Kelly, I just joined 12step-online.com not three minutes ago and when I saw your title on this post, I knew I wanted to share how I relate. First, thank you for bringing this up; I’ve been to many meetings where people have expressed similar reactions.

Right now, it’s late Friday afternoon. Fridays and Saturdays are the hardest for me to maintain my sobriety. I was a social user, and I don’t mean that in the way that means I only dabbled in my drug habit here and there; oh no, I was a hardcore user and to be blunt, I am financially stable enough to buy everyone else’s drug of choice too. Not at all out of the kindness of my heart; I knew I was sinking and I was going to drag everyone else down with me.

I relate to what you describe as feeling alone because I haven’t made any sober friends. I don’t know how to make friends without a martini in my hand. Fridays and Saturdays are hard for me (I would describe it as white-knuckling it) because I look at the clock constantly and almost romanticize my past use, like “Oh, now I would be calling all my friends and making plans” or “God, 11 p.m., I’d be the life of the party now”. When I saw your title “Sobriety vs. Staying Sober”, I feel this battle going on in my own sobriety. You literally took the words right out of my mouth. I feel like I’m not even staying sober for me, but for my husband, who I don’t want to disappoint. I am so bored in sobriety.