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New Year's Resolution Again...

EVERY year towards the end of my drinking I would always promise and boast that one of my New Year’s resolutions would be either to stop drinking altogether, stop drinking for January, only drink at weekends or whatever unrealistic plan I had put together. I had this intense longing and desire to be a normal drinker and felt that what was holding me back was my apparent lack of willpower - a huge weakness in my eyes. How little did I understand about alcoholism at this point. So as Christmas approached each year, my plan was to drink as much as I could throughout the festive period and then stop. However, reality was very different. How could I not drink on January 1st, my husband’s birthday? Surely that was allowed? Hence, I failed before I began!

Now Christmas and New Year are very different. Thanks to the wisdom of Alcoholics Anonymous, I now treat every day as the same and focus on twenty-four hours at a time. I don’t project to the future anymore or worry about how I will get through occasions of celebration, of disappointment or just average normal days without a drink. I remember in the early days of recovery how important it was to follow the simple suggestions given to me by my sponsor – to pray each morning for a sober day, to read AA literature, to phone her regularly, to speak to others in the Fellowship, to help the newcomer, to write a gratitude list and to thank my Higher Power at the end of each day for my continuing sobriety. These are still suggestions that I carry out today and still do throughout the festive period as I would any other day.

I remember in the early days that it was vital to keep myself safe over the Christmas period so I avoided the work Christmas ‘do’, any New year parties, and just enjoyed a quiet family time. It was difficult, but it was important to shield myself from any unnecessary pressure and temptation. Even today, I still find that it is best for my recovery to avoid social occasions where drinking is the main focus. I also tend to avoid any festive food with alcohol as I do not wish to provide opportunity for temptation and it is easy to purchase alternatives without alcohol.

My main tip throughout the festive period is to keep connected to AA. It is easy to allow oneself to isolate. We suffer with an illness that tells us often that we don’t have an illness. I always keep connected to the Fellowship through regular meetings, conversations, prayer with my Higher Power and through my AA readings. This is vital for me every day, but particularly so over Christmas. I am immensely grateful to AA for my continuing sobriety one day at a time. I now have a life beyond my wildest dreams. I wish you all a very happy and sober Christmas and New Year.

SARAH M, Kent