Handling Urges to Drink
As you change your drinking habits, it’s normal and common to have urges or a craving for alcohol. The words “urge” and “craving” refer to a broad range of thoughts, physical sensations, or emotions. These feelings tempt you to drink, even though you have at least some desire not to. You may feel an uncomfortable pull in two directions or sense a loss of control.
Fortunately, urges to drink are short-lived, predictable, and controllable. This short activity offers a “recognize, avoid, cope” approach commonly used in cognitive behavioral therapy. This helps people to change unhelpful thinking patterns and reactions. It also provides worksheets to help you uncover the nature of your urges and make a plan for handling them.
With time, and by practicing new responses, you’ll find that your urges to drink will lose strength. You’ll gain confidence in your ability to deal with urges that may still arise at times. If you are having a very difficult time with urges, don’t fret.
If you don’t make progress with the strategies in this activity after a few weeks, then consult a healthcare professional. Some new, non-addictive medications can reduce the desire to drink or lessen the rewarding effect of drinking so it’s easier to stop.
#1
Recognize 2 types of “triggers”
An urge to drink can be set off by both external triggers and internal ones.
Internal triggers
Urges to drink that just seem to “pop up.” If you pause to think about it, you’ll find that the urge may have been set off by a couple of things. It could have been set off by a fleeting thought, a positive emotion like excitement, or a negative emotion like frustration. It could have even been set off by a physical sensation like a headache, tension, or nervousness.
External triggers
People, places, things, or times of day that offer drinking opportunities or remind you of drinking. These “tempting situations” are more obvious, predictable, and avoidable than internal triggers.
#2
Avoid tempting situations
Your best strategy is to avoid taking the chance that you’ll have an urge.
Find alternate activities
At home, keep little or no alcohol. Socially, avoid activities involving drinking. If you’re feeling guilty about turning down an invitation, don’t be. You’re not necessarily talking about “forever.”
When the urges subside or become more manageable, you may decide to ease gradually into some situations. For now, you can stay connected with friends by suggesting alternate activities that don’t involve drinking.
#3
Cope with triggers you can’t avoid
It’s not possible to avoid all tempting situations or to block all of your internal triggers. You’ll need a range of strategies to handle urges to drink. Here are some options:
Remind yourself of your reasons for making an important change.
Carry your top reasons for change on a wallet card or in an electronic message. This should be something you can access easily, like on a phone or a saved email.
Talk it through with someone you trust.
Have a trusted friend on standby for a phone call. You can either bring one along for support in situations where you might be tempted to drink.
Distract yourself with a healthy, alternative activity.
For different situations, come up with engaging short, mid-range, and longer options. Try things like texting or calling someone, watching short online videos. You can even try lifting weights to music, showering, meditating, or taking a walk.
Challenge the thought that drives the urge to drink again.
Stop it, analyze the error in it, and replace it. Example: “It couldn’t hurt to have one little drink…wait a minute! What am I thinking? One could hurt, I’ve experienced ‘just one’ leading to a lot more. I am sticking with my choice not to drink.”
Ride it out without giving in.
Instead of fighting an urge, accept it as normal and temporary. Remember that it will soon crest like an ocean wave and pass.
Leave situations that are tempting quickly and gracefully.
It helps to plan your escape in advance.
