If you’ve decided to quit drinking, and tapering seems like the right approach, we’ve got you covered. Here’s how to wean off alcohol—including useful strategies, how to create a tapering schedule, and how to stay safe throughout the Top 5 Advantages of Staying in a Sober Living House process. It can help you reach goals and can minimize some of the unpleasant and severe symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Slowly tapering your alcohol use can help you manage mild withdrawal symptoms and decrease the risk of AUD.

Severe Symptoms

Get access to medical counseling, prescription medications, licenced recovery coaches, and more—all from your smartphone. Quitting on your own is a complicated process, and people often have greater success with some kind of coaching, support group, or medication to help things go more smoothly. There are advantages to the 12 step method, and many people experience success with it. However, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) doesn’t mesh with everyone’s perspective. Some elements of the program, including the belief in a higher power, aren’t the right fit for everyone.

General Tips for Quitting Drinking

• Professional guidance is often necessary to navigate the complexities of alcohol tapering.
• If you’re struggling to stick to a taper or do not trust yourself to moderate your alcohol use, having strict supervision and support can help you meet your recovery goals.
• Meanwhile, the brain is producing more and more neurotransmitters, making a person further imbalanced.
• It’s best to avoid these people during and following withdrawal.

Medications now exist that can let you cut back or quit gradually, and reduce your cravings. Not only can these make the process less stressful, they often have a higher success rate than AA or quitting on your own. It can be helpful to make a plan ahead of time for how to handle a relapse. For example, some people choose to write a list of reasons why they want to stop drinking alcohol, and revisit the list to remind themselves after a relapse. You may want to speak with a loved one or therapist about a strategy to prevent relapses from happening. The experience of withdrawing from alcohol can be uncomfortable and difficult.

How To Wean Off Alcohol Safely and Effectively

When an individual has developed a substance use disorder or dependence on alcohol, stopping its use outright can seem virtually impossible. On top of this, quitting immediately — or “cold turkey” as many users and professionals call it — can be dangerous. Withdrawal symptoms are generally uncomfortable to deal with, but they can be fatal. To avoid or reduce the impact of the withdrawal symptoms, people struggling with alcohol may choose to progressively taper off alcohol rather than quit abruptly. There are many options for treating alcohol misuse, dependence, or addiction. Some, on the other end of the spectrum, involve medically supervised withdrawal, or residential rehabilitation programs (rehab).

• The above groups for family members of alcoholics, as well as traditional therapy options, may help support you.
• There’s no set time frame for tapering off alcohol that works for everyone.
• If you're used to drinking alcohol or using drugs when you feel tense, nervous or worried, here are some other ideas to help you relax.
• You should develop this plan while you are in treatment, so you can use it to protect and maintain your sobriety once your stint in treatment ends.

Prepare for potential alcohol detox

It is all part of the process, and no one’s process is the same. Medication has been an option for many decades, and despite having a strong success rate it is not very well known. Regardless of the path you choose, the most important https://thefloridadigest.com/top-5-advantages-of-staying-in-a-sober-living-house/ thing is finding an approach you can stick with. Do your research in advance, make a solid plan, find a good support system, and be patient with yourself. The more you know, the better you’ll be able to find the right solution.

There are many support options available that can help guide you through alcohol withdrawal, as well as abstaining from alcohol after withdrawal. For people at low risk of complications, an office visit to your primary care provider, along with at-home monitoring and virtual office visits, may suffice. People at high risk of complications should enter a short-term in-patient detox program. Moderate or binge drinkers can likely quit alcohol on their own. However, medical complications can occur during the acute phase of withdrawal. If you need help figuring out how to taper off alcohol, or want to find alcohol detox services near you, our treatment specialists at Vertava Health can help.

Coping with Cannabis Withdrawal

In January 2020, more than 6 million people reportedly participated in Dry January, a campaign to reduce alcohol consumption organized by Alcohol Change UK. Follow-up research suggested that most tended to drink in healthier amounts afterward. If you answer “yes” to two to three questions, your symptoms align with mild AUD. If you answer “yes” to four to five questions, your symptoms align with moderate AUD.

– Don’t go through withdrawal alone.

While there are no easy answers, understanding more about alcohol addiction as an illness can make it easier to figure out the best way to help someone. And having access to resources to support yourself can also be a game-changer. Overall, recovering from alcoholism is about giving yourself time, caring for yourself, finding a healthy support system, and remaining persistent.