How to Deal With Drinking Too Much
Cut down on your drinking if it is safe., Avoid triggering situations., Consider quitting., See your doctor., Attend a meeting., Talk to a counselor.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Cut down on your drinking if it is safe.
Give yourself a trial to see if you can maintain a lower level of alcohol consumption for two or three months.
Keep track of what you are doing in a journal in order to remember what worked and didn’t work at the end of the trial.
Before beginning, you should determine if you have a physical dependency on alcohol; if this is the case, it can be dangerous to reduce your alcohol intake without the help of a physician.
Signs that you have a physical dependency on alcohol include anxiety; nausea; abdominal pain; vomiting; irregular heart rate; increased blood pressure, body temperature, and respiration; and mood swings.
Severe side effects can actually be fatal and include hallucinations, fever, seizures, severe confusion, and agitation.
If you experience any of these symptoms, consult with a doctor before attempting to cut down on your drinking.If you are not physically dependent, cut back a little each day.
Have one less drink per day for a week.
Then reduce the amount by another drink per day over the next week, and so on until you are within safe drinking limits.Decide which days you will drink and how many drinks you will have.For example, you may know your office is going out for happy hour on Tuesday.
You don’t want to avoid it, so you will go and have two drinks.
Give yourself only a certain amount of money to spend on drinks.Drink only with dinner.
Pairing wine or beer with food can enhance the enjoyment of your meal, and is a way to set a time limit on your drinking.Drink a smaller-size drink, or a drink with a lower percentage of alcohol in it. -
Step 2: Avoid triggering situations.
Avoid places or people that make you want to drink.
If you find yourself feeling stressed out, or another emotion that triggers your drinking, find other alternatives to help you handle those emotions instead.For example, you may want to go over to a friend’s house to watch the game, instead of your favorite sports bar where you are more likely to drink too much.
If you always come home from work with a powerful craving for a drink, make a detour to the gym on the way home and work out to release your stress.
Let your friends know you are trying to cut back, and propose alcohol-free activities instead. , If you have given yourself a couple of months to try to reduce your drinking, but are still struggling, it is probably best that you consider quitting drinking.
You can develop an alcohol addiction and some serious health problems from drinking too much.
Other reasons you may wish to quit include:
Pregnancy.
Taking a medication that interacts with alcohol.
A family history of alcohol problems.
Have a condition (physical or mental) that gets worse when you drink., Talk to your doctor about your concerns about your drinking.
Your doctor can put you in touch with other people who can help you and help you consider courses of treatment, as well as give you a medical examination to make sure you do not have any physical problems related to your drinking. , Consider attending an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting to find support.
AA has meetings all over the world, and is the best known resource for recovery for alcoholism and alcohol problems.To find one near you, try searching at http://www.aa.org/pages/en_US/find-aa-resources.
You can also contact your local community health agency or religious institution to find a meeting.
If AA isn't right for you, there are other support options.
Look into SMART Recovery, Secular Organizations for Sobriety, or Women for Sobriety., Find a counselor who can work with you on addiction issues, managing the problem behavior, as well as addressing the underlying causes.
You may have an employee assistance program through your employer that can help you find a counselor in your area.
If you are a student, contact your school’s student health service for assistance. -
Step 3: Consider quitting.
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Step 4: See your doctor.
-
Step 5: Attend a meeting.
-
Step 6: Talk to a counselor.
Detailed Guide
Give yourself a trial to see if you can maintain a lower level of alcohol consumption for two or three months.
Keep track of what you are doing in a journal in order to remember what worked and didn’t work at the end of the trial.
Before beginning, you should determine if you have a physical dependency on alcohol; if this is the case, it can be dangerous to reduce your alcohol intake without the help of a physician.
Signs that you have a physical dependency on alcohol include anxiety; nausea; abdominal pain; vomiting; irregular heart rate; increased blood pressure, body temperature, and respiration; and mood swings.
Severe side effects can actually be fatal and include hallucinations, fever, seizures, severe confusion, and agitation.
If you experience any of these symptoms, consult with a doctor before attempting to cut down on your drinking.If you are not physically dependent, cut back a little each day.
Have one less drink per day for a week.
Then reduce the amount by another drink per day over the next week, and so on until you are within safe drinking limits.Decide which days you will drink and how many drinks you will have.For example, you may know your office is going out for happy hour on Tuesday.
You don’t want to avoid it, so you will go and have two drinks.
Give yourself only a certain amount of money to spend on drinks.Drink only with dinner.
Pairing wine or beer with food can enhance the enjoyment of your meal, and is a way to set a time limit on your drinking.Drink a smaller-size drink, or a drink with a lower percentage of alcohol in it.
Avoid places or people that make you want to drink.
If you find yourself feeling stressed out, or another emotion that triggers your drinking, find other alternatives to help you handle those emotions instead.For example, you may want to go over to a friend’s house to watch the game, instead of your favorite sports bar where you are more likely to drink too much.
If you always come home from work with a powerful craving for a drink, make a detour to the gym on the way home and work out to release your stress.
Let your friends know you are trying to cut back, and propose alcohol-free activities instead. , If you have given yourself a couple of months to try to reduce your drinking, but are still struggling, it is probably best that you consider quitting drinking.
You can develop an alcohol addiction and some serious health problems from drinking too much.
Other reasons you may wish to quit include:
Pregnancy.
Taking a medication that interacts with alcohol.
A family history of alcohol problems.
Have a condition (physical or mental) that gets worse when you drink., Talk to your doctor about your concerns about your drinking.
Your doctor can put you in touch with other people who can help you and help you consider courses of treatment, as well as give you a medical examination to make sure you do not have any physical problems related to your drinking. , Consider attending an Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meeting to find support.
AA has meetings all over the world, and is the best known resource for recovery for alcoholism and alcohol problems.To find one near you, try searching at http://www.aa.org/pages/en_US/find-aa-resources.
You can also contact your local community health agency or religious institution to find a meeting.
If AA isn't right for you, there are other support options.
Look into SMART Recovery, Secular Organizations for Sobriety, or Women for Sobriety., Find a counselor who can work with you on addiction issues, managing the problem behavior, as well as addressing the underlying causes.
You may have an employee assistance program through your employer that can help you find a counselor in your area.
If you are a student, contact your school’s student health service for assistance.
About the Author
William Hayes
A passionate writer with expertise in cooking topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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