Trying to get sober fast?
There’s no simple answer to getting sober fast. Recovery is a journey that requires taking things one day at a time. However, by creating a path to recovery, you can begin leading the life you want outside of addiction. It’s crucial to understand that sobriety isn’t a race, and there isn’t one plan that works for everyone. What helps one person may not work for another.
Because recovery looks different for each person, the steps outlined below can be taken in any order, and not all of them will apply to everyone. We hope these general guidelines can inspire and motivate you to create your own unique path toward sobriety.
Step 1: Understand Your Relation To Addiction
Society often views addiction as a choice, but it’s far from that. Addiction is the inability to control the amount or frequency of alcohol or drug use, often beginning as a way to cope with life’s challenges. Before long, responsibilities, relationships, and health may start to suffer.
The first step toward sobriety is recognizing the problem. Continued use can lead to mental health issues and physical deterioration, and even when someone tries to stop, the cravings can be overwhelming. It’s important to understand that addiction is a disease, and getting sober requires support.
Step 2: Ask For Help
Asking for help isn’t easy, especially for someone seeking to get sober quickly. Often, addiction strains relationships, making it hard to rebuild trust. But many people don’t come to the conclusion to seek help on their own—friends or family members might start the conversation.
It’s also important to choose the right person to ask for help. Surrounding yourself with people who enable or encourage your addiction can make recovery more difficult. Reach out to someone you trust who will support your sobriety and help hold you accountable.
Be mindful of who you reach out to
Help in addiction and recovery may not always come from the people in your immediate circle. If addiction has been prevalent in your life for a long time, this often can shift family and friend groups to others who also encourage alcohol use disorder.
Make sure you reach out to someone who you have confidence in and who can help you stay accountable in wanting to live a life of sobriety. Many people find themselves in codependent relationships that can hinder recovery or a pattern of returning to particular friend circles that enable alcohol abuse.
Reach out to someone you truly trust who can support you in recovery.
Step 3: Find Professional Guidance
While friends and family can provide some support for a person’s well-being, it is harder for them to provide the aspects of recovery that a professional can. If you have strained relationships and do not have someone to reach out to, professional support is the next step in finding a path toward sobriety.
Look for a local treatment or medical center connecting you to the right resources. Only a medical professional can assist and provide a proper diagnosis to develop an individualized treatment plan to overcome addiction.
In many cases, there are layers to the diagnosis that may overlap. A medical professional can pinpoint different aspects that may be affecting addiction and offer a treatment plan that gives the person a chance for a higher rate of long-term recovery.
Having one professional to be able to monitor and adjust a treatment plan can lead to better outcomes and overall better care for an individual looking for addiction help.
Step 4: Choose a Therapy Method
A medical professional may suggest potential options for therapy, but there are varied options based on region and availability. Many treatment centers offer further group therapy and individualized therapy sessions to learn how to navigate social and personal triggers that lead to continued alcohol abuse.
Therapy methods can include:
- Peer Support and Group Therapy Sessions
Peer support and group therapy often include the 12-step program or similar programs that provide accountability, resources to learn about addiction and how to quit drinking, as well as the ability to learn from other’s experiences. - Individualized Therapy
Personal care during therapy allows an individual to talk through past grievances, relationships, and personal hardship that has led to continual alcohol or substance abuse. With the ability to have continued support from the same therapist, a person can develop trust over time and find healthier ways to cope with grief and loss moving forward. - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is a problem-focused form of therapy that helps individuals identify emotional triggers and learn how they react. As a result, people are able to question their behavior in a safe space, find new pathways to cope, and respond to future triggers to avoid relapse. - Motivational Enhancement Therapy
Motivational Enhancement Therapy (MET) is often used for those struggling with drug and alcohol addiction. Sessions invoke quick changes and internal motivation that drive personal action towards change. - Family Therapy
Involving family members can feel challenging for some people, but it can help in a stronger recovery process. For those who have family members who contribute to codependency or have a history of enabling substance or alcohol abuse, therapy can help educate family members about addiction, find solutions towards healthier relationships, and develop ways to maintain sobriety beyond a treatment center. - Interpersonal Therapy
Interpersonal therapy gives those who struggle with making solid friendships and have continual conflicts with family the chance to develop social skills. Social skills and developing a support network through friendship help individuals stay sober longer after initial treatment. - Alternative Therapy
Depending on the location and availability, alternative therapy can be offered to assist in recovery. Alternative therapy such as equine therapy, art and music therapy, yoga, and pilates, or guided meditations.
