A few days ago, I earned a top comment (FYI, first ever) by supporting an Op who drank on his/her day 55 and felt regretful. I wrote that resetting a badge wasn't mandatory. A fair amount of anger ensued and the balance of votes earned me the top comment.
I am inspired by every nondrinker/alcohol-free/struggling person on this sub.
I sometimes think an alcoholic beverage would be really nice and fun, but so far, I am dedicated to personally feel the long-term effects of complete abstinence....I'm only 3 months into a much longer journey.
Life in every aspect has improved measurably, and thus reinforcing abstinence.
I do not believe that one shitty night out of more than 50, 100, 500, or n should redefine a person's commitment to being alcohol-free and thus make them unethical, uncommitted, or an impostor in this sub by not resetting a badge (this sub is special because it is not a pious/dogmatic AA community).
Moderation of my drinking did not seem feasible, and the real-life stories on this sub are inspiring me to reach deeper into sober life, live without a crutch that readily becomes an addiction, and not hit rock-bottom by pretending life was not negatively impacted by my alcohol dependence.
I knew a priori that my feedback would personally insult some members for my "naivety" with real-life addiction. However, I like testing hypotheses. I support Recovery by being supportive of a Process/Path rather than adhering to "only one true road to recovery".
In conclusion, this sub is the most useful and beneficial support group I've ever participated in (AA, Secular AA, Humanist Society support groups, etc are in my repertoire). Here, we will debate here, we will support each other here, we will share truths; here, we will be transparent with our lives/addictions/advice; and here, we will find the corroborating evidence to overcome our respective addictions to alcohol.
I could not continue to be successful in my fight with alcohol addiction without this sub being exactly as it is. If this post (one in an ocean of goodwill) helps you understand why r/stopdrinking is vital to this world we (will) love, then I am truthfully just another fish in a school of others that really, really, really care about you becoming free from alcohol addiction.
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