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    • Sober for six years: One person's tips for sobriety and happiness

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    Myles Sexton marks six years of being sober this week.

    The sobriety advocate made the decision to cut out alcohol and substances around the time when they were diagnosed with HIV.

    "I used alcohol and substances to really just numb my emotions," Sexton said. "And I knew that in order to heal I had to fully go sober to just sit with my pain."

    After making the decision, Sexton said they discovered reasons why they drank and used substances before.

    "You really want to think about those situations in my life when I'm reaching for the drink, is it a long day at work? Is it a fight with my partner, or my friends?" Sexton said. "When we can recognize those triggers, we can maybe realize that I'm reaching for the drink right now, instead, I'm going to go for a run."

    Sexton said "rewriting the script" on how to handle one's sobriety can help create a positive habit.

    Another revelation in sobriety, Sexton was learning how to have conversations with friends and family.

    "People aren't mind readers and that was one of my biggest mistakes when I was starting to get sober, that I was just assuming that everyone kind of understood where I was at," Sexton said. "But I needed to have those conversations with my friends and family (saying), 'I need your support.'"

     

    To hear all of Sexton's tips on how to keep sober, click the video at the top of this article. 

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