Good Morning!

[HelloKitty1981]

Good afternoon,

• Hope everyone has had a good day, and yes cheese is must @PeppyPatti @

[Macqua]

And a good morning to you all!

@HelloKitty1981 @PeppyPatti @MDT @Glisten @Mustang67 @TAB @Shaz51 @Jynx @tyme & anyone else I haven’t been able to remember to tag ✨

Prepare for a huge update:

I have missed the daily forums, however, had to take some time for myself. First things first, I hit a month sober and today is 34 days!!! Such a huge accomplishment for me but it did come with a particular hardship; a month was a cycle in the past as I’d tend to relapse due to a build up of stress, cravings or wanting to celebrate, thus I got very anxious surrounding the “what if” I “fail” in this cycle again. I used my support systems and really pushed through! I’m feeling so strong this time around!

At the end of September, I got to see my amazing psychologist. We did the K10 but bigger test and my results were insanely good! Depression, anxiety & stress have all finally moved out of the severe phase for the first time in years. We’ve identified that I still have stress but am not letting it rid me with that anxious feeling, and that my depression is linked to a feeling of worthlessness but we’re working on that with lots of self-care and affirmations.

I have an intake into a second AOD & MH program that goes for 12 weeks which includes seeing a counsellor. They were shocked how eager I was to get it all started and that I’d been attending their share group already.

I’m struggling a bit with insomnia due to a medication, however, it’s slowly getting better and the doctor is working with me on fixing it.

I’ve started socialising on discord again but can’t wait to get out into the real world again as there’s some real pieces of work on there (also some fantastic people so you win some you lose some).

Still continue to be a great “housewife” at home during the day which I heard dad bragging about my efforts to mum last night which was really reassuring! I’m enjoying it as it’s making me feel useful plus we have some outings during the week; today we’re going to Garden World for a shop and morning tea.

All in all, I’m grateful for how positive life is at the moment and plan to continue ensuring it stays that way.

Spiel over & hope you’re all keeping well in your own ways 💕

[TAB]

geez, well done @Macqua  I have alcohol issues. had help a long time ago , but getting pushed about it again by GP, psych

[Glisten]

@Macqua your news made me more excited than Australia winning the Bledisloe Cup 🏆

G

[PeppyPatti]

The what ? I looked it up it's a rugby game.  Bledisloe Cup. I feel a little more intelligent. 

@Macqua @Glisten @TAB @HelloKitty1981 @MDT 

@MJG017 

@SmilingGecko @greenpea 

Iv decided to begin   writing my story. This will take 20 years. My paragraph writing is Atrocious but my spelling is passable. 

And no one will care. Yet if I send it to the prime minister Anthony he may use it if his loungeroom window pain breaks and he needs something to stop rain coming in. 

Hence - remember that memory of Keats - name written in water ? That's me. 

https://wordsworth.org.uk/blog/2021/02/23/writ-in-water-the-gravestone-of-john-keats/

[Jynx]

Oh my stars @Macqua this makes me giddy!! I can only imagine how nice it would have felt, seeing the evidence of your improvement right in front of you!!

Thank you so much for sharing, and I am keen to see how your recovery continues to unfold. Biggest kudos for all the efforts you've put in to get to this point!! 😍💜

[PeppyPatti]

Such a big  story - I have no idea how tough this is however an dealing with someone I know trying to quit. 

Love your writing. 

It is about little steps,  right ? 

It feels like that how you have written about it. 

You've missed daily forums 

First big goal - 34' days sober. 

However it's triggered from past actions 

Saw fantastic Psychologist 

Did k10  but bigger test

..............................................depression, anxiety & stress 

Have been addressed. 

In particular ; depression 

Is something that is associated with worthlessness. 

What is this all about ? 

............................................

Second intake with oad and mh program for 12 weeks.  

Eager to start +got  positive feedback. 

......

Insomnia    /medication effects

Begun socialising on discord 

Positive feedback from family  members I live with 

Grateful

I'm mindful things like socialising on discord, activities during the day and staying busy is only a beginning 

But you are at a good place to tackle your next goal. 

Is this correct ? 

[tyme]

Wow @Macqua ! Congrats on the 34 days sober! So proud of you!

The first 3 months are the hardest, yet I can already see how much better you feel. Hang in there my friend. Sitting with you and walking with you.

[Mustang67]

@Macqua I am so happy for you. That is awesome what you have managed to achieve.

