How to change a habit

jk0

As someone else suggested, don't buy it.

If it's impossible to do without, perhaps see your doctor.

Gordon_Hose

I used to drink too much at home. I stopped drinking too much, thus habit broken.

Just takes willpower.

bargainbetty

Don't but the wine. If you have it, drop to one glass a day, or every other day. Try herbal teas or hot chocolate instead of caffeinated drinks.

Or try mixing virgin cocktails if you want a cold drink.

Ultimately, you can break a habit by choosing to stop doing it. If you go to pour a glass on autopilot, put the bottle down and do something else instead. It really is about will power.

cherryblossomzel

Habits are often associated with other things. For example: "switch on TV, drink a glass of wine", or "kick off work shoes in hallway, walk to kitchen to pour wine". It might be helpful to change the "other part" of the habit. So for the examples I just used: don't switch on the TV, go do something else, and don't kick off your shoes in the hallway, take them off somewhere else or go and get changed completely.

It might stop you from doing things on autopilot, so you make a conscious decision instead.

WeeMidgie

It's a choice - to break an automatic action (which is what a habit is). It's deciding that you and your health are more important (long term gain) than doing without (short term pain). Yes, it requires a bit of effort, but the pay-off is great!

How do I know? I've been there - thirty years ago. I was in a job where I was unhappy, and my "reward" when I got home was a G & T - large. Trouble was, I had ritualised it, and only got shocked when I realised I had gone through a bottle of gin in a week.

I had two young children and realised that it wasn't a habit for them to be absorbing as "normal". (My parents had a drink before lunch and a drink before their evening meal, every day when I was a child! I had normalised it....)

I substituted sparkling water and herbal teas, and took up badminton. I was able to take steps to move within the organisation I worked for, and eventually to change careers.

So, some actions to take to break the habit. Don't have any wine in the house. Do some thinking about the reasons why you've got into the habit of using wine and what it gives you - it will be a quality like reward, relaxation, escape, ritual, sense of wellbeing. Then find an action or alternative which gives you a similar feeling.

When you take back control, by changing what is just a habit, you begin to realise you have that power within you, to decide what terms you want to live your life on. It's great that you want to change, and realising that you can do it, and then succeeding, will give you a high that no glass of wine can give you!!

Ilona

I like a glass of wine and could easily fall into the habit of drinking it every day. The way I overcome this is not to buy it in the first place. I allow myself one bottle every three or four weeks, and will drink it over three or four days. When it's gone it's gone. I have no wine in the house at this moment in time, just finished one, and will get one maybe in a few weeks time.

Similar with cider, I like a can of cider because I like the taste of it. I buy a four pack once a month, this will last me 6 - 8 weeks as I don't have one every week, just occasionally when I fancy one.

Like others have said, I keep busy with other things, and have a lot of will power.
Ilona

thriftwizard

Not wine with me, but cider - three/four days a week I "allow" myself a 99p L!dl's cider. I suspect there's more than just liking the taste involved; natural fermentation processes release useful substances in the fruit (or veg) to make them easier to absorb. When I feel I need to take a rest from cider, I'll have HM ginger beer or (fermented) lemonade instead; there's always some brewing around here as the DDs & TDiL love it.

Here's a quote from Brewing Research International:

"Red wine, cider and beer all contain antioxidants and it is reasonable to consider moderate consumption of these beverages as making a positive contribution to a healthy diet."

Although - they would, wouldn't they?!

indsty

It may sound a bit simplistic, but just don't buy it. It is easier to say "No" once as you are walking out of the supermarket, than say "No" a dozen times every evening when you look at a bottle. Don't have it in the house and you can't drink it. You are perfectly capable of walking out of the shop without buying it. Well done for seeing the problem and trying to fix it !

LameWolf

Just my take on this, as, like the OP, I've before now wished to lower the amount of wine I was consuming.

I found that cups of tea didn't cut it - I want the feel of the wine glass, and a cool liquid. Answer: chilled water, with a slice of lemon, served in a wine glass.:T

I always keep slices of lemon in the freezer, as I have this in preference to milk if I do have a cup of tea, and I keep a couple of bottles of tap water put through the Br!ta filter in the fridge in any case, so it was just a question of pouring from the water bottle not the wine bottle.:o The lemon adds a certain - not sure how to put it - just make it more special, not just "a glass of water" if that makes any sense.:o

Anyways, it works for me.;) I can have wine in the fridge, and still opt for chilled water with lemon.:o

Honey_Bear

You could always join us on the Giving Up/Cutting Down on Alcohol Challenge thread which is in the Debt Free Diaries on these forums.

The way the Challenge works is that each month you decide how many days a month you want to be alcohol-free and the lovely Shaggy tallies the scores and awards Smilies. It's helped me stop drinking altogether and others limit it to a set number of days per month, or just School Nights. If being part of a group that cheers you on is a motiviator, why not join us?