Asklemmy

Was a serious alcoholic for 12+ years.

I do things the hard way. I lost apartments, jobs, girlfriends, etc over and over again for years, scraping by at rock bottom. One DUI wasn't enough, I had to go get another several years later. That's the one that pushed me truly past the edge to be ready to quit. By that point, I knew very well how awful my addiction was for me. There was nothing romantic about drinking anymore. Just pain and shame. I harnessed my guilt, depression, and self-loathing and turned it into absolute, seething hatred for alcohol. Otherwise I'd fail, again, and swing through a gas station for a 40. I couldn't be around people drinking anymore. I started buying cigarettes from places that didn't sell booze. I started painting miniatures for DnD and Warhammer 40k to keep me busy at home, which worked really well for me. I didn't go to AA, but I had in the past (and I had the nerve to pound a beer beforehand and then insist - to other alcoholics who clearly knew better - that I was sober, to my unending shame).

Addiction is insidious. It talks to you in your own voice, all the time. I had to drown that out with hatred. I started replacing "alcohol" with "poison" in my thoughts. I watched drunk people downtown with absolute disgust, mostly at myself for having acted like them. And I set goals for myself, because a large part of why I drank was out of despair. I went back to (trade) school. Met a great partner. Anything and everything I could do to keep myself moving. I used to just lay in bed, drinking and watching Netflix on my phone, so I forced myself to at the very least get up and dressed and spend my days off in the living room instead. Breaking patterns, you know?

It's a lot. Sometimes, 6.5 years later, I still find myself thinking a beer would be nice. I have to shut that shit down hard. A year after I dried out, my mom passed from alcohol-caused organ failure. It was a sad, painful end for her. That memory helps keep me on track.

Find something to do. Find lots of things to do. Rewrite the way you think about your addiction and turn it into a conflict you're dedicated to winning. That voice in your head isn't your friend, it's The Enemy and it Wants You Dead.

It depends on the addiction and the individual, some may need help, others don't.

Personally, I reached a point where I was feeling so terrible (and was undergoing a battery of medical tests to find out why) that I just felt like I couldn't keep on drinking. So I stopped.

I was able to quit drinking 10 months ago thanks to the piss water know as Miller Lite and the ready availability of delicious Nonalcoholic IPAs. Thought I would be a drunk till the day I died. I slowly stepped down from drinking everyday for over 10 years by starting with 2 Miller lite tall boys and slowly stepping down to 1 then a smaller tall boy, and then finally the smallest tall boy. I had previously quit a year before and had terrible night terrors, then i relapsed aftet my father unalived himself. Still can't believe I'm sober, recently went on antidepressants and have gone over a week without smoking weed because i guess i had a severe serotonin deficiency which the antidepressants fixed. Its crazy being sober and I like it. Highly recommend reading Epictetus's Discourses or other stoicism to help you build up the mental fortitude to quit. It ain't easy, but if i can quit anyone can. You got this shit OP!

I used to smoke. Roommate and i quit at the same time and kept each other honest. It worked out really well and we're both still grateful to each other a decade later.

Addiction is so hard. It's also so easy.

You just need a fucking purpose. Get into something that will consume you in a positive way.

Buy a nice backpack, and get into a group with some novice backpackers. If you find the right thing, weaning off addiction is kinda cake. If you don't find the right thing, it's impossible.

Hiking worked for me.

For me it came down to feeling seen within a group and feeling connected to that group through some higher purpose (hiking).

Reading the comments is both depressing and uplifting.

Depressing because so many people were in bad shape at some point but uplifting because so many got out and/or are on the way up. Congrats folks!

I never viewed myself as an addict although I have autism and have an obsessive streak = I like to form heavy routines that are not often healthy.

Gave up drinking entirely 6 yrs ago since I was in a bas situation and was drinking a beer every day and it started bothering me. I quit smoking hookah about 2 months ago but I still tell myself its a pause since thats easier for me. I did the same with alcohol.

„Taking a break“ is what worked for me since my mind can’t tell me that I wont make it since there is nothing to „make“. I‘m just taking a break (which now lasts 6 yrs in the case of alcohol). It could have something to do with demand avoidance which can be a problem for autistic people (and others?).

Thanks for reading my ramble and have a nice day.

I quit drinking about 11 years ago. The first week or so was very difficult. Then the next 3 months were tough but bearable. I used several resources to help me: a therapist, some books about addiction, r/stopdrinking (there's a c/stopdrinking).

It's hardly been an issue after about the 6-9 month mark. I did have one extremely stressful time in the past year that I was somewhat close to considering the idea of drinking, but it passed.

Some people use AA (and other 12 step programs). They did not speak to me -- I did go for a few months, but in the end, I felt I didn't need it.

I am coming up on three years sober from alcohol. I lost my dad to alcohol and many other members of my family have gotten cirrhosis so I knew I needed to make changes. I joined the stop drinking community on reddit before I was ready to officially quit, and lurked. I loved hearing their stories and reasons why they were doing what they are doing. From there I learned about a book called "This Naked Mind" and reading it was just what I needed to finally kick alcohol. It talks about what alcohol does for you, what it doesn't do for you, and what it claims it does (but doesn't actually do) and it is all backed by science. It really resets the way your brain thinks about alcohol and by the end, I didn't really want to drink anymore. I realized that alcohol doesn't help me relax (it decreases my baseline so that I needed alcohol to feel normal). And it helped me better understand that alcohol is addictive and that anyone who drinks enough will get addicted- there isn't anything wrong with me for becoming addicted.

Since the book, I've been able to stick with sobriety and been really happy with that decision. My health is better, I'm more relaxed, my sleep is better, etc. I replaced cans of beer with cans of sparkling water, and I am surprised at how much I love that stuff. I now know I can't moderate drinking- there is no such thing as "I'll just have one." And that is ok. I'm happy with my non-alcoholic beer at happy hours and sparkling waters on normal nights. My friends and family are really supportive of my decision and that makes a difference too. I wouldn't have stuck with it if my friends pressured me to drink.

Whatever your addiction may be, find a positive community of people that have similar view points to you. Alcoholics Anonymous wasn't for me, but /r/stopdrinking was. Try a few things and you'll find your people. Good luck to you! You are stronger than you think!

Naltrexone and a change of scenery.

Stopping was the easy part, I drank myself into liver/kidney failure. I’ve stayed sober one day at a time.

Getting counseling, a psychological evaluation and a prescription for my anxiety helped me learn about the root cause of my drinking and how to manage it in a healthy way.

The hubbie used to smoke. When we got together, I informed him he gets smoke or me, and he put himself on a plan to quit and stuck to it. He still says he made the right decision, many years later. If he smokes I can smell it even days afterward, but it is one every six months, and he always eventually tells me about them, so in my opinion he kept his promise of quitting.

I recommend a sympathetic friend or quitting partner as the most effective method.