Beat the Alcohol Cravings for Lasting Sobriety

A.J. Rogers, Ph.D.

Bob started drinking at age 14 - to feel more like a grown-up. This is what his father did every weekend. By age 19, Bob got a dishonorable discharge from the service. When asked about his drinking, he noted proudly that he did not use drugs and did not drink hard liquor, only beer. The years of alcoholism took a toll on his life. Bob could not keep a job and was in and out of jail for various offenses related to his drinking. His family was fed up with him and wished no contact with him. 

At 24, Bob realized he should do something about his drinking. He enrolled himself in alcohol programs but was unsuccessful in staying sober. Bob ended up in prison, where he attended church and took classes. He learned about substance abuse and how to turn his life around. The cravings for alcohol had disappeared. He was sure he could stay sober this time.

The day he left prison, his mind reverted to its old thinking patterns. All he could think of was getting back to his old crowd and drinking. He left his comfort with sobriety ‘behind the wall,’ as they say. Bob struggled with his cravings until he went to therapy. That is where he learned about a simple technique that changed his life. Within weeks, Bob conquered his cravings and regained sobriety.

Why You Can Succeed

 Bob had been on the sobriety rollercoaster. He fought cravings that refused to go away. Each time, he found himself back at square one. Why does that happen? The main reason is that treatment often focuses on side issues. The usual treatment focus is on stress and overwhelming emotions. These reportedly weaken willpower. Instead of fixing side issues, let’s examine the real suspect. 

The real culprit is our thoughts. Follow Bob’s journey to learn how he eliminated the cravings and reached his goal of sobriety. He did it. You can do it too.

 Understanding the Culprit: Your Thoughts

It all comes down to what’s happening in your mind as you make decisions, minute by minute. Your thoughts can push you toward alcohol or cheer your determination to resist. You need a simple tool to help you make the right choices on the spot. A tool that’s effective against cravings. 

The first step is to analyze your thoughts, false beliefs, and what triggers your cravings. Bob found that his thoughts drifted to beer whenever he felt anxious, lonely, or worried. He studied his cravings pattern. Bob realized that thoughts of beer came up when he worried about finding a job or new friends. 

To battle loneliness, he joined an AA group and a church. But facing people without a beer in his hand made him anxious. His therapist reminded him that he was fine in prison without the beer. “You can hold a bottle of water instead. Focus on your slow breathing, listen to the conversation, and wait for the others to speak first”. Bob knew he could do it, but the anxiety made his hands shake, and all he could think of was beer. Instead of listening to conversations, he plotted where to get a beer on the way home. 

The other trigger for beer thoughts was being home alone with his worried thoughts. In the past, he used beer to forget about his troubles. Now, he could not fall asleep for all the worrying thoughts. As you will learn, there is a way to combat anxious and worrying thoughts. 

Understanding the Thought-Willpower Connection

Thoughts influence willpower. Before any action, your brain thinks about the plan. If you think about something repeatedly, you’re likely to do it. This thought-driven process applies to various aspects of life. Whether it’s learning a trade or adopting a sober lifestyle. The key takeaway is that your thoughts are the force that shapes your actions. It’s an ongoing conversation with yourself.

Taking Control of Your Thoughts

Willpower is checking your thoughts to make sure they support your goals. Your job is to stop the thoughts that contain excuses, fears, and procrastination. Controlling your thoughts to boost your willpower is easy once you learn the thought-stopping and thought-replacement method. 

False Beliefs

False beliefs are sayings we repeat in our heads until we believe them to be true facts. They are not true, but we say them to ourselves so often that we think they are true. They become part of our self-image. In Bob’s case, his false beliefs stood between him and his goal of sobriety. 

Thought always comes before action, even in the most impulsive individual. As Bob learns to manage his thoughts, he will succeed in changing his false beliefs. Bob felt deprived. He believed that he needed a beer to be content. A false - but strong belief. Bob had other beliefs; "I am chemically addicted,” "I’ve been sober for three months-- I am not addicted." To continue his sobriety, he must find a way to remove the false beliefs. 

The good news is that by repeating his goals, he can develop new beliefs based on his new goals. The idea, “I want to stay sober,” will become a part of his new self-image. 

Triggers

Triggers are events, emotions, habits, and locations that activate thoughts of alcohol. Some familiar triggers are boredom, parties, specific emotions, and places. Daydreams about past or future drinking or the associated lifestyle trigger drinking cravings. 

