Last week I wrote about how powerful it was for me to write a list of all the reasons why I wanted to take back control of my drinking.
Why was it so important?
Because it confirmed to me that I needed to make a change to the way I was drinking.
It made me realise that I didn’t have to hit ‘rock bottom’ (whatever that is) to decide to take back control.
I also found the list helpful whenever I questioned whether my drinking really was ‘that bad’.
However, there was a second and equally important step in this ‘Why?’ exercise – listing all the reasons I liked to drink.
I was asking these questions because I had a love/hate relationship with alcohol – I liked a drink but I didn’t like what it was doing to me.
My ‘why I like to drink’ list
The reasons that I listed for why I liked to drink included:
- De-stress from a busy life
- Socialise
- Enjoy a holiday
- Calm down when upset, angry or frustrated
- Relax on the weekend or the end of a difficult day
- Loosen up my inhibitions and have fun
- When celebrating
In a nutshell I drank during the good, the bad and the ugly times!
Listing all the reasons that I liked to drink was important in helping me to dig into my thoughts and beliefs around alcohol.
Only then could I begin to change my mindset which was key to me getting to the stage where I now have a take-it-or-leave-it attitude to drinking.
After years of trying (and failing) to moderate it was the mindset shift, as well as educating myself on alcohol, that finally worked for me.
I now use that approach with my coaching clients and in my soon-to-be-launched online program.
Upcoming free webinar
A few weeks ago I hosted a free webinar: Three steps I took to gain back control of my drinking … without using willpower.
I’ve had enquiries from people who couldn’t make that session so I’m hosting an encore presentation on Thursday 23 June at 7pm.