Allen Carr’s Easy Way To Control Alcohol

Continued

1. Don’t think “I must never have another drink!” This creates a feeling of deprivation. Instead you should think your life is no longer dominated by this destructive drug.

2. Having made the correct decision, you should never question the decision. The difficulty in quitting lies not in the physical withdrawal pains, but in mentally craving a drink, and in questioning your decision.

3. Don’t try to avoid thinking about the fact you no longer drink alcohol, because this is futile. It’s like worrying about not being able to sleep at night: the more you worry about it, the more you guarantee you will not be able to sleep. Carr claims that if you think “I’d love a drink” you will make yourself miserable. If on the other hand you think of yourself as being free, you will enjoy thinking about it and this will make you happier.

4. Carr asks the reader not to wait to become a non-drinker. He believes one of the main problems of the willpower method is that you are never sure when you are free. He firmly believes that you must realize you are free the moment you finish the last drink.

5. You must accept that just as drinkers, non-drinkers and ex-drinkers all have good and bad days, so do people who have quit drinking. Carr feels that if alcohol genuinely made people happy, drinkers would never be unhappy. People have a tendency when they stop drinking to blame everything that goes wrong on the fact that they’ve quit. Carr simply feels that if it’s a good day, enjoy it to the full. If you have a bad day, remind yourself that it would have been much worse if you were still a drinker.

6. You must realize that you are in control of the craving and not the other way round. In the distant future your brain may well tell you that you need a drink. You must stay in control. You have to remind yourself that you are free from the nightmare.

7. Don’t alter your life in any way because you have quit drinking. Some ‘experts’ think you should avoid pubs, restaurants, the company of drinking friends, and other situations where you might be tempted. Carr feels you should go to a pub or party immediately if only to prove to yourself that you don’t have to wait in order to enjoy yourself without drinking. Even if you are the only non-drinker at the party, it doesn’t matter. Drinkers that love you will be delighted that you have quit but part of their brain will hate you for quitting. They will sense you are truly free and this will make them insecure.

8. Enjoy breaking false associations. Carr feels that weddings, parties, holidays, Christmas, or even a meal without alcohol can be enjoyed in their own right. If you tell yourself you can’t enjoy them without poisoning and inebriating yourself, you won’t be able to.

Although Carr knows that it sounds contradictory, he actually recommends that you have a final drink after reading the book, mainly due to those who ask themselves when will they become a free spirit? Carr feels it is important you realize you have achieved your goal the moment you finish your final drink. He feels this might possibly be the most momentous day of your life.

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