Using Alcohol to numb our feelings

[Kittyruns]

I am trying an Alcohol Free 30 day experiment as I have recently begun to think that drinking too many beers ramps up my anxiety. And we all know what happens when our anxiety gets out of hand. So, I was visiting my sister and her husband a few weeks ago. My sister and I talked about how terrible our anxiety gets with a hangover. I did this back in January of 2020 and I felt so wonderful that I couldn't believe it. And then Covid happened. And so now I am staring addiction to alcohol in the face as a symptom of TMS. Steve Ozanich says that Alcoholism is an attempt to alleviate anger of past relationships! I know this is truth! I will keep you all posted on how the experiment goes! I will be journaling like crazy!

 

[Baseball65]

Alcoholism is an attempt to alleviate anger of past relationships!

I found the 12 step program in my early 20's. After I had made most of my amends and all of the 'dramatic' portion of the program, I got really bored doing 10th steps and 4th steps (Inventory which is primarily about ANGER) because all of my anger and resentment seemed to be redundant and boring. I did it every morning and I eventually thought "this isn't that important anymore."

So...about a year into THAT the majority of my pain symptoms showed up.... the ones that eventually brought me to my knees and then, mercifully, Sarno. It was very easy to believe that repressed rage caused TMS when I had neglected my 'rage filter' for a year. I immediately began writing inventory...and I had a very quick resolution of my my TMS symptoms.

I was having a discussion with a younger man about inventory last night. I told him I was glad I had TMS. Unlike Alcoholism which is a mindfuck and the people suffering from it do not think they are suffering from it, the pain of TMS is dramatic and attention getting and keeps me waaay more regular about inventory than my drinking could have. TMS has a shorter leash.

 

[Cap'n Spanky]

I've often thought there were many parallels between A.A. and this program. The basic steps you take are different. A.A. is much older, more regimented, and mapped out. But it in the end, both programs use a psychological (and sometimes spiritual) process to recover from the confounding problems of alcohol addiction or chronic pain, etc. Both programs rewire those neural networks.

If you find yourself struggling, I'd highly recommend checking out A.A. Like this program, it is a tremendous opportunity for growth.