ElleDee

I just read on another thread that ice cream cures cravings. I can't eat ice cream so there's no trying it out for me.

I'd like to hear more. What food or drink works for you when you have or had a craving?

Thepatman

Black Chocolate, 70%

Full of anti-oxidants and yummy

trachemys

I knew I'd run into someone with that problem eventually. Sherbert? Chocolate? Fresh fruit? Fresh fruit dipped in chocolate?

I hope you don't have problems with chocolate, too.

desypete

i nice cold drink of water would hit the spot for me. or a can of coke, i also had to keep my sugers up ( well that is my excuse for eating more chocolate ) but it did work

doggonecarl

Some of my cravings were relieved by sweets...the others were cured by prayer and cognitive behavioral therapy techniques.

jezza

L-Glutamine is meant to be really good for cravings. It's a supplement Amino Acid which works on the reward system in the brain & it's fairly cheap.. I take it myself & seems to work for me!!

gardendiva

Non alcoholic beer.

ScottFromWI

Bike ride, walk, sleep, read, eat, drink ( soda, juice, coffee tea etc ) , talk, clean, garden, pray, chat, read SR, knit, sew, cook, fish, mow, paint, wash, dry, fold, type, call, shop, relax....that should keep you busy for a little while ;-)

Daisyjo

Black Licorice for me. And any tart frozen yogurt.

PurpleKnight

A walk in the fresh air usually sorts me out, or something sweet and sugary!!

MrBen

Cardio.

Daisyjo

Oh I forgot one more thing. It's not a food but it still works for me. It's an app for my iPhone called I Am Sober. It gives me a ding everyday congratulating me on another sober day and when I reach a milestone I get to download the wallpaper or keep the picture to remind me of my success. It tabulates all the money I've saved from day to day.
I'm just like Pavlovs dog but hey I really look forward to this private celebration every day.

Aellyce

I used food a lot to eliminate my cravings, but never sweets. Just normal meals or foods that I like. I think the "like" is important, that's part of how it competes with alcohol.

The sweets have an additional biological reason why they work well (for most people they are highly rewarding, stimulate similar mechanisms in the brain as alcohol) and in this context they can be very effective. I just don't like sweets, why I did not use them.

Like others suggested, exercise is also great.

In terms of cognitive approaches that help with cravings, if you had any strong specific reason why you decided to quit drinking in the end, a good way might be to make yourself visualize and imagine what might happen if drinking continued destroying that something for you. If it was your health, imagine yourself hopelessly sick... or if you were afraid of losing anything specific, imagine how it would be if you did lose it. For me this tends to be quite powerful because I had some very strong reasons, things I desperately did not want to lose. So when I make myself imagine all that destroyed, it freaks the *** out of me and refocuses my mind. This approach may or may not work for you because it's not based on reward but negative reinforcement and aversion, just try.

Also, I think I've learned very well to monitor my thoughts, feelings, and actions for pre-craving states, means states that precede the moments when the real cravings would hit. This is basically what we tend to call triggers. Also, try to avoid places and anything that your mind associated with drinking previously because being exposed to those can serve as strong triggers (where you drank, people you drank with, situations, etc).

Finally, post on SR when you have cravings BEFORE you would even think about acting on them! I did this only once not long ago and it did not only help with the craving but ended up a pretty cool, interesting thread

MIRecovery

A lot of people would disagree with this one myself included. Do a search for NA beer for various view points

SparkyMcSparky

+1

Sugary soda (Pepsi seems best for some reason) works well too.

Also, eating a lot before when you'd normally crave a drink seems to help me.

Especially KFC.

Edit: Just read MIRecovery's post, and searched NA Beer threads. Guessing the decision to drink NA Beer is an individual one. Me, I liked beer, and find it more refreshing than soda or water on a hot day. Problem was I never stopped at 1. Had a few NA Beer this weekend in social situations where I normally would have drank beer and found no desire to have a real beer. Was very thankful I had this alternative, as it would have made it even harder without it.

Based on this logic too, if someone drank rum and coke, they should avoid coke? If they drank cocktails, they should avoid fruit juice? Not sure I like saying no to anyone's alternatives if they work for them.

Mind you, I'm on Day 6, so maybe I should shut up now....

biminiblue

Yeah, Elle, the sugar hits the same receptors like haennie said.

It isn't the ice cream, exactly. It's just that ice cream is a good food - calcium, potassium, protein and fat.

I think you've gotten great posts so far.

Exercise - preferably outdoors - is my best distraction.

gardendiva

The OP asked what works for me. Non-alcoholic beer works for me. Really, there is nothing to disagree with here.

least

http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/...-cravings.html

Verte

I'm a salty black licorice consumer myself and have enjoyed this the past few months (that makes at least 2 of us, Daisyjo )

The HALT holds true and is really important in my life these days.

Croissant

Elle dee, if you can't have ice cream, I'm assuming it's possibly because of lactose intolerance?

What about a diary free gelato? I went crazy on fruit smoothies in the beginning, also....no diary, just whizzed up some fruit, water or juice and ice....yummy!