043: 63 Ways to Stay Sober Over the Holidays

043: 63 Ways to Stay Sober Over the Holidays

by | Dec 14, 2015 | Podcast

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In this Episode Shannon, who is a high bottom drunk explains how she made it to nearly 80 days sober. She mentions she loves Karaoke and you can check out Jimmy Cliff’s “I Can See Clearly Now” on YouTube because that’s how we both feel these days!

While listening to the Bubble Hour Podcast a few weeks ago on my drive home for Thanksgiving, I heard some great ideas on how to stay sober over the Holidays. One of the segments was how to respond when someone offers you a drink at a Holiday party. I heard from great responses, but none of the answers were the truth. What I have learned in recovery, is the best answer is the truth. The truth is liberating and you will be surprised by the lack of questions you will get after telling someone you don’t drink. Most people are happy for you, and encourage your decision to not drink. A small percentage will give you flack, and this is a great way to quickly find out who are not your friends. Another small group will become inquisitive and start asking questions like, how much did you used to drink? Or, why are you not drinking? These people are asking for themselves because they have been questioning their own drinking habit.

But here are 77 additional tips on how to stay sober over the Holidays. I do not claim for this to be a full and comprehensive list, and with certainty, I can predict leaving out some very important ones. But here ya go.

 

63 ways to stay sober over the Holidays

  1. Hang out with another alcoholic: That guy Bill was on to something there.
  2. Dedicate 5 minutes today, 10 minutes tomorrow, 15 minutes the next day and increase by five minutes each day on a dormant hobby that you used to love so much. This could be the guitar, model trains, knitting, or swimming. Endless possibility of fun things to do.
  3. Find conduits to your higher power: Forest, Snow, Trans Siberian Orchestra in a Starbucks coffee shop, painting and so much more.
  4. Music: Listen to music. Have you heard flamenco? It’s incredible.
  5. Write a letter to a friend. Not an email, but place a stamp on an envelope and send it out.
  6. Write down 5 things you are thankful for each day. My first sponsor requested this of me, and after 16 days, I had 8 things listed in my gratitude list. Not because I wasn’t thankful for things in life, but because sometimes these small, seemingly infinitesimal tasks were very had.
  7. Have a sit down chat with your addiction: Hey Gary, as you know the Holidays are approaching…
  8. Call a family member that isn’t immediate family and tell them how much you appreciate them. This could be a cousin, uncle, etc.
  9. When in a drive through (preferably not fast food), pay for the person behind you.
  10. Cartwheels: 94% of cartwheels result in laughter and a great time. The other 6% are broken coffee tables.
  11. Go to a 12-step meeting.
  12. Buy paint, a canvas, and start painting
  13. Go on a 3-mile walk/hike where there is no cell service. Or make it a point to leave your phone at home.
  14. Write down the goal of not drinking over the holidays. And then place this goal in a place you will see everyday like on your bathroom mirror or inside your gym locker (if you work out everyday).
  15. Volunteer your time at the animal shelter and walk some dogs. In Montana, you may even be able to walk a pig or goat. Dogs are service animals for a reason. Their company is therapeutic and they also don’t judge. You’re simply the “bees knees” since your taking them on a walk.
  16. Affirmation: Remind yourself daily that you will not be drinking because you have an allergy to alcohol.
  17. Read a book. More specifically, “A Drinking Story” by Caroline Knapp
  18. When someone asks if you want a drink at his or her Christmas Party, you respond with “is your snowmobile insured”?
  19. Stay a minimum of 300 feet away from Burger King, McDonalds, Arby’s Wendy’s and other fast food chains at all times. Actually the chili at Wendy’s is okay. But that’s it!
  20. Pray
  21. Say the serenity prayer out loud while looking into the mirror.
  22. Learn the serenity prayer in a different language.
  23. Make it a point to get outside of your comfort zone.
  24. Be okay with uncomfortable feelings. Take 10 minutes and feel your uncomfortable feelings. Embrace them.
  25. Get REal with yourself.
  26. Hot tea. Hot Tea Hot Tea. Tea that is not injected full of caffeine if possible.
  27. Listen to recovery podcasts.
  28. Read: Read and be a sponge.
  29. Go through your cabinets and remove anything with over 10grams of sugar on the carton. Also look for bags of sugar, powdered sugar, and stashes of Reece’s pieces.
  30. Cook brussel sprouts
  31. When someone asks if you would like a drink at his or her holiday party, tell them you don’t drink.
  32. When that person asks why you don’t drink, answer their question unequivocally.
  33. Ask siri to set the timer to 5 minutes. For the first minute, while in a calm still place, sit down, keep your eyes and just focus on sounds. Minute two, breath in for 5 seconds, and exhale for five seconds. Minutes three, close eyes and tell yourself what you are thankful for. Minute four, pump yourself up with affirmations like Paul Churchill, today we will something great and minute five, envision what you want your life to be like in 1 week, 1 month, 1 year, 5 years and 10 years.
  34. Write down your goals. 95% of people don’t write down their goals and 95% of or people, who write down their goals, achieve their goals. Think that one through.
  35. Wake up before the sun comes up fro five consecutive days.
  36. Put your alarm clock on the other side of the room so you physically have to get out of the bed.
  37. Write down who your recovery team is. This doesn’t matter if you are drunk now, or have 10 years of sobriety. Be clear with who is on your team in case of emergency. Have the baby bag packed by the door.
  38. Avoid self-loathing: in other words, don’t kick the crap out of yourself over your drinking. Alcohol does a fine job of this already.
  39. Get to know your addiction. My addiction is named Gary, and I fully respect him.
  40. Whoever or what ever that God thing is, just remember, you’re not it.
  41. Find a way to create accountability. Tell someone you are planning to quit drinking, or this Christmas you plan to have less than ten eggnogs.
  42. Don’t judge yourself. Be truly accepting of who you are.
  43. Call your sponsor and if you don’t have one, get one.
  44. Acceptance is the answer. My favorite paragraph in the Big Book. Find a way to accept your current situation.
  45. Get creative: Create something with clay, pick up a new instrument, use your mind to create something.
  46. Learn a new skill or task. You tube is a great way to learn new things.
  47. Remove temptations: There are the obvious ones like that bottle of Tequila in your pantry, but get rid of all the maple syrup in the house while you’re at it.
  48. Have an exit strategy at outings.
  49. Give up control.
  50. Hang out with that group of friends who implausibly seem to be enjoying themselves without alcohol.
  51. De-friend 5 negative or non-supportive friends on Facebook.
  52. Write goals down: Don’t drink today, build a fence, or write a book.
  53. Celebrate: Milestones are huge.
  54. Get back up on your feet.
  55. Reward yourself with a treat: The treat shouldn’t be booze or consist of more than 92% sugar.
  56. Stay busy.
  57. Remind yourself the last 256 times you planned to only have a couple beers tonight, didn’t end up as planned.
  58. Netflix, HBO, and Hulu
  59. Learn a new recipe. One that doesn’t need maple syrup to make it delicious.
  60. Check out some animals in their natural environment.
  61. Go Carts.
  62. Do the steps.
  63. Remind yourself, it was my brilliant ideas that got me into this predicament (if you’re in a predicament) so maybe I don’t have all the answers.

