Hi Marti66

When I first decided to start this thread I wasn't sure I should. In the back of my mind, thoughts were lurking that I would be thought of as weak willed, also I was a bit embarrassed by admitting I thought I had a problem.
But after reading your note here, I had to chuckle It was too cute, and I also was delighted that I did decide to start the thread, especially after you said it helped you "kick a habit before it started". I am SO GLAD for that! I am also glad that so many others have felt comfortable enough to communicate with each other on this subject, I am not glad that they might have a problem like mine, but I am comforted in that I am not alone.
You know, ... there are other things you can do instead of drinking wine, and get the same health benefits. Eating Salmon regularly, and taking Grape seed extract, I am sure there are other supplements that work just as well. ANd if this thread keeps going I'll bet you will hear from the others on all kinds of things you can do. I started drinking wine long before we were told by the so called experts (whom ever they are) that it was a health benefit as long as you didn't over do it.
So in all honesty I wasn't drinking for the health benefit, but for the buzz I got and the relaxing qualities wine afforded me. When they finally came out with the fact that wine is actually healthy I was happy Now I keep waiting and hoping they will come out with another report that says "Susann go ahead and have a couple of glasses and don't worry about it, the so called experts say it is now safe to have 2 or 3 glasses because it will benefit weight loss" Hey ..... we all have our dreams .....Don't we? O Suzana

Well I'm glade I did a search for wine and found this thread!

I too love my glass of red wine with my meals. The problem is, it's usually 3 glasses. Drinking wine is definitely part of my failures on LC WOE. It relaxes me, and takes my guard down and I lose the temptation to eat banned foods.

Also, alcohol is an energy killer. I've practiced tai chi and yoga over the past years and in all my reading, the masters say, "stay away from alcohol, because it is an energy killer."

Also, as far as sleep goes, you really don't get a restful night sleep after you've had even just on glass of wine.

In order to feel refreshed, you need 4 hrs of REM(rapid eye movement) level of sleep, per night. Alcohol will keep you from getting to this level of sleep. So, even though you slept all night, after having a little wine before bed, you don't feel refreshed, because you never made it to REM.

Now my question is; what are you drinking besides water, when you go out for dinner at a restaurant? I'm more fearful of the bad health effects of aspartame in diet coke, than I am of alcohol.

Could any of you provide me with some alternative choices to wine?

Thanx for your support Missatc but i'm afraid it was a little premature...............................
Well after posting on Saturday i actually did think i'd be ok with this " strategic choice" about when to drink and when not to..................................

Maybe not.

We had a bottle of wine on Saturday night so that was a big no no and then on Sunday i thought more about it and didn't have any. (but it was tough! i thought about it a number of times!) But i was strong and said NO!

Then on Monday a friend came around for dinner and i knew he would want to have wine and because i'd made the most luscious chilli i thought "i'm entertaiing so it's ok!" And i had 4 glasses.

Then last night i just got home from work and felt fed up.....i feel abit like the people i work with (i've been there since january and the job itself is fantastic!) are seeing me as a bit of a dumping ground. I'll explain..... i'm only contracted to work 18 &1/2 hours a week (it's called job share) my week starts ~ 1.00pm Weds and i then work all day thurs and all day fri. But because 1 person is currently on sick leave and only doing 2 days and another is the other end of my week (mon, tue, weds am) the team which used to be 4 full timers is very short. So when they asked if i was interested in overtime i said "sure"

But now it feel like i'm being treated as the one who picks up everybodies slack ......including the deputy( who is annoying anyway but i've got over worse people than him) who is happy to tell me how much MORE money he is on than ME!

So yesterday was a bad day (part of a bad weekend really, drink wise!)

So i'm back to it now. I'm going to have to re think things and forget the plan thing....... coz it just doesn't do me any good and i feel worse for breaking the plan of action so i think "oh forget it".

Anyway i'm feeling much more positive today and i'm about to do my UBWO so speak to you all soon... and don't give up on yourselves easily. I think my biggest downfall is thinking it doesn't matter what i do anyway, because i'm trying to get a better body, a happier, healthier life and by giving up i'll get nothing......... I read in some ones journal a few weeks ago............ "the only time in life when you can coast is when your going downhill "......! And i'm NOT going downhill today!

Speak to you all soon.
Phoebe

Hello everyone;
Could someone tell me how to start my journal? I have been ready to start it for a few days now but for some reason I can't seem to find instructions on how to start. I hope I don't appear dense... and I'm sure it's right in front of me, but lately I have a lot of brain fog....

