Now That The Fog Has Lifted

When I first stopped drinking, I thought everything would get easier. And in some ways, it did — my mornings, my mind, my health. But what I didn’t expect was how loud life would become once the fog lifted.

Suddenly, everyone around me seemed to expect more — more patience, more energy, more organization, more of everything. As if sobriety had turned me into a superhuman version of myself. But I’m not. I’m still me — just without the blur that once softened the edges.

The truth is: I feel proud. Six months sober is no small thing. But I also feel tired. Some days, the weight of responsibility presses down harder than ever. Because now, there’s no escape — no glass to dull the noise or blur the chaos.

And yet, beneath the exhaustion, there’s something new: a quiet voice that says, you matter too. That it’s okay to rest. That it’s okay to take time for myself — to paint, to read, to simply sit with a cup of chai and not be anyone’s solution for a while.

Sobriety didn’t give me a perfect life. It gave me a real one. And I’m still learning how to live it — fully, honestly, and sometimes, just one breath at a time.

If you’re somewhere between proud and exhausted too — you’re not alone.