We’re here to work through an important question, to answer one simple – yet very complicated – question that many alcoholics have pondered. By the end of this brief post, you’ll have your answer. You probably already know the answer, since you’re here, but we want to “show the work”, so to speak, because that can really help light the path.
Please take a moment to honestly answer these three main questions, and sub-questions that relate to “Should I quit drinking alcohol?“
There are a lot of questions to ponder on this page. You don’t need to submit your answers, you don’t need to justify yourself or prove anything. Just take some time, and think about things with our guidance.
People will approach this big question in a number of different ways, and if you really take some time to reflect on your answers, and whether you’re being totally honest with yourself, or whether you’re trying to look for reasons to keep drinking, or to justify things, or whatever – that will tell you a lot if you’re being open and honest with yourself.
You don’t have to share your answers with anyone.
You don’t even have to make any changes in your life, if you don’t want to or if you aren’t ready yet…
That’s up to you, that’s entirely your choice.
Why are we here, then?
We’re here to help guide you towards a path, to help you look at things from a different perspective, but at the end of the day you’re the only one who can choose to walk the new path, or to stay on the path you’re currently walking.
Alright, with that out of the way, just know that we aren’t trying to preach to you, we aren’t here to judge you, and we will be here for you if you do decide to make some changes in the way you’re living. If not, at the very least, maybe you’ll have a new way of thinking about things, just a slight adjustment, and maybe that’ll help you down the road at some time, or maybe it will help lessen the harm just a little bit. Honestly, if we can help some people stop drinking, and we can help some other people drink a bit less or reduce the harm, and we can help the family members of people who drink to live a life where they aren’t blaming themselves, that will be a victory.
1. How has drinking impacted your life?
Really think about this one. Take some time, maybe write these questions down and reflect on them. The goal here isn’t just to brainstorm one time, but it’s to really let this sink in and to notice it in real time as alcohol starts impacting your life. Don’t just think about it once time and move on, make these reflections a bigger part of your life. When you reach for a drink, try to understand why, what you’re trying to accomplish, and what the real cost is.
- Think about your career, are you ever hungover at work?
- Think about your relationships, have you ever been rude or dismissive, or distant from your loved ones? Or worse?
- Think about your personal life, have you lost interest in hobbies?
- Think about your mental health, do you ever use alcohol to cope with day-to-day life?
2. Would you rather drink than do most things?
This comes back to mental health, as drinking and other forms of substance abuse are often a band-aid or go hand-in-hand with some other type of mental health issues or struggles.
- Have you ever passed up on a family event, or bailed on plans with your friends, because you wanted to drink instead?
- Do you have friends that you’re never sober around, friendships built entirely on drinking or using substances?
- Do you find yourself needing alcohol to enjoy things? For example, your favorite show’s series finale is coming up.. do you find yourself planning on watching it, with a drink? Instead of just looking forward to it?
3. Do you ever think about quitting alcohol once and for all?
Thinking about stopping drinking is a pretty good sign that this is something to consider. Once you’re having this inner-monologue with yourself, that more or less means that the answer is yes – it’s time to quit, or at least to cut back drastically, depending on your situation and how well you’re able to regulate yourself. Some people can realize they have a drinking problem and make adjustments, but other people have a stronger addiction, and having a single drop will set them off on a destructive path.
- Do you ever find yourself thinking about a life without alcohol?
- Have you fantasized about waking up and never craving alcohol again?
- Have you ever made plans to stop drinking before?
- Have you tried to stop drinking in the past, but weren’t successful?
Questions and Answers About “Should I Stop Drinking?”
There aren’t necessarily universal answers for all of these questions, but sometimes, there are.
Why can’t I stop drinking?
The first thing that you need to do, is to acknowledge that drinking is a problem. If you haven’t done that yet, you will have a very tough time stopping, because you aren’t open to acknowledging that you should stop. Beyond that, it’s an addiction, you’re addicted, and it’s not going to be easy to re-program your brain in the ways that you need to.
What is the easy way to stop drinking?
Quitting drinking is easier for some people than it is for other people. There’s no magic bullet. It’s a matter of not buying alcohol, not pouring drinks, and not putting alcohol into your mouth and swallowing it. Obviously, that’s easier said than done. You can’t necessarily make it easy, but you can make it easier by finding a community, reaching out for support, doing some reading, and doing some reflecting to understand what triggers you and what you can work on in your life to avoid turning to alcohol.
Should I stop drinking alcohol?
If you have to ask, the answer is probably yes. If you’re an alcoholic, you should work very hard towards finding a way to stop drinking, because otherwise, the outcomes are not good. If you’re just someone who likes to drink and lets it get out of hand every now and then, it’s still important to make sure you’re reigning that in before it gets worse. Some people can have a bit of a drinking problem, that they’re able to control, and they just kind of choose not to.. whereas other people are alcoholics, and it’s not as much of a “choice” in the same sense, but they can still take steps to deal with this illness.
Should I quit drinking cold turkey?
If you’re an alcoholic who has a physical dependency on alcohol, then quitting cold turkey can make you very sick, and it can even be lethal. If you drink a lot, and you’re dependant on alcohol, for example, if you wake up feeling awful and you need to drink, every morning, just to get through the morning and afternoon, otherwise, you’ll get chills, shakes, and other alcohol withdrawal symptoms, then cold turkey can be dangerous. You should seek the help of a medical professional, as you may need to be monitored during this process.
Should I give up drinking?
Think of it as “giving something up” is, perhaps, the wrong way to frame this.
Don’t think about giving up drinking, or losing something, or making a sacrifice.
Instead, think of all the things you’ll gain when you stop drinking.
You’ll save a lot of money, you’ll improve your personal relationships, it will help your career, you’ll feel better, you’ll have more energy, and you’ll regain control of your life. That’s a lot to gain!
