I can't stop drinking wine

[wineoclock123]

Any tips? I drink wine every night, and I can't seem to get a handle on it. It relaxes me, and makes me sleep. I have to be up at 630am every day for work, and I'm starting to feel dizzy most days. If I don't drink, I don't sleep!

Terrible advice! Cold turkey can be fatal at this level of consumption.

Could you try adding a few ice cubes to your wine? And then try not to refill until the ice is all melted. That will slow you down quite a bit and help with starting to cut down. You get used to it to the flavour. I only ever drink wine with huge ice cubes in now.

Step 1. Make a decision to stop drinking on any specific day
Step 2. Listen to the 7-minute long NASA theta brainwaves music on YouTube before you sleep (other theta brainwave music is available)
Step 3. Make an (honest) diary about your alcohol-free experience
Step 4. Continue steps 2 and 3 daily (step 2 may become superfluous after a few days)

I did this (having drunk at least a whole bottle of wine, sometimes two, per night for more than the past 30 years)
I can honestly say that I haven’t even craved a glass of wine since I started, and I’m now 182 days sober…
The last bottle I bought in March is still unopened in the fridge!
Bonus: I have so much more money available now - I’m saving up for a holiday…

What level? She didn't say a word about how much, just how often.

She said about two bottles per night, every night, later on in the thread.

I am assuming you would get withdrawals from 2 bottles a night.

100% agree. Mommy wine culture is scary imo.

I drink 2-3 bottles a week and if I don't drink say Tuesday-Friday I have what I assume are withdrawal symptoms over the 2-3 days I'm not drinking (headaches).

Agree going cold turkey can be extremely dangerous if you are drinking excessively. My brother ended up in a Salvation Army " Lifehouse". We had a 3 day delay before they could take him in. Medical advice was strongly NOT to stop him drinking as he was utterly dependent. We spent a very long 3 days giving him small glasses of wine at regular intervals as " medicine " until the professionals took over and started his detox and road to sobriety.
Cold turkey is not the answer for someone who is heavily dependent

Some people can stop drinking two bottles of wine a day (or significantly more in spirits) and just get the shakes, sweaty etc. Others, me included, have hallucinations and seizures that can kill them. These are known as Delirium Tremens or DTs, which even George Best says in his autobiography that he never experienced.

I've been in AA for many years and spoken to a LOT of people about this. It's a relatively small percentage of alcoholics who are affected as badly as I was, but it does happen and you have no way of telling if you'll be in that minority. So yes, cutting down in a controlled way is far safer. Very difficult to do unless you have a trusted person with you who can control your intake.

A close relative was told to cut down gradually and not stop abruptly, even though they were desperate to.

Of course an addict cannot 'cut down' and they ended up having to have a transplant.

Cutting down gradually needs to be carefully monitored to ensure they are actually cutting down.