r/cutdowndrinking

Idk what to do. Alcohol is ruining my marriage but I can’t stop because it relieves my social anxiety. I don’t drink at home alone just when I’m out and about. When I do it’s 9+ drinks, black out and cause a dramatic outburst Embarassing scene everytime or break things.. self harm if I am triggered, ruin relationships maybe I’m bipolar ? It’s like the only way to quit is to never leave my house… and that’s so boring and depressing. I want to go golfing and have my drinks (can’t golf without alcohol) etc I’m honestly screwed. Life will suck if I have to quit could I moderate maybe?

I had a reconning two years ago. I think everyone who knows me whould describe me in a way that’s really flattering. However maybe 3, 4 times a year I’d go off the rails. Honestly I didn’t care it was rare it did more than embarrassing me. That was until my finance now wife. Twice a year like clockwork we would get in HORRIBLE drunk fights. Fights that made no sense. Saying cruel things we NEVER said. I decided to cut down. I did two things. I set strict rules (no hard Liqour at parties, one drink an hour, never drink two weekdays in a row) and more importantly I got into therapy. I worked on the sources of my anger /anxiety that lead me to binge and rage. My rules are kind of gone now as my body now has a more healthy relationship with alcohol. Iv had zero blow up fights. Iv had one blackout after a crazy night with a friend and didn’t beat myself up over it. Enjoying my second glass of chilled wine and happily stopping after that. Good luck yall

I’ve been trying to taper down from drinking wine every night, without success. I have transitioned to beer. Tonight is day one of a four night taper. Problem is I hate beer. I can barely drink it. I’ve never had withdrawals just have anxiety over everything. I’ll see what I can get down but honestly it may be a one night taper. Wishing us all luck!

Went to my doctors this week and she gave me some info on different medications for cutting down/quitting alcohol. I’m considering Naltrexone.

I tried Champix a long time ago to quit smoking and it ended up just really pissing me off. The fact it took the feeling of enjoying a cigarette away just made me mad and I stopped taking it lol. Eventually quit with the patch.

Has anyone had that experience with Naltrexone? Is it similar? Or is it really life changing? Would love to hear some positive views!!

I’m also considering a low dose GLP-1 as I have 35 pounds or so to lose and I’ve heard it helps people with drinking.. but that’s not a sure thing and I’m not sure if I want the side effects that come with them.

Anyway, thanks for reading!

Let’s reflect on the week! Whether you’ve made progress, hit some challenges, or just have thoughts to share, this is a space to check in with the community. How has your drinking journey been this week? Any wins, struggles, or strategies you'd like to talk about? No matter where you're at, your experiences matter here—let's support each other!

Went to my first wedding sober! I’ve been sick for the last month and just not feeling great. I’m very black and white (have a history of an eating disorder and am typically all or nothing)
I didn’t want to make any final decision before going, but decided to see how I felt. I had water and Bubly’s and was doing fine (except for people asking me why I wasn’t drinking) Around 8pm, I got a second wind and decided to try having one. Got halfway through and my stomach hurt and I just was not feeling it. Instead of ‘forcing’ myself to finish the drink and not waste it, I left it and got another water. I was able to drive home (and be DD for our friends) and wake up without a hangover (granted, I’m exhausted and have anxiety so always feel slightly hungover just existing…) but I’m proud for not caving to peer pressure when everyone was doing shots and getting as drunk as possible. It was nice to not have to pay money for a cab, wake up just tired and not sick and I was able to fit a workout in today.

Due to my black and white restrictive history, I don’t want to commit to never drinking again. I don’t mind having a few when the mood strikes (which is very rarely these days - once every couple months) Concerts are my downfall. I feel like I ‘need’ a few to let loose and fully enjoy myself but that’s the only instance - otherwise, I’m learning how to just be fine being my quiet, shy, introverted autistic self lol. It’s certainly not easy especially in a heavy drinking culture but wanted to share my win with you guys!

Have a great rest of your day everyone!!

Woke up with a throbbing headache. Saw that there wasn’t much left of last night’s wine bottle. Watched the World Cup final even though my head was pounding. Now I’m sitting in bed eating Ben & Jerry’s. No drinking tonight. First dry day in weeks.

This has to stop.

So, I am kind of disappointed in my myself today because I drank 2 Busch apple tall boys yesterday and I was 30 days sober. I feel clueless as whether in disappointed because of the extremely destructive gambling addiction it caused and I am 32 days gambling free from or because of guilt. I also am 32 days nicotine free which I'm proud of and alcohol always makes me crave that (not really much gambling anymore but it makes me think about the what ifs). I have an addictive personality and I don't want to ruin my life but I feel so pressured to just have a couple in the back of my mind on the weekends when I'm gaming with my friends, I used to have lots of drinks every weekend gaming out with my buddies so it triggers intense cravings and I gave in yesterday (it was a sorta fun time, didn't crave gambling but really craved nicotine and didn't give in). Not sure if I should quit alcohol forever and find alternatives or drink again tonight and not feel good tomorrow. It does help cure boredom and calm my anxiety as well which scares me.

I use to have about 9-10 standard drinks a weekend and now I only have 3 standard drinks once a weekend

The big part that helped me the most was whenever I go to the store to get drinks, I only choose 2 singles, I don't buy cases or leave any additional drinks in the house. Even if I were to have any additional drinks, I now have the ability and strength to stop at 2 because I got so use to this strategy. It worked for me at least

It even takes me 4 hours to finish just 1 now and sometimes I don't bother with the second because it's already too late to open the other one. So slow pacing can help too and filling up with water.
I like my cut down pattern. I'm skipping this weekend just because I don't really feel up for it. My drinks will be saved in my fridge for my future next social hour

I am doing a stint of sobriety to get something written, and am committed to it at least until my deadline but I really really fancy a drink at the moment. Been dipping into this sub and stop drinking, but long term cutting down is my goal, not stopping.

