Our programs are designed to treat alcohol use disorder effectively and with dignity. If you or your loved one is suffering, contact us to learn more about a brighter, sober tomorrow. The 20-minute rule is a great tool for cutting down on alcohol use.
Alcohol Tapering Guide
Don’t try to go through recovery alone — reach out for help and support. The support of family, friends and others in recovery is crucial during this adjustment period. As you begin your alcohol tapering process, talk to someone you trust about your plan. Consider sharing your process with a friend or family member so they can offer helpful support. Reducing alcohol consumption should begin with determining your baseline of use since your taper schedule depends on how much you drink before you start decreasing your intake.
Guidelines for Creating an Effective Alcohol Taper Schedule
There https://northiowatoday.com/2025/01/27/sober-house-rules-what-you-should-know-before-moving-in/ is also the matter of the specific type of alcohol in question. Dependence is often accompanied by tolerance, which is when it takes more and more alcohol for you to achieve the same effects that you experienced when you first started. Another sign that you might need to taper is morning alcohol cravings.
Can You Stop Drinking Alcohol Cold Turkey?
You can try out any of the things in my guide on Alternatives To Inpatient Drug Rehab. Some individuals find church and reconnecting with God to be helpful. You could post about your experiences anonymously online in r/dryalcoholics, they’re a fairly open and supportive group of people. When I was down and super depressed, talking about my experiences on there helped get me through and made me feel less alone. But from a harm reduction standpoint, it’s much less likely to get you into trouble than alcohol, pills, or harder drugs.
What to Know About Tapering Off Alcohol
- Everyone is different, so it’s ultimately up to you to decide if you want to taper or not.
- For one thing, it creates tangible goals for the person tapering to reach, helping to build their confidence in themselves and the belief that they can eventually stop drinking completely.
- Alcohol also inhibits the glutamate receptor–which is the cause of staggering, slurring, and general interference with muscular coordination.
- If you abruptly stop consuming alcohol, your brain may not have enough sensitivity to GABA, which can result in hyper-excitability and withdrawal symptoms.
- This might be a pretty safe way to taper, as long as you’re not decreasing by over 20-30% per step.
- However, it might spread out the withdrawal symptoms over a longer period of time.
This increased hyperactivity, combined with the suppressing effect of alcohol, helps your brain function more normally. This process is called dependence because your brain depends on alcohol being present to function normally. Don’t quit other lighter substances while you’re detoxing from alcohol. I’m specifically talking about things like weed, cigarettes, and vaping. If you’re making mixed drinks, only use half a shot instead of Living in a Sober House: Fundamental Rules a full shot, and turn it into two drinks (still count both as one combined). It’s okay to have a little drink, set it down, leave it for fifteen minutes, and come back to it later.
- For some drinkers, cutting down on the amount of alcohol they drink simply does not work.
- Deciding to quit alcohol, albeit gradually, is definitely a big life decision, but having a tapering schedule can help retain mental and emotional stability.
- Some people attain their goal only to find that old habits crop up again later.
- As mentioned above, many people will still experience some level of withdrawal, just to a lesser degree.
- Therefore, seeking professional care to develop a customized tapering strategy is highly recommended.
- When someone stops drinking alcohol, they’ll likely experience at least some withdrawal symptoms.
Seltzers, sparkling water, or mocktails can provide the sensation of having a drink in your hand without the alcohol. These alternatives can be a psychological aid, making it easier to stick to your tapering plan. If you’ve decided to taper off alcohol, you’ll need to be prepared with some strategies to make the process easier.
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Reducing the amount of the chosen substance consumed daily is known as a direct taper, but it may not be effective for everyone. It is only advisable to direct taper if the preferred drink is beer with a low alcohol percentage. Identify specific situations, emotions, environments, and people that motivate your drinking. Examples of triggers could include stress, social gatherings with alcohol, certain friends, and bars.
If you repeatedly cannot cut back on your drinking or otherwise cannot get lower than a certain point in the taper, this might not be the right method for you. You can look into medication assisted treatment, such as getting the anti-craving medication Naltrexone, see if your doctor will give you benzodiazepines to taper with, or go to rehab/detox. If you notice severe hallucinations, extreme brain fog, the world slows down around you; you feel drunk when you’re not, you may have warning signs of delirium tremens (DTs). Always have one of your drinks late at night before you go to bed, to prevent this from happening while you’re sleeping. You need to make your own schedule and determine what’s best for you.
These complications can develop within a few hours or days and appear in the form of seizures, delirium tremens (DTs), and hallucinations, sometimes even leading to death. For example, healthcare providers usually don’t take patients off antidepressants suddenly; rather, they gradually lower the dosages to help reduce antidepressant discontinuation symptoms. A medical detox reduces the potential dangers of alcohol withdrawal by ensuring medical monitoring and assistance are present. It also increases the chances of success by completing the detox quickly instead of dragging it out for weeks like a taper can.
An example of a short-term goal would be to reduce alcohol consumption by half within the next month. An example of a long-term goal would be to achieve complete abstinence from alcohol within six months. Before you attempt to quit alcohol, it is critically important that you first consult with a medical professional. Deciding to quit drinking and following through isn’t just about willpower. Many other factors go into play with these difficult and trying scenarios. Tolerance, dependence, social habits, setting, the biology of the individual and more must all be considered.