I was not sure if I was ready to go public with this because it is so new. I decided to go ahead and post in the hope that it will help someone else. I stopped drinking my daily glass of wine or two. It was slowly creeping up to two glasses. I can find studies that say one or two glasses are good for you, or that a lot of centenarians have a glass daily. I could easily continue with my daily glass for the rest of my life, but I know it is not the right answer for me. Wine is starting to feel toxic in my body. Alcohol is also a sleep disruptor. Last night, I slept a solid 8 1/2 hours. A good night’s sleep is the best! I want to be the Best Version of Myself. and a good night’s sleep is important.

This is just the beginning. I am on my 6th day without alcohol. I can feel the anxiety building in my body and wanting to sabotage myself. 5:30 pm, is the beginning of the witching hour for me. I start feeling aggravated because I need to make dinner that is the prime trigger for the urge to have a glass of wine. I am really good at sabotaging myself. I stress eat when I am not drinking and then I tell myself this is not working, and go back to drinking wine again. Yesterday, when the urge hit, I decided to jump rope for 8 minutes and take a cold tap water bath. I felt much better. I poured myself a fancy glass full of kombucha and I got through it. I made dinner without overeating.

I have a great support system. I have a few friends and family members who I can text or call. Thank you to my friend Ivone. I can invite myself over to her house in the late afternoon. We sit on her beautiful porch, and have a cup of Calm tea. I am embracing tea in my life. Listening to the Rich Roll podcast with Dr. Jud Brewer. Breaking Bad Habits while making dinner, has been so helpful. Dr. Jud and Rich Roll, who is a recovering alcoholic, say it is not about willpower. I need to sit in the discomfort and figure out how to do this with ease and grace.

Thanks for reading. I hope this was helpful to you.

Love,

Mary