Also I am not an alcoholic in any way shape or form, so i didn't want to post this in a forum where that is a lot of people's experience as it feels like stolen valour. Also, I don't want advice that is like 'don't fuck up your life' as, ultimately, if I have a big fat wine tonight, it absolutely wouldn't fuck up my life.

Anyway. Motivating words welcome.

Welp. I think I've overdone it this time. 36 years old and although I've suffered with heart burn since my 30s when drinking beer, it seems I may have given myself such bad heart burn over a long enough period of time it even hurts to swallow iced coffee this morning.

I think this was coupled with an odd chest infection as I felt a weird lump in my throat coupled with a mild cold in my neck and head.

Don't know why I'm posting this. Just feel like a bit of an idiot.

I’m sure this has been asked a lot before, but looking for advice on how to actually stick to limits you set for yourself? How do you build that level of control and discipline?

I’ve known for a while I’ve crossed the boundary from social drinking to it becoming a binge drinking habit, but I keep failing at cutting back. I don’t want to be completely sober, but I would really like to develop the discipline to be able to stick to a rule like drinking only one drink an hour or limiting myself to 2-3 drinks on a night out.

The weekly pattern is by the time I’ve had 2-3 drinks I’m tipsy enough to start making bad decisions and it usually ends up being 5-10 drinks. Each week there ends up being 2-3 social events where there’s always plenty of alcohol so I end up having 5-10 drinks multiple times throughout the week.

I would like to get to a point where I only have 2-3 drinks on any given social occasion and sometimes even being okay with not drinking at social events where others are drinking.

I’m not sure how to build the discipline and control to get there, so looking for what worked for the folks who’ve successfully gotten it under check.

200 days sober today.

It started as Dry January and just kind of never ended.

For the last 200 days, I’ve told everyone that I’m “sober” and that I was “addicted to alcohol.” Lately though, I’ve started wondering if that was actually true.

For some context: I never drank at work or during the week. I could go weeks without drinking if the opportunity didn’t present itself. Alcohol never really affected my life, aside from the occasional argument with my SO when I drank too much.

But when I did drink, I usually got drunk—and sometimes beyond that. It wasn’t uncommon for me to drink at home alone while playing video games or watching sports. It also wasn’t uncommon for me to pregame before going out with friends or keep drinking after I got home.

I’ve recently started attending some recovery meetings and communities, and hearing other people’s stories has made me question whether I really had a problem. Compared to a lot of what I’ve heard, my experience feels very different.

I also have some big life events coming up that I’d like to have a drink at. Part of me is fully confident I could drink for those occasions and then quit again afterward.

Has anyone else gone through this line of thinking? Have you ever questioned whether you actually had a problem after getting sober? Or have you ever given yourself “free passes” for certain events? How did it turn out?

these "especialists" are everywhere now, so I wanted to get something off my chest.

If these people were truly concerned about people's health, they wouldn't be selling a "fast method to stop drinking."

The very idea of someone claiming to know an "easy" method to solve such a hard problem as stopping drinking is outrageous. They should be ashamed of themselves for selling this "product" online, because that's all it is — nothing more than another product launched in the style of Jeff Walker. They choose a latest WHO recommendation about alcohol intake because it's a buzzword now and decide to build a product around it. To make money from it. Money at the expense of people who truly suffer from alcoholism. Those who truly suffer from alcoholism need to seek professional medical help, not an Instagram guru. And I wouldn't even be surprised if they themselves still drink behind the curtains and just want to make an extra buck with their miraculous books.

Now, regarding the subject itself: the Blue Zones, where centenarians in four of the five original regions around the globe consume alcohol moderately and regularly, put in check this panic-mongering interpretation of the WHO update they're exploiting.

these IG gurus say: "Zero alcohol, not even a drop, you must stop now! Hurry, give me your money and I'll save you from this trap!" (creating urgency, folks. The oldest trick in the book). On the other hand, actual scientists say "yeah, it's a toxin, but if you sleep well, avoid stress, don't smoke, maintain a healthy diet and exercise four days a week, a couple of beers at the weekend won't put you on the early death path".

I'll stay with the actual scientists.

Let’s reflect on the week! Whether you’ve made progress, hit some challenges, or just have thoughts to share, this is a space to check in with the community. How has your drinking journey been this week? Any wins, struggles, or strategies you'd like to talk about? No matter where you're at, your experiences matter here—let's support each other!

I have been a regular wine drinker at night (myabe 3 glasses over 3 hours) for the last 25 years with no issues. All of a sudden about two years ago, I started getting these crazy wake ups after 7-8 hours of sleep that feel like an electric surge flowing through my head, chest and arms. I'm female, 59 (so started at age 57) and not sure if it's the fact that I can no longer process alcohol or is it hormones (even though I'm on the recommended HRT for my age). Anyone else have similar issues?

The last time I took a break from alcohol was 30 days in 2022. I enjoyed it. I slept better, I had more energy and focus and was less bloated.

Since then I've been stuck in two minds: take a short break versus the long term goal.

The long term goal isn't to quit drinking. It's to get a better handle on it as drinking 4-5 times a week and 20 units a week isn't healthy and alcohol is taking more than its giving at the moment.

The problem is, I keep talking myself out of a break because I tell myself that I should try to drink how I want to long term. Thing is, I've been trying to do that for 4 years. Some weeks I may do 5 days AF and have 10 units but an average week only has 2 days AF.

I'm stuck in this cycle of "take a break" and "na, let's just moderate" and its mentally exhausting.

Anyone relate? Any words of wisdom?