How to Stop Drinking Alcohol
Professional treatment for an alcohol use disorder can involve outpatient therapy, residential treatment, or inpatient hospitalization. The level of care you need often depends on the severity of your condition. Quitting early not only improves your chances of success—it can also reduce the need for higher levels of care. Alcohol can stay in your system for several hours depending on how much you drink. Once it begins to leave your body, early symptoms of withdrawal begin. The amount of time it takes to detox from alcohol depends on several factors, including whether you’re detoxing at home or with medical supervision.
Talk to a medical pro, even (and especially!) if you’re nervous about being honest with them about alcohol.
For most people they pass quite quickly, and are just a temporary blip before they start to feel the benefits of cutting out alcohol. But if you experience these symptoms for more than about five days after stopping or find them particularly troublesome, your GP will be able to offer some advice. Whether you’re sober curious, know for sure you’re ready to quit, or fall somewhere in between, Dr. Streem shares advice for how to stop drinking. If you’re living with alcohol use disorder (also known as alcoholism), you’ll likely benefit from additional medical interventions.
What Are Some Helpful Strategies for Overcoming Addiction?
With tapering, you start slowly to minimize the chances of severe withdrawal and relapse, avoiding the shock quitting cold turkey can cause. Alcohol tapering should be personalized, based on how much and the length of time someone has been drinking. Alcohol Tapering is a method of decreasing alcohol intake slowly and in a manageable manner. Rather than quitting cold turkey, which could lead to severe (maybe even fatal) withdrawal symptoms, tapering is a slower reduction of alcohol over time.
If you have these symptoms when you don’t drink, it could be dangerous to stop drinking too quickly without proper support. If you’re living with alcohol use disorder, treatment at a medical rehabilitation facility is your best option. Through therapy, support groups and medication, you’ll be supported on your path to recovery. Dr. Streem says that if your goal is to stop drinking altogether, you’re more likely to have success quitting all at once, rather than weaning off alcohol. But that advice changes if you’re living with alcohol use disorder. If you’re considering giving up alcohol, but aren’t sure how to stop drinking, you are far from alone.
When looking at the question of how to stop drinking, first set the goal to stop drinking and then prepare your environment to stop drinking. You may find it helpful to look for mutual support groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous and other groups, where you can connect with people who share experiences similar to yours. A support group specifically focused on alcohol recovery can provide valuable encouragement and information that can aid you on your road to being free from alcohol. One study found that attitude-related barriers were the most common obstacle that people face before entering treatment for an alcohol use disorder. When you are detoxing from alcohol at a rehab center, nurses and doctors monitor vital signs, provide adequate nourishment and treat complications if they occur. If a setback happens, get back on track as quickly as possible.
- One of the most common causes of relapse after a person has quit drinking is continuing the same lifestyle as before recovery.
- If your body is physically dependent on alcohol, you may be in danger of withdrawal.
- If you think you might have an alcohol use disorder, there are evidence-based treatment options that can help you to quit drinking.
- If you taper off alcohol slowly or with medical supervision, the brain has time to adapt without causing severe side effects.
- Hence, the person has the satisfaction and peace of mind knowing that he or she is really “doing” something to overcome addiction.
Talk about it
That said, If you’ve been drinking excessively, then stopping drinking cold turkey can lead to withdrawal symptoms. Talk with a doctor to learn more about the safest ways to quit drinking alcohol. You can also learn about the options for in-patient recovery in this article.
Often, people with alcohol use disorder find that other people in their lives spot their addiction long before they do. Within just a month of not drinking, your body can begin to reap the benefits. Your liver can start to heal, your risks of heart disease and cancer go down, and you may begin to sleep better. Family and friends can provide encouragement and support when you stop drinking. By opening up about your relationship with alcohol, you might also encourage others to explore their own drinking habits. The information provided in this blog post is for educational and informational Sober House Rules: What You Should Know Before Moving In purposes only.
Boil Water Notices
Josh Lee is a clinician and researcher with a focus on medication-assisted treatment of alcohol and opioid use disorders. He has conducted multiple clinical trials examining the use of naltrexone in primary care and other community settings. As a practicing physician, Josh helps manage the NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue addiction medicine clinic in adult primary care. According to the CDC, heavy drinking is defined as 15 or more drinks per week for men and 8 drinks or more per week for women (2). You must decide this for yourself, ideally in consultation with a healthcare provider who can advise you on the best path forward given your personal drinking history and your current health.
Drink water.
Just remember that there is no single approach that works for everyone. Creating a plan is an essential part of knowing how to quit drinking. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism suggests that having a plan can help solidify your goals and give you a roadmap for how to achieve them.
Professional counseling is beneficial for people who have attempted and failed to give up alcohol independently. Outpatient treatment is also often recommended as a form of “continuing care” for those who have completed an inpatient treatment program to help maintain the long-term effects of recovery and prevent relapse. An individual essentially puts their life on hold for the period they are in rehab and commits to staying for an agreed-upon time.
Outpatient rehab can include one-on-one or group counseling sessions, the supervised use of medications to handle initial detoxification issues, and many forms of behavioral therapy. Behavioral therapy can be a highly effective treatment method in outpatient settings because it encourages patients to control their addiction. Firstly, if you think you may be dependent on alcohol, you should consult your doctor or another health professional. You could speak to your GP or a member of their team, or there are a number of national alcohol support services that you can confidentially self-refer to for advice and support. For other people, stopping drinking can be essential for medical reasons.
Detoxing at home usually takes longer because you should be cautious to avoid serious complications. You should start by determining how much alcohol you drink per day in terms of standard drinks. Changing unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, overeating, or drinking too much can take a lot of effort, and you may not succeed with the first try.
Maybe you don’t think you depend on alcohol exactly, but you still wonder whether you might be drinking too much. If you’re having trouble doing the same things you used to do, try new hobbies to fill your time. Join a gym, learn a new skill, or find sober social groups you can enjoy.
Omega-3-rich fish like salmon and mackerel may also help improve focus and overall brain health. Eating simple carbohydrates and processed foods may induce cravings. Acamprosate is believed to work by restoring balance to certain neurotransmitters in the brain that are disrupted by long-term alcohol overuse. If you experience DTs, such as confusion, disorientation, hallucinations, or delusions, seek medical attention immediately.
Furthermore, it is important to determine the extent of one’s drinking problem and the potential repercussions. Finding out for how long the addiction has been going on will be the first step of assessing the situation and choosing between the intervention programs. Whatever your https://yourhealthmagazine.net/article/addiction/sober-houses-rules-that-you-should-follow/ reason, the good news is that anyone can stop drinking. And if you’re thinking about removing alcohol from your life, you’re not alone.
