I fell off the wagon

[wildeyed]

6. After a significant period of sobriety, I still want the oblivion.

But now, instead of drinking or using, I just over-exercise or over-work But seriously, as alcoholics we don't have coping mechanisms that others take for granted. We have a feeling, we drink to annihilate it. Simple.

Learning to identify which HALT (hungry, angry, lonely or tired which are typical triggers for relapse) I was feeling was a full time job for me early in sobriety. Previously I would just know I felt bad and then drink to fix it. Learning what the feeling was helped me to figure out what I needed to do to remedy it in a more productive manner. Going to meetings or calling someone when I felt bad also helped.