Get Sober by Avoiding These 2 Mistakes

You may have plenty of good reasons to quit drinking alcohol, but if you are sincere about cutting back on your alcohol consumption there are two major mistakes that must be avoided at any cost. These mistakes are so detrimental to your health that - if you continue to make them - they alone have the power to completely sabotage all of your efforts to control your drinking. Conversely, by avoiding these two mistakes you continually empower yourself, and your day-to-day resolve to avoid alcohol grows stronger and stronger. Now, here are the two mistakes to avoid at any cost:

Mistake #1: Skipping Meals

Nearly all alcoholics, and many of those who may be considered problem drinkers, tend to "drink" at least one of their meals a day. That is, instead of eating a nutritious, filling lunch or dinner, they will have several (or many) alcoholic drinks as their "meal." Think back to the last day you ate 3 or 4 good, solid meals ... AND abused alcohol. Can't remember? That's because it probably didn't happen.

Oh, you may have had a couple of drinks with a full meal, but it's highly unlikely that you truly abused alcohol the same day you ate 3 or 4 meals. That's because when it comes to eating well OR abusing alcohol, it's going to be one OR the other for nearly everyone, not both. Food and alcohol simply send different signals to your brain and body. One fills you up, leaves you feeling satisfied and contented, and gives your body the essential nutrients it needs for you to look and feel your best. The other is almost immediately converted to sugar, giving your body a false sense of empowerment from the "sugar high", while in reality offering nothing of nutritional value for your body. And when you're knee-deep in the midst of a sugar rush, you're simply not going to turn around and enjoy a full course meal. Your body simply wants more sugar, which it can immediately get from alcohol. It does NOT want real nutrition from whole, solid foods.

Likewise, when you're in the habit of eating 3 or 4 solid meals a day, your body no longer sends you signals that it wants that sugar rush from alcohol. It instead signals you that it is satisfied with a full stomach of real food by sending warm, contented feelings throughout your mind and body. You must never, ever skip a meal - especially if alcohol is causing problems in your life. Your "secret weapon" to resist drinking alcohol is to get into the habit of eating at least 3 square meals a day. And when you make 100% certain that you enjoy a healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner, you'll be amazed at how low - or nonexistent - the urge is to drink alcohol becomes.

Mistake #2: Keeping Alcohol at Home or Work

You may have fallen into the trap of purchasing a large quantity of wine or beer (or other liquor) to keep at home or work in order to "save" a few extra bucks. Or, because you don't want to bother running out to the store when you have company over. Or, maybe you just like having some around the house "in case" you feel like drinking later on. Of course, what usually happened when you did this is that you ended up drinking alcohol simply because it was there, and you probably would NOT have drank alcohol if you had to run to a liquor store to buy it.

You have made an environment that is full of contradictions: Yes, you WANT to be healthier ... and yes, you WANT to have more money ... but you are SURROUNDING yourself with things that HAVE TO lead to the OPPOSITE result. If you keep alcohol at home you are acting in much the same way as an overweight person who inwardly desires to lose weight, but keeps his or her cabinet and refrigerator stocked with junk food. You simply are NOT going to get the result you want if you constantly surround yourself with things that lead in the OPPOSITE direction. It will be next to impossible for you to feel healthier and happier - and more in control of your life - as long as you make it EASY and CONVENIENT to drink alcohol.

You must never, ever keep alcohol at home ... for any reason. When you stop keeping alcohol around your home and office you make it HARDER to drink - and EASIER to be healthy. This is not to say that there won't be times when you'll still run out to the store to purchase an alcoholic beverage, but by making it a less CONVENIENT to drink, you are thereby making it easier to spend another day clear headed and sober. And you'll guarantee yourself another day of waking up feeling good about yourself and your life.

The Bottom Line

When you avoid skipping meals and avoid keeping alcohol at home you improve your ability to resist drinking alcohol by a thousand fold. Don't allow yourself to make those 2 BIG mistakes, and you'll soon be on your way to feeling healthier and happier than you have in a long, long time.