When you finally stop drinking after misusing alcohol for several years, your body starts to recover from the effects of excessive drinking, and you start feeling better.
In most cases, people with alcohol use disorder tend to give up the hobbies and social activities they once enjoyed and instead focus on drinking. Living a sober life is having adequate time to reflect and rediscover yourself, your passions and start building a better, exciting addiction-free life.
1. Start With a Plan
Before you get started, it’s imperative to sit down and thoroughly consider your options. Go over all the details and select a structure that will work for you. This involves figuring out what you can do when you are tempted to drink or people you can reach out to when you need support. The idea is to have several coping strategies in advance, but you must be ready and willing to follow through.
Most importantly, it helps to understand your drinking patterns or triggers so that you can plan to avoid any situation that may lead to drinking.
When you take time to understand yourself fully, it becomes easier to prepare and be stronger just in case the going gets rough.
Besides, it pays to know the reasons why you want to quit alcohol. Write the goals down and reward yourself every time you hit a milestone. And while it may feel daunting at first, positive results will motivate you to move forward.
2. Build a Strong Support Team
Quitting alcohol becomes much easier with the right friends, allies, and mentors. Participating in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) groups is among the best ways to find a supportive community. In addition, mentors and recovery professionals can be instrumental in your recovery journey. Typically, having someone experienced in recovery matters can help you stay on track, hold you accountable, and provide trustworthy advice.
You can also talk to friends or relatives about your recovery goals and ask for their support. If the people close to you understand your struggles and are prepared to help, it will be easier to stop drinking since you’ll encounter fewer triggers. And when things get unbearable, at least you’ll have people to talk to and stay on track.
3. Replace Alcohol with New and Interesting Activities
Consider activities like a gym workout after work instead of drinking. Also, you can seek out social groups that participate in hobbies like sports, music, hiking, and DIY crafts. The idea here is to fill your schedule with other things to distract you from drinking. As you make it a routine, the new hobbies and activities will replace your drinking.
Eventually, you will be occupied by the various social activities that exist without alcohol. Also, some apps and online communities can help you link up with other sober or recovering people who share similar interests.
Alcohol-free activities and pursuits will help distract you from drinking in the short term. But as time goes, they become a part of your life and lead you to a fulfilling, alcohol-free life. Therefore, make sure you choose an activity that truly interests you.
Conclusion
Quitting drinking and living an alcohol-free life can take time, so be kind to yourself if it doesn’t happen fast. If your ultimate goal is about complete sobriety, you’re doing your body and loved ones a favour, and that’s enough reason to press on.
If you have decided to quit drinking, it’s best to find out more about the types of recovery options to help you achieve long-term sobriety. At The Sydney Retreat, we are committed to helping recovering individuals find their balance and enjoy a drug-free life.
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The Sydney Retreat is a peer led recovery approach that benefits from the lived experience of people in recovery. Not only will you be provided with the tools to stop drinking and using drugs, you will become a part of a community who help one another to get sober and stay sober. If you have a problem with alcohol and or drugs, this is a unique and affordable opportunity that will change the direction of your life. Get help today.