A year on, saying no to alcohol, publicly

Thanks to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), I’ve completed a year of abstinence. It was a joyous anniversary as I kept my resolution to stay sober without setting any time limit. In 18 years, I had never dared to quit drinking for even a month at a stretch. So I thought of sharing the “good news” with friends on social media.

Just as I started keying in the information, my wife sitting beside expressed surprise saying, “This is not something you should share with friends and that too on Facebook! This is a personal matter. Why would other people be interested in your quitting alcohol?”

Her words made me rethink my decision and I postponed the matter.

Before going to sleep that night, I thought: What’s wrong in sharing a positive piece of information? My post could inspire an alcoholic like me who, after reading it, may pledge to quit drinking. In addition, my post will always remind me of my resolution, thus stopping me from going the ‘wrong’ way again. Moreover, with liquor shops closed during the Covid-19 lockdown and recent curfew, some of my friends who used to drink alcohol every evening were left high and dry. I thought this was the perfect time to give them the message about quitting alcohol. I made up my mind to go ahead and shared the post at midnight.

A deluge of comments started pouring in. All my friends praised me for keeping my word. Some could not believe it and said that I was just joking. One friend said that he was surprised that I had completed a year without any declaration and now he too would start trying to give up drinking liquor.

Around noon, I received a call from a former colleague who confided that he was motivated after reading the post and pledged to give up alcohol at least for a year. Another friend was cynical and said, “A year is not a big deal. There are many who have quit alcohol for that long.” In response to his comment, I replied, “It’s a celebration of a good start.”

A member of AA put my comment in a shared group that has members from all over the country. I started getting congratulatory messages and calls from all across. My phone was engaged throughout the day. The calls and messages just filled me with confidence and strengthened my resolve. I was convinced that the decision to quit alcohol a year ago was a huge achievement. I was feeling happy and satisfied.

When I talked to my AA sponsor the next day, he was of the opinion that promoting a good thing is not a bad thing. The purpose of the organisation is to keep people away from alcohol by motivating them and if this purpose is fulfilled in any legitimate way, then there is nothing wrong with it.

My wife, who witnessed the developments, too seemed to be pleased with my decision to share my achievement and finally said, “Congratulations on the big day!”

I STARTED GETTING CONGRATULATORY MESSAGES AND CALLS FROM ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY. I FELT HAPPY AND SATISFIED