Originally Posted by
zxcirce 
i disagree that cravings keeep going and going. that's only if we interact with them and give them strength. all things pass. thoughts pass. a craving is a thought and a physiological reaction. they will pass if you don't give them fuel.
This is the point I was making about not paying attention to the cravings as they come but they do still come. They are strong in the first week but subside to the back of your mind after that. Nevertheless, the brain synapses that have been altered over many repeated instances of alcohol use do not easily change on their own for most of us.
I have learned to manage beyond the impulses but they remain for me just buried beneath the surface. Maybe some day they will stop but they still lurk in the back of my mind. It does get more manageable with time though and for some of you maybe it stops all together within the first few months.
I think it also partly depends on how long you abused and how much time you gave your brain to make changes that are hard to reverse. I used almost everyday for twenty years, maybe someone that only went a year or two will get rid of the side effects faster.