I remember my days of over-drinking. I was so frustrated with drinking a bottle of wine every night. Every. Night. I felt I was a smart, competent woman who could handle my life – except for my drinking. It was so irritating. So frustrating. Why am I drinking this much? It worried me that I was slowly slipping into a disease. But then, I would see and hear others around me talking about drinking and see my friends and coworkers drink. This would allow me to justify my behavior. And put off doing anything about it. But I would still feel this frustration of why I had to consume so much.
Why couldn’t I be satisfied without any alcohol for a couple of nights?
My brain wanted it. It craved the feeling of having the wine. Logically, I understood that I shouldn’t be doing this much drinking. But my logic wasn’t helping me to cut back.
More frustration. More anger and more shame with myself. Frustration didn’t help me cut back. It added to my drinking. I had to come at it from a different angle. For me, I had to start to practice honoring my decision and commitment to cut back. I came at it from the angle of self-love and self-care. Easy? Not at first. Worth it? Totally. What angle do you need to try to cut down on your drinking?
