If you’re ready to start on your path toward sobriety, American Addiction Centers (AAC) can help. Alcohol.org is a subsidiary of AAC, a nationwide provider of addiction treatment centers offering a combination of proven therapies and services to meet your individual needs. Sobriety helps reasons to stay sober prevent you from saying things you don’t mean, acting in ways you normally wouldn’t and making poor decisions that negatively impact your relationships. Some recovery programs also have access to family therapy or support groups specifically for loved ones to help them cope as well.
How To Stay Sober When Everyone Is Drinking
You can remember everything and not feel that sense of terror of waking up and not remembering what you said or did the previous night. You don’t have to try and wrack your brain to remember who you were with or what happened. You’re no longer waking up with that sinking feeling that something terrible might have happened the night before, but you can’t quite remember what. You don’t have to call or text the people you were with and try to piece together the previous night. And, if you DO relapse…seek immediate support to get back on the path to recovery. You can heal, you can get sober and stay that way long-term—but it won’t always be easy.
Reasons Why It’s Good to be Sober
If you went to happy hour, it’s a good idea not to go unless you have a valid reason. There is a risk of relapse if we go to the places we drank to get drunk. Once I removed alcohol from my life, the world began to look completely different.
Stupid Mistakes I Made When I Tried (And Failed) To Quit Drinking
Taking a break from alcohol will force you to shake things up and act a little differently from the masses. But once you’ve done one brave thing, who knows what you’ll do next? If you found the courage to stop drinking, you might find the courage to ask for what you want in other areas of life too.
Things you’ll actually Love About Being Sober
For example, you may have developed a co-dependent relationship, or a family member, friend, or employer may have been enabling you without even knowing it. John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine. He is the medical director at Alcohol Recovery Medicine. For over 20 years Dr. Umhau was a senior clinical investigator at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Affirmation lists help to remind us of our accomplishments and triumphs in sobriety.
- There is a risk of relapse if we go to the places we drank to get drunk.
- You might hear personal stories that you can relate to.
- Some notice improvements within a few days, but it can take up to a month or longer for sleep patterns to substantially improve.
- If you get to where your going, you find that you want to be be somewhere else.
You’ll actually DO stuff
Improvement might start within a few weeks, with more significant changes becoming apparent 1-2 months into sobriety. I founded The Sober School to show you there’s another way out of your shame that doesn’t involve AA or rehab. Just know that you can get there, and the https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/the-importance-of-gratitude-in-recovery/ Soberish community is here to support you. What this list doesn’t explore are all the things you have to do to get these benefits. Sobriety takes work, and much of it is not easy or pleasant to go through. But these benefits are available to you if you keep at it.
- But I’m going to explore solutions for people who sit at various points along the “sobriety is so boring” spectrum.
- Since giving up alcohol, I’ve had numerous moments of true happiness.
- Remaining sober over time is about much more than willpower.
- A lot of people are surprised by just how much they would spend on their drinking.
- Drinking is the solution to boredom, frustration, sadness, and extreme happiness.
Some days, your biggest success might simply be getting out of bed, and on those days, it can boost your resilience to reflect on your achievements during your recovery. SELF does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Becoming sober isn’t just about abstaining from alcohol.