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Old 04-07-2012, 08:04 AM
  # 30 (permalink)  
harleyq
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Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Boston, MA
Posts: 92
Originally Posted by GrowingDaily View Post
I developed my own method for this, which worked 100% when I quit smoking. And so far, it seems to be working for booze.

I force myself to sit down - daily - and study the catastrophic effects of alcohol. I'll look at pictures of people dying of liver disease. I'll read stories here of the harm done to families & friends. I'll go over my own list of people I've hurt and the damage I've caused.

But most importantly, while I'm doing this, I allow (and encourage, even force) myself to feel anger. To feel hate. To despise alcohol. To see it as the poison it is. I also will force myself to do the same - feel the same anger & hate - anytime the thought pops into my head suggesting that booze is pleasurable in any way. The act of binding strong negative emotion to the imagery is of paramount importance.

Alcohol and drugs - in a very literal sense - reprogram our brains. This 'reprogramming' (excuse the oversimplification) associates pleasure with consumption. The tool I described above simply counteracts this programming. This isn't something you can half-ass though. The programming you're combating has been reinforced & strengthened over the course of your drinking career. To actually win the war, that means you have to spend just as much, or more, time and focused mental energy teaching yourself to hate it.

Dunno if it will work for you, but I think anyone willing to give it an honest go will see results. For the first time in my life, I can say, without a shred of doubt, that I won't ever smoke again in my life. The thought of smoking literally turns my stomach. I'd rather eat a cockroach. I'm not quite there yet w/ alcohol, but I'm making progress every day. I can feel the disgust rising, and it feels great !!!
this method works for me. It's similar to what I read in Allen Carr's books. My problem is that I didn't stick with it. I like your approach of doing it EVERY day. That's what I need to do so I don't get complacent again. Another post above states this fact exactly - we have to practice changing our thoughts. For me, I have to understand that practice is continuous.
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