How to Drink Less Alcohol: 9 Tips for Drinking Less and Enjoying It More

How to Drink Less Alcohol: 9 Tips for Drinking Less and Enjoying It More

She incorporates cultural relevance and non-traditional interventions and strategies to strengthen her clients’ steps towards goals of behavioral, emotional, social and mental wellness. But if you’re living with alcohol use disorder, drinking is more than a habit. People with alcohol use disorder can’t stop drinking even when it causes problems, like emotional distress or physical harm to themselves or others. That said, If you’ve been drinking excessively, then stopping drinking cold turkey can lead to withdrawal symptoms. 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.

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Find activities that are mentally and emotionally nourishing and bring you joy, and identify ways to connect socially with friends, says Witkiewitz. “Try doing a ‘dry’ month like Dry January, Go Dry for July or Sober October,” says Moore. In January 2020, more than 6 million people reportedly participated in Dry January, a campaign to reduce alcohol consumption organized by Alcohol Change UK. Follow-up research suggested that most tended to drink in healthier amounts afterward. “Once you have a sense of how much you’re drinking, it’s helpful to track how many drinks you’re having per day,” says Witkiewitz. “You could use a calendar, journal or any number of tracking apps.” Drink Control Alcohol Tracker or Less are two examples of free tracking apps available on iOS devices.

How to Stop Drinking: Making a Plan That Works for You

Waiting for your evening meal before you have a drink – and having your first only once you’ve started eating – is another simple way to help you cut down. Sticking to a budgeted amount for alcohol can be a good way to drink less. If you are going out, try taking only the exact cash, or set up a spending alert on your card.

1. People who only drink occasionally probably won’t notice any physical or psychological symptoms.
2. This fear gives you a healthy respect for the process and ensures that you take it seriously.
3. Of course not, in fact – most people who stop drinking with Allen Carr’s Easyway do so without any unpleasantness at all.
4. He said that despite what people may think, you can still socialise and enjoy yourself without alcohol.
5. I personally used to worry that I wouldn’t be strong enough to stay sober.
6. Letting others know about your choice to stop drinking may help motivate you to stick with your decision.

When Does Drinking Every Night Become Alcohol Dependence?

And practice what you might say as a follow-up explanation if someone ask. There’s a reason you’ve reached the decision to quit or cut back. Whether it’s improved relationships, better health, or weight loss, keeping the “why” in sight can help boost your motivation. You don’t have to leave the house to get support from other people who understand and respect what you’re trying to do. In fact, you can find it online with sites like Sunnyside, which helps you create a customized plan, Tempest, Moderation.org or Ben’s Friends for people who work in the food and beverage industry.

It can be helpful to learn more about alcohol use disorder (AUD), which is a medical condition characterized by drinking more than you want and for longer than you want, despite wanting to cut down. It can be helpful to make a plan ahead of time for how to handle a relapse. For example, some people choose to write a list of reasons why they want to stop drinking alcohol, and revisit the list to remind themselves after a relapse. You may want to speak with a loved one or therapist about a strategy to prevent relapses from happening. Talk to your doctor or a drug treatment specialist about what to expect as you experience alcohol withdrawal.

Maggie Seaver is the digital health and wellness editor at Real Simple, with seven years of experience writing lifestyle and wellness content. She spends her days writing and editing stories about sleep, mental health, fitness, preventive health, nutrition, personal development, relationships, healthy habits, and beyond. She loves demystifying complicated health topics, debunking wellness fads, and sharing practical, science-backed solutions for healthy living. Delirium tremens (DT), also known as alcohol withdrawal syndrome, is a severe form of withdrawal that can happen when a person gives up alcohol. It affects between three and five percent of people who are quitting drinking and can be fatal. There are times when cutting back on your drinking can be helpful, but there are times when quitting alcohol altogether is the best solution.

That means looking at your relationship with alcohol so you can understand why you drink, when you drink and how much you drink. There’s a strong link between heavy drinking and depression, and hangovers often make you feel anxious and low. If you already feel anxious or sad, drinking can make this worse, so cutting down may put you in a better mood generally.

If you try one method and it doesn’t work, don’t lose hope. There are effective treatment approaches that can help you quit, so talk to your doctor or a mental health professional if you need more help finding options that will work for you. Common alcohol withdrawal symptoms can include nausea, shaking, and sweating—which after the high the dea can be unpleasant or even dangerous. In order to quit drinking, you may need proper medical support to detox safely. It’s hard to quit drinking when you only see yourself as a person who normally drinks but is taking a break. Whether your goal is long-term or short-term sobriety, this is the wrong mindset.

In theory, setting one big giant goal of “never drinking again” makes sense. Unfortunately, immediately setting your mind to achieving this one and only hard-and-fast goal is why many people struggle to quit drinking or why they relapse early on in https://sober-house.org/bromism-wikipedia/ their recovery journey. Changing a nightly drinking habit can feel overwhelming, and you don’t have to do it alone. At Monument, you can get prescribed FDA-approved medication to stop drinking that research shows can help reduce alcohol cravings.

If you’re having difficulty sticking to your goal or just want some extra guidance, consider reaching out for professional support. Satisfying hobbies can distract you from wanting to drink, but they also help you relax — something everyone needs to do. That said, you don’t need to say anything more than “No, thanks.” Practicing your refusal ahead of time can help you feel more comfortable and confident when you find yourself in a situation that involves alcohol. From month-long sobriety challenges to the Sober Curious movement, more and more people are taking a closer look at the role alcohol plays in their lives. Although Clark says he didn’t have a severe problem with alcohol, he came to the realisation that he had an ‘unhealthy relationship’ with it which he needed to nip in the bud.

You might run into obstacles along the way that tempt you to drink. Keep in mind the reasons you chose to cut back on or quit alcohol. Maybe you’ve never been interested in logging your innermost https://sober-house.net/cognitive-behavioral-therapy-for-relapse/ thoughts, but journaling can be a great tool to track your feelings as you work on quitting alcohol. By avoiding alcohol, you’re taking a big step toward improving physical health.