Drinking and smoking

Animalloverb · March 11

I started drinking very early on to help forget things and to just survive, I started to rely on alcohol to somewhat stay alive. I also started smoking very early on too, I started doing it to feel something and to forget just like with drinking but then I was smoking loads everyday just to survive. I basically became an addict. I am currently 2 years sober from alcohol. I did quit smoking but at this stage I feel like I sort of want that release again, I know it sounds stupid. I shouldn't do it, especially with my health issues but it's like I need it to feel something.

Owen · March 12

Hey Animal,

Thank you for sharing this. Two years sober from alcohol is amazing- how did you achieve this?

And it is understandable and natural to get urges to revisit old habits, even when you know it will have a negative impact. I'm wondering if there is anything you have done to replace the 'release' that helped you quit?

Animalloverb · March 12

It was really hard @Owen, becoming sober from alcohol is such a difficult thing to do, I am really proud of myself for reaching 2 years sober, I know most people go cold and just stop consuming alcohol, by removing access to the alcohol but I feel like doing that would of created me a such higher chance of never being sober. I did it slowly, slowly reduced my alcohol intake, tried to keep myself distracted as much as possible and eventually I was no longer consuming alcohol, it was a long journey and I did have many failed attempts but I am so happy to be 2 years sober.

As for smoking, that's a different story. I tried to use nicotine replacements to help me quit but as I said, I am going back to smoking.

Callum · March 12

@Animalloverb It is super difficult to become sober after relying on alcohol, that takes so much effort and strength to do which often goes unnoticed or unappreciated. It's so good to hear that you're proud of yourself for that, it is a brilliant achievement! Reducing your intake slowly definitely sounds like a wise approach rather than to suddenly stop completely, and it sounds like something that has been effective for yourself. You mentioned that you kept yourself distracted, what sort of things helped you through reducing your reliance on alcohol?

Animalloverb · March 12

@Callum

I tried to go outside and take walks daily. I was trying to spend most of my time moving rather then sitting. The movement did help give me a mental release in a different way, I would also try and focus on the things I enjoyed to keep my mind away from feeling the need to consume alcohol. It was a difficult method but far better then the other ways for me personally. It's hard to recover from being an alcohol addict and not many people understand how difficult it is to be sober. The amount of failed attempts it took, most people after a failed attempt find it hard to try again, but I learned then failure was part of the journey and if I really wanted sobriety I would have to work hard for it. So even with those failed attempts I kept picking myself back up over and over. There were many times where I doubted myself and thought I would never be able to become sober so to hit that 2 year sobriety mark it really does mean a lot.

Animalloverb · March 13

I almost turned to drugs at one point, I was so close to being a drug addict. But you know being a smoker isn't any better.

Sabah · March 13

@Animalloverb it shows great resilience to keep going. Failure being part of the journey is such a good way to look at it. Congratulations on the 2 years! You're doing amazing! Have you been trying those distraction techniques lately? Are there any other distraction techniques/alternative, healthier 'releases' that you haven't tried that you'd like to?

Animalloverb · March 14

@Sabah

I don't have the time to try them distraction techniques, I can't just go out for walks and stuff anymore. I do wish that one day I will be free from smoking. I know I need to quit smoking, especially with my health, I have a heart condition or even conditions that are in the process of being diagnosed and to be fair smoking is probably what has caused it.

Azziman · March 14

Hi @Animalloverb, thank you for sharing this with us. I can hear that you're aware of the health impacts of smoking. I wonder, what was the reason you decided to stop the first time? What motivated you to reduce your alcohol intake and smoking frequency?

Animalloverb · March 14

@Azziman

What motivated me to become sober from alcohol was how badly I was living to be honest. I Wasn't taking anything seriously, nearly ended up on the streets so I realised that I needed to make a change. Lowering my smoking frequency was just something I thought I would need to do, I needed to be healthy, my partner supported me and she was also the reason I wanted to change, she saw me at my worst, and I realised I can't let them see me like that, I can't put them through that so that's why I made the change too. Although I never did stop smoking as I feel it is a whole lot harder to quit smoking. I was very young when I started drinking and smoking so it is like something that has always been my way of feeling something. I started smoking before drinking though so that maybe part of why it is harder for me to quit smoking. But I mean almost 2 years being sober from alcohol is a great achievement and maybe one day I will be free from smoking.

Callum · March 14

@Animalloverb It makes sense being unhappy with how you were living was the motivation to become sober, you're so strong for reaching 2 years of sobriety! It sounds like your partner was a huge support for you through that, and I'm sensing you're worried it might be more difficult to stop smoking without your partner around, would you say that's about right? It is completely understandable you'd find stopping smoking a lot more difficult, it definitely is a pretty common experience to find it more difficult compared to becoming sober from alcohol.

You mentioned before that gradually reducing your alcohol intake really helped you to reach sobriety. I'm curious as to whether you feel like this approach, maybe a lot slower for smoking, might help you move towards being free from smoking? What's one think you might be able to do now to reduce your smoking?

Animalloverb · March 15

@Callum

Yeah that's right.

I'm unsure as to whether the same approach will work. I mean I have been smoking a whole lot longer that I was drinking. I didn't start drinking till a while after I began smoking. It will be a really difficult thing to do, I know I need to stop because it's not doing any good for my health and I'm already being investigated for 2 conditions by my cardiologist and I know they are probably most likely caused by me smoking. I hate how my son is growing up around me being a smoker, I do it without him seeing but as he gets older he will catch on and I really don't want that. The only way I can solve the issue is to quit smoking.

Callum · March 15

@Animalloverb It makes sense you're unsure whether the same approach will work, of course it's different with smoking compared to alcohol, and no one size fits all. Stopping smoking and recovery is very relative, it's different for everyone and every situation. I'm curious, have you managed to look into any professional information, support and advice that might help you start your journey to stopping smoking at all? No worries if you haven't though!

Animalloverb · March 15

@Callum

I haven't really had the time to look into any of that. Professional help will probably be what most people recommend but I would rather avoid that as much as I can. I may try and find some information around to help but at this moment in time I am just dealing with it and eventually I will bring myself round to getting myself to work on my journey to quit smoking.

Drinking and smoking

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