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Alcoholic Relapse Every Two Weeks

by | Stop Drinking Alcohol | 5 comments

“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.” Stephen Covey

AM Question: Alcoholic Relapse Every Two Weeks, What Should I Do?

There’s not a lot of information here to work on. Do you regularly stop drinking for two weeks at at time, then start drinking again? How many times have you done this?
You need to look at what is happening in your life around that two week mark that is triggering your drinking. Is it something in your environment? Do you work for two weeks solid, then take a break and start drinking? What’s happening at the end of the two weeks?

A lot of people who start drinking again after a week or two have passed are only looking at the alcohol in isolation. Using alcohol is part of a lifestyle, it’s part of the place you live, the people you are friends with, your personal thoughts and individual culture. You can’t just take the alcohol out of the equation and leave everything else in place. You’ve got to change everything about your life that used to involve alcohol. Until you do that, you’ll fail to truly separate yourself from the booze.

“change everything in your life involving alcohol…don’t and you’ll likely fail”

Quitting using the alcohol is the simple part, it’s separating yourself from the alcoholic lifestyle that’s the difficult part because that’s what we’re surrounded by. Think about this is terms of quitting cigarettes.

In America, in the UK, here in Spain, it’s a lot easier these days to quit smoking because there are very few public places you can smoke. In our local hospital, you not only have to go outside the hospital, you have to leave the hospital grounds.

In New York, you can’t smoke in the parks, on the beaches or boardwalks, on public golf courses, and on any pedestrian plazas. It’s getting harder to buy the things because the price is going up. The perception with the public is not good any more.

It’s getting harder and harder to smoke without feeling like crap, without working hard to do it. It’s only going to get tougher.

“We don’t have those same limitations imposed on alcohol”

So you have to enforce your own. Obviously you can’t drink out on the streets, and so on, but we’re used to that, that’s already a part of our lives. You need to avoid alcohol, places where alcohol is served, people who’re drinking alcohol, and so on. It’s not going to be easy, but unless you have the determination that you’re not going to drink again, no matter what, you can’t put yourself in a situation where you’re tempted. You’ve also got to be active in building up your life that doesn’t involve alcohol. Not everyone drinks. There are plenty of things to do, to have fun, to relax, to enjoy yourself without alcohol. You’ve got to find them. Only you can do this.

“there can’t be relapse if you don’t put any alcohol into your mouth”

At the end of the day, you won’t relapse if you don’t put any alcohol into your mouth. As long as you don’t use you’ve got this beaten. Most people don’t want to hear that. They want a solution that doesn’t involve any discomfort. It’s not going to happen. This all involves you personally changing your habits. There’s no other way. Changing your habits is going to mean discomfort.

Let me know more some more details about why you find yourself using again after two weeks and I’ll see if I can offer you some more specific advice.

Don’t Expect to See Change If You Don’t Make One

Until next time…
Onwards and Upwards!

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5 Comments

  1. dorothy

    Alcohol mastery is a great help for figure out my drinking habit’s and helpful videos. Just trying to get sober
    Been long time drinking thanks again for your alcholmastery amd books videos.

    Reply
    • Kevin O'Hara

      Glad you’re finding it helpful, Dorothy.

      Reply
  2. Dave

    I have and continue to find alcohol mastery a very useful to. Thanks for sharing your stories Kevin. Anyway I have been trying to quit for sometime now, started with cutting bank to the weekends only. I find that the stress of raising children continuously causes me to hard back to the drink. Our kids are 4 and 5 years of age. That are wonderful alone or separate, but when they get together forget about it. It is fight and whine city. any advice would be great. I can’t exactly remove myself from my triggers of drinking. Thanks again

    Reply
    • Kevin O'Hara

      One of the things I’d say to you, Dave, if I could go back in time, I’d quit drinking before my son was born and do my best to lead by example. It is one of my greatest regrets in life that I have been a part of encouraging him to use this drug. In our day to day lives, the triggers are still going to be there. Your job, home, friends, and so on are all going to remain the same. These are not alcohol triggers, only what you associate as alcohol triggers. So your kids are not really alcohol triggers, you associate the whining with a desire to drink. You have to find a way of diverting the meaning of the trigger away from drink.

      Reply
  3. Glenn

    ,
    I gave up alcohol for myriad health reasons and I remain healthy but socialisation is a whole new ball game for the abstained that I wasn’t expecting.
    The most difficult thing for me about abstaining is the different dynamic that you have with everybody! No boozy giggling or that euphoric feeling as the first wave of poison washed through you. The camaraderie that indulgence brings… missing. You really do need to seek out alternatives.
    My first time sans drink at a 21st birthday (a very boozy affair) was dreadfulness! The party warms up but you stay the same and their is nothing quite as unnerving as a mob of people getting more innebriated and less inhibited.
    Good health and luck to you all.

    Reply

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