Today is a special day for me, and I wanted to share this story with you.
On December 7th, I celebrate three years of being sober.
I wasn’t a drunk or had a drinking problem, but I didn’t need to hit rock bottom to choose to change. I wasn’t liking who I was becoming with drinking.
So, I decided to stop drinking six weeks before my last Ironman Triathlon in 2019. And I had the best race of my life!
When I returned to Texas after Ironman Florida, I started having drinks again. Two glasses of wine a night. My stomach was hurting, and I felt awful. So when I went to the liquor store to grab some wine for a dinner party, I went down the vodka aisle because I thought, well, maybe the wine was bothering my stomach.
So, I grabbed some vodka made from potatoes, and when I got home, I put everything up in the liquor cabinet. I saw my grandparents’ wine holder, and it stopped me.
My Dad, my Grandpa, and my Great Grandma drank heavily, and I believe my Dad passed due to his drinking. It was like my Grandma Fritzsching was there by my side, saying, “Now you are going from wine to liquor?”
On December 6th, I went to Costa Rica for the first time to step away from the world and figure out, “What is next?” I had just retired from my sport as an athlete after 30 years. I remember sitting in first class with a mimosa to “celebrate” my vacation to Costa Rica.
And then I thought, isn’t traveling enough to celebrate?
I didn’t drink in Costa Rica because I needed to familiarize myself with the area and didn’t speak the language fluently.
When I returned to the States, I decided not to drink and to get through the holidays. I wanted to wait for six months. Then lockdown hit, and I still wasn’t drinking. Once I made it to six months, I knew I could go a year.
Now, here I am.
I’ve never felt better in my life.
I have added my podcast for you to Listen to the “Rest of the Story…”
