Alcohol Addiction?
You may not consider yourself a "drunk", but if you find yourself
wanting to drink often, it's likely that alcohol has become a problem
no matter what your current level of consumption. It starts with a casual
drink and some good times, then turns into a social necessity, then into
a focus and highlight of your day, and pretty soon you're drinking as
fast as you can at every opportunity you get... Until you once again fall
into a personal, social, or mental crisis.
Does that pattern sound familiar? If so, are you ready to change the
course?
Disclaimer
The technique that you're about to learn is something that I feel can
really help some people out. However, keep in mind that there are many
for whom the approach may not suffice or be appropriate - so please do
not rely solely on this information for your alcohol rehabilitation.
As much as I hope that you do find benefit, the approach is by no means
guaranteed to work or be right for you. Consider this as a general approach
to self development, and use it only if it corresponds with guidance you
receive from a qualified medical or mental health professional.
By continuing on this page, you agree to these and our general
terms of use.
The Groundwork for Your Alcohol Rehab
For many, alcohol addiction is more of a mental battle than anything
else. Winning that battle will require that you realize and never forget
that whatever benefits you believe alcohol gives you, it actually takes
away.
Examine the "benefits" that you perceive alcohol to give you.
Then take a close look at your past experiences - or do some research
- to determine the reality.
Here are examples of some common mental mis-associations about alcohol
use:
| Old illusion |
The reality |
| Alcohol helps me to relax |
It is not relaxing to "need
a drink"; There are much better and more reliable ways of learning
to relax. |
| Alcohol helps me to sleep
better |
Studies show that alcohol consumption is one of
the top causes of poor sleep. It takes your body a tremendous amount
of energy to metabolize alcohol, so even though you may be able to
"fall asleep" (become unconscious) after drinking, your
body is actually resting. Alcohol also interferes with REM sleep and
dreaming, which are important components of mental renewal - without
them, we will not feel fully refreshed after sleeping. |
| Alcohol helps me to be
more social |
To need a drink before you interact is a social
distraction; It is also more difficult to make real connection
with others once you're intoxicated because alcohol distorts emotions,
judgment, and communication ability; Drinking alcohol often leads
to social faux pas like saying things we regret, or things that are
just not appropriate for the situation; Furthermore, any social connection
you do make with others while intoxicated is not being made by the
"real you" or the "real them" - you're not really
getting to know each other; Intoxicated people are often perceived
as being less reliable, less honest, and less emotionally stable -
which makes them less attractive as friends or potential mates; Alcoholics
almost always suffer an erosion of self-esteem and personal integrity,
qualities required for social success; A high percentage of violent
crimes are a result of alcohol - that's certainly not very social.
In short - quit drinking alcohol and you will find that your socializing
to be much more productive. |
| Alcohol helps me to be
"intimate" |
It is true that alcohol can be a sexual lubricant
- this fact is implied by studies showing that people who abuse alcohol
are more likely to contract STD's than non-drinkers. But alcohol is
also associated with increased likelihood of ED (erectile dysfunction
or male impotence) and decreased sexual drive. Heavy drinkers are
more likely to fall asleep before intimacy as well. Also, for all
the reasons listed in the previous paragraph, alcohol addiction makes
the connections leading to regular sexual intimacy less likely to
occur. I don't know about you, but I'm at a point in my life where
I don't want to waste time on the quality of people or the level of
mentality commonly found in bars and clubs. |
| I've heard that a glass
of wine a day is good for my health |
Wine does contain antioxidants, but if your body's
health is really the priority, why not eat a handful of grapes or
drink green tea instead? Stop foolishly deceiving yourself - alcohol
is a poison - it kills brain cells, destroys heart muscle, damages
the liver, and much more. Alcohol is also a mutagen and a carcinogen
associated with increased risk of many cancers, such as breast cancer.
Look at this word: "inTOXICation". |
| Alcohol gives me confidence |
We all know that this is a false sense of confidence
that often appears more like arrogance or foolishness to a sober onlooker.
