The Benefits of Stopping Drinking Alcohol

The benefits of stoping drinking alcohol.
The benefits of giving up alcohol are as widespread as the damage caused by continuing to drink. Everything gets better provided that the illness is tackled at source by countering cravings. This is achieved by working the Twelve Step programme of Alcoholics Anonymous.

But alcoholism and addiction of any kind are described as family illnesses for very good reasons. They run in families and the illness of one member of the family has knock-on effects on the others.

The implications of these observations are, firstly, that we can see an addictive nature in other members of our family. This can be reassuring in helping us to recognise that we may well have a genetically-linked illness rather than a personal weakness. We may not like that idea, and we have to acknowledge past and continuing responsibility for our behaviour, but it sets us off in the right direction: looking at ourselves.

Secondly, we need to acknowledge the damage our behaviour has done to other people. In due course, if we are to get into lasting recovery from our illness, rather than have recurrent relapses, we shall have to make amends to those people by changing our behaviour and asking what we could do for them in some way to make recompense.

The benefits of stopping drinking are as profound and far-reaching as the damage caused in drinking days.