The short answer
An urge to drink rises, peaks and passes, often faster than it feels like it will. Get through it with something to do: leave the room, drink something else, move, or text someone. Urge Buddy is an iPhone app that gives you a 1 to 5 minute task the moment you tap it, and counts your days alcohol free.
If you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before you stop. Stopping suddenly after heavy daily drinking can cause withdrawal that needs medical care.
Why the urge feels so strong
Urges to drink are often tied to a time, a place or a feeling: the end of the workday, a Friday, a fight, feeling lonely. They build quickly, so the moment feels like it will last all night. In practice an urge tends to rise and fall like a wave, which is the idea behind urge surfing.
What to do when you want a drink
- Drink something else first. A tall glass of cold water, tea, or a fizzy drink in a nice glass.
- Change the scene. Step outside, walk around the block, or leave the kitchen.
- Name the feeling. Stressed, bored, lonely, low? The urge is often about the feeling, not the drink.
- Text someone. You don’t have to explain. Just say hi.
- Play it forward. Picture tomorrow morning, not just the next ten minutes.
How Urge Buddy helps
- Tap your buddy the moment the urge hits. From the app, or say “I’m craving” to Siri, or set it on the Action Button.
- Say where you are and how you feel. At home, out but private, or out in public; stressed, anxious, bored, lonely or low.
- Do the task. Your buddy picks something that takes 1 to 5 minutes and fits the moment: no squats on the bus, something calming when you’re anxious.
- Say how you feel now. Better counts as an urge beaten, and that count only goes up, even if you slip.
In Urge Buddy, choose Alcohol as your habit. Set a quit date and what you spent a day, and see your days alcohol free and the money you didn’t spend. Each night your buddy asks how the day went; a slip starts the days again, but your best run and every urge you’ve beaten are kept.
Urge Buddy
When an urge hits, tap your buddy and get something quick to do until it passes. For iPhone, with a 3-day free trial.
More help
In the US, Rethinking Drinking (from the National Institutes of Health) has free tools, and the SAMHSA National Helpline (1-800-662-4357) is free, confidential and open 24/7.
Questions
How long does an urge to drink last?
It varies, but an urge usually rises, peaks and fades rather than staying at full strength. Having something to do for the next few minutes is often enough to get past the peak.
What can I do instead of drinking?
Drink something else, go for a short walk, call or text a friend, make a cup of tea, or do something with your hands. Urge Buddy picks one of these for you based on where you are and how you feel.
Is it safe to stop drinking suddenly?
If you drink heavily every day, stopping suddenly can be dangerous. Talk to a doctor first. If you drink less than that, most people can stop without medical help, though it can feel rough for a while.