When Husband entered real recovery, he made the decision to no longer drink alcohol. It was a trigger for him. He said that he had never met an SA in recovery who was able to drink occasionally without then turning into an alcoholic. I never worried that he had a drinking problem. We would have a glass of wine or beer every now and then, but neither of us were regular drinkers. Nonetheless, alcoholism runs in both of our families, so it was a very good decision for a person who is already fighting one addiction. I was very proud of him for making that decision to prevent having to fight a second addiction.
While visiting with in-laws and family this weekend, Husband mentioned to his family that he doesn't drink alcohol anymore. Unfortunately, family didn't react with support. Here's some of what we heard over the course of the weekend. "Why in the world would you give up beer?" "My wife won't have sex with me, and you won't drink with me. Everyone around me is becoming lame." "What is wrong with you?"
Ugh. That's the "change back" phenomenon in full force.
I wonder about this (because I am largely surrounded by non-drinkers). I hope my curiosity isn't offensive - do you drink alcohol? Did you give it up with him? Is it hard to give up or just a habit to change when you aren't addicted? Do you have to announce it to everybody or can you just decline a drink one at a time? I feel like you're not allowed to eat healthy in this country without a good reason (diseases, disorders, or a hard-core commitment not to) is it the same as that?
ReplyDeleteI hope that he finds success in this and other stuff. :)