Whatever method you choose, to achieve your goal. It is strongly recommended that, if you have been drinking heavily for a considerable amount of time that you have a period of abstinence prior to attempting to control your drinking.

Controlled Drinking First Steps

Controlled or moderate drinking — setting the Goal.

What goal you set and how you achieve that goal is ultimately your choice and your responsibility. What this page and the next few pages will do, will be to provide you with some guidance on reasonable goals to set and tips on how to achieve them.

Setting the goal.

For most of you, you will be coming to this point from a position of heavy drinking. So, you will have to make decisions about how you get to your ultimate goal. There are three possible ways of achieving this.

First, you can reduce your alcohol consumption until you reach the goal that you have set. Those who benefit from this method tend to be people who are heavy drinkers, and fear withdrawals. The problem with this method is that it prolongs heavy drinking, it can also lead to a yoyoing effect where the quantity of your drinking is dependent on your mood or circumstances.

Second, you can abstain from alcohol or start drinking at a moderate level immediately.

Third, you can start with an initial period of abstinence, usually a minumum of  28 days preferably longer, during which time, you can decide on the best goal for yourself.

Research has shown that those who successfully maintain abstinence for a period of time, are more successful in the long run for a number of reasons.

Firstly, abstaining for this period of time, reduces tolerance. Hence, alcohol has a greater effect at lower doses.

Secondly, abstaining from this period of time allows cognitive abilities dulled by alcohol to improve significantly.

Thirdly, abstaining from alcohol for this period of time, allows you to begin dealing with temptations, craving and social pressure to drink.

Whatever method you choose, to achieve your goal. It is strongly recommended that, if you have been drinking heavily for a considerable amount of time that you have a period of abstinence prior to attempting to control your drinking.

First steps