Hawaii Island Recovery 
Drinking takes over an alcoholic’s life and becomes the sole focus. Quitting alcohol addiction breaks this cycle and comes with many benefits!
Quitting alcohol addiction is no simple task. Alcohol is everywhere in society today. Advertisements are blasted across billboards and broadcast on television. Corporate beer sponsorships take up valuable real estate at sporting events. Grocery stores, convenience stores, and liquor stores make alcohol easy to come by.
Statistics reflect the prevalence of alcohol in American culture. More than 80 percent of the American population ages 18 and older report trying alcohol at least once. Nearly 27 percent admit to binge drinking at least once in the past month. And to go even further, 15.1 million adults in the United States ages 18 and older live with an alcohol use disorder.
Quitting drinking is one of the best decisions you can make in order to live a full, happy, and healthy life. You may not even realize your drinking is a problem but drinking can quickly catch up with you before you realize it. However, before quitting alcohol addiction, you must first know what it looks like.
What is Alcohol Addiction?
6.2 percent of the adult population nationwide lives with an active addiction to alcohol, or an alcohol use disorder (AUD). According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V), to qualify for an AUD, you must experience at least two of the following criteria within a 12-month period:
- Drinking larger quantities or for longer periods of time than you originally meant to
- Wanting to cut down or stop drinking but find that you cannot
- Spending a lot of time drinking or being sick as a result of how much you drank
- Experiencing the feeling of “craving,” or wanting to drink so badly you could think of little else
- Finding that your drinking interferes with your school, work, or home life
- Continuing to drink despite the problems alcohol causes with your family or friends
- Stopping participating in activities or hobbies you once loved in order to drink instead
- Finding yourself in dangerous or life-threatening situations as a result of your drinking
- Continuing drinking even though it negatively affects your mood or how you feel about yourself
- Realizing you need to drink more in order to feel the effect you are looking for
- Noticing symptoms of alcohol withdrawal when you stop drinking for a period of time
If you have experienced at least two, you may have a mild alcohol use disorder. Four or five present symptoms show signs of a moderate AUD. If you live with six or more symptoms, your drinking qualifies as a severe case of alcohol use disorder.
Quitting alcohol addiction frees you from these symptoms and so much more! Have you been thinking about quitting drinking? The benefits of doing so are practically endless!
Addiction treatment isn’t a one-size-fits-all. No two people are exactly the same, making it difficult to treat.
More infoThe Many Benefits of Quitting Alcohol Addiction
1. No more hangovers.
Hangovers are easily one of the worst parts of drinking. After dehydrating and forcing your body to process large quantities of ethanol, it spends much of the following day recovering. This recovery period is what you refer to as a hangover. After quitting alcohol addiction, you will never deal with another hangover again.
2. More free time.
Most people who live with an alcohol use disorder spend nearly all of their time either drinking or thinking about drinking. When you remove alcohol from the equation, you suddenly realize how much time you free up by not drinking. You can participate in the hobbies and activities you used to love, all with a clear head!
3. No more wasting money.
When you drink heavily, your alcohol consumption quickly becomes a large expense. If you are no longer drinking, you will have hundreds to thousands more dollars left each month to spend to your liking. You will never have to waste your money on or in a blackout again.
4. Short-term health benefits.
As soon as you quit drinking, you allow your body a chance to start rebuilding itself. Heavy alcohol use significantly impacts your body, sometimes without you even realizing it. When you quit drinking, you will soon find you have more energy, a clear head, and feel better physically overall.
5. Long-term health benefits.
Quitting alcohol addiction is one of the best things you can do for your long-term health. Current research links heavy alcohol use to numerous consequences, including:
- Various types of cancer
- Pancreatitis
- High blood pressure
- Ulcers
- Malnutrition
- Vitamin B deficiency
- Sexual problems
- Stroke
- Death
When you stop drinking, you significantly decrease your chances of developing these health problems.
6. Getting family and friends back.
Alcoholics often find that those closest to them grow tired of their behavior and tend to step away. After you quit drinking, you will most likely find that your friends and family will come back after a period of time.
7. Better performance in school or at work.
Once quitting alcohol addiction, your ability to focus, concentrate, and pay attention starts to come back. This leads to better performance in the classroom, in the office, or at the job site. Both you and your teachers or employers will be thankful for that!
8. Life no longer feels so bleak and pointless.
Alcohol use disorder traps you in a cycle of drinking and hangovers, limiting your life to the next time you’re able to drink. After you remove alcohol from your life and put some sober time together, you find that life isn’t as awful as you once thought it was.
9. Gaining back self-respect.
As you continue along a path of sobriety, you gain respect for yourself back. You no longer need to resort to sometimes inhuman behaviors to get by. Once you have some time sober and continue to work on bettering yourself, your self-respect starts to return.
10. Living a life free from the chains of alcohol addiction.
The biggest benefit of quitting alcohol addiction is living your life free from the bondage of alcoholism. Your life is no longer dictated by King Alcohol; you are free at last to rejoin society alongside your loved ones.
Need Help Quitting Alcohol Addiction?
Inpatient treatment centers like Hawaii Island Recovery specialize in helping people quit drinking. If you are struggling with how much you drink, call our admissions office today to see if you qualify for treatment. A happy, sober life awaits you once you put down the bottle. Make the call today!
Get Addiction Help!
If you or a loved one need help, call Hawaii Island Recovery toll-free right now.
866-390-5070
