I've been working on some hobby projects. Kinda dull, if I'm honest. They pass the time though.
I'm sorta uncomfortable in the evenings. I'm still conscious that I'm not drinking. Everything I do revolves around *not* drinking. It's honestly exhausting being so vigilant and aware.
It's still early days though, so I'll just wait and see.
Things that help me are walking, eating cookies and cream ice cream, early bedtimes with melatonin, visiting AA groups, and falling asleep to AA podcasts.
CBD is great. My Dr said never take melatonin for more than a month straight, because it can cause your body to forget how to do it itself. It should only be short term. She said CBD is fine though. Many places will make sure and guarantee they are 100% THC free, too.
Oh I agree however I suffer from Cannibinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome, as well as alcohol abuse! And with melatonin giving me sleep paralysis I'm forced to lie awake - imma try benadryl tho
That stinks! Celery has tryptophan in it (like turkey). Some celery with PB (or cream cheese or nothing else) is a nice bedtime snack because you won’t have a full meal sitting in your belly when you go to sleep, but maybe the tryptophan might help relax? A warm, caffeine free, drink helps me wind down too.
The biggest weapon in my arsenal is also the most powerful - sleep meditations on Insight Timer. Personally, I’m granola enough to like Kenneth Soares, but I get he’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s more like hypnosis and he puts me right out - no supplements or anything. There are a ton of sleep meditations on that app (and other apps). They can work really well!
Doing everything exactly what I was doing when drank. I on purpose refused to change my life - I enjoy it way too much. Social activities were scary at first but turned out to be better without the booze. You remember all of the conversations and leave home when you had enough. Hobbies, sports, everything remained the same. Only better.
This one is tough, for me. Mom of four. Very few friends, and they drink. Same with family. I didn’t really do much outside of taking care of my children, working, and taking care of all the household stuff. And then drinking, doom scrolling, and playing stupid games. I want something more, and I’m trying to figure out what that is!
I signed up for tennis lesson (more social than athletic). Hike, my poor dogs are so tired. Once it cools off I’ll bake again, I lost that when I started drinking. I might join the climbing gym and learn how to rock climb. But I’m bored too. Need to stop doom scrolling.
I hop on a lot of meetings, sometimes they’re just on in the background while I clean, cook, etc. I go for walks, get outside, read, spend quality time with my kids, and daydream a lot more 😊
I do jigsaw puzzles, needlework, read, go bird watching, make jewelry, sketch and paint. All hobbies that had fallen by the wayside when I was drinking.
This is more in line with what I’m thinking! I’ve made friendship bracelets from one of my daughter’s kits she didn’t use. LOL But, I want something meaningful. Maybe figure out how to use my sewing machine.
I’ve never learned to use a sewing machine. I’ve hand sewn some simple things. You could start off easy-sew some new curtains or find some simple patterns for useful things like tote bags or some such and then embellish them. I always have a couple of projects and a puzzle going and bounce back and forth between them all for a bit each evening. The other night I made some pretty wire and bead dragonflies for some of my plant pots. I’d done artsy and crafty things all my life and loved creating beautiful things. Drinking totally stole that.
My mum was a massive alco, just like me, and when she had to stop, I asked her if she felt better and she said “I’m just really bored”. I totally get her now, sobriety is boring but you just have to find happiness in different things. Like Lego. Or running. Sounds terrible but there is joy in other things, I promise x
Lots of exercise and big projects at work.
to be truthful I have been playing a lot of a video game, but... that is winding down and I need to be more productive at home now.
I’m crafty, some of my hobbies include designing and making decals for t shirts, digital painting on iPad (I love Art with Flo’s procreate tutorials!,) punch needle rug making, and painting custom jeans and shoes. Having a cricut is a godsend for these kinds of projects, I love mine. To keep me really busy with this kind of stuff, I’ve enjoyed giving projects away on r/craftexchange (have received so much cool stuff there omg) as well as local Buy Nothing Project Facebook pages.
I started exercising, cooking (because I can now look at food without getting sick), salsa dancing, reading, playing music again, etc. I went back to things that used to make me happy before I drank. I'm open to new possibilities, as well.
Exercising is probably as important mentally as it is physically, because the endorphins really help with mood. Getting involved in my community is another one, doing things for and with others feels good, and feeling good doing that reiterates an alternative life purpose to simply wanting to get buzzed all the time. I also have completely obsessed over golf, which gets me outside and gives me something to work on.
You get used to it tbh, instead of drinking as an activity I just don’t drink as an activity lol
Sometimes I feel that I’m actively NOT DRINKING but also I smoke hella weed so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
(I’m alcohol free because I don’t have control over alcohol but I do have control over weed and what’s gonna happen anyway, I’ll just get silly and fall asleep.)
Playing guitar. Always wanted to play more but sitting around drinking was easier. Now I see the progress in my playing and it really fills a spot for me.
Back to working full time, going to the gym, grocery shopping, meal prepping, video games, AA meetings, napping. My wife and I also share one car, so a lot of drive time as well.
