Top left: Me and my best friend sampling pink bubbly during a trip to Frankfurt, Germany, in 2016. Top center: Me drinking alone at a favorite wine and cheese shop. Top right: Me leaving for work in the morning after two bottles of wine the night before. Bottom left: 6 months sober. Bottom center: 12 months sober. Bottom right: 1.5 years sober.

What Happens After Two Years Without Alcohol

Today, I celebrate two full years without allowing a single drop of wine or other alcohol touch my lips.

Considering at one point it was very easy for me to drink a bottle — sometimes two — in a single night (every night), I’d say this is an accomplishment worthy of some reflection and celebration.

Year One

Last November, I took some time on this platform to explain my views on why I would never label myself an alcoholic and why I don’t believe there is such a thing as alcoholism. Almost 10K people have read that post, and thanks to all of you who went out of your way to comment on your own struggles with alcohol use.

In that same article, I also explained my personal experience in the fragile early days, weeks and months of being alcohol-free before I could finally feel confident in my sobriety.

That was year one: The time of learning how to sit with your feelings no matter how comfortable they are. The time to pull old traumas out of the closet so you can purge them for good. The time to consider what is it you truly want out of your life and what you need to do to get there.

Most importantly, year one is a time to build your arsenal of coping strategies and tools that…