Safe drinking

Tips to help your drink responsibly

Tips for cutting down

For some people, drinking alcohol is a fun outlet in their lives. For others it can lead to problems like spending more than they can afford, missing commitments such as work or education and impacting on their relationships with friends and family.

If you’re starting to feel that your alcohol use is not in your control or you’re drinking more than you’d like, here are some tips that might help you cut down.

Alcohol free days
The UK guidelines recommend taking two days off from drinking a week. If this is possible for you, think about what else you could do on these days to relax or have fun.

When you allocate the two days in advance, you’re more likely to stick to it. Think about whether you could spend some time on a hobby or arrange to see a friend for an activity that’s not drinking.

If you’re struggling to unwind or find yourself thinking about alcohol on these days, try practising a meditation exercise. You can download free apps for meditation or follow guided meditations on YouTube.

Go smaller
On the days you do drink, try drinking smaller amounts. When you’re buying alcohol, try buying less at a time, e.g. pick a smaller pack size or buy a small bottle of wine rather than regular size. Try a lower strength alcohol, such as lighter beers or spirit liquors instead of regular strength beers and spirits. Think about having spritzer or shandy to have less wine/beer per drink.

Push back the time
If you find that you tend to drink in the daytime, think about choosing a time a bit later than the usual time you wait for a drink.

If you are finding that you get cravings for alcohol before this time, see if you can keep busy and distracted. Get out of your current environment and go for a walk, call a friend/family member, cook a meal, watch a film or do some drawing, clean your room or do a workout.

Keep track
Record your drinks in a drink diary as accurately as you can. This way you can see how many drink free days you’re having and check if you’re drinking in line with the weekly guidance or your own weekly goal.

It might also help you to spot patterns, e.g. if the weekends tend to be days you drink more, or if it’s easier to drink less when you’re busier. You can download the MyDrinkaware app to track your drinks.

Tips for safer drinking

The UK guidelines don’t recommend ‘saving up’ your weekly units for a bigger session. However, if you are planning on going on a night out and having a few drinks, there are some things you can do to make it more likely you’ll have a good time and stay safe:

More information

– Drinkaware – An independent charity giving advice and support, including information around reducing drinking, stopping drinking and help to support someone else – Click here
– Alcohol Change – A charity offering help, support, information and tools to help you learn about alcohol and manage your drinking – Click here
– Better Health – Simple tips,tools and information from the NHS to help you start cutting down today – Click here
– NHS – Information about alcohol, tips on cutting down and advice on getting support – Click here