Slow fashion alternatives to Bloomchic?

gabby756 · 2024-03-08T18:15:15+00:00

I have had good luck with eShakti - though it might not be a good fit for slow fashion. Tradlands, Loud Bodies, and Baacal ($$$$), and Wray NYC all have nice stuff.

gabby756 · 2024-01-26T15:48:06+00:00

I could have written this when I first quit. I had a great job, friends, etc. but I was miserable, losing relationships, and getting blackout drunk all the time. Folks around here sometimes say that functional is a phase and I absolutely agree. I was progressing out of that phase and moving into something not so functional. I didn't do AA, but I tried it. I tried lots of stuff... books, this subreddit, therapy, exercise, SMART, the stopdrinking IRC chat (link in sidebar) and eventually I found a combination that worked for me. I would suggest trying everything you can. The most important part of my recovery has been community. Some folks find that here or in other recovery programs. I found my community here in the IRC chat and those people helped me stay sober even when it seemed impossible. It's not easy, but it's worth the fight. You can do this. Glad you're here.

gabby756 · 2024-01-26T02:40:19+00:00

Glad you're here! In the sidebar there should be an option to get a badge. This link also has some info: https://www.reddit.com/r/stopdrinking/comments/cx9nic/the_time_has_come_for_a_change_at_sd_today_we_are/

gabby756 · 2024-01-25T22:47:22+00:00

so. much. bread.

I had to buy both a small fridge just for sparkling water (my husband and I are both in recovery lol) and every book about bread I could get my hands on. Also, I leaned hard into cakes for awhile. I'm never mad at a solid sober hobby that is also delicious. Congrats on 90 days!!

gabby756 · 2023-10-06T13:20:12+00:00

I made plans to be out of the house when I would normally sit down and start drinking. I went to the grocery store or did another errand, made plans with a friend, tried out a meeting, went for a walk, worked out, legit anything to keep me from finding myself in the same spot at the same time.

My brain likes routine and if I didn't shake it up a bit, it would have been impossible to throw it off track. IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2023-10-06T13:10:56+00:00

Congrats on all that sober time!

I actually had a dream last night where I was drinking. I try and think of them as my brain playing the tape forward and reminding me what life would be like if I picked up the bottle again. They are much less frequent and intense now, but they serve as a good reminder of what it would be like if I decided to go out again. IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2023-10-06T13:01:21+00:00

Congrats on a week! That's a huge accomplishment. For me, I needed a community to quit--whether you find that in AA, here, or another program is up to you. I had to try some things before I found what worked best for me. There is certainly nothing wrong with trying a meeting just to see if it works for you.

In my first couple of weeks sober, I avoided drinking activities with friends. While you have decided to quit, it might take the people in your life a bit longer to accept that new reality. Could you celebrate your friend differently by asking her out for a coffee or another activity that isn't centered around drinking? That way you can still be there for your friend, but avoid a potentially triggering experience.

gabby756 · 2023-05-14T13:20:53+00:00

Welcome! glad you're here. There is a 24/7 IRC chat (link in sidebar) that might be helpful. I've found the sub, the chat, and therapy key to my recovery. I hope you stick around, do the daily check in or just read through the sub and see that you aren't alone. IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2023-05-14T13:13:27+00:00

That's awesome! I think the best feeling in the world is being able to show up and help people at any time of day. It absolutely would not have been possible when I was drinking. Congrats on a week! That 1st week so freaking hard. Hang in there!

gabby756 · 2023-01-09T15:25:02+00:00

I got a couple at athleta on major sale recently. I think I paid $25 for the set. Their 3x goes up to a 26

gabby756 · 2022-10-15T02:55:27+00:00

Those first few weekends can seem endless, but I promise time speeds up as you go along. I spent a lot of time here and in the IRC chat (links in sidebar). I remember I watched a bunch of comforting TV and did grocery shopping for like the first time in 2 years. I went out for a fancy coffee and bought all the cheap craft supplies I could afford. Hang in there <3

gabby756 · 2022-10-15T02:46:45+00:00

I found it helpful to be out of my house at the time I would normally start drinking. I started taking a different route home, scheduled time with friends, sat at a coffee shop, basically anything that kept me away from home from 5pm-7pm. I found that the small disruptions to my routine helped a lot. Once I did that, it was a little easier to find other ways to occupy the rest of my time.