 

This is huge Recovery Elevator. The first Recovery Elevator meetup will be taking place in Seattle on Saturday February 27th, 2016. Details to come. Email info@recoveryelevator.com for more info on this meetup.

This podcast was brought to you by Sober Nation.

Bozeman

by | Dec 11, 2015

Bozeman, Montana   Wednesday  – Sunday August 6th – 10th 2025   Registration is OPEN   Recover the person you were meant to be! “So much healing takes place in nature… we are nature. When we consciously choose to heal in this...
Nutrition in Recovery | How To Deal With Sugar Cravings In The Early Stages of Alcoholism Recovery

Nutrition in Recovery | How To Deal With Sugar Cravings In The Early Stages of Alcoholism Recovery

by | Nov 10, 2015 | Diet & Fitness, Early Sobriety, Helpful Tips

The brain sees sugar, opiates and alcohol in a similar way – as mechanisms to improve our moods and “take away the pain” from memories of our past and the current state of our lives. While many alcoholics have never concurrently abused other substances, it is not uncommon for us to hear someone in a 12-step meeting introduce him or herself as an “alcoholic/addict”. Let’s be clear – alcoholics ARE addicts. We are addicted to alcohol. We are compelled to drink. Whether we, as individuals, agree with researchers who say alcoholism is a mental disorder, or those who present evidence that alcoholism is a result of early childhood trauma, or that addictions are hereditary, until we accept that it is a problem in our lives and that we have to do something about it, all the “clean eating” and sugar purging will not matter.

Since you are reading this, I will assume you have made the decision to do something about your addiction and that you are concerned about the increase in your cravings for sweets. You want to change and there is a tendency to what to change everything all at once. This is why “quick fix” fitness and diet methods fail. You see, the mind needs at least 30 days to experience a change, another 30 to practice it, and then another 30 to see the beginning effects of the change and realize the change is sustainable. This is why in early recovery, if you try to stop drinking, stop eating sugar, start an exercise program, and cut out fatty foods all at once, your brain will likely not be able to process those changes and will reject them all.