From my experience, alcohol cannot be relied on for attaining that
feeling, as whenever I'm feeling uneasy or self-conscious, alcohol
just amplifies the existing emotion. If you want to be a confident
persion, it makes more sense to start by finding the strength to quit
drinking, and then work on building real confidence. |
| I enjoy alcohol-induced
"numbness" or "oblivion" |
The sensation of being drunk is probably what people are referring to when
they use the old term "looking for love in a bottle".
We fall "in love" with the feeling of mental/emotional
escape. But that's only temporary, and it's never real. For now,
it's important to realize and never forget that this false
"attraction" is one that ALWAYS leads to destruction of
the real and important things in your life - the things that could
lead to lasting fulfillment and happiness. Alcohol abusers never
find fulfillment at the bottom of the bottle.
|
The list of mis-perceptions that people hold about alcohol goes on and
on -- these are just a few example. You should examine your own assumptions
closely to make sure that you correct the ones that have been motivating
your decisions to not quit drinking. This kind of self-reflection is an
important step in moving beyond alcohol addiction. In such self-awareness,
you can more easily start making the decision to stop drinking.
Hopefully you're starting to see that it's only illusions that have led
to your alcohol addiction. "Right thinking" will be the start
of the road back to sobriety and inner peace. Before you take a drink,
always remember that whatever you believe that the alcohol is going to
give to you, it is going to take away. Alcohol may have been a stepping
stone and new experience at some point in your life, but now it's only
stealing from you what your life could be.
Undermining Alcohol Addiction
Once you have corrected your thinking about alcohol, and understand that
there is never any "logical" reason to drink, all that remains
to deal with is the sensation of withdrawal -- that desire to experience
sensations of intoxication. The feeling of intoxication often has a near-magical
allure because of the false-positive qualities we've associated it with.
Hopefully some of that allure is wearing off already as you've corrected
your old perceptions.
Here are three things to keep in mind about this aspect of alcohol addiction:
- The sensation of being "drunk" is actually the result of
the body being poisoned by alcohol. From Wikipedia, "cell membranes
are highly permeable to alcohol, so once alcohol is in the bloodstream
it can diffuse into nearly every biological tissue of the body".
This means that while we indulge in one particular alcohol side effect
(mental numbness), just about all parts of our bodies are suffering
the toxicity and damaging effects of a poison. Anything positive we
feel is not at all appropriate for the situation. We should actually
feel sick.
- There is nothing special or original about the sensation of intoxication.
It's practically the same feeling every time we do it - nothing new.
Fools have been falling for this feeling for hundreds of years, and
are still destroying their lives for it. Some people practically dedicate
their entire day to begging for enough money to buy some of the sensation.
And it's just a simple sensation. Do you want to trade the magic and
potential of life for one sensation? Have you ever met a drunk that
you respected, who you wanted to be like?
And most importantly:
- The desire for mental "numbness", "oblivion",
or whatever you like to call it, is more accurately a desire to escape
the emotional sensations of your sober reality. Alcohol is an easy escape
that numbs the mind from just about any emotional discomfort that comes
along. The problem is that emotional ups and downs are a necessary part
of life. If we use alcohol as an emotional crutch, then we may fail
to fully discover and trust in our ability to cope with and move through
emotional adversity. And because we live on an emotional pendulum, if
we numb ourselves to the emotional lows, we'll inevitably cheat ourselves
out of the highs. It is only through knowing the downturns in life that
we will be able recognize and appreciate the other side. If you want
to feel the real magic that life has to offer, you must live "fully"
on the emotional pendulum.
