By this point, most physical withdrawal symptoms should have subsided and you should start to feel less anxious and more positive. This may work for many people, but in practice each individual will respond best to a different pace, and each doctor will have their own recommendations. The risk of tapering too slowly is that you won’t stick with it, while the risk of tapering too fast is severe withdrawal. If https://ecosoberhouse.com/ you experience dangerous signs such as high blood pressure, racing heart, or arrhythmias, slow your taper and seek assistance. If you’ve decided to taper off alcohol, you’ll need to be prepared with some strategies to make the process easier. You’ll likely face the urge to drink more than you’ve planned each day, but there are some good tricks to help you delay that next serving and keep yourself honest.

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

Remind yourself how far you’ve come, and give yourself the credit you deserve. “Know your no.” Once you begin venturing into social situations involving alcohol again, be prepared with a response when someone offers you a drink. The better you know how to handle peer pressure or awkwardness around your sobriety, the more comfortable you’ll feel in the moment. Whether it’s regular meditation, yoga, tai chi, or even a smartphone app, research shows that finding a mindfulness practice can help people stick with sobriety long-term. Mindfulness helps you gain greater distance from your thoughts and urges, making it easier to avoid falling into old patterns, and improving your overall quality of life.

Physical Benefits of Quitting 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.

Stay hydrated

But it’s also one of the most important questions you’ll answer on your road to recovery. As temptations arise or the disease of substance use disorder tells your body to give in to temptations, you’ll want to consistently return to your why. People who drink heavily are about twice as likely to have a cardiovascular event within 24 hours than people who do not drink at all. If you look out a longer time, people who drink are six times more likely to have a cardiovascular event within a week compared to people who don’t drink. This typically occurs after five or more drinks for men and four or more drinks for women.

• And you don’t have to wait until you hit rock bottom; you can make a change at any time.
• Traditional rehab, Alcoholics Anonymous, and going it alone are not the only solutions if you drink heavily.
• Doctors, nutritionists, and counselors can also help support people to stop drinking alcohol.
• Heavy drinking can actually cause the part of the brain that’s critical to memory and learning (hippocampus), to shrink.
• But we know you can find a healthier, happier way to live with the right tools and support system.

If mild symptoms do not progress, the person will likely stabilize and recover. However, people living with AUD may need to wean off alcohol slowly. People may also decide to speak with a doctor about effective strategies. In addition, local or virtual support groups can help by providing an environment to safely discuss tips and challenges.

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. If you think you might have alcohol use disorder (AUD) and decide to stop drinking completely, don’t go it alone. Build a sober social network – If your previous social life revolved around alcohol, you may need to make some new connections.

How to stop drinking alcohol: Tips for quitting, support, and more

And practice what you might say as a follow-up explanation if someone ask. Prepare yourself for those times when someone is going to offer you a drink. You might also hold onto a nonalcoholic drink instead, ask a friend to support you in difficult situations or simply exit early if temptation gets too strong, the NIAAA suggests. The urge to drink will inevitably come—so make a plan for it. Remind yourself of why you want to cut back, talk to a friend about it and distract yourself with a hobby or exercise, the NIAAA suggests. Instead of aiming for complete abstinence, for instance, aim to drink fewer than seven days a week.

However, when alcohol makes up part of your typical routine, drinking can become something of an automatic response, especially when you feel stressed or overwhelmed. But maybe you’re unsure about quitting completely tips to quit drinking and don’t want to hold yourself to that goal. It starts by telling you how Bette’s dead body was discovered, several weeks after dying of alcoholism, surrounded by rubbish in a home that was falling apart.

Try to stay focused on your end goal, and call your doctor if something doesn’t feel right. Your doctor can recommend medications that can help with alcohol withdrawal symptoms and cravings during your recovery. Naltrexone is one type of medication that can help reduce alcohol cravings, making it easier for some people to stop drinking. Before you quit drinking, it is essential to discuss your plans with a healthcare practitioner. If your alcohol consumption has been heavy or chronic, you may be dependent on alcohol. This means that if you suddenly stop drinking, you may experience symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.

• Behavioral interventions, medications, and social support can all play a role in your alcohol recovery.
• By this point, most physical withdrawal symptoms should have subsided and you should start to feel less anxious and more positive.
• “These improvements can be observed not only in people who abstain from alcohol but in people who reduce heavy drinking,” Volpicelli says.

Evaluating the costs and benefits of drinking

You can become conditioned to reach for a drink when your environment offers up certain cues. You may also consider joining an online support group to help you feel less alone. It might also be worth checking out a 12-step program in your area, like Alcoholics Anonymous or SMART Recovery, to see if it feels like something that might be useful for you. Finding or reaching out to other sober people can also help.