How to Quit Drinking Alcohol for Newcomers

If you are new to the idea of quitting drinking then there is an overwhelming amount of information that you should probably know.

The easy way to do this is to simply make the decision to quit drinking and then jump in with both feet and dedicate your whole life to the idea of quitting for a while. This is probably the only way to really get results in doing so because anything less than this will generally result in relapse. Yes it is difficult to quit drinking but if you dedicate your entire life to the idea then it is quite manageable.

How to actually quit drinking

My first recommendation is to go to treatment. This is really the best choice for you in the beginning because it provides the following benefits:

1) Safe environment - where you will not be tempted to drink.

2) Medical detox - this is important because quitting drinking is quite dangerous and can actually kill you if you're not being supervised closely.

3) Peer support - this is important because you need help from others in order to maintain sobriety. Meeting other people who are on the same path as you are is important so that you can increase your odds of staying sober in the long run.

After you leave treatment

After you have left treatment then you will want to follow up with anything that they recommend that you do to stay sober. Many times this will be outpatient treatment or meeting attendance or even long term treatment. Whatever they recommend, it is a good idea to follow it because they are the experts and you need guidance in this early stage of recovery. You will want to heed their advice and try to follow through with their aftercare recommendations.

In early recovery your focus will be on networking with others and probably on group therapy and meetings. This is fine as that is what works in early recovery. But if you want to quit drinking in the long run then you need to realize that your priorities must change as you stay sober for longer and longer.

What needs to happen is a shift towards real living. Recovery is about life, not about groups and therapy. In the long run, you will do well in your sobriety if you focus on holistic health and also on personal growth:

1) Holistic health - you want to try to be healthy in a number of ways, not just from abstaining from alcohol. You should look at exercise, nutrition, but also at mental health, emotional balance, and so on. Look at the health of your relationships. You want to strive to be healthy in all areas of your life.

2) Personal growth - if you just sit on your couch all day then you will have a hard time staying sober. Finding new ways to grow as a person will be critical to your long term success in recovery. When you create positive things in your life and experience this type of growth, it is a huge boost to your recovery efforts and self esteem in general. Anyone who is experiencing this type of growth consistently is in no danger of relapsing.

So those are the basics of how to quit drinking alcohol. I recommend that you follow these strategies regardless of what program you are working on in your recovery.