Guiding Values
In this article, I would like to explore the concept of values by determining what they are, why they are essential, and how to find yours.
Will I Be Bored When I Quit Drinking?
Alcohol dulls the edges of life and dilutes our adventure. Alcohol can distract and numb, but those effects aren’t specific in their focus. It numbs us to everything. I’d say alcohol plays a very big role in us being bored.
Drinking Self, Sober Self, and Summer Vacation
Alcohol will be present at most summer gatherings. If you are trying to be alcohol-free, questions like the ones above will pop into your head, and desires to partake in boozy bacchanalias will arise. We would be fooling ourselves into thinking otherwise.
“Do You Mind if I Have a Drink?”
Contrary to the media portrayal, many sober people are not constantly teetering between sobriety and utter debauchery. Many of us are liberated from the grip of alcohol, and it no longer has a hold on our minds.
4 Ways to Thrive This Summer Without Alcohol.
Would you rather survive or freakin’ thrive during your sober summer? Here are 4 ways to take this alcohol-free season to another level.
Rebuilding Trust in Our Sober Self with Micro Habits.
Making the firm commitment to stop drinking was a great first step, but was just the start. The rebuilding of my shattered self-trust and my inner kingdom was the next task. It had to be done if I was to get the most out of my alcohol-free journey.
Kingdom of Characters
For anyone trying to change nonbeneficial habits like drinking, there can be a cacophony of inner voices, urges, and feelings that pull us in many directions. By giving them names, forms, and personalities, I have found that I can better talk with and understand them.
Internal Family Systems and Our Sober Journey
When we stop drinking, we have to contend with the parts of ourselves that saw alcohol as an effective method to cope with our exiled parts. It can feel like many voices wanting to be heard all at once. With practice and attention, we can separate and listen to these parts.
Benefits and Methods of Mindfulness
As for tangible results, I have tested my blood pressure readings numerous times. After a twenty-minute meditation session, I have recorded anywhere from a 3 to 10-point drop in the ‘before’ reading numbers. This stuff really works!
Mindfulness and the Alcohol-Free Journey
The point of mindfulness is not to completely silence our minds or enter some bliss-like, nirvana state. It’s more about sitting just to sit and being aware.
Devil on the Shoulder
Today I want to explore what it would mean to reframe our view of the “devil” from an adversary to an advisor. Let’s see if we can better understand this relationship and develop it into something beneficial to us.
Fade Affect Bias: The Seduction of the Bad Old Days
Having the negative emotions associated with a memory fade over time is beneficial to our mental well-being; however, it can become detrimental in conjunction with maladaptive behaviors and habits.
Happiness vs Aliveness
Hardship, darkness, and tribulations are just as much a part of our journey as it is for the characters of our favorite stories. We do ourselves a disservice by not fully embracing them or trying to numb them or shoving them down.
Urge Surfing, or Defense Against the 4-Finger Death Punch.
It’s like a hijacked part of our brain is doing all it can to get what it wants. It is important to remember that the craving is all bark and no bite in these intense and uncomfortable moments. It can’t actually make you do anything.
How Friendships Change When You Quit Drinking: Possibilities and Benefits.
Whether you are openly talking about being AF or not, friends old and new will notice your journey. You may become a beacon for them. Some may follow your light and approach you with their own issues around alcohol. You might get a call, email, or DM from someone you haven’t heard from in years.
How Friendships Change When You Quit Drinking: Your Responsibilities
Your responsibility, first and foremost, is to yourself. You are on a challenging and exciting adventure, one in which you will figure out who you are without alcohol. You will face ideas, emotions, and entities within yourself that you have repressed. It will take time to rediscover who you are.
How Friendships Change When You Quit Drinking: Your Friend’s POV
When we decide to quit drinking, we inadvertently hold up a mirror to our friends. They may already have a nagging voice in their head telling them to get their shit together. Our actions have now amplified that voice. Through no fault of our own, we have now reflected light into their darkness that they may not be ready to view.
How Friendships Change When You Quit Drinking: The Basics
Without a doubt going alcohol-free takes us on a challenging journey and alters our inner landscape. On top of that, it also changes our outward surroundings as we interact with the broader world of our social groups. Today, we will lay the groundwork for this four-part series, starting with some basic ideas: genetic hardwiring, societal stigmas, and the first friend groups to fall away.