Alcohol Freedom Blog

In my post last week, I mentioned the challenges of coping with the holidays. I’d like to share some ideas with you that I think will help take you away from bad habits this holiday season:

1. Get plenty of sleep and exercise. Proper rest and being active helps you handle the extra stress of the holiday season.
2. Design your ideal day. Sit down and think of a perfect day, think of the things you would do from the moment you woke up until the moment you go back to sleep. Where would you work, where would you be, what would you wear and with whom would you spend your time. Thinking of the life you want can be a powerful trigger to help you evaluate your current activities and habits.
3. Do something completely different. Take a walk through your neighborhood to view holiday decorations, go on a picnic or visit a museum. Familiarity can be a trap, especially around the holidays. When you are trying to drink less, it’s difficult to keep the same social schedule or routine without reaching for a drink.

Through the use of anti-craving medication and our proven Freedom From Alcohol Method ® we’ve helped so many make it through the holidays without excessive drinking. If you need help now, please consult your doctor or contact me to learn if our program is the right one to help you curb excessive drinking.

As the holiday season is upon us, there are usually more opportunities or excuses for functioning alcoholics to over-indulge. Informal happy hours with co-corkers are filled with well wishes for most, and pitfalls for the alcoholic. Work sponsored holiday parties and social gatherings are also risky endeavors that could lead to embarrassing behavior and career threatening transgressions.

Holiday parties are one source of opportunity for the high functioning alcoholic but of equal concern are the senses of loneliness, stress and despair that many people feel during the holiday season. (If you often feel extra stress this time of year, The Mayo Clinic has some great tips to cope with the extra stress of the holiday season.) For many people, making it from Thanksgiving to New Years’ usually involves excessive consumption of alcohol.

What’s important to remember is that most alcoholics are not on the street begging for change. Most are among us contributing to society and holding down jobs. Most are like you or your friends. In between work and drinking, alcoholics often attempt to have normal family and other relationships. It’s only as the disease progresses, usually without self realization, that alcoholics begin to sabotage their careers and friendships.

So how do you know if you have a problem?

1. Keep a journal of your drinking through the holidays
2. Set a hard limit of drinks and see if you can stick to it
3. Take the alcohol screening test

Most importantly, whether you feel you have a problem or you feel you don’t — but still want to curb your drinking; contact me today to see if The Freedom From Alcohol Method® is right for you.