The 3 Biggest Mistakes People Make.

There are some common mistakes people make when they are starting to reduce, take a break or stop drinking or doing drugs.

These are the 3 biggest ones that I see. Read this and then make sure you apply yourself in these areas to give yourself the best chance:

1.       They don’t do anything.

By this I mean, they want to reduce, take a break or stop. It doesn’t matter what it is, but they expect it to just happen. They may just decide they want to do it and actually manage to stop for a few days or a couple of weeks.  But you stand a much better chance if you take positive steps towards your goal by doing something different than you have done before. Educate yourself: read books, read blogs, learn from others, exercise, eat healthy food, talk to people, watch videos, listen to podcasts, get a hobby, anything. Just do something and keep doing somethings.  Which leads me on nicely to number 2.

2.       They don’t make it a priority.

It doesn’t have to be the one and only thing you are doing in your life. Unless it’s a life and death situation then yes, I highly recommend you make your life and living a priority. Because here’s the thing you only get one shot, at life that is. But it seriously helps if you make it a priority.  Think of it like this, when you apply yourself to something, there is more chance that you will have some success.  When you want a new job, you spend time thinking about it. Is it the right choice, researching, talking to people and getting your CV updated. Maybe doing some training, networking, making good connections, applying for jobs and going for interviews.  Sometimes this whole process takes time, I can remember once it took me nearly a year to get the job I wanted.  When you want a relationship to work you spend time together, talking, sharing, doing nice things together, maybe speaking to your friends to figure out how relationships work. You make it important, because you care and you want it to work. If you want to make a change you need to focus, Jedi.

3.       They expect quick results.

You stop drinking or partying and you expect everything to sort its self out, feel amazing and life is fab.  Newsflash, forget the drugs and alcohol, life just isn’t like that anyway.  Speak to people who don’t have issues with drugs and alcohol and they also have good days and bad days, sometimes for no reason, sometimes they feel tired too. Nowhere else in life do we expect these lightening quick results.  When you want to lose weight do you lose weight overnight? No.  When you want to get fit, it takes time, maybe you want to run a marathon; that takes a lot of training.  You are re-learning how to live without alcohol or drugs. Even if alcohol hasn’t been a big issue for you, it can take time to figure stuff out. Like how to deal with stress, emotions and social situations.  It’s not always going to work first time, progress not perfection is the key. 

So here is the thing if you want to be healthier and happier, accept it’s a journey. But please make sure you are doing things to help yourself along the way. Learn, consume, repeat. 

If you have any questions, ask me on Facebook and Twitter .

Ladies only if you need some extra support join the amazing Women Who Dont Drink group.  For any women wanting to change their relationship with alcohol.