Let me keep it simple

Saturday 28 September 2024

When you try to quit

Showering early in the morning helps the mind and body revitalise. I ensure I do that early when I wake up. Once I have showered, I can face the day like a champion. Some victories are won, others never get won. The most important thing is, that life goes on. You cannot win all battles. Some are as easy as ABC. Others are fairly difficult. Some are very difficult. I struggle with so many battles. Those won are worth celebrating. Of those in progress, some will be won and others lost.

I have been struggling being sobber for the past two months. I had given myself a target of around 100 days. It never was fruitful. Within a week, I was back to drinking what I wanted to keep off from. How do former drunkards completely quit? Obviously, there is the issue of association. You quit hanging out with friends who are indulging. Then you reduce your weekly consumption. 

One of the measures I had put in place was to reduce consumption to the extent that I save the amount that I should have consumed. Within a week of starting the fast, I found myself among people drinking. If you are hanging out with people who are drinking and you are not, you look like the odd one out. It should be known that you do not always drink alcohol. If you are are trying to avoid it, like a sect, those who religious engage in it will not allow you to. It is a bold decision to quit alcohol.

Have I quit? Nope! I wanted to take a break but I was incapable of doing it. The best I could do was quickly fall prey. Once you find yourself in the company of those who drink, the best you can always do is to drink come up with an excuse that you are on drugs. 

A friend of mine who was a heavy consumer of alcohol once went to see a medic and was told to avoid alcohol because he had improper fat deposits in his body. Well, the medic he consulted was wrong. He decided to seek a second opinion because he was a daily drinker. The second advice quickly made him return to drinking. The medic examined him and saw no reason why he should not drink.

When I decided to take a brak, I thought it was going to be easy. The first week, I was able to avoid it until I travelled with an uncle who loves indulging. I took the drivers seat and avoid ale as much as possible pretending that I cannot multi task. It was easy to avoid ale until we met with other people at a certain bistro where alcohol was flowing freely. I went for fruit juice and drunk it until we went home. Home was around 30 miles from where we were drinking.

I felt like a hero. That I had not drunk made me feel good. It was the start of a 100 day period that was materialize with a few goodies. Among them was the ability to save the amount that I drink on a weekly basis. It was mostly because I am a social drinker. I thought I could put the amount into a kitty. Then there was the health and medical benefits. I would not be waking up with headaches that had a stinging effect. When it came to time. I would sleep at during the day.

There is a lot of precious time wastage associated with alcohol. You even become full of story za jaba. The urbane call them KhatGPT. If you waste around 10 hours drinking in the excuse that you are socializing, then you always endup wasting more sleeping. What you could have probably done is pushed forward or disregaded because you are drunk like a skunk.

Initially, I had given myself a certain caveat that I would always ensure I am in the house by 12 am. If I were out there, that was basically my target. Hence by 11 pm, if I was supposed to take a cab, drive back,  or walk back to the house, then that is what I would have done. The 12 am rule was quickly broken because I would arrive later than that time. If it happened that I went to a company event, then that would happen. There is usually the party after party.

When it comes to the 100 day journey, I managed a week of sobriety. After that, because all the people I interact with are heavy on ale, I was enticed to go back. Did I decline? Tricky. I could not manage to say I was on drugs because I have been healthy throughout the year. One day, I will quit for a hundred days or maybe for the rest of my life. At the moment, I am taking it easy. 

Hasta La Vista Baby

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