Hi Phoebe

I read your post this morning, and I feel you should not beat your self up At least you are really trying! I know it is distressing to you, because you do so well and then life happens, and you fall down and skin your knees all over again!
I have done just that in the last 2 days. I was doing pretty well, I was waiting till late evening to have my wine, and that didn't afford me a lot of time to drink very much, so I was losing a little bit. But yesterday we went to a friends Birthday party, there were a lot of great people there and a lot of stuff to drink These people are drinkers! And I always come away from them knowing that I don't drink like that, and am glad that I do not!
I don't drink anything but wine, so that is what I had. Still I had more than my usual, because we were there from dinner time untill late evening. The food was good and of course it was a lot of stuff I have not touched in over a month.... Carbs!
We came home and watched the late news and went to bed, but first I had another glass of wine with my hubby. I slept terrible, and this morning when I stepped on the scale I gained a pound and a half.... But not only that, I am mad at myself because I feel like I am not able to control this drinking thing.
But then when I get somewhat sensible, I resolve to keep on trying! I have been successful in the past, but I always made a wrong turn after my success, and would go back to my old ways of eating and drinking. The difference this time is that there is so much good news about Lo- Carb WOL, that I plan to stay eating this way, because it seems to do me a world of good. Keep your socks up Phoebe .... I just put mine back on and pulled them up.... stay in touch!

Hello JimR OCDS


I thought your post on alcohol and the sleep pattern was interesting. I have heard that information before, and know it is correct. My problem with sleep is not being able to get sleepy... For some reason, I seem to become wide awake every evening around 9pm. That is the only reason I drink, because it slowly makes me drowsey, I never drink during the day, if I did I could not function !
I can't speak for anyone else, but my only other beverage is water... I don't care for soda or juices, to me they are just not healthy. Water is the best

Go to the main support forum page by clicking support forum at the top right hand of the page. Then, go to the Journal forum. Start a thread under the "O" section - journals are kept alphabetically. That's your journal!

Karen

osuzana, I often follow the Zone diet, more than the atkins diet lately. It seems to be easier, but it's also easier to cheat.

When I was on Atkins and behaving, I would have a hard time getting to sleep, and staying asleep. The problem turned out to be that I needed an evening snack, with some carbs in it. My blood sugar was dropping during the night and waking me up.

So, currently I'm on the Zone diet and part of the Zone diet is having a Zone favorable snack before bed. For me this includes,
1 orange or 1/2 of an apple cut up and mixed with 1/4 cup of cottage cheese and a sprinkle of almond slices. I sleep like a baby and feel refreshed in the morning. Refreshed of course unless I had some wine. Then I'll feel groggy the next day.

Anyway, you might look into having a snack with good carbs in it, before bed. Warm milk, would do the trick prehaps? You'll have to watch the total carb count for the day including this snack, if you chose to do it.

Thank You Karen!
I'm going to sit down tonight and begin it, I think it will be a big help for me to keep it up. I love to write anyway, when I'm not cooking at the Inn or working at the B & B.

Reading a fascinating book at the moment: 'Beyond the Influence: Understanding and Defeating Alcoholism'.

I'm about a third of the way through. The chapter I'm reading defines the difference between 'social' and 'problem' drinkers and alcoholics. It's good stuff for those of us who are wondering where we fit.

Check it out on Amazon!

Bye for now,

Joanna

:wave: Hello JimR OCDS
I have all the books on the zone WOE .... I just never could get into taking the time to figure out all the portioning of the foods, as far as blocks go. Seemed like too much of a time consumer for me. But I do have the book "Potatoes not Prozac" (Reccommended to me by Karen) and the writer reccommends (did I spell that right ? doesn't look right ) eating a potato before bed. You have to eat the skin, that is important. Turns out potatoes with skin are slower to turn to sugar than other carbs, you cannot eat them with any proteins though, but you can have butter or salsa. I have tried this little remedy a few times and it does help. I just got the book about a week ago and still have a lot to read. But I thought you might like to try the potato if you like them.

Joanna

Thanks for the Tip! I'm gonna check that out, where did you hear about it? I would love to know where I fit in. We went to a party last night and I know I don't fit in with the people we were with , We have been with them several times before. They definitely leave me in the dust when it comes to drinking.... I'm glad!
But I still never want to think that I would ever get to that point. I don't think I want to give up drinking all together because I really do enjoy the calm it gives me. But i would like to be able not to drink while I am trying so hard to lose weight. Maybe that little dream will just not work.... and I might have to face facts and just stop. ugh... It is so hard to think about never enjoying another glass of wine....

I borrowed the book from one of the ladies in the AA group. She's in her thirties, very pretty, quite well-off I think (drives a Range Rover), and gave up drinking because she said it "got in the way". It made it difficult for her to be the person she wanted to be. I thought that was really interesting.

Anyway -- she's got me pegged. I'm a science editor and need to see things explained in a logical way, complete with tests, charts and references!

I just completed all the tests at the end of the chapter and according to them I'm not just at risk for becoming alcoholic -- I am one!! Oh Yuk!

There must be a test SOMEWHERE that tells me I'm not!! (Is that denial I hear?)

Yeah, the thought of giving it up completely really makes me sad. I've got a lot of thinking to do.

I remember giving up smoking in my twenties. I LOVED to smoke, but I realized that at more than a pack a day, it wouldn't be long before I really began to harm myself. I took a few runs at it, but then one day I just stopped and that was that. I can even pinpoint the time when became a non-smoker. It was as if a switch turned in my head.

