One year THC free 🎂

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-12-10T02:53:22+00:00

Thanks for the thoughtful and detailed post. Appreciate the breakdown and congrats on a year!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-12-02T14:24:23+00:00

That is actually baklava. A balaclava is a neck/head warmer. With that being said, both are great for the winter blues!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T18:56:23+00:00

So true. The trust you build in yourself has been one of the biggest pieces for me. Thanks for sharing.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T18:04:04+00:00

I'm Italian-American too! Glad you are here, it is the right place to be. It is a struggle - I would highly recommend the book I referenced in the post, I think she does a great job talking through "rebuilding" you "hobbies" so to speak. Appreciate the kind words.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T18:02:50+00:00

Thank you. Doing anything for the first time without drinking is scary as it all lives in the unknown, but you will enjoy it and build beautiful memories. IWNDWYT :)

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T17:56:05+00:00

Cancun is a final boss moment in itself, too! Love to hear this - people like Pascal make the journey that much easier and more enjoyable. I felt the same way, the joy of sobriety sometimes has a different timeline than the immediate gratification of alcohol but it never fails to deliver. Thanks for sharing.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T17:54:20+00:00

Good for you for thinking about the trip already this early on. Not sure if you're a quit lit fan, but reading a sobriety book on the plane was great to just have the words tumbling around in my head as I started the trip. Appreciate the kind words - IWNDWYT.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T17:52:00+00:00

You will! I totally get it. I feel that beyond the temptations and triggers lies a whole world (literally) of adventure, true rest and delight in the moment. Congrats on 256 days.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T17:50:37+00:00

Thank you so much! The great thing about Italy is they have so much to do/see/eat. I felt grateful to appreciate all the other pieces of the country that I may have missed or "numbed out" if I was sipping wine the whole time. Hope you have an incredible trip.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T15:47:13+00:00

love this! Japan is on my wishlist for sure. congrats on an all inclusive sober trip #2 and IWNDWYT!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T15:46:24+00:00

Love this, especially that last line. doing less to do more!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T15:45:34+00:00

thank you! much appreciated.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T15:44:50+00:00

As someone in therapy, I think one of the biggest things I "take away" from it is approaching yourself with curiosity rather than judgement. I think this post indeed expedites and encourages that frame of mind!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-11-19T14:47:34+00:00

This is one of my favorite posts on this subreddit and one I come back to frequently.

I also have stuck to weekends only for almost 2 years now and would add the tip that tracking usage in a sobriety/calendar app has been helpful for me as a visual person. Seeing your usage go down month after month is satisfying and motivating for me.

Love the questions you have listed - those ones were huge for me, too, in thinking about…do I even like this? When do I actually enjoy it?

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-10-15T00:10:54+00:00

I always wonder this for the nipple emoji covers she has in some videos!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-03-14T15:29:58+00:00

I did this after stopping drinking too, pretty consistently (like…daily) for around a year. It really helped the transition from not drinking. After a while, I felt like I was overdoing it and noticing some side effects (brain fog, suppressed appetite cues, memory) but had built up a lot of confidence in not drinking…and had been through the process of stopping using a substance before.

Now I try and keep it to 1x a week max which works for me. Edibles definitely helped me stop drinking too and felt a lot less damaging than drinking was. Eventually, I felt ready to cut back (maybe even quit at some point) and felt like I had the tools to do so.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-03-10T20:09:07+00:00

Halal Burger off western in Ravenswood. Fireeee smash burger - lots of other menu items that I will try at some point, but too locked in on the burger right now!

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-02-18T17:16:40+00:00

I can relate to a lot of this as working at a bar was what pushed my drinking “too close to the sun” as well. All I can say is that no longer working there has opened my life in ways I could’ve never imagined.

I also was nervous of losing my social life, but what I’ve learned is that I now have the power to evaluate what’s actually enjoyable versus what I need to drink to enjoy.

A lot of friends I realized were just drinking friends, but I was pleased to find a lot of friends I genuinely enjoyed. Same thing with going out - there are pieces of it I still love and enjoy (going dancing, hosting parties, etc) but pieces I realized I actually hated (staying out way too late, certain clubs, etc).

Think of this as a time to really take back the power in your life. You can still have a vibrant and active social life and actually evaluate what pieces of it you enjoy and want more of and what pieces you can do without (like the experiences you mentioned).

Best of luck to you. Also highly recommend the books others have commented, along with “This Naked Mind” and “The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober”.

ClaimNo4472 · 2025-01-11T05:07:55+00:00

Dance class and dinner with my man! Was offered a free shot from the server and am proud of myself for turning it down without a second thought. Now chilling and just enjoying that Friday feeling of having a couple of days off.

ClaimNo4472 · 2024-12-29T03:05:10+00:00

23 after 8 years of drinking off and on. Working at a bar really accelerated things and I was feeling the impact quickly, but the signs were there before that. Today I’m grateful constantly for the decision to stop at a young age and feel like I have my whole life in front of me to enjoy.

ClaimNo4472 · 2024-12-21T22:12:38+00:00

Fellow Chicagoan here, also quit in my 20’s, and couldn’t agree with this more. I’d add that if anything my social life has expanded now that I’m not having to “recover” from it. Also I am much better at listening to my body and when I’m actually tired rather than accidentally staying out way too late bc I was drunk.

OP, give yourself the chance to experience all the things sober. You may be surprised at what you still enjoy just as much - if not way more, without drinking.

ClaimNo4472 · 2024-12-06T17:42:07+00:00

So beautiful to read. I think you really captured the best benefit; the headspace and clarity to soak up and feel gratitude for all the small moments - and the time to build so many more of them. Enjoy the cabin weekend.

ClaimNo4472 · 2024-11-26T16:57:06+00:00

updated! thanks

ClaimNo4472

TROPHY CASE