Staying Stopped

Up until now in this guide, it's been fairly straightforward to give you advice and choices.

This section, on staying off alcohol once you've stopped drinking, is harder to structure.

This is where you make your own decision about how you fashion a new way of thinking, and a new way of living, that makes sense to you.

This section is full of all sorts of different things to think about and different things you can do to stay off drink.

It's a relatively unordered section - this is deliberate. I think it's important that you pick out the stuff that makes sense to you.

A good place to start might be the recovery checklist page.

I'm a great believer in writing things down. If you're stuck, the checklist is a good way of structuring a written plan.

  • If you're doing well, don't get complacent.
  • If you're struggling, keep going and believe you'll be OK.
  • Stay in touch with some outside help - whether that's a professional, a self-help group or an online forum.
  • Keep your eye on the ball, and don't let your concentration slip.1

Footnote

1"...you are a very cautious person. You're practical and patient, not overconfident. But no matter how careful a person might be, once your concentration slips, you will definitely make one or two mistakes." Haruki Murakami (2011) 1Q84, Book 3 p33 Harvill Secker, London

Previous page

Next page