One of your new year resolutions might be to stop drinking. Perhaps you’ve been worried about the effects alcohol has on you, or you feel that alcohol has put a strain on your relationships. Drinking could have even gotten you into career, legal, and other life troubles. Whatever the reason, you think that it’s time to stop—but you’re not sure how to quit drinking.
This guide is here to help you understand the process of recovery. Let’s go through the signs of alcohol abuse, the treatment process, and what recovery could look like for you.
How Do You Know When It’s Time to Get Help?
Recognizing harmful drinking habits can be challenging, especially around the holidays when it seems that everyone is having a drink to celebrate and unwind. But there are some warning signs to keep an eye out for that highlight the difference between drinking socially and drinking because of an addiction. These warning signs include:
- Frequently binge drinking (consuming four or more drinks)
- Constantly thinking about or planning when your next drink will be
- Drinking because of mental health distress
- Experiencing more mental health concerns after drinking
- Feeling withdrawal symptoms when not drinking
- Having multiple failed attempts to quit drinking
If you’re struggling with an addiction to alcohol, you might also be experiencing negative health side effects. Drinking can impact everything from your blood pressure to your eyesight, and more. You could additionally feel more sluggish and have memory loss or brain fog as a result of drinking alcohol.
Do these signs and symptoms seem familiar? If so, you are probably wondering how to quit drinking. And even if you know how to quit drinking, following through becomes a huge obstacle. This is why getting professional treatment is the most important step in the process of recovery.
How to Quit Drinking with Alcohol Addiction Treatment
For many people who aren’t sure how to quit drinking, they may think that they are able to do it on their own. However, this is often when relapsing happens. Ultimately, if the underlying reasons behind the addiction aren’t treated, you will continue to hit a wall in your recovery. So, the safest and most effective way to quit drinking for good is to find an inpatient program where you can follow the path of recovery through these three steps:
1. Alcohol Detox
Healing the body from the ways in which alcohol has harmed it begins with detox. Detoxing is the process of going entirely alcohol free. But this step can often be the most challenging because the body has become physically dependent on alcohol.
This can lead to withdrawal symptoms that can be uncomfortable, unbearable, and even dangerous. Common alcohol withdrawal symptoms include:
- Tremors
- Difficulty sleeping
- Hallucinations
- Headaches
- Nausea and vomiting
- Depression and anxiety
- Seizures
To best get through detoxing from alcohol without relapsing and without facing any serious health consequences, this process should be done at a mental health facility. Some treatment facilities offer medical detox, which is meant to keep you safe and on the track toward recovery.
Medical detox is done under the supervision of professionals who can monitor your vitals, take note of your symptoms, and help you to be as comfortable as possible during the process. By prioritizing your safety and comfort, you will be able to get through detox more confidentially. Only then will you be ready to move onto the next step of knowing how to quit drinking: dual diagnosis treatment.
2. Dual Diagnosis Treatment
As mentioned earlier, one of the reasons why people struggle so much to become sober on their own is because they aren’t receiving treatment for underlying mental health conditions. Therefore, they aren’t able to properly heal. Instead, they end up turning to alcohol once again to numb their pain.
Research shows that more than 25 percent of people who have a mental health disorder also have a substance use disorder. Some of the most common mental health conditions that go side-by-side with addiction include:
When the mental health symptoms are not managed, the addiction problems escalate—and vice versa, as alcohol can severely exacerbate emotional distress. That’s why it’s so important to get dual diagnosis treatment. With this method, the mental health symptoms and the addiction can be treated at the same time.
This way, when you leave treatment, you will have more tools and resources to use when life throws unexpected challenges your way. Rather than turning to alcohol, you will be able to use healthy coping mechanisms to get through the hardest of times. You will be able to learn these skills with the different treatment options in your dual diagnosis program.
3. Effective Therapeutic Treatments
Treatment for an addiction to alcohol is an essential part of how to quit drinking. In dual diagnosis treatment, you will have the opportunity to heal through a variety of therapeutic options that work for you. Some of these include:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
- Dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT)
- Recreational therapy
- Complementary therapies
Furthermore, you will have the chance to build a strong support system by collaborating with others who are also on their recovery journey. These support groups help you to understand that you are never alone or without assistance.
You can further your support system by working with your family members and close friends. By participating in treatment, they will be able to learn about addiction and all of the ways it impacts your life and theirs. This will transfer to your world outside of treatment as you continue to work on long-lasting recovery with the ones you love by your side.
Now You Know How To Quit Drinking—But Where Can You Get Help?
Knowing how to quit drinking is the first step. Now, it’s time to put recovery into action. Luckily, you have access to all of the resources above and so much more at Georgetown Behavioral Hospital. Here, we offer a calm and supportive environment for you to go through all the steps on how to quit drinking—from detox all the way through discharge and beyond, we’re here to help.
For more information on how to quit drinking and how you can get started on your recovery journey today, give us a call at 937-483-4930 or fill out a confidential contact form online with your questions. Recovery is closer than you would think.
