8000 days, one day at a time. That’s how long I have been sober. I am not sure if I will get to 10,000 or even 9,000. My real goal is just to stay sober today and get to 8001. I always tell myself I am just going to do my best not to drink today, can’t worry about tomorrow until I get through today. That mindset has helped me a lot because thinking about never drinking felt overwhelming. Focusing on today always felt more realistic for me. I have had people ask me what has worked for me with sobriety, and to be honest, I don’t think it is one thing. I think it is a group of things with the correct timing. Some people need rehab, some need to go to AA meetings, some need therapy, and there are some people who can probably just quit on their own. There is no right answer. A person just has to find what works for them, and sometimes it is a combination of things. What works for one person may not work for another person, and that is okay too. I have also had people ask me if I can help them quit drinking, and the truth is I really can’t. Each individual has to be ready to help themselves first. First and foremost, the person has to want to quit drinking for themselves. If that’s not the reason, it’s probably not going to happen. You can’t quit because your wife, girlfriend, or family wants you to quit. You can’t quit for someone else, and I also think you won’t. You also have to be ready to quit and really quit, not say, “I am going to quit for three months just to show I can control my drinking.” It would be easy to quit if you knew there was a date when you could start drinking again. For me, sobriety only started working when I finally accepted that I was done making excuses for myself. I am not trying to sound better than anyone else. These are actually mistakes I made myself in the past, so I know they do not work. I often tell people that I am certainly not better than anyone else. People who can enjoy drinking and keep it under control are much better at it than I ever was, and I wish I could have done it that way. We are also all individuals, and we all have different triggers that may make us drink. At some point, you have to avoid those triggers. Sometimes that means changing habits, changing routines, or even changing the people you spend time around. That part can be difficult, but it can also make a huge difference. I am not saying everyone needs to quit drinking, but if you feel like you do need to quit, like I said, I can’t help you quit, but I may be able to assist you by sharing my own experiences. Sometimes it just helps to talk to someone who has been through something similar before, similar but I always say nothing is ever the same for two different people, but still feel free to reach out to me.
