savarna

Get to a couple of weeks / months sober then I crave alcohol sooooo badly , why does this happen and how does one stop or reduce it

Dee74

did you look at the link I posted to you yesterday in your last thread Savarna?

D

Robertstone

I think it happens because the voice inside of you thinks it can still trick you into drinking. If you harshly command that voice to go away and don't listen to it for a second, it will go away. It may appear back from time to time, but in my experience it fades away each time and very, very seldom does it try to trick me anymore.

1newcreation

Easy: coz you're an alki n so am I! The longer you stay away from the bottle, the quicker you stabilize n withdrawals disapear. Eat smthg sweet & drink coffee. Exercise or go to a mtg; you'll be okay

savarna

yes I just red it Thankyou I missed it earlier lol

Nonsensical

Short answer: because you're addicted

Long answer: There's a pleasure center in your mid-brain whose function is to provide rewards and penalties for the behaviors needed for survival: breathing, eating, hydrating, sleeping, and sex. The reward is a feeling of pleasure. The penalty is a sense of anxiety and urgency to engage in the behavior. Eat a satisfying meal -sense of pleasure. Dieting - anxiety about, and urgency for, food.

When you become addicted, that part of your mid-brain has now put alcohol in the same category. Stop drinking alcohol and it stimulates anxiety and a sense of urgency to get it. a.k.a. craving. Your mid-brain is responding as if your survival is in jeopardy.

Unfortunately, you can't just tell your mid-brain to stop classifying alcohol as a necessity. It doesn't respond in that way. There are some things you can do, however.

1. Starve it. The mid-brain's demands for alcohol will decrease over time. Unless you feed it, then they get worse.

2. Override the mid-brain's impulse. The frontal cortex (where you make judgments and decisions) is fully capable of ignoring the mid-brain's demands.

3. Dee's urge-surfing recommendation helps get you through the rough spots.

Best of Luck on Your Journey!

IOAA2

I agree with the sweets but I believe coffee is not too good an idea for an alcoholic. This from a study I read some time ago but it's the drink at AA. So maybe I'm wrong again.

BE WELL