Hip-hip Hooray! I knew this was coming. No one deserves it more! First Firebird, and soon Lena. This is fantastic! Every new day brings a new gift. You surely will soon be on "THE LIST."

It's a great feeling isn't it? I am so very happy for you. You are reaching the "cured" state now; first the strong alcohol taste, then the voluntary AF day. Soon it will be consecutive AF days with no willpower required, accompanied by a significant drop in consumption. I well know that feeling of disbelief when it happens. You are getting there!

Oh and on that first AF day, I got antsy for an hour too. That feeling goes away real fast with the next few.

Bob

I agree, once the AF days start it's pretty easy to continue, and you feel so good about yourself. I was down to drinking only a couple glasses of wine a night for the month of August, but it's still a change to just stop completely. I feel like I finally let go of that wine bottle. Congratulations, Lena.

Lena - just reading this now...so incredibly happy for you . This is very exciting news...

Also wanted to post this elsewhere, but think it's quite appropriate to leave it on your weekly progress, if you don't mind. I have read several newspaper stories over the last few days that have morphed in my mind...one from Roger Ebert, one on Oprah.com, several on start entering or exiting rehab. All had alcoholism as the theme. So many storeis about people going into rehab, people who are sober with AA, people who need to get sober...then I just popped over to that soberrecovery.com site that Tom was banned from...we are so incredibly lucky to have found this method. Does everyone realize that? Sometimes I forget until I read the struggles of others. We are so blessed: To have real stories from people that know it works. To not be in AA. To not be on some crazy site that restricts information vital to our recovery. To have a cure that works at the heart of the addiction, not just as a mask to the symptoms. To have total relief from cravings. To be secure that it will not revert. The wait is hard, but in comparison? We have found a very easy cure in comparison. Thank you, Lena - for getting all of this started. I highly doubt I would be cured if you, SR & RV had not written such outstanding posts at MWO. I think today I would still be struggling and looking into AA or just white knuckling and counting each day, each hour that I was struggling to stay sober..instead of just calmly reading through other's successes here and feeling nothing but happiness and peace and the effects of a good night's sleep.

The beginning of your success, Lena, is so powerful to read. Wonderful, outstanding, triumphant - keep going!

ps. just saw that I cross posted with Lenore - congratulations to you as well !

My counselor.

Him: Do you believe that this is going to work?

Me: There's a 90% chance that...

Him: No, but do you...

Me: I feel like someone has just saved my life.

I'm buoyed and touched by the powerful posts here. Yes, LoOp, I feel my life is being saved as well.

What a week. While the alcohol free day was a miracle, there was also plenty of opportunity to work on extinguishing some powerful triggers. I was thinking about going for another AF day Friday, but I finished a big project and that's a major trigger. At least I kept it at 4. Yesterday I spent most of the day just crushed with grief over Sen. Kennedy and watching the coverage. I had hoped to make it back to D.C. but could not get away so I grieved alone. Had a double vodka water, then ran down the street for a bottle of merlot and drank the whole thing. The last half of the bottle tasted so strong that I ruined a good merlot by pouring it over ice to dilute it. I choked the whole thing down even though I didn't want to. Kind of hard to understand. So Teddy accounts for more than two days of what is now heavy drinking for the lightweight I've become. Throw in a birthday and a project completed and it was a wild, trigger-happy week. Not a bad one, all things considered. There obviously is still work to be done.

Week 20 units/craving
3/3, 5/3, 8/6, 8/8, 0/2, 4/4, 7/8

Pre TSM +/- 70/wk; Craving 10
Months 1 & 2 +/- 60/wk; Craving 6
Month 3 +/- 40/wk; Craving 5
Week 14 +/- 65/wk; Craving 8
Week 15 +/- 60/wk; Craving 7
Week 16 +/-50/wk; Craving 6
Week 17 +/-53/wk; Craving 5 to 8
Week 18 40/wk; Craving 8 to 3
Week 19 30/wk; Craving 6 to 3
Week 20 35/wk;Craving 2 to 8

Holy moley!! I just noticed the time!! I'm in the Midwest so it's after 7. I forgot to start drinking today. I'm serious. I don't think I will drink today.

Another good sign!!!

Those AF days get easier and easier too.

Bob

Lena and Lo0p,

TSM is life saver, no doubt about it. Would I be dead if I was dry via AA? No, but my spark and zest for life would be gone as it once was. If I drank without TSM would I be dead ? Don't know but I was headed there. If not dead, life would be a series of crisises, despair, guilt, remorse, rage, hoplessness, hangovers, panic attacks, detoxes, rehabs, and psyche wards. Now the monkey is off my back, I am free. TSM has saved my life . It is so hard to explain but you will feel it soon if you keep it up. I think Dr. Sinclair and Dr. Eskapa should get the Nobel peace prize, the Nobel prize in medicine, the Nobel prize in ecomomics (think how much money TSM could save Ins companies and Medicare), the Oscar, the Emmy, a Grammy, the baseball MVP, the Stanley Cup, the congressional medal of honor, a star on the walk of fame, knighthood, sainthood.......

Regards,
Tom

NALTREXONE + DRINKING = CURED
CURED Wk 17

Forgetting to drink. Subtle yet HUGE! Like me tonight. Went to see a family member -- a very long story and a mammoth trigger and in the not-too-distant-past, I would have had several before seeing them. Tonight I saw them and the thought of having a drink never entered my mind. It was only afterwards that I realized that was the first time in years I've seen them where I didn't immediately run to the bottle first. Subtle, but HUGE! We are on our way fellow my moderating friend!!

Another AF day yesterday. This one I planned. Not hard at all. I'm off to the liquor store.