Bob was lonely and had social anxiety, which triggered his beer cravings. He also smoked. His habit was to smoke a cigarette while he drank his beer. Now, cigarettes have become a trigger for beer cravings. Bob complained to his therapist. “Everything triggers cravings.”

Practical Application: Beating Alcohol Cravings in Everyday Life

Bob’s therapist asked him to make a list of his goals. Bob could only think of three. ‘I want to stay sober.’ ‘I am calm.’ ‘Go to sleep.’ His therapist told him, “When cravings, excuses, or fears arise, replace them with one of the goals on your list. For example, if you think, ‘I need a beer,’ replace that thought with ‘I want to stay sober.’ Keep repeating, 'I want to stay sober,' until the cravings disappear. 

Bob had the chance to try the technique that night when he lay down to sleep. First came the dread that he would have another sleepless night. He closed his eyes, slowed his breathing, and repeated to himself, ‘Go to sleep.’ Bob developed a rhythm. He told himself, ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing in and ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing out. 

Bob kept it up until a thought popped into his head about not finding a job. He caught himself before he went any further with that worry. He returned to ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing in and ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing out. Bob did that for a few minutes, and then ‘It’s not working’ popped into his head. 

He returned to ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing in and ‘Go to sleep’ when breathing out. It took a long time to fight the intruding thoughts, but finally, he fell asleep. 

Breaking Location-Triggered Cravings

Location can trigger alcohol cravings. Every grocery store, liquor store, food mart, and bar can trigger alcohol cravings. Bob had a favorite bar. He knew everyone there. It felt comfortable and fun. That is where he used to go before heading home each night. Bob hasn't been there for some time because you’re trying to stay sober. 

Driving home from church, he stoppps at a stoplight. Bob's mind starts thinking of that bar. That stop light is his location trigger. That is where he used to turn left to go to that bar. Bob repeats the phrase, “I want to stay sober,” whenever he thinks of alcohol or the bar and drives home. The cravings disappear once he's past that location. 

Bob experienced triggers wherever he went. His cravings were triggered at the grocery store and the gas station. Even driving past bars and liquor stores triggered cravings. “There is no way I can avoid all those places,” he told his therapist. “I would have to fly home.” 

His only tool was to say to himself, ‘I want to stay sober.’ He confided in his therapist, “I’m sick of that phrase.” His therapist encouraged him. “Keep it up. You are using the phrase to break the cravings connection. Be patient. It will work.” The therapist suggested, “You can use any phrase. ‘I hate alcohol’ or ‘I love cylinders’ will work. You’re replacing a craving thought with something else. You are breaking the connection between a location and alcohol cravings.” 

The Result: A Craving-Free Life

It took eight weeks before Bob noticed the change. He was watching a movie, and the actors on screen were drinking and partying. The movie did not trigger cravings. 

Bob was busy at his new job and liked his boss. His therapist asked Bob if he still feels deprived. Bob said, “No, not really.” Bob stopped complaining about the cravings thoughts. When the therapist asked him about it, Bob said, “It happens, but not as much. I guess I’m too busy to think about that.” 

His therapist asked about emotions. Bob said he walks or exercises in his apartment when angry. When he feels lonely, he visits an older disabled man who lives in the apartment complex. Bob starts the conversation by asking the man if he needs anything. This leads to long conversations. The older man had an interesting life, and Bob enjoys listening to him. 

Bob also made a friend at work—a man who is five years sober.

The Road to Success

Your sobriety journey begins in your mind. Controlling your thoughts will boost your willpower and lead to success. You can break away from old patterns that once held you back by creating new thought habits.

• Make a list of your goal phrases. What do you want to achieve?
• Make a list of your cravings
• Make a list of your triggers
• Make a list of the habits that trigger you
• Make a list of location triggers

Get sober before starting the thought-stopping and thought-replacement method. It won’t work if you are under the influence of marijuana or drugs. You don’t have control over your thoughts then.

Your goal list is the most important. You will repeat those words or phrases whenever you have any thoughts that lead to drinking. When a craving or an excuse to drink pops into your head, replace it with one of your goals. Keep at it. In the beginning, it will seem like you have to do it all the time. 

Be stubborn about it. Keep repeating, “I want to be sober,” or whatever goals are on your list. You are breaking the connection between the triggers and the cravings. It takes time—lots of repetitions. 

You can do it. Get rid of the false beliefs and replace them with your goals. 

Start using the thought-control techniques today. 

Share your progress with us in the comments below. Your success story could inspire others on their path to a craving-free life.