Giday JU and this is a brilliant question and normally illicits the response just don't pick up the first drink and you can not get drunk. And whilst this is true, it does not tell me HOW to not pick up that first drink.

If you are like me and I consider myself to be an alcoholic then there was many many times I found that first drink in my hand without any previous thought. So for me was how do I not pick up that first drink without picking up the first drink sub consciously?

There is many strategies that others will share their experience for me it was doing something about my recovery. Whilst I did things that was about recovery then I found I did not pick up that first drink.

Some things I did was attend meetings of AA, sought out sober people who had beaten this disease and I put into practice what others suggested to me.

I had to accept my truth and completely bust any notiion that one day I could drink normally. I had to accept that I lived in denial and justification and that in the main my life was a lie. These were the things I first did to start my recovery. And whilst I did this I did not get the obsession to pick up that first drink.

I wish you the best G8

Hello JAYUS,

I can understand how you feel as I have been in an almost identical situation. I started off having a few drinks at the weekends but it gradually snowballed over a period of time until I was drinking every day. I swore that I would not drink during working hours but that changed too. Eventually it got so bad that I knew I had to quit, although I desperately wanted to keep drinking. I then tried to stop and found that I could not.

What you do is not my business but this is what has worked for me. Very much against my will I went to a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous and it was there that I found out about the exact nature of the problem that I had with alcohol. I had a mental obsession for alcohol and as a result would always find a reason to drink. Once I put alcohol in the body I developed a craving for more and could not stop drinking. It may be that you have a similar problem.

I always promised myself that I would do something about the drinking problem tomorrow. Trouble is, tomorrow never comes. Eventually I admitted defeat and went to that AA meeting. After that it was just a matter of copying what had worked for those people who were once as bad as I was but who now had long term sobriety.

When I was where you are now a kind lady said: Go to a meeting you wont regret it.

Easier said than done, but it all comes down to your choice. If you really don't want to drink you won't. If you really do want to drink you will.
I am in the same boat, if I have a drink more than likely it will be 5+.
This is extreme, but I am viewing alcohol to crystal meth. I would NEVER touch crystal meth. I could careless if it was free, if everyone was doing it in front of my face, if everyone hated me because I wasn't doing it...I would never go there.
Maybe try to change your outlook on alcohol. You never know. Coming here is a good thing!!!

As others have suggested, meetings would be a good way to fill those difficult evening hours. Being around people who are sober, getting sober and wanting to stay that way can really help, researching the best way forward for you, reading up on it etc.

For me it was the irrational mentality going on between my ears that got me drunk one more time. The first drink set off the physical craving but the real problem operated in my mind that lead to my picking up the first drink. That being the case I needed a solution fast and I needed to learn from others who had managed to turn things around before me. Some can make a lucid choice every time and some have times when they cannot make a lucid choice every time in my experience.

I was right there where you are. It is possible to lay it down. Just keep tying. 1is2many

I am finding that support helps. Coming to this site, talking with sober friends about what I need to do, going to meetings. Being around sober people. That is what is working for me. Doing it on my own Would be too tough.

I am the same. I had long term sobriety, then "relapsed" when I decided I overreacted and don't really have a problem. So two long years of trying to drink like a "normal" person. It was infuriating. Why can't I have ONE glass of wine or ONE beer?
It ended up the same, if I had one I kept going and then vowed to do better.
Long story short, I'm sober again since 8-4-12 that last detox and getting clean was really, really hard. It came down to just one choice for me. To pick up the ONE drink, or not pick up one at all.

Thank you to everyone for your responses. It is so hard and frustrating...I just want to be normal and go out for a few drinks like everyone else can (well not everyone I guess).

I will have to accept that this is just a problem that I will have to deal with in one way or the other and be grateful it isn't worse yet. I will look into AA info because it seems to be popular.

This book helped me:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Easy-Way-Stop-Drinking/dp/1402736479#customerReviews

Carr shows you how to stop without willpower and why that first drink isn't something you want to think about picking up.

The book isn't for everyone, but if it clicks with you, it will help you shift your thinking 180 degrees.

Hi Jayus, while I held onto the lie that I could drink like "everyone else" I couldn't stay sober. For me personally I had to come to terms with the fact that I'm alcoholic. When I was completely OK with that, I didnt entertain thoughts of drinking like a normie, and I havent picked up that first drink a day at a time.

I have no advice as I have to do what your doing. I don't drink during the day either but I do every night.

It sucks I have to stop. Its ruining my life but It is going to be so hard to do. I'm going to an AA meeting today I hope we can both stop. I want to like me again !!!!

I too have a hard time after I pick up my first drink. I can never just drink one beverage, as after the first one, it taste so good and my bad days are gone and I just want to continue with the fun that goes with drinking. Although, the fun is only temporary, as the next day, it is harder, because the hangovers get worst!