Overcome Alcoholism by Changing Your Strategy

Many people get discouraged at their seeming inability to get their drinking under control, and believe their failure is a reflection of their own lack of willpower. However it's important to recognize that the strategy we employ is at least as important as our willpower in learning how to stop drinking alcohol. Outlined below are 5 distinct approaches that most people take when trying to quit drinking. Look at each of these and you'll likely see the method YOU used - and perhaps one you haven't yet tried.

1. Cold Turkey. Everyone's favorite AND least favorite! This method is most popular around New Year's when so many millions of people are looking to quit drinking alcohol. Simply put, beginning on a certain date you quit ALL drinking with NO exceptions. It's not for everyone, it's hard to do, it often requires several attempts, but for some people it's the only way to quit an addiction.

2. Gradual Cutback of Number of Alcoholic Drinks: In this method you simply begin to slowly reduce the number of drinks you consume on a daily or weekly basis. By drinking just one less drink per day you begin to move your life in the direction you want. This method works fine for some people, but others find the self-control aspect difficult. Remember, it only works if you consistently reduce the number of drinks you consume.

3. Gradual Cutback of the Alcoholic Content in Your Drink: This method is a little different from the one above as you're not attempting to reduce the NUMBER of drinks you consume, but rather the ALCOHOLIC CONTENT of each drink. You can do this in a myriad of ways, but it's usually accomplished by switching to a lower-alcohol-content brand of the same beverage you've been consuming. An average beer or wine would become a lighter beer or wine, and other drinks would get an extra couple of ice cubes or more water or mixer. Keep in mind that while this method allows you to cut back by a 1/4 or a 1/3 or more of your alcohol intake, you are still consuming alcohol. If alcoholism has caused problems in your life you may want to consider one of the other steps.

4. Rehab: There are many rehab centers that you can go into, and if you're considering one I suggest you strongly consider the methods they use. I am not a fan of 12-step programs because of the "learned helplessness" part of their methodology, but only you can decide if it's workable for you. Some people simply cannot quit on their own, no matter how hard they try. If you are one of those people then I ask you to PLEASE check into rehab as soon as possible so you can get your alcoholism under control. You'll be glad you did.

5. AA: If you've read any of my Alcoholic's Anonymous articles then you realize that I think AA is NOT a viable option, and for a myriad of reasons. Numerous studies have concluded that only 5 PERCENT of AA's members are able to stay sober for even one year. They teach learned helplessness which dooms their members (who believe alcohol is more powerful than they are) to a lifelong struggle against their addiction. The 12-Steps approach has been widely criticized for being ineffective and cult-like. Furthermore, they promote the idea that alcoholism is a disease - which inevitably leads to the victim-mentality of it's members. Please note: in case you're not sure, alcoholism is NOT a disease. It's a bad habit that you've acquired over the years. And just like other bad habits it too can be broken and replaced with a healthy habit. HOWEVER, having said that, it's entirely possible that AA is a possible option for YOU. If you've tried the other methods outlined above, and have failed, then perhaps you should look into a 12-Step based program.

The Bottom Line: If you've failed numerous times at overcoming your alcoholism then you should recognize what doesn't work and change your strategy. Perhaps a combination of a couple of the methods might work best for you? Try #3 first, and then after a few weeks go to #2. The point is that you should NOT keep trying the same method over and over. Learn from your own mistakes and CHANGE YOUR APPROACH. Because when you try a different tactic you might very well be successful, and you'll soon be on the road to a healthier mind, body and soul. And isn't that what we all wanted in the first place?