Alcohol Addiction Self-Help Treatment
Once you've corrected any self-deceptive thoughts that you hold about
alcohol addiction, and decided that the sensation of intoxication is not
something you want to trade the possibility of a good life for, you've
laid the groundwork to stop drinking alcohol. The technique that follows
consists of 4 mental exercises (remember, to stop drinking is often a
mental battle) that will help you reach that goal. Each one takes about
5 minutes. Note that you cannot simply read these exercises -- you must
practice them in order to see how effective they are. I suggest printing
this text so that you can practice at least once a day for a week or so.
By that time, you'll know if they are useful for you or not.
For all these exercises, you should be in a seated position, in an area
free from distractions. You should not be driving or operating machinery
of any kind.
Mental Exercise #1:
Does some part of you want a drink right now? Do you feel any craving
at all? If so, close your eyes and feel that sensation of "wanting"
as clearly as possible. Don't try to change it - just focus your attention
on it... Then, use words to describe it. For example, say "craving,
you are a heavy sensation". Describe how the actual sensation feels
in your body as you focus on it. Use simple words like "heavy, solid,
intense". Do this for 2-3 minutes... Really get to know that sensation
of desire as deeply as possible without trying to suppress it. In doing
so, you are learning to get comfortable with the sensation, rather than
trying to change it or suppress it (as you would usually do with alcohol).
So many alcohol rehab programs and techniques are focused on reducing
cravings. But I have found that learning to be comfortable with, accept,
and even appreciate such sensations to be a much more powerful approach
to moving through alcohol withdrawal.
Also, since alcohol has the ability to numb strong emotions, you've probably
learned to cope with anxiety, anger, sadness, boredom, and all the other
difficult emotions by drinking as well. This mental exercise is an excellent
replacement for that tendency. Whenever you find yourself thinking about
a drink due to an emotion like one of these, try this same exercise. Take
a few minutes to turn inwardly, verbally describe the sensation, and become
comfortable with it. Even if you think you'll decide to take the drink,
be sure you practice this exercise first for at least a few minutes. Turn
the experience into a practice opportunity in your effort to stop drinking
alcohol.
Mastering this first exercise
will give you a powerful tool to manage cravings, and it will enable you
to not rely so heavily on drinking to cope with difficult emotions. Because
of that, this first exercise is perhaps the most important of the four.
It's effectiveness cannot be realized by simpy reading it - so be sure
practice. In fact, regardless of how you feel, practice this exercise
as often as possible in your every mental state, with every emotion
that comes along. Mastering this exercise will empower you to be comfortable
with the feelings that once prompted you to drink, and it will give you
the inner strength to move beyond alcohol addiction. If you've already
listened to the MC2 Method audio program, apply this technique in the
manner described in Part 1 of the audio. The remaining exercises can be
reinforced by using the principles from Part 2 of the audio.
Mental Exercise #2:
For this exercise, please read the whole section before proceeding.
First, grab a bottle of your favorite alcohol (or if you've already quit
drinking, just imagine that you're holding a bottle of it). Now, take
a long whiff (smell) of the alcohol... As you do so, try to create a feeling
of intense nausea within yourself. You might try to create the gag reflex
in the back of your throat, like you're going to vomit. Really try to
self-induce a feeling of sickness and the sensation that you want to throw-up..
Make it real in your mind... Then, imagine that you're taking a sip of
alcohol, hold it in your mouth, taste it, and as you do so, expand that
sense of nausea within yourself. Come as close as you possibly can to
actually making yourself ill. As you imagine the liquid sliding down your
throat and into your stomach, feel the throat and stomach membranes being
burned by the alcohol, your nausea growing. Continue doing this for 2-3
minutes.
This exercise may seem extreme, but what you're doing is re-associating
alcohol with a negative sensation -- with how you really SHOULD feel when
drinking. Alcohol is poisoning the cells in your body, filling them with
destructive and carcinogenic materials. So work on your ability to produce
these feelings as you imagine yourself drinking. If you ever do revert
to drinking again, make a special point of generating these feelings while
you do so. Since it's just an internal feeling, it's not difficult to
practice this exercise even while drinking with other people around. Within
a short amount of time, your body will start to re-associate alcohol
with the more appropriate sense of illness, rather than the false
sense of mental relaxation. Soon your cravings will start to appear less
often, and less intensely.
