I think I drink too much…
If you feel that you drink too much and you feel you need help to control your drinking, then it is likely that you have already tried to control it on your own – and failed. This would indicate that the drinking has turned into alcohol dependency.
We can all use will power for a period of time to control the drinking. We are not weak people. As someone who in the past tried desperately to control her drinking, when I had to I could have just one drink and not have any more till I had a single drink several days later (when pregnant). I could stop for weeks at a time (when I wanted to prove to myself that I could and get my family off my back about my drinking). However, controlled drinking through will power was not the answer as at some point inevitably the guard would go down and I would drink far too much again, leading to all of the problems – and more – that I had been trying to avoid in the first place!
Medications
There are medications that supposedly help you to control your drinking. Acamprosate (Campral) is said to reduce craving for alcohol and Disulfiram (Antabuse) is prescribed to deter you from drinking at all in that if you imbibe alcohol having taken it, you become unwell. However, these two medications are to support control in the form of abstinence and not to help control intake. If the desire to drink is strong, acamprosate may not be sufficient. And if someone is craving a drink who is on Antabuse, and decides they want to have one, then they just stop taking the medication.
In reality, if you want help to control your drinking because you have tried to control it on your own and failed, then you are better off giving up trying to control it using your will power – that is a pretty miserable existence. It is better to accept the fact that controlling it is not possible for you and to give up alcohol all together. That probably sounds quite scary or too extreme – because the reality is that you have probably come to rely on alcohol too much – either as a regular habit which helps you function or as a ‘letting your hair down’ activity which leads to an uncontrollable binge. The fact that you want to control it probably means it is causing problems in your life.
Happy without alcohol
Believe me, I probably tried everything to control it and failed. And each time I failed I would return to drinking until I was utterly miserable and most certainly was not controlling it (again). The day I finally realised (with the help of rehab) that I could be happy without it and accepted that it was so much easier not to drink at all than to attempt to control it, then I found acceptance and freedom.
In summary – if your drinking has got to the point that you need help to control it – forget it. Attempting to control it will just lead to further failure, misery and pain. Throw in the towel and try abstinence (supported by AA and / or a programme of counselling and alcohol rehab treatment if you can). There will be nothing to stop you going back to drinking and trying controlled drinking again in the future. The good news is that once you are at the stage where you are happily abstinent (possible for us all) you will not want to!
Seeking help for a drink problem?
The Haynes Clinic is a drug and alcohol treatment centre. At Haynes we help people with all types of addiction to achieve long term sobriety. We believe everyone deserves the opportunity to have a happy and fulfilled life. Contact us on 01462 851414 for advice and information.
