcohol instantly?

These were a few things that went through my mind when I decided to finally surrender to my addiction to alcohol.  Believe it or not, those things never happened to me after all the worrying.  I was fine as far as the above, but I have to say, I was a bit nervous as the days went by.  I did feel fidgety and didn't know what to do with my hands or myself. I keep telling myself hang in there and you will get through this and become sober again. 

As the day went by, and weeks to follow, things began to feel better inside my old self and I then realized I have been sober for three weeks and then it became months, and now I have passed my two year mark being clean and sober. I can't believe how fast time went and how great I feel. 

I have no desire or the urge to ever drink alcohol again and it will stay like that till the end of my time here on earth.  I gave myself a second chance at a clean and healthy life and I have no regrets of tossing my addiction aside to live the clean life.  You can do the same thing if you are willing to admit to your addiction to alcohol, and want a better life, as I have experienced.

Stand up to your demons and shut them down in their tracks and you will see just how sobriety will change your life as it did mine.

Why Can't I Quit Drinking Alcohol

Have you ever wanted to quit something so bad, but you don't where to start in quiting.  One thing alcoholics may ask them selves is, "why can't I quit drinking alcohol?"  The reason I have found that I or you can't quit drinking alcohol is because we don't want sobriety bad enough to take action of our addictions.

If someone wants something bad enough we will do and try anything to achieve what we want to do, and in my case and every alcoholics case, is that we need to put our addiction to the back and look at our life and the horrible life we are living plus, we are setting a poor example for our children if you have any.

Quitting drinking can and will change your life as it did mine.  I always put my experiences of drinking alcohol and my life and the results of my addiction out to the world in hopes that many will learn by my mistakes.  Sobriety is waiting for all of us.  The only thing we the alcoholics have to do is first to want sobriety, and if you want it then just go for it. 

Sobriety won't come to you unless you go after it.  If you want to live a long healthy life then I would recommend thinking about quitting drinking alcohol.  Sure, it will take some hard work, but what doesn't take work for a positive outcome?

When you or someone else ask, "why you can't quit drinking your answer should be because you just don't want to.  There is no such word as "I can't."  You can do anything in life that you want, but the big problem is to get to that point of wanting something, and in this case, you have to want sobriety back into your life.

When I surrendered to my addiction to alcohol over two years ago I never thought it would be possible because I depended on alcohol thinking it helped me get through each day and in fact it helped me destroy my body and my life each day instead of helping. 

You know, sometimes it takes a huge wake up call or something bad to happen to someone in order to finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Don't ever say you can not do something, because as I said, if you have the will and determination, anything is possible in life, including getting sober and staying sober.

Are You Ready To Get Sober

I asked a question to myself over two years ago and that was, "are you ready to get sober Mark?"  When people drink alcohol they tend to change into someone else in the eyes of others, but the person drinking doesn't see just how their mood, personality and actions change when drinking alcohol.

For myself, when I drank, I thought I was perfect and I never did anything that would hinder my actions or hurt someone physically or mentally with what I did or what I said.  I found out when I became clean and sober I was dead wrong by what people would tell me as I stood in front of them sober.  I was shocked to hear many things and never knew.  I was the talk of the town years ago and never knew it.

The question I have for anyone that is addicted to alcohol is, "when will you be ready to get sober and stay sober?"

Will it take something drastic to happen to you or your life?  Will it take being on the verge of losing your family and friends all because you are drinking too much and can't stop no matter what happens or what people say to you? 

This is something to really think about.  You need to put your priorities in order and think to yourself which is more important, your life, your family and friends or the booze?

Make up your mind one way or another whether you want sobriety in your life or just stay on the path of self destruction by drinking alcohol and take the chance of losing your family or possibly losing your own life.

You can get sober, believe me.   The only thing you must do to start the process of recovery is to admit you have a problem and surrender to you inner demons once and for all.  Once you have surrender and ask for the help you need to get sober, then the process of recovery will begin.

Understand, this will not happen overnight getting back to your old sober life.  It took years for you to get addicted to alcohol and it will take time to get used to being sober and having no alcohol in your body, but don't fear, each and everyday sober will get easier and easier, at least it did for me.

Stay focused on getting clean and sober.  Stay positive and keep that positive attitude going and continue to tell yourself that you can and will get sober again, and with the strength,
determination and the willingness to get sober, it will indeed happen.

This May Help You In Your Quest To Get Sober.

Are You Afraid To Get Clean And Sober

What are you afraid of ?
Are you afraid to get clean and sober ?
Are you worried what your drinking partners will say ?

Rest assure, you will be better off then your drinking buddies when you decide to get clean and sober.  When the alcoholic has had alcohol in their system for so many years, like myself, it tends to be a huge part of the alcoholics life and they are afraid to do without it, as I was.

What will I feel like being clean and sober?  Will I get sick from the absence of alcohol in my body?

These are the questions I asked myself before I decided to quit drinking alcohol.

I was scared to death thinking of all the different things that may happen to me when I became sober, but it wasn't enough for me to back down and stay addicted to alcohol.  I was determined to change my life around and live it like it should be lived and not let alcohol run my life for me.

Since I became clean and sober I now realize that sobriety will never hurt you, it's your addiction to alcohol that will kill you in the end and you can take that to the bank.

If you are like I was and need to drink every night, seven days a week for years without a break, than I would seriously think about getting help or just tossing in the towel, because you will never beat your demons and the games they play on you and your body.  So, you might as well surrender to them and get sober once and for all.  They will win in the end if you keep on the path of self destruction.

I believe I caught it just in time before my whole world fell apart and thank God I did.  It has been just over 2 years sober now and I don't miss the drink at all.  I have no desire to drink or the urge to drink at all.  I am not afraid to be around people that still drink alcohol because I know that I am stronger than my addiction now and I have learned the best word of all and that is to be able to say NO!!

So if you are afraid to get clean and sober, don't be, because it will be the best thing you could ever do in your life.  You will feel free once again and not having your addiction run your life wherever you go.  You will now be in charge of your own life again.