Mental Exercise #3:
This is another exercise for self-generating more appropriate emotional
energies. For this one, find a photo or advertisement with a picture of
someone drinking alcohol - or just imagine them in front of you. As you
look at that photo, create within yourself a deep sense of sorrow for
that person. Sorrow that they have been deceived into thinking that what
they're doing is enjoyable, sorrow that they have not found real ways
to enjoy life, sorrow that they are destroying their body, and sorrow
that they are missing out on the best that life has to offer.
Next, look upon the drinker with the perspective and emotional response
that you would have when watching someone who is really doing something
foolish and idiotic. Expand those sensations of disgust as much as possible.
Try practicing this exercise every time you see someone drinking alcohol
(e.g. a friend that you're with, an actor/actress in a movie, or any stranger).
Doing so will help you overcome the trap of "alcohol jealousy",
and prevent you from falling back into perceiving drinking as something
"cool", "sophisticated", "relaxing", or
anything else positive. In your new and true perspective, being a "non-drinker"
is the real sign of maturity, freedom from illusions, attractiveness,
potential for happiness, and so on.
Mental Exercise #4:
For this exercise, create a list of all the benefits that you once associated
with drinking alcohol. For example: "being more social", "living
fully","mental relaxation", "enjoying life",
"more confident", and so on. This list will vary from person
to person, so just concentrate on things that personally attract(ed) you
to alcohol.
Now, close your eyes, direct your awareness inwardly, and congratulate
yourself for now having achieved a greater level of all the things on
your list simply because you are a NON-DRINKER now. Review the first section
of this page if you need to -- and remember that being a non-drinker puts
you into closer alignment with the person and life that you really desire.
So generate a feeling of true inner congratulations toward yourself.
Now, self-generate a deep sensation of pride for starting to become the
person you want to be, and achieving the life you desire, by becoming
a non-drinker. Then, generate a sensation of joy for the fact that you
have achieved what you desire because you are a non-drinker. Then, create
a feeling of true excitement within yourself about the new, strong, self-directed,
addiction-conquering, possibilities-seeking person that you now are because
you are a non-drinker. Then, generate a sense of gratitude for your new
enlightenment, and the fact that you have a real advantage over drinkers
in finding real success and happiness in life. You have become a stronger
human being because of this process, so generate a feeling of joy and
excitement for that as well.
You get the idea here -- self generate a spectrum of positive emotions
within yourself and associate them with being a non-drinker. Practice
this mental exercise a couple times per day, perhaps when you wake up
and again before you go to sleep.
At this point, you can probably see that the path to the life you desire
is not through drinking, or through pursuing any of the false promises
that alcohol once offered, but rather through maintaining a clear mind
and having the strength to follow your intuition. Practice these exercises
regularly, and soon the newer, truer perceptions will become the basis
from which you make all your decisions. Your subconscious mind will eventually
be retrained and cravings will simply dissolve. Remember, you must really
practice these exercises - you cannot just read them. Also, implement
these exercises when find yourself around people who are drinking or when
offered a drink. Since they are all internal/mental processes, they are
not difficult to perform completely unnoticed even while socializing.
You are now armed with some powerful mental tools to protect yourself
against the deceptions of alcohol. Make mastering these exercises a real
priority in your life, and you'll eventually find your efforts to be well
worth it.
I wish you the best of luck on this new journey, and sincerely hope that
some of the information you found here will help in your quest to once
again be a non-drinker. If you get a chance, I'd love to hear your comments,
feedback, or any suggestions.
Also,
please take a minute to bookmark & share this free article so that
others can find it
| This program is based on principles presented in the MC2
Method audio program. If you have found any success here, the
MC2 Method provides some excellent insight to truly turbo-charge your
efforts, including guided exercises. |
|
