Quitting Alcohol

[Wavehere]

Recently came to the conclusion I want/need to stop drinking. I've seen a few guys on here say they've been sober for years.

I've been pretty strong willed when it comes to kicking habits, but this one has been a one step forward three steps back one. Haha

Those of you who have stopped did you notice many benefits on your hunts, mindset, or physical shape?
Any tips on the process?

Good on you for making that decision, it takes a lot of self-awareness and strength to get to that point. I’ve been down that road myself, and while it wasn’t easy at first, the benefits were noticeable. Clearer mindset, more energy on hunts, better sleep, and just an overall sense of being sharper both mentally and physically.

 

[Wavehere]

What helped me most was replacing the habit with healthier routines and staying consistent, even when I slipped up. Don’t beat yourself up if progress feels slow, just keep moving forward. Every step counts, and it’s worth it.

 

[ChrisA]

@bbassi powerful testimony, sir. You have my sympathy.

I finished my second archery elk hunt since 2006, Sunday. It was truly a joy to wake up every morning with a clear head and no drained feeling from acetaldehyde. I was pretty damned happy with myself and pissed at the same time. Thinking, "why didn't you do this 30 years ago?"
But, it is what it is and I absolutely love being sober, it just sucks starting to learn to bowhunt elk at 52; so many wasted opportunities to have REAL fun.

 

[Stubborn_bowhunter]

It's funny this tread came up again for me tonight. I just can't sleep thinking about the last couple months. I held my wife's hand as she died in May from the effects of alcoholism. That's not what's on her death certificate, but it's the underlying cause.

Booze took away her will to live and her ability to think clearly about choices she was making in her life. It slowly degraded her health until it was too late to reverse course, and I got to watch it front row. See when we got together 24 years ago, we were both drinkers. I got smart, or lucky. Take your pick. But she never could beat that Devil. Nothing I could say or do could convince her she was powerless against it. The bottle lied to her time and time again, She'd quit for a couple weeks thinking she had control, then she'd slip back into it. Hiding it. Lying to me about it.

See, you can't MAKE a drunk stop. They have to want it themself or it will never stick. The Big Book says very few will fully recover. I've heard it's like 3% but IDK.

Right now I'm waiting for some of her family to come into town. We'll finally bury her ashes this Saturday. Then I'll celebrate 20 years sober on September 20th. Alone.

Wow, I can't imagine how painful all of that is.

It's truly a powerful choice to allow yourself to feel everything with out trying to run away from it.

My step mother died in a similar way, and my dad took a long time to admit the alcohol did it. He's still drinking from the moment he wakes up until bed even knowing that fact.
He's created his own purgatory while he's still alive. It's unfortunate.