Having a great psychologist is the key.

I have a therapists who was able to help me let go of the guilt I felt over my partner's death.  I carried it around for 21 years. And she literally got rid of it by asking one question that no other MH professional thought to ask.

Keep up the fantastic work 👏 🤗😊

[Judi9877]

Good morning @Mustang67 @tyme @PeppyPatti @Jynx @Glisten @Macqua @TAB @MDT @Shaz51 @Ru-bee @SmilingGecko @Faith-and-Hope @Appleblossom @Meowmy and all forumites here. Happy Tuesday! I hope your day is fabulous and you take care of yourself!

@Macqua - Great job on the alcohol issue! Well done⭐️!

@MDT i hope you’re able to work things out with your employment situation soon.

As for me, I’m in Sydney about to return home to Melbourne after being on a cruise from 27/9-6/10 to the Great Barrier Reef. I had a great time on the cruise with Carnival Splendor despite the ship not leaving Sydney until 9pm on the 27/9 as it arrived late into Sydney due to poor weather. I tried to make the most of the holiday as I had to put my cat Mitz down on the 26th via a telephone call from the vet nurse as she struggled to recover from DKA diabetes issues. My housemate and I are still trying to get over the news but we made the best of the holiday as we knew that Mitz would want us to be happy and enjoy it. My housemate was seasick for 6 out of the 9 days of the cruise in various parts of the day/night which was partly my fault as I got a front cabin on deck 9 which can be a very rocky part of the ship so she lived on seasickness meds and the use of garbage bags we picked up from Coles in Sydney when we arrived on the 25/9. Let’s just say I was a great cruiser as the only real issue I had was the odd sinus issue and a minor cold which i attributed to the changes in weather between Sydney (was cold and wet on Friday and Saturday which meant I couldn’t watch the AFL Grand Final on pool deck despite them showing it on the big screen and only learnt the result that my Brisbane Lions won when I came out to get a drink at 5:20pm). Airlie Beach was hot and not as exciting or as enjoyable as I thought it would be which kind of suited the day as my housemate and I got a phone call from our new real estate agent to say the landlord is giving us 60 days notice to leave the property as he wants to move back in- not a great way to enjoy a holiday but I was expecting it as he’s been trouble ever since January when he spent 2 months trying to renovate a bathroom and has made derogatory comments all throughout the lease period - nearly 3 years- so now we’re on the hunt for a new property. Not the best in a rental housing crisis in Victoria but we’re going to look at possibly going into regional Victoria about an hour from where we live on the outskirts of metro Melbourne as houses are slightly cheaper and possibly easier to get. I’m also getting a new used car as my current one hasn’t worked for 18 months as I haven’t had the cash to get it fixed and have been using Ubers and public transport to get around. Cairns - Kuranda- was great and we really enjoyed the train ride as well as the town. We also got to Moreton Island which was boring so we didn’t spend much time there. The cruise had plenty of things to keep us busy and I’m glad I took my knitting and cross stitching as I had lots of time to do it as I couldn’t use my phone due to not having international roaming and internet access whilst at sea. The TV in the cabin had some tv and movie channels with a favourite being the ship map channel as my housemate became fascinated with how fast/slow the ship was going and where it was in the ocean- helped her deal with her seasickness as if she felt it was too fast/rough, she would leave the cabin and go to lower levels of the ship to get relief. Believe it or not, she chose to book another cruise on Friday next September to go to Port Douglas - 10 days instead of 9- so that’s planned and booked with a discount from the cruise company and with plenty of notes taken in my phone of what to pack and plan for the next cruise - lots of seasickness meds, garbage bags, extra knitting needles and wool for her to do and a cabin in the middle of the ship where it’s apparently a lot calmer and safer for her! As for staying in Sydney the extra days after the cruise, that was decided on the day the ship came into Sydney late on the 27/9 as we didn’t want to get caught out and miss our flights on the 6/10 if the ship docked in late - it arrived on time around 7am but as we had secured extra accommodation til today, we made the most of the extra days by going to Manly via ferry on Sunday and Bondi yesterday. Overall a great holiday despite the issues and 1 I’m happy I did. Now it’s back to reality as of tonight in Melbourne and the stress of packing up the unit and getting a place or having to move in with my sister until we get a place. Fingers crossed things are on the improvement for us and we move onto bigger and better things! 

Take care of yourself and stay safe! 
Judi9877☺️🌻