It’s been 45 days since I quit drinking. I don’t live in the Bay Area, and I’m not a sober-curious Twitter influencer. Where I am, quitting alcohol is not yet cool. Then again, drinking isn’t either. Growing up, we had mixed feelings around drinking. My dad drank an occasional drink or two, my mom hated the idea of alcohol, and I had an uncle who struggled with alcoholism till he died. Before a conversation could have been had about it at home, I found my way to my first drink in college.
After all our conversations about drinking, I love this reflection you've written. You really capture and articulated so many feelings I've had both when I reflected on my drinking habits and also once I quit. Thank you for sharing your story, this was such a great essay!
I resonate with so much of what you talk about this essay. Such a powerful piece and one I'm sure I'm gonna come back to because this is something I've been struggling with - I've quit alcohol 2 times in the last 6 months!
Love this line especially : In the discomfort of not drinking is a rare opening to experience presence - the way to straddle the line of living as life happens to me.
I love how you delve into difficult topics with such honesty and vulnerability.
Having a complicated relationship with alcohol myself, reading this clarifies many feelings around it that I have, and can completely relate with the fact that it brings a very peculiar discomfort.
I'm happy you're doing this process with such presence and awareness, because we're the receivers of your insights, and mostly I wish the best of luck in this process!
What I love about this article is it's demonstration of how to enter and tolerate a liminal space. It takes so much presence and courage to let go of old reference points, whether they're points of views, a personal identity, or a habit and then allow the transition to whatever is next to arrive slowly, through a fog of patience. Humans hate ambiguity, but to walk into it and bear it is a core competency of growth, and you are beautifully demonstrating it in this article. It's also an indirect testimony to the value of writing, which I think helps us navigate the unknown.
When I read this, it’s like a demonstration of how to master an asana. With patience, presence and tuning in to what’s going on inside of you. A beautiful story, beautifully shared.
Wow. Such a powerful Piece Malavika. Thanks for sharing such a vulnerable story. It gave me goosebumps. The point of being present - its so powerful. I have been thinking myself - am I living my life as a distraction from the pain of uncontrollable stuff that destiny conferred upon me? When would I reconcile with life and agree to its gifts given to me, howsoever white-elephantish they seem to be.
I teach a group of amateur radio operators, and one of them had asked about alcohol-free drinks, so I had been researching mocktails. I can relate to feeling uncomfortable without wearing a drink along with my clothes.
After all our conversations about drinking, I love this reflection you've written. You really capture and articulated so many feelings I've had both when I reflected on my drinking habits and also once I quit. Thank you for sharing your story, this was such a great essay!
Love your new beverage of choice. Thank you for sharing this story <3
I resonate with so much of what you talk about this essay. Such a powerful piece and one I'm sure I'm gonna come back to because this is something I've been struggling with - I've quit alcohol 2 times in the last 6 months!
Love this line especially : In the discomfort of not drinking is a rare opening to experience presence - the way to straddle the line of living as life happens to me.
I love how you delve into difficult topics with such honesty and vulnerability.
Having a complicated relationship with alcohol myself, reading this clarifies many feelings around it that I have, and can completely relate with the fact that it brings a very peculiar discomfort.
I'm happy you're doing this process with such presence and awareness, because we're the receivers of your insights, and mostly I wish the best of luck in this process!
Kudos on day 45..!! "I didn’t have good answers for ‘why drink’, I don’t have good answers for ‘why quit’ either." can relate to this so much.
What I love about this article is it's demonstration of how to enter and tolerate a liminal space. It takes so much presence and courage to let go of old reference points, whether they're points of views, a personal identity, or a habit and then allow the transition to whatever is next to arrive slowly, through a fog of patience. Humans hate ambiguity, but to walk into it and bear it is a core competency of growth, and you are beautifully demonstrating it in this article. It's also an indirect testimony to the value of writing, which I think helps us navigate the unknown.
When I read this, it’s like a demonstration of how to master an asana. With patience, presence and tuning in to what’s going on inside of you. A beautiful story, beautifully shared.
Wow. Such a powerful Piece Malavika. Thanks for sharing such a vulnerable story. It gave me goosebumps. The point of being present - its so powerful. I have been thinking myself - am I living my life as a distraction from the pain of uncontrollable stuff that destiny conferred upon me? When would I reconcile with life and agree to its gifts given to me, howsoever white-elephantish they seem to be.
I teach a group of amateur radio operators, and one of them had asked about alcohol-free drinks, so I had been researching mocktails. I can relate to feeling uncomfortable without wearing a drink along with my clothes.