Originally Posted by SecondChances (Post 1242857)

Thank you Icehouse. I hate meds but I know I can't do it alone. I had 13 years sobriety but life was simpler then. Like the doc said, I can't fix your life but the goal is to help you cope better. Again I hid the alcohol history.
Perhaps the cop let me off because I used the cancer card. I never share that with anyone but perhaps he felt pity on me? I will never understand why he let me go but I am forever grateful for the second chance. I thank my higher power that I did not hurt anyone. I could never live with that burden. 2 weeks for the med to start taking effect. i will hang in.
:)

Originally Posted by PamelaJune (Post 1242865)

Hey SecondChances I'm so glad to read you are ok. After a lapse people beat themselves up so much it can become overwhelming & lead to more trauma. You have much behind you and so much more to look forward to. Just a suggestion, maybe send the Copper a small card of thanks. You might be able to find at least what house he came from on your fine. I don't mean to trivialise it, but a lapse is just that. You can move on from it. Hang in there.

Originally Posted by SecondChances (Post 1242869)

8

My thoughts....I got off easy. In hindsight, it was his job to get me off the road to protect others. I NEVER drive impaired. He knew I was f'up. I worry bout next drunk he lets off.

Originally Posted by SecondChances (Post 1242872)

As to my "folly", pins n needles r the same as to the fire in my legs but def a change in the leg weakness. I had not realized the small gains but I do now.My legs were far better in abstinence.
Also an oddity....I am borderline diabetic and so I try to control my diet. I needed alcohol or sugar so I decided to go with less of two evils. I bought jelly donuts, chocolate, licorice and cookies. It stopped the alcohol cravings but I don't dare check my glucose levels. At least I am sober thru day 1.
What a strange and baffling disease. Why would one choose this existence?

Originally Posted by newstown (Post 1227338)

Hello all. I posted about Metanx last month. I want to report that I have had significant , indeed very significant results with this product. I have much better feeling in my feet and legs, and a tremendous reduction in pain and related symptoms. I am stunned and very happy about this result. Just one person's experience, but I recommend giving it a try if you are interested.

Originally Posted by kiwi33 (Post 1225385)

Icehouse, 1888 days is awesome :)!

As far as the ciggies are concerned, I found that stopping the last few per day was hard as well.

I like your "mental choice" approach. One thing that helped me was to realise that part of it was enjoying the tactile sensation of a smoke in my fingers - finding something that I could fiddle with, replacing that tactile sensation, helped.

Just a thought.

Originally Posted by Wide-O (Post 1235801)

1700 days today. Also close to 80,000 cigs not smoked. Money not spent on both now exceeds $50,000.

Totally regret not putting that money in a piggy bank daily. ;)

Originally Posted by Wide-O (Post 1239566)

That is indeed good news. Rehab can be a life saver if she gives it a chance.

I agree with Icehouse on the duration BTW. Even though for me the 70 days were enough (strict minimum there), most people went on to stay for about 3 months with another 6 months in assisted housing/aftercare programs.

70 days was the exception, but that was because I was so determined that when I stepped in there, it would be the first and the last time. I was done and I knew it. I just wanted those weeks to concentrate on myself only, to detox, and to try to gain a perspective on what the hell had happened, and how to avoid it in the future. Sounds selfish, and maybe it is, but it's good to stop the daily noise for a while and concentrate on getting better.

Also: I wasn't homeless, and so many of my fellow rehabbers were (or very close to it). Our social security pays for an almost unlimited number of stays, which has pros and cons like so many things. It's good in that money can never be an excuse for not trying to get sober. It's not so good because for many it was their umpteenth time, and they didn't see it as a big deal, or even important. The "record holder" was there for the 5th time. Yet, some do get sober after many tries, so who is to judge when enough is enough?

Some were there ordered by the courts. Some did it to just go through the motions. Some were people who just didn't have the skills to deal with modern life. Quite an eye opener for this here self employed cocooning IT wiz hot shot suburb dweller. :blush:

Many of them had been through 2 week detoxes or 1 month programs - with very little success.

I'm still trying to gather the courage to write a book about what I found there, how it works, the different people and stories. I have pages and pages of notes - I wrote down the day's events just before bed time. I started a few times, but literally choked up. I want to do justice to the stories, the people. And I have to write about myself in the most honest way too. Not easy, not easy at all. Yet, maybe worth it, as there is a huge gap between the first level (GP's) and the rest of the care system. Docs really just don't know what's available, how long it takes, how to refer people, costs. It's still very much a taboo and a black hole. Nobody has an alcohol problem, right? Some patients just "drink a little too much".

Maybe it would work for families and friends too. What to expect? What happens in such a place? How long does it take? Can we visit? Can they go home for weekends? Etc etc.

I don't want to write a vanity book, so I'm just trying to gauge the worth of actually writing it, getting it published, and "going public"...

Anyway, enough about me. ;) Pamela, I hope she finds the tools to get out sober and have a perspective on a sober life.