How to stop drinking? - this question is asked by both drug addicts and their relatives and friends. The fact is that it is very difficult to stop drinking, why? Contrary to public opinion whether it is a habit, a lifestyle or a promiscuity, alcoholism is a serious disease, not so much physical as psychological addiction, a change in values and outlook on life.
Also, let's define how you want to stop drinking, this could be:
- Just a way out of the binge;
- A desire to stop drinking forever.
In the first case, the article "How to get out of the binge" will help you. If you want to stop drinking alcohol forever, let's try to figure it out in this article.
Your first big step to stop drinking alcohol!
There are many important things to understand in order to stop drinking alcohol.
It is almost impossible to change your inner world, your mentality, your lifestyle overnight, which you have become accustomed to for many years, and to start looking at life as a sober person does, it is almostimpossible.
It's like throwing a fish on the ground and waiting for it to immediately become terrestrial. To stop drinking, you need to rethink the importance of drinking in your life by answering the following questions to yourself:
- Don't have problems with alcohol? This is a common misconception that if it were, everyone could stop drinking at any time and never go back. But is not so?
- Do you think alcohol is not a drug? So why, after the usual retreat from the binge, do we go back to use over and over again? Why is it necessary to drink to relieve withdrawal symptoms? Because alcohol is a drug that causes a powerful physical and psychological addiction!
- Do you always have a reason to drink? And without drinking, the joys and sorrows of life vanish? Not! If you had a child and you didn't drink it, will your joy be less?
- Does alcohol help you relax and cope with stress? Does it solve these problems? Does stress go away when you get sober? Obviously not! Also, with use, a person loses the ability to relax on their own with the help of other methods.
- Do strong drinks add confidence? With who? For those you can communicate with on a bottle, trust is not required. And those with whom you lack confidence will not communicate with a drunk person.
- Do you think you rarely drink? How often do we drink that is considered rare? Is there a rate and a frequency? Obviously not! Tolerance is different for each organism, as are addiction and addiction. That for one - without consequences, for the other - alcoholism!
- Is it good for health in small doses? Yes, the poison in small doses, they say, is also useful, it is addictive, but the damage it simultaneously causes to the body is immeasurable with the perceived benefit.
- Do you drink because you think alcoholism is incurable? There are many examples of treatment for alcoholism, do you pay attention to them? Or don't you want to notice them? And they exist! If so, what is this - an excuse?
What are all these questions for? They make it clear that drug addicts glorify alcoholic beverages, attach great importance to them. Although, in fact, alcohol has no value in our life. And this is the most important thing to understand if you want to stop drinking alcohol!
How to stop drinking alcohol on my own?
Only after taking the first step, rethinking the importance of "drinking" in your life, or rather, understanding its insignificance, 
you can move on to the next step, wondering how to stop drinking alcohol on your own. To do this, you must clearly understand that the joys in life are brighter, problems must be solved, depression can be dealt with alone, the "bottle" will not do it for you!
So, in order to stop drinking alone, you need to prepare yourself correctly, take into account the important points:
- Don't be afraid of the future! Yes, changing your life can be scary, but think about it, what are you afraid of? Only the unknown, because you don't know how to live soberly. But after all, everyone is afraid of the unknown, this is the nature of man and it is absolutely normal! Furthermore, more than half of humanity lives a sober life!
- Be true to your word! We have decided to quit drinking - don't succumb to self-deception! No glass, no "small". Remember, there is a new cycle of use behind this. Don't rely on willpower to save you, not to save you! After the first glass, self-control subsides and then disappears altogether. There is willpower as long as you stay sober!
- Learn to relieve stress and relax! It can be any hobby, yoga, pilates, meditation, communication, reading books, music, personal development, cross stitching, finally - find yours! This is a prerequisite that will allow you to get used to another relaxation, without a glass.
- Sport is in a good mood! And not so much because it has a beneficial effect on health. Promotes the production of endorphins - hormones of happiness. Being in a good mood will make it easier for you to cope with life's tasks.
- Don't get bored! For nothing to do, many start drinking, smoking, injecting drugs. Boredom is the greatest enemy! Write yourself a plan for all types of employment: work, housework (you probably accumulated a lot from drinking), things for life and family development.
- Change the environment! To keep your past life from drifting back to the bottom, make sure you change your social circle to one where the same people you want to become. Here, communication on a new level and a competitive spirit will help you.
- Don't avoid the drinkers! It's strange? Yes, but effective! You will see it anytime, anywhere throughout your life after you decide to stop drinking. Therefore, it is necessary to get used to them initially.
How to stop drinking with the help of specialists?
Many people ask how to stop drinking alcohol if you can't do it alone?
The answer to this question is simple: with the help of professionals, in whose arsenal there are two effective methods:
- codes for alcoholism;
- rehabilitation center for alcoholics.
Programming will help you block the craving for alcohol for a while (1-2 years), if during this time you learn to relax, enjoy life, find a hobby, choose your sport, in other words, you canmeet all the conditions of the previous chapter, so when the coding period expires, you yourself do not want to go back to your old life.
If for some reason you understand that you cannot meet the necessary conditions on your own, then psychotherapists will come to the rescue with a rehabilitation program, where you will discover a new world, your skills and opportunities, make new friends, learn to receive thepleasure of a sober life.