This is the fourth in a series of blogs on moderate drinking. The first covered definitions of moderate drinking based on years of solid empirical research. It also addressed instances where moderate drinking or a goal of pursuing moderate drinking could be hazardous to your health and well-being. If you haven’t yet read it, we recommend that you do so first.
The second post focused on what’s really the first step or question to answer about your drinking? Would it be a good thing for me to change it?
The third gives you a way to compare different kinds of alcohol and encourages you to use a standard drink (Standard Ethanol Content or SEC to use research terms) and gives you a calculator for it.
This fourth post is below.
The fifth post cover concrete steps to take in cutting back on your drinking.
The sixth post discusses your options if efforts to cut back on your drinking aren’t working for you.
Our goal in this series is to present you with solid empirical data on moderate drinking without blaming, labeling, or telling you what to do. What, if anything you decide to do about your drinking is always up to you. Only you can make that choice.
My research team and I have been involved in developing moderate drinking programs for 28+ years now and have published numerous peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and developed digital tools to help people be successful in moderating their drinking. We have considerable expertise in this area.
This first post covered definitions of moderate drinking based on solid empirical research over the years. It also addressed instances where moderate drinking or a goal of pursuing moderate drinking could be hazardous to your health and well-being.
The second post focused on what’s really the first step or question to answer about your drinking? Would it be a good thing for me to change it?
The third gives you a way to compare different kinds of alcohol and encourages you to use a standard drink (Standard Ethanol Content or SEC to use research terms) and gives you a calculator for it.
The fourth post addresses your chances of success in cutting back.
The fifth post discusses concrete steps you can take to be successful at moderating your drinking.
The sixth post discusses how to deal when your efforts to moderate your drinking aren’t working.
In this post we’ll start with what moderate drinking is, and what it isn’t.
In future posts we will provide:
To get started, here’s a short questionnaire for you to answer. When you do, we’ll give you objective feedback about your chances of success. The feedback is based on a long-term follow-up (2-8 years) of randomized clinical trials our colleagues at The University of New Mexico conducted with a moderate drinking protocol, behavioral self-control training, a well validated protocol with many randomized clinical trials supporting its effectiveness.
Now that you have your personalized feedback based on solid research, what are the next steps?
First, is the decision I mentioned earlier. Is it time for you to make a change in your drinking? If the answer is yes, then here’s the next question:
With this feedback above, you can now make an informed decision. And remember, only you can make that decision. Also keep in mind the cautions I discussed in the prior blog that we recommend you take into account when choosing a goal of change:
If you decide moderate drinking is a goal you’re going to work on, I recommend using strategies that have good support in the clinical research literature like Behavioral Self-Control Training (BSCT). My research team and I as well as many other clinical researchers in our field have been evaluating this moderate drinking protocol for decades now and it consistently demonstrates effectiveness. For most that is.
The answer to this has been consistent now for decades or research. People who have a shorter history of alcohol problems and less severe problems overall have the best chances of success using moderation to reduce their alcohol-related problems. That’s not to say that drinkers with more severe problems cannot cut back and be successful. And some do. It’s just that the chances of success in getting rid of alcohol-related problems goes down as one’s alcohol problem severity increases.
And people at the more severe end of the spectrum often laugh at the definition of moderate drinking as they consider it so little, why bother? They also often find it easier to stop completely rather than having to stop after one or two drinks.
As for how to change your drinking, you also have a number of choices. You could:
People often combine these strategies that meet their needs. The rely on the mutual support groups who are supportive of their efforts to change as well as us a digital tool and/or see a counselor or therapist.
An important thing to keep in mind is that many people over the years have changed their drinking and often on their own. At the same time, it is not an admission of weakness to admit that you could benefit from some degree of help. And if you persist in changing your drinking, you can make progress. The outlook is hopeful.