“How are you going to keep me from drinking?”

The simple answer is, we’re not! Despite all the treatment industry hype, the only person who can keep you from drinking is you. No medication, no “program”, no “higher power”, is going to do it for you or to you.

The good news is that you can do it – and you don’t need to join a cult, check into a fancy rehab jail, label yourself a helpless victim, or fall for any of the usual myths and scams.

With a little short-term help, an understanding of the research on what actually works, and the right mix of new skills designed around your strengths, abilities, and interests, you can move alcohol abuse into the “been there, done that” column of things that no longer interest or concern you.

Will it be easy? Like any significant change, it won’t all be easy, but it’ll probably be a lot easier than you fear, and the rewards will be much greater.

We understand why you’re reluctant, for any number of reasons, to give up the drinking. Especially if the supposed “cure” is worse than the “disease”. Extra especially when that sure-fire program doesn’t work for you or  95% of the folks who’ve tried it.

But forty years of research and experience show quite clearly what does work. And what works is life enhancing, not personally demeaning.

Now isn’t that a pleasant surprise?

But again, it isn’t rocket science, it’s common sense. When your life becomes better without the alcohol abuse, than it is with it, well, come on – you’ll give up the abuse.

Then you’ll realize what we’ve said all along – you’ll be the one who keeps you from drinking and you’ll be glad to do it.

Ready? Good! We’re waiting for your call telling us you’re ready to get a life, not a label.

Reliable Information?

Hands down the best unbiased information on the web is the State University of New York Potsdam’s Alcohol: Problems and Solutions site.

Now their latest Newsletter contains the following article on effective treatment which we are pleased to reprint:

Alcohol and Drug Abuse: A Problem of Choice

by Jenna D. Mitchell

There is no way to “treat” a problem of choice. Drug and alcohol “addictions” don’t stem from a disease, but from a habitual choice to use in ways that lead to a llifestyle of continual drug or alcohol abuse. So the important question is how effective is drug and alcohol treatment?

To say that a person who struggles with drugs or alcohol has an incurable disease that can neither be treated with medication nor professional therapy is an injustice to its own theory. A spiritual higher power is the only supposed cure for an “addiction,” according to the twelve step teachings and most alcohol rehab and drug rehab facilities. If this is in fact the only cure for this “disease,” alcohol rehab, as well as drug rehab could not possibly occur. The only institutions that would be able to offer a suitable treatment approach would be churches and other spiritual gatherings.

It’s difficult to accurately determine the success rates of traditional drug and alcohol treatment facilities because various treatment centers measure success so differently. Some may define sobriety as successfully moderating drug or alcohol use, while other treatment facilities measure success rates for only a brief amount of time after completion of the program. And others may claim success rates upon abstinence from drugs and alcohol over a substantial period of time. These statistics can be manipulated to generate revenue from those seeking to overcome their drug and alcohol struggles. The skewed results from the varying alcohol and drug treatment facilities make it impossible to judge the success an individual can expect upon completing treatment.

Alcoholics Anonymous, the founder of the twelve step model, for recovery, has a claimed success rate of about five percent, which is the only reported success rate that it releases to the public. The twelve step treatment approach is virtually always used in traditional drug and alcohol treatment program, which have similarly low success rates.

Unfortunately there is a growing need for alcohol treatment in our society today, but the problem is that these treatment centers are almost always based on the generally ineffective twelve step model. On the other hand, there is strong evidence that cognitive behavioral education is highly effective in helping people overcome severe alcohol and drug abuse.

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We’re happy to reprint the above article which, we hope, will help you understand how the treatment “industry” has mislead everyone for over 50 years. More importantly, we also want you to understand why our clients are a dozen times more successful than those who’ve been conned into traditional programs.

Cognitive Behavioral Education? Yes, we do that – along with Motivational Enhancement, Assertiveness Training, Nutritional and Exercise Planning, Medical Support, Couples Counseling, and whatever else will meet your specific needs and situation.

“The best years of your life are the ones in which
you decide your problems are your own.
You do not blame them on your mother, the ecology,
or the president. You realize that you control
your own destiny.” – Albert Ellis

Links to Success:

Yes, We Work With Couples
Smart Women and Alcohol Abuse

“How Can You Possibly Cure My Years of Alcohol Abuse in Just 5 Days?”

The Real “Steps” to Overcoming Alcohol Abuse

Ten Things I Wish I’d Known Before I Sent My Brother Off To Rehab;