There are so many alternative ways available to try to get sober, but which way will work for you? This article will be the first of a series of all the different ways available to reach the end goal of being sober. So be sure to subscribe to my blog to ensure you don't miss out on finding out the way that will work for you.
Firstly 'sober' by definition means, drug or alcohol abstinence, but the most important part that most people miss is being 'sober' means being content. Being happy with your choice to abstain from drugs or alcohol. Many people consider themselves sober because they are refraining from using their drug of choice, but they are miserable!
This is not 'sober' this is what's known as abstinence or in the drinking world a 'dry drunk'
So would you like to be 'sober' or just abstinent?
I'm sure majority of people who have had enough of drinking would choose to be sober.
After all what's the point of abstaining from something if you are miserable?
For me, if I was going to be miserable for the rest of my life not drinking, I would rather just keep drinking and probably die young.
So today's article will go through one of the oldest methods of getting sober, although in my opinion, using this method may make you stay abstinent from alcohol but you will not be content. In fact most people in this program will say, even after 10 years of so called 'sobriety' that they still crave alcohol and would love to be able to have a drink.
I'm sure you've guessed it by now this first method is known as AA - Alcoholics Anonymous.
If you're not familiar I'll give a quick rundown on how AA runs and why it works for only a small minority of people. AA follows what's called 'The big book'
This book has 12 steps in there that a person who enters AA must work through and follow.
You also need to get a 'sponsor' this a person who has been in AA for over a year and is considered successful. When you are struggling with a craving or a trigger, you contact your sponsor and they talk you out of drinking. You also need to attend meetings, these typically run for an hour and are held at a local hall or church. Every meeting a step from The Big Book is read aloud and everyone works through it together. Members will take turns speaking in front of the group about their challenges or achievements, then you usually have some coffee and sweets, whilst you chat to the other members.
AA was created in 1935 after 3 particular struggling male ' Alcoholics' found sobriety through supporting each other, meeting regularly and talking through their struggles. Slowly it grew and more groups began arising. These 3 men came up with some analogies to create The Big Book. In this book it states a few very controversial statements.
' Alcoholics' are not like 'normal' people, they have an allergy to alcohol.
' Admitting you are powerless to your addiction allows god to save you'
' Being an 'alcoholic is incurable, it is a life long disease and the only treatment is abstinence.
I have nothing against AA and it has helped many people, especially back in the days where we didn't have scientific research or much knowledge medically of what was actually happening inside the brain of ' alcoholics'
But times have changed a lot since 1935, we now have MRI scans and DNA knowledge, we have therapy, psychiatrists and experts trained in the field of addiction.
We now know exactly how alcohol works in our brain, which parts it affects and most importantly we know there are ways to treat addiction. The reason AA has had success is because of the community support, and that is one of only 2 reasons it works.
Addiction can be a very lonely place and having like minded people to offer support and empathy is a massive part of beating addiction. If you are a person of faith, believing that god can help you, can be of help to people if they truly believe in 'a god'
But sadly that's where it's positives stop!
These are the reasons it doesn't work for most people.
'Alcoholics' are not allergic to alcohol, a true allergy immediately produces very uncomfortable, sometimes life threatening symptoms such as itchy skin, sneezing, coughing, digestive upset, trouble breathing and if severe anaphylaxis can occur.
It is not developed over time and an allergy doesn't begin after years of consuming a drug.
If it was an allergy you could simply take an antihistamine and all your symptoms would disappear. The second reason is when you join AA you have to stand up and admit you are an 'alcoholic' that you are powerless and you give yourself over to a higher power, for one being addicted to an addictive substance does not make you powerless, in fact you are the only one that has the power to make changes in your life. God is not going to take on all your problems in life. Thirdly and most importantly the term 'alcoholic' doesn't even exist as a medical diagnosis. If you are struggling with alcohol addiction. You are diagnosed as having AUD - Alcohol Use Disorder. It is not a disease, therefor it is not incurable.
There is no one gene that makes you become addicted to alcohol. Many DNA studies of people with an addiction to alcohol have disproved this myth. Addiction is created in the neural pathways in your brain. This happens when you repeatedly consume an addictive drug. The way to beat addiction is to focus on rewiring your brain. Sounds scary but it's actually quite simple, once you know how the brain works and responds to alcohol, it's easy to begin the process of changing these pathways. Once you've done that beating addiction becomes rather easy. More on that in later articles.
So there you have it AA as a treatment option, if it has worked for you great, if you are still miserable and craving a drink or feel like you're missing out, maybe it's time to try a new method. My method which is based on neuroscience - the study of the brain, is a proven alternative to AA, a way that makes you empowered and free. In fact it makes you pity other drinkers, knowing they are in a constant battle with their mind. It does't have to be like this. If you want to try my method my programs and pricing is available on the tab at the top of my page. I also have E Books available if you just want to learn a bit more before you take the leap into truly creating a life you love.
Thanks for reading and take care.