9 Months Without Alcohol - 20 Easy Tips to Help You Quit Drinking
Tips and tricks to help you go sober.
Picture taken of me in Vancouver by Max
I’m proud to say that it’s officially been over 9 months since I quit drinking alcohol.
Over the past 9 months, I have had numerous people reach out to me congratulating me, but I’ve had even more people reach how to me asking how I did it.
I went over over 100 ounces a week, to 0.
That’s right! I quit alcohol cold turkey and guess what! YOU CAN TOO.
I’m writing this to give you 20 tips to help you quit drinking alcohol!
1. Commit to it.
This is very simple. Don’t decide to quit until you are ready to commit. If you aren’t ready to quit, simply start by cutting down your weekly, or nightly consumption.
2. Stop hanging out with drinkers.
Here is the cold, hard truth. If you have friends where all you can do with them is drink… They probably aren’t your real friends.
Stop hanging out with people you only get along with when you drink.
3. Stop doing things you need to drink to enjoy.
If you need to change your state of consciousness in order to enjoy something, don’t do it! You don’t actually enjoy it if you can’t be sober doing it.
4. Find something to work on.
It’s a lot easier to quit if you have something that you want to be fully functional to do. For myself, that’s reading, writing, and building businesses.
5. Find a hobby you’re passionate about.
Replace the addiction with a hobby.
Instead of pounding back shots, paint a picture, play chess, learn an instrument, or whatever. They’re all better options.
6. Replace alcohol with another beverage.
When you do go out and socialize, or are craving a beer after work, treat yourself to another beverage. I like kombucha, black coffee and tea. Honestly, even sparkling water. It’s best to pick something healthy.
7. Write down why you want to quit.
Alcohol is terrible for you. Chances are the reason you want to quit is extremely valid. Write down all the reasons on a piece of paper and read it over and over.
Program yourself. Write it 500 times if you have to.
8. Change your phone background.
If you are quitting for someone, or trying to achieve something, make that your background.
For example, put a picture of your mom, or your child as the background.
Shame works wonders. Yes, I’m serious.
9. Make a budget.
Do you have a monthly budget?
If you don’t it’s probably a good idea. Make sure to include how much you spend on alcohol so you can see your savings.
10. Change your identity
Are you the guy who can beer bong 3 beers in a row? That’s awesome, but it’s time to change your identity.
You are now a non-drinker.
Anytime anyone asks you… you don’t drink.
11. Pretend to be an alcoholic.
I don’t care if you aren’t an alcoholic. Now, I’m not telling you to lie, but when someone asks you if you want to drink, and you say no in a way that makes you sound like you have a real alcohol problem… They are way less likely to pressure you.
Trust me, it works.
12. Cut your shitty friends.
If you tell your friends that you don’t want to drink, and you give them a valid reason why, but they still try to force you to drink.
CUT THEM!
They are bad friends, you are better off.
13. Get an accountability partner.
Find a friend or family member that can hold you accountable. It’s even better if this person wants to quit too. You can check in on each other to make sure you aren’t slippin’!
14. Do new activities.
There are plenty of other things you can do aside from drinking.
For example, I like going to Rec Room (an Arcade), watching movies, playing Settlers of Catan or poker, bowling, and I love going to Activate.
Find activities you can do on drinking nights, that aren’t drinking.
15. Remove alcohol from your environment.
Trust me, it’s easier to quit alcohol if there is NO ALCOHOL IN YOUR HOUSE. It’s also easier to quit if you just avoid drinking places.
You don’t need to go to the club tonight.
16. Pick up healthy habits and create healthy goals.
When you pick up healthy habits and create healthy goals, it’s easier to quit.
For example, if you want to lose 10 pounds this month, you are way less likely to drink because you know that’ll screw up your goals.
17. Watch motivational videos.
I know this can be lame, but it helps. You watch a video of Jocko or David Goggins for 10 minutes and you’ll simply feel like an idiot if you don’t quit.
You can do this daily, easily.
18. Find good role models.
This might sound condescending, but you need to find better role models. There are plenty of great people to follow who don’t drink that can inspire you.
Sam Parr from The My First Million Podcast told me to my face to not start drinking again.
Some celebrities who don’t drink include Brad Pitt, Tom Hardy, Bella Hadid, Anne Hathaway, and many more! Jada Pinkett Smith doesn’t drink either, but it’s probably to avoid her as a role model.
19. Get therapy.
If you have a real alcohol problem, go get professional help. There is no shame in it. You should actually be proud of yourself for identifying this problem and wanting to make a positive change in your life.
20. Just do it.
For most of you, it’s as simple as this. Just do it. You said you would quit, so quit. Don’t be soft. Don’t back out on your word. Find the discipline in you and quit.
Conclusion
Quitting alcohol doesn’t have to be hard and if you follow these tips, your odds will be much higher of succeeding!
It’s also okay to slowly ease off of it. Quitting alcohol cold turkey isn’t for everyone. Decide what method is best for you, and commit to it.
I drank 100+ ounces a week for close to 10 years. If I can quit, you can too.
And it doesn’t have to be forever. I will restart one day when I decide what the right balance between health & joy is for me.
Best of luck on your journey and thanks for reading.
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