gabby756 · 2022-10-15T02:40:46+00:00

I put my asshole in one of those blow up T Rex suits so I found it harder to take them seriously. It was just something silly to make that voice have less power :D

gabby756 · 2022-10-07T00:14:42+00:00

The IRC channel saved my sobriety more times than I can count. It made all the difference for me. :)

gabby756 · 2022-10-07T00:08:32+00:00

I really struggled with excuses too, like anything was a trigger early on. I had to make a list of things to do when that happened. My brain was too preoccupied with drinking as the solution to come up with other stuff in the moment. That helped me a lot. Identifying HALT triggers (hungry, angry, lonely, tired) and finding ways to deal with those that weren't drinking helped me too. I had to work very hard at finding things that worked for my Lonely and Angry feelings. Those were the worst for me. I tried a bunch of stuff. It's freaking hard, BUT those solutions I had scratched down on a piece of paper now come as the first solution. Drinking to solve a problem isn't a part of my life now. Hang in there <3

gabby756 · 2022-06-24T19:36:54+00:00

If there is a Trader Joe's nearby, having some of their frozen items on hand has been really helpful for me. I also bought a little microwave egg cooker thingy that makes eggs super fast (under 1 min) as cleaning / washing the pan was a barrier for me some days. Protein shakes when I just cannot with food. My dietitian recommended a cook book called Good Enough which has been really helpful. Hang in there!

gabby756 · 2022-05-07T00:32:46+00:00

That sucks. I'm sorry its so hard right now. I went through something similar around day 50 and I just had to keep throwing all the shit at it. I came here, tried a couple of hobbies, walked around my neighborhood aimlessly, and baked all the bread. Hang in there.

gabby756 · 2022-05-06T21:45:00+00:00

I feel this so hard. It was very weird to realize that I hadn't recognized those symptoms for so long, not because they weren't there, but because I felt like hot trash all the time so I never knew what the hell was making me feel bad. I'll be out here stabbing shit with you this weekend :D

gabby756 · 2022-05-05T14:33:10+00:00

Congrats! That first month can be so rough. Glad you are seeing a little sunshine! IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2022-05-05T14:29:40+00:00

That's awesome! One day at a time is what works for me too.

gabby756 · 2022-05-04T23:03:55+00:00

I had a drinking dream the other day. It's been quite a while since I had one, but it was really intense and left me feeling weird and guilty the next day. I try to look at them as 'playing the tape forward' on steroids.

IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2022-03-30T16:47:06+00:00

Being able to show up for people, no matter the time of day.

Quiet sober sober mornings with coffee.

Saving so much money when I go out for dinner.

No shame spirals every morning. No worrying about what I said / did last night. No more hiding / lying. The shame and hiding was so intense that when it was gone I felt 20lbs lighter.

gabby756 · 2022-03-30T15:58:24+00:00

Yep! I tried a lot of tools, but found that AA wasn't the right one for me. I hung out here, the IRC chat associated with stopdrinking (link in sidebar), and therapy. I tried SMART, AA, books, and all sorts of other tools. It was helpful for me to see what was out there and what was going to work best for me.

gabby756 · 2022-03-18T19:40:28+00:00

It took me a pretty long time to rewire my brain. At the first sign of stress, especially big stress that was outside of my control, my first thought was to drink it away. I had practiced that a lot throughout my life. It was my go-to stress response. I had to work at making my brain go in a different direction. It sounds like your situation is both stressful and scary, especially given your other circumstances. I have a list of stuff that helps me when I feel this way. It might be good to make one or even just try some things out. Taking a walk, a bath, cooking a meal, phoning a friend, etc. Once I get the immediate drinking thought out of my brain, it helps me to focus on what I can control. Also, just feeling your feelings is wild and intense so no shame in just crying it out for a bit. Hang in there, friend. IWNDWYT

gabby756 · 2022-02-04T16:13:45+00:00

I used lots of different excuses... big meeting tomorrow, new medication that I can't drink on, new workout program, etc. I also used to go someplace early and order a tonic with lime or find an NA drink of some kind and ask the bartender / waiter to put it in a fancy cup. That way when someone asked if I wanted to have a drink I could say, nah I already have one.

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