Ingrained or not???

[Lou]

When does it happen that your brain clicks out of that "its time for alcohol " mode....whether it be a fri after finishing at the office for a wk or coming home after a really good work out or even whilst having a good old catch up with a friend on the phone....times like these and others automatically make me wanna reach for a drink. Is it ingrained in to us that much that we'll always have that initial reaction or does it go away with time....anyone on long term abs who can answer this would be much appreciated.

Lou-Lou x x

[Roxy1234]

Ingrained or not???

Lou-Lou,
I have a feeling that that "click" you refer to is what can be eliminated with the hypno CDs. If you haven't already read the book, check it out. It explains it really well. When I first came here I was doing just the supps and not taking the hypno stuff too seriously. But after I read WHY it is part of this program, I think I get why it can be very helpful. In a nutshell, the brain needs to be "reprogrammed", and that is what the hypnosis does. I did my first session this morning and I got the sense that it is very powerful stuff, but it will take some time and very consistent practice.

So to answer your question, YES! By all means, the urge to drink is very deeply ingrained, which is why simple willpower is oftentimes not successful.

Keep reading...this place is a wealth of information

:h Roxy

[irishlady]

Ingrained or not???

Hi Lou,

I can only speak for myself here but as regards the triggers which occur before the craving, I believe they are a learned behaviour.....The actual craving for alcohol is both a physical one and an emotional one....The Friday night trigger...you have taught yourself over a period of years, it's Friday, tonight I will drink...It becomes a HABIT....One of my habits was, whenever I went grocery shopping I automatically ended up in the wine and spirit aisle....When I stopped drinking last September, each time I went shopping, for about the first two weeks I had to make a conscious decision not to go anywhere near that aisle, in other words I had to unlearn one habit and teach myself a new one.....Now I can actually go shopping and get all the way home before I even realise that I hadn't even thought of alcohol once....

Another very strong habit of mine was Saturday night....I work in a supermarket, Saturday I finish work at 6pm then I have 4 days off ( I only work part time now ) so Sat night the brakes were well and truly off...I would sit there all day on my checkout deciding what and how much to buy, would it be three bottles of wine?? a litre and a half bottle of full cream Sherry??? perhaps two bottles of wine and a small bottle of vodka for top ups, and my top ups were, when I only had half a bottle of wine left, I would only pour half a glass and then fill the rest of the glass with vodka, this was all part of my routine, Saturday was amongst the hardest of the habits for me to break but I did it....I simply decided not to take any money to work so I wouldn't be able to do any " shopping " when I had finished...There, reading that sounds so simple, well the first few times I did this, I would get to my car sit there and just cry, I wanted that drink so badly, but this was a battle between alcohol and me and this time I was going to win, so I changed tactics, instead of sitting in my car crying because I couldn't have a drink I praised myself for my strength, all day Saturday as I served customers, each time one of them had any alcohol as I checked it through for them I would look at the bottle, remind myself how bad I would feel the next morning if I had a drink, just say to myself, UGH, NO THANKS, NOT FOR ME, this was no magic cure, it didn't work straight away, but like anything new it has to be learned....

So I guess what I am saying here is yes, you can unlearn bad habits and teach yourself good ones but it takes time and plenty of repitition...As for the "Magic Click " yes, a lot of us do get that click, but that only acts as the spur to make you determined that this time is the time when you can and will do it....You still have to put in the hard work to unlearn those bad habits and learn the new ones...

Hope this has made sense and that it helps you,

All the best, From Louise xxx

[Waves 2]

Ingrained or not???

:thanks: Louise. I find your posts very helpful and thought provoking.