Even after admitting you have a drinking problem, you may make excuses and drag your feet. It’s important to acknowledge your ambivalence about stopping drinking. If you’re not sure if you’re ready to change or you’re struggling with the decision, it can help to think about the costs and benefits of each choice. Consider tracking and analyzing your urges to drink for a couple of weeks. This will help you become more aware of when and how you experience urges, what triggers them, and ways to avoid or control them. Any general advice posted on our blog, website, or app is for informational purposes only and is not intended to replace or substitute for any medical or other advice.

It’s considered a trigger when you want to drink alcohol upon entering a situation or being at a particular place. Keep in mind that not everyone has the same triggers related to alcohol cravings. Rather than sit like a deer in the spotlight, do not allow the alcohol cravings to ruin your life.

Alcohol addiction treatment options

There’s also a muscle relaxer called Gablofen or baclofen that helps some people with alcohol cravings. Another approach is taking a medication that makes the person violently ill when they drink. The treatment helps the person not crave alcohol because of the unpleasant experience. Sometimes medication is necessary to stop or at least reduce alcohol cravings. There are currently three FDA-approved medications for alcohol cravings.

If you’re a long-term, heavy drinker, you may need medically supervised detoxification. Talk to your doctor or an addiction specialist to learn more. 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, which helps people to change unhelpful thinking patterns and reactions. It also provides worksheets to help you uncover the nature of your urges to drink and to make a plan for handling them. As you change your drinking, it’s normal and common to have urges or a craving for alcohol.

Craving for more alcohol can be different for everybody

They want to know what substances they use and how often. Walking is a great place to begin and an activity you can do outside or inside on walking tracks or even at shopping malls. An optimal routine should focus on both cardiovascular exercise and strength training. Sunnyside uses a psychology-based approach to help you drink more mindfully, no matter what your goal is. You’ll get a 100% custom plan, then daily texts to track your progress and help you stay on target.

Watch a movie in your mind, and remember that the first drink isn’t ever the last one. Like a bad case of food poisoning for your mind, it can overtake you get rid of alcohol cravings and leave you feeling totally powerless. In the moment, the desire for a drink can feel larger than anything else, including your intention to not pick up.