I'm hoping the same thing will happen with this 'monkey'.

Take care all,

Joanna

Was this the questionnaire? This was taken from the A.A. website


Only you can decide whether you want to give
A.A. a try — whether you think it can help you.

We who are in A.A. came because we finally gave up trying to control our drinking. We still hated to admit that we could never drink safely. Then we heard from other A.A. members that we were sick. (We thought so for years!) We found out that many people suffered from the same feelings of guilt and loneliness and hopelessness that we did. We found out that we had these feelings because we had the disease of alcoholism.

We decided to try and face up to what alcohol had done to us. Here are some of the questions we tried to answer honestly. If we answered YES to four or more questions, we were in deep trouble with our drinking. See how you do. Remember, there is no disgrace in facing up to the fact that you have a problem.


1 - Have you ever decided to stop drinking for a week or so, but only lasted for a couple of days?
Most of us in A.A. made all kinds of promises to ourselves and to our families. We could not keep them. Then we came to A.A. A.A. said: "Just try not to drink today." (If you do not drink today, you cannot get drunk today.)

2 - Do you wish people would mind their own business about your drinking-- stop telling you what to do?
In A.A. we do not tell anyone to do anything. We just talk about our own drinking, the trouble we got into, and how we stopped. We will be glad to help you, if you want us to.

3 - Have you ever switched from one kind of drink to another in the hope that this would keep you from getting drunk?
We tried all kinds of ways. We made our drinks weak. Or just drank beer. Or we did not drink cocktails. Or only drank on weekends. You name it, we tried it. But if we drank anything with alcohol in it, we usually got drunk eventually.

4 - Have you had to have an eye-opener upon awakening during the past year?
Do you need a drink to get started, or to stop shaking? This is a pretty sure sign that you are not drinking "socially."

5 - Do you envy people who can drink without getting into trouble?
At one time or another, most of us have wondered why we were not like most people, who really can take it or leave it.

6 - Have you had problems connected with drinking during the past year?
Be honest! Doctors say that if you have a problem with alcohol and keep on drinking, it will get worse -- never better. Eventually, you will die, or end up in an institution for the rest of your life. The only hope is to stop drinking.

7 - Has your drinking caused trouble at home?
Before we came into A.A., most of us said that it was the people or problems at home that made us drink. We could not see that our drinking just made everything worse. It never solved problems anywhere or anytime.

8 - Do you ever try to get "extra" drinks at a party because you do not get enough?
Most of us used to have a "few" before we started out if we thought it was going to be that kind of party. And if drinks were not served fast enough, we would go some place else to get more.

9 - Do you tell yourself you can stop drinking any time you want to, even though you keep getting drunk when you don't mean to?
Many of us kidded ourselves into thinking that we drank because we wanted to. After we came into A.A., we found out that once we started to drink, we couldn't stop.

10 - Have you missed days of work or school because of drinking?
Many of us admit now that we "called in sick" lots of times when the truth was that we were hung-over or on a drunk.

11 - Do you have "blackouts"?
A "blackout" is when we have been drinking hours or days which we cannot remember. When we came to A.A., we found out that this is a pretty sure sign of alcoholic drinking.

12 - Have you ever felt that your life would be better if you did not drink?
Many of us started to drink because drinking made life seem better, at least for a while. By the time we got into .A., we felt trapped. We were drinking to live and living to drink. We were sick and tired of being sick and tired.

What's your score?
Did you answer YES four or more times? If so, you are probably in trouble with alcohol. Why do we say this? Because thousands of people in A.A. have said so for many years. They found out the truth about themselves — the hard way.

But again, only you can decide whether you think A.A. is for you. Try to keep an open mind on the subject. If the answer is YES, we will be glad to show you how we stopped drinking ourselves. Just call.

A.A. does not promise to solve your life's problems. But we can show you how we are learning to live without drinking "one day at a time." We stay away from that "first drink." If there is no first one, there cannot be a tenth one. And when we got rid of alcohol, we found that life became much more manageable.

Karen

Susann,
Yes the Zone can be difficult to get follow at first. However, once you do, you have much better knowledge about the food you eat. It’s probably what most Atkins dieters who make it to maintenance know about food. Also, I do feel good being on it, but unlike Atkins, it’s easy to go over on carbs, because you’re taking in the max you should consume for the day, just following the diet. Which means a cheat has a greater negative impact than on Atkins. Myself, I haven't seen the weight-loss that I saw in Atkins, mostly because I cheat too often, but I’ve managed to maintain where I am, which is a good thing. I eat out, and I eat out often, which is where I usually have to have my two glasses of merlot and when I drink wine, I become loose and it’s easy for me to give into desert and other no-no’s.


The potato before bed thing may have to do with potassium. One of the things you have to be careful with, on the Atkins diet, is the lack of potassium, this is according to my doctor. My understanding is that potassium controls the rhythm of your heartbeat. Don’t get enough and you can have irregular heartbeat rhythms. Too much potassium can be dangerous. Lack of potassium can also cause insomnia.