In order to deal with your cravings, you really need to understand some key concepts of the recovery process. Basically, that your mind and body are connected. So, in order to solve the craving issues, you need to learn to let the emotions come, recognize changes as your body recovers, and begin to care for yourself.

Here are 5 key concepts that will help you with our cravings, your nutrition and your recovery, followed by some online resources:

  1. Feelings – You are so used to covering them up with alcohol that you may not recognize when you are hungry, emotional, or just tired. For one week, hone in on your feelings when you think you are hungry. If you have just eaten a meal, then drink some flavored water (lemons, limes, cucumbers). You may just be dehydrated, which is common when you consume large amounts of alcohol.
  2. Cravings – The minute you stopped drinking, your brain and body went on the hunt to replace the alcohol with something else. Sugar in all forms – white or raw granules, processed carbohydrates (donuts and cookies), candy (Snickers are my favorite), and fruit (even nature can give us a high) – can do for the brain what the alcohol used to. Unless you have blood sugar issues (diabetes), choosing a candy bar over a shot of whiskey is probably a better choice in early recovery. Eating an apple is even better.
  3. Nutrition – Your body has gotten used to replacing food with high caloric alcohol and low-quality food, especially if you spent so much money on drinking that you had less cash available to buy good food, and even less desire to cook for yourself. Once you have a week of zeroing in on your feelings and understanding when you are hungry, emotional or just tired, add raw or cooked veggies to at least one meal a day for a week. Even if it’s a can of corn or green beans, your body needs to start getting used to ingesting something other than sugar and alcohol.
  4. Time – The main reason my clients focus on their mindset during the first few weeks of one of my fitness/nutrition programs is because until they understand their feelings related to food and hunger, then practice mindful eating, and finally start buying healthier foods, they will not be ready to actually prepare and eat them. If you use the first 30 days of your journey to focus on not drinking, finding a method that will give you the tools you need for success (12-step program, therapy, treatment, etc.), and experience your feelings, you will be able to use the next 30-60 days getting the hang of eating better.
  5. Self-care – Eating well is part of taking care of yourself, but you also need to attend to your mind and body. If you have engaged in a program of some sort, you will undoubtedly be encouraged to use prayer and meditation in your daily routine. You may have continued to exercise while you were drinking – as a fitness professional, I certainly continued to train, although it did me little good while I was still pounding the beer. You may want to continue working out, but you may not have the energy or mindset to do so. Relax. Walk. Play with your kids. Or do nothing.

A word about supplementation – Although alcoholics tends to be deficient in a number of vitamins and minerals, the most common are Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6), Thiamine (Vitamin B1), and Folic Acid (Vitamin B Complex). While you could start taking over-the-counter supplements, you may not need them, thus pouring money down the toilet, both literally and figuratively. Ask your primary care provider about having a complete metabolic screen done to check for any deficiencies, and after the results are in, ask about dietary changes and supplementation. In case you’re curious about where the vitamins above occur naturally in food, here you go:

Vitamin B1 (Thiamine) is found in rice, egg noodles, meat (pork chops), seafood (trout, mussels, and tuna), black beans, and acorn squash.

Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) is found in chickpeas, meat (beef liver, chicken breast, and turkey), fish (tuna and salmon), starchy vegetables (potatoes), and bananas.

Vitamin B Complex (Folic Acid) is found naturally in leafy vegetables (spinach, broccoli, and lettuce), okra, asparagus, fruits (bananas, melons, and lemons) beans, yeast, mushrooms, meat (beef liver and kidney), orange juice, and tomato juice.

More resources:

Guided meditation – http://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/top-meditation-iphone-android-apps#2

Nutrition in Recovery guides developed especially for the Recovery Elevator – (http://shellylarsonfitness.com/recoverynutrition

Nutrition resources used by my clients – (http://shellylarsonfitness.com/eat

Sobriety resources – https://www.recoveryelevator.com/resources

“One Size Does Not Fit All!” free webinar – http://shellylarsonfitness.com/webinar

*Disclaimer – Information provided in this post written by Shelly Larson, or in any other materials produced by the author, are for informational purposes only, and should not be construed as a substitute for medical advice. Please contact a qualified healthcare provider regarding matters of personal well being.

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by | May 6, 2015

About Recovery Elevator Empowering You to Quit Drinking and Build a Life You Love Learn More At Recovery Elevator, we believe quitting drinking is the first step toward creating a fulfilling, fun (yes, fun!), and meaningful life. Our podcast and community are...