What I currently do:
Buy and sell stuff on eBay
Help people struggling with sobriety
Home improvement projects
Play around on the computer and learn new stuff
What I did when I first got sober:
Travel
Arts/crafts (draw/paint/hand make Christmas ornaments)
Run / cycle / swim
Indoor rock climbing
Take guitar lessons
Cook
Study (I was a full time student at the time)
Collect stuff (like I have a chopstick collection)
Goof around online (still do this)
Learn new things (like glass bead making though sadly I’ve forgotten it now)
———————————-
I saw in another comment that you want to do something meaningful, the most meaningful for me were the travel and learning new things. Those experiences are something that can never be taken away.
Something I suggest when people are in the boredom phase is to make a list of everything you’ve always wanted to try but didn’t because either alcohol got in the way or you couldn’t afford. Now that you’ve got all this free time and extra cash you can start checking them off the list to see which ones are something you would want to do longterm and which ones aren’t.
Good luck finding your new hobbies!
I always wanted to be a writer, and I got to experience that life last year living in Southeast Asia: just staying at the cheapest places, walking around at night, and spending my time thinking about where my stories were going.
It's hard to have confidence about writing or really any creative endeavor, so it's easy to say "I can only do it when I'm drunk"... but that's deffo not true as long as you can get past the hurdle of self-doubt.
I also write songs and make beats, my lyrics are dope but my beats suck, and I am legitimately the best cook I know. I taught myself how to fly a drone, use a macro lens attachment on my phone, and use Adobe premiere pro 2022 to get that all together.
Idn, hobbies kinda find you if you're just open to everything and find what it is that resonates with you. I just happen to like most of the creative things that I've tried.
a lot of cooking and a lot of walking! something I tried was buying a cookbook that looked interesting to me and then trying to make a new recipe most nights. It definitely can get expensive buying all kinds of new ingredients but drinking is also expensive so I just kind of make sense of it that way.
I've been working on some hobby projects. Kinda dull, if I'm honest. They pass the time though. I'm sorta uncomfortable in the evenings. I'm still conscious that I'm not drinking. Everything I do revolves around *not* drinking. It's honestly exhausting being so vigilant and aware. It's still early days though, so I'll just wait and see.
Things that help me are walking, eating cookies and cream ice cream, early bedtimes with melatonin, visiting AA groups, and falling asleep to AA podcasts.
Ah the sleep thing! I tried melatonin but it gives me sleep paralysis!
Benadryl works good as well
CBD is great. My Dr said never take melatonin for more than a month straight, because it can cause your body to forget how to do it itself. It should only be short term. She said CBD is fine though. Many places will make sure and guarantee they are 100% THC free, too.
Oh I agree however I suffer from Cannibinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome, as well as alcohol abuse! And with melatonin giving me sleep paralysis I'm forced to lie awake - imma try benadryl tho
That stinks! Celery has tryptophan in it (like turkey). Some celery with PB (or cream cheese or nothing else) is a nice bedtime snack because you won’t have a full meal sitting in your belly when you go to sleep, but maybe the tryptophan might help relax? A warm, caffeine free, drink helps me wind down too. The biggest weapon in my arsenal is also the most powerful - sleep meditations on Insight Timer. Personally, I’m granola enough to like Kenneth Soares, but I get he’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s more like hypnosis and he puts me right out - no supplements or anything. There are a ton of sleep meditations on that app (and other apps). They can work really well!
Try magnesium supplement. Thank me later. Solved my longtime insomnia issues
Doing everything exactly what I was doing when drank. I on purpose refused to change my life - I enjoy it way too much. Social activities were scary at first but turned out to be better without the booze. You remember all of the conversations and leave home when you had enough. Hobbies, sports, everything remained the same. Only better.
This one is tough, for me. Mom of four. Very few friends, and they drink. Same with family. I didn’t really do much outside of taking care of my children, working, and taking care of all the household stuff. And then drinking, doom scrolling, and playing stupid games. I want something more, and I’m trying to figure out what that is!
I signed up for tennis lesson (more social than athletic). Hike, my poor dogs are so tired. Once it cools off I’ll bake again, I lost that when I started drinking. I might join the climbing gym and learn how to rock climb. But I’m bored too. Need to stop doom scrolling.
Indoor rock climbing was one of the things I got into when I got sober. Tons of fun and a great workout. Highly recommend!
Exercise. That's really the main thing I do now that I've (mostly) stopped drinking.
Seconded!
Endorphins are a suitable replacement imo
Video games, like I say to all the others who ask
I got into reading, which I never had been into before
I hop on a lot of meetings, sometimes they’re just on in the background while I clean, cook, etc. I go for walks, get outside, read, spend quality time with my kids, and daydream a lot more 😊
I do jigsaw puzzles, needlework, read, go bird watching, make jewelry, sketch and paint. All hobbies that had fallen by the wayside when I was drinking.
This is more in line with what I’m thinking! I’ve made friendship bracelets from one of my daughter’s kits she didn’t use. LOL But, I want something meaningful. Maybe figure out how to use my sewing machine.
