Quitting Alcohol Guide: How to Stop Drinking

There’s no right answer, but you should go into quitting with a roadmap for your journey ahead. Alcohol withdrawal is one of the biggest challenges people face when they stop drinking alcohol. If you’re addicted to alcohol, the first days of quitting can be difficult. If you don’t have people currently in your life who can help you quit drinking, you’re still not in this alone. There are people willing and 16 ways to stop drinking alcohol waiting to support you, guide you and love you through the ups and downs of ending unhealthy drinking patterns.

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This can help you feel confident that you won’t act on an urge you might experience. Naltrexone is a prescription medication that can reduce your urge to drink or to drink heavily. It’s available as a pill (generic) and as a once monthly injection (Vivitrol) given in a physician’s office. Vivitrol is a bit more expensive, but does not require a daily decision. While the FDA has not approved naltrexone for moderate drinking in the U.S., it is used for this purpose in Europe.

The reality is there is no right or wrong way to give up alcohol. Tips for quitting drinking that work for another person may or may not work for you. As a specific example, an analysis of the electronic medical records of over 73 million people—including 1.26 million people with alcohol use disorder (AUD)—was published in Nature (1). Quitting alcohol cold turkey isn’t an easy feat to achieve, and it doesn’t happen overnight.

• Your long-term goal of staying healthy should keep you motivated.
• Tell trusted family and friends about your plan to quit or cut back on alcohol.
• And for others it’s a combination of factors that motivates their move to sobriety.
• Alcohol detox is the first crucial step toward sobriety, involving safe management of withdrawal symptoms with medical support, tailored treatments, and emotional care.
• Insomnia, anxiety and paranoia — the opposite effects of alcohol — are the expected results.

One of the best places to find support outside of your network of family and friends is at support groups, like AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). People in AA are either working to become sober or are in recovery. They see the pain and struggles and reality of addiction that you may feel others can’t begin to comprehend. 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 their recovery journey. Affirming intentions, knowing the reasons for quitting alcohol, and setting up the environment for success are important strategies.

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Medical experts now use the term “alcohol use disorder” rather than “alcohol abuse” to address the concern of excessive drinking. For other people, stopping drinking can be essential for medical reasons. Perhaps because of an alcohol-related medical condition like liver disease, or because they start taking medication that reacts badly with alcohol. 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.

Develop Coping Strategies

A person can improve their success rate by designing a plan to stop drinking and using the resources that work for them. Many types of support are available in the community and on the internet. However, the best strategies are those that people respond to the best. Researchers also suggest that mindfulness-based activities may help people abstain from drinking alcohol, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and meditation. For example, keeping the home alcohol-free may prevent people from drinking. Avoiding social events that involve alcohol may also help someone overcome the urge to drink.

When to Seek Help

• Your health and wellness is unique to you, and the products and services we review may not be right for your circumstances.
• Drug rehab programs provide a structured environment and various therapies to help individuals overcome substance abuse and achieve long-term recovery.
• Remember, it’s essential for anyone struggling with alcohol use to seek professional help.
• When you quit drinking alcohol, there isn’t any way around feeling like you’re missing something.
• “Try doing a ‘dry’ month like Dry January, Go Dry for July or Sober October,” says Moore.
• After you finish an alcoholic beverage, wait 20 minutes before consuming another.

If you have tried quitting alcohol but experienced these uncomfortable symptoms, you may have had more alcohol to ease the discomfort. These aspects are often a large part of why someone becomes sober curious and decides to explore ways to stop drinking. For sustained management of alcohol cravings, consider joining support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous. These groups provide a community of people who understand your struggles and can offer valuable support and advice. Alcohol cravings are intense, often overwhelming urges to drink. They can be so powerful that they dominate your thoughts, making it difficult to focus on anything else.

Feel like you should be drinking less? Start here

If you’re still feeling irritable, or if you’re not on the same page as your loved ones, that’s okay too! That’s also common, and a great topic to discuss in a support group. It’s also vital to consult a medical professional before you stop drinking. Alcohol withdrawal is a serious medical concern, and you should make a plan with your physician to ensure that you can start cutting back safely. Actionable goals can help you by giving you exact data on your drinking habits. Pick a number of drinks per week as part of your plan to cut back on drinking, and be sure to keep track of this data.

Implementing Healthy Habits

And keeping track over time gives you the chance to see if your efforts to reduce your urges and cravings are working. You have places, people, and events that are tied to drinking. Being around them could make it harder to stick to your plan.