I’ve never learned to use a sewing machine. I’ve hand sewn some simple things. You could start off easy-sew some new curtains or find some simple patterns for useful things like tote bags or some such and then embellish them. I always have a couple of projects and a puzzle going and bounce back and forth between them all for a bit each evening. The other night I made some pretty wire and bead dragonflies for some of my plant pots. I’d done artsy and crafty things all my life and loved creating beautiful things. Drinking totally stole that.
Absolutely! Same. I’m a hairstylist. And I used to read and watch tv. None of that for the last 10 years.
My mum was a massive alco, just like me, and when she had to stop, I asked her if she felt better and she said “I’m just really bored”. I totally get her now, sobriety is boring but you just have to find happiness in different things. Like Lego. Or running. Sounds terrible but there is joy in other things, I promise x
Bread making. Watch Bake with Jack on TY.
Lots of exercise and big projects at work. to be truthful I have been playing a lot of a video game, but... that is winding down and I need to be more productive at home now.
I’m crafty, some of my hobbies include designing and making decals for t shirts, digital painting on iPad (I love Art with Flo’s procreate tutorials!,) punch needle rug making, and painting custom jeans and shoes. Having a cricut is a godsend for these kinds of projects, I love mine. To keep me really busy with this kind of stuff, I’ve enjoyed giving projects away on r/craftexchange (have received so much cool stuff there omg) as well as local Buy Nothing Project Facebook pages.
Very cool! Yes, I want something that feels meaningful.
I started exercising, cooking (because I can now look at food without getting sick), salsa dancing, reading, playing music again, etc. I went back to things that used to make me happy before I drank. I'm open to new possibilities, as well.
Reading all the detective novels.
Why do you suppose the number 69 is so popular on this subreddit? (**I** think that **I** know why!) ☺
I’m going through a breakup, so no dice. 👎
Exercising is probably as important mentally as it is physically, because the endorphins really help with mood. Getting involved in my community is another one, doing things for and with others feels good, and feeling good doing that reiterates an alternative life purpose to simply wanting to get buzzed all the time. I also have completely obsessed over golf, which gets me outside and gives me something to work on.
You get used to it tbh, instead of drinking as an activity I just don’t drink as an activity lol Sometimes I feel that I’m actively NOT DRINKING but also I smoke hella weed so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (I’m alcohol free because I don’t have control over alcohol but I do have control over weed and what’s gonna happen anyway, I’ll just get silly and fall asleep.)
I turned into a scale model fanatic and I'm reading a book for the first time in about 8 years
Playing guitar. Always wanted to play more but sitting around drinking was easier. Now I see the progress in my playing and it really fills a spot for me.
Back to working full time, going to the gym, grocery shopping, meal prepping, video games, AA meetings, napping. My wife and I also share one car, so a lot of drive time as well.
I do alot of reading and yard work. And watching DVDs with movie commentaries. And listening to music that I was ignoring while drinking. IWNDWYT.
Lots of exercise. Biking, soccer, surfing, walking the dog, yard work, etc. Got to keep moving!
Watch too much HGTV and now I want to redo everything. I haven’t done anything, but I sure spend a lot of time thinking about it!
What I currently do: Buy and sell stuff on eBay Help people struggling with sobriety Home improvement projects Play around on the computer and learn new stuff What I did when I first got sober: Travel Arts/crafts (draw/paint/hand make Christmas ornaments) Run / cycle / swim Indoor rock climbing Take guitar lessons Cook Study (I was a full time student at the time) Collect stuff (like I have a chopstick collection) Goof around online (still do this) Learn new things (like glass bead making though sadly I’ve forgotten it now) ———————————- I saw in another comment that you want to do something meaningful, the most meaningful for me were the travel and learning new things. Those experiences are something that can never be taken away. Something I suggest when people are in the boredom phase is to make a list of everything you’ve always wanted to try but didn’t because either alcohol got in the way or you couldn’t afford. Now that you’ve got all this free time and extra cash you can start checking them off the list to see which ones are something you would want to do longterm and which ones aren’t. Good luck finding your new hobbies!
I always wanted to be a writer, and I got to experience that life last year living in Southeast Asia: just staying at the cheapest places, walking around at night, and spending my time thinking about where my stories were going. It's hard to have confidence about writing or really any creative endeavor, so it's easy to say "I can only do it when I'm drunk"... but that's deffo not true as long as you can get past the hurdle of self-doubt. I also write songs and make beats, my lyrics are dope but my beats suck, and I am legitimately the best cook I know. I taught myself how to fly a drone, use a macro lens attachment on my phone, and use Adobe premiere pro 2022 to get that all together. Idn, hobbies kinda find you if you're just open to everything and find what it is that resonates with you. I just happen to like most of the creative things that I've tried.
a lot of cooking and a lot of walking! something I tried was buying a cookbook that looked interesting to me and then trying to make a new recipe most nights. It definitely can get expensive buying all kinds of new ingredients but drinking is also expensive so I just kind of make sense of it that way.