Step 5: Research About Treatment Centers
Whether it has been suggested for admittance into inpatient or outpatient care, signing into a treatment center increases the chances for long-term sobriety. Be sure to do your research beforehand to see the success rate for those who have recovered from being admitted into a particular treatment center.
Researched-based programs offer a higher chance of recovery with proven methods that are effective for those recovering from addiction. Depending on the severity of your addiction, or a loved one’s, there are different treatment levels that can be effective.
For severe cases, inpatient care is recommended for monitoring and medically helping with withdrawal symptoms.
Withdrawal symptoms can include:
- Extreme confusion
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Insomnia
- Sweating
- Shaky Hands
- Hallucinations
- Delirium tremens
- High fever
- High blood pressure
- Seizures
Withdrawing on your own can lead to dangerous side effects and potential death. It is advised to seek medical attention before choosing to completely become sober. With a medical professional, withdrawal symptoms can be less uncomfortable and lower risk.
Other treatment center options include outpatient care for less severe cases, where you can go to a treatment center during the day but return home at night. While outpatient care is generally a cheaper option, it is only advisable if someone can be a strong support and hold you accountable during recovery.
Other options include partial hospitalization programs for those who can return home at night or residential programs for more severe cases.
Step 6: Aftercare Options
Holding yourself accountable to a treatment center and a recovery program is one step in the right direction in learning how to quit drinking. However, it is the aftercare options that give you the chance to keep living a sober lifestyle.
There are many ways to have fun sober, but that begins when you put the right lifelines in place to keep yourself away from the risk of relapsing. If you are worried about your options after treatment, ask your medical professional who helped monitor your treatment about potential options.
In some cases, people choose to step down into partial hospitalization care or further outpatient programs. For many, joining a local support group can hold accountability and provide an emotional understanding of the process you have been through in recovery.
Step 7: Download a Sober App to Help Stay Accountable
One of the best ways to discover a sober lifestyle and sober fun in the world is by downloading a sober app to help you stay accountable. A sober app like Loosid gives you the chance to track your sobriety and connect with like-minded people who are looking for fun activities that do not involve alcohol and potentially meet sober singles who are ready to date.
Discover how sobriety can lead to greater things. By taking the steps towards recovery, you can learn to manage your own triggers, understand rooted emotions, and develop stronger friendships and relationships.
Remember, everyone has their own path to sobriety. We hope this helps you guide you to create your own.
If You’re Trying to Sober Up After One Night of Drinking
If you’re trying to sober up after a night of drinking, it’s important to understand that there’s no immediate fix. The body needs time to eliminate alcohol from your system, and nothing can speed up this process completely. On average, the liver can only process about one standard drink per hour. This means your BAC level (Blood Alcohol Concentration) depends on the amount of alcohol consumed, how quickly you drank it, and your body’s ability to metabolize it. While you might feel the effects of feeling drunk, only time will lower your blood alcohol concentration (BAC).
To support your body in recovering from alcohol consumption, the best thing you can do is stop drinking immediately and stay hydrated. Drinking a glass of water between alcoholic drinks and after your last alcoholic drink can help you feel a bit better. Contrary to popular belief, cold showers or coffee won’t sober you up, but they might help you feel more alert. What helps is allowing your body to metabolize the alcohol through your small intestine and liver over time. Avoid falling asleep too quickly if you’re feeling too drunk—your BAC level can still rise, increasing the risk of alcohol poisoning.
If you want to prevent future situations like this, a good rule of thumb is to limit yourself to one drink per hour and drink plenty of water throughout the night. But remember, time is the only true solution to lowering your BAC.
True Sobriety: It’s Not About Speed, It’s About Life Changes
True sobriety and recovery isn’t about quick fixes or fast results—it’s about making meaningful, long-term life changes. While you can decide to stop drinking in a single moment, maintaining sobriety is a daily commitment. Recovery isn’t a race, and there’s no shortcut to it. Sobriety requires patience, consistency, and the understanding that it’s a lifelong journey.
Getting sober takes a single second—the moment you decide to stop drinking—but staying sober is the real challenge. It’s not about finding the fastest way to get there; it’s about embracing a new way of life. Each day in recovery adds up, and over time, you’ll notice that the days start to feel easier as you build new habits and learn to enjoy life without alcohol. By focusing on living in the present, one day at a time, you’ll discover that the joy of recovery isn’t just about avoiding alcohol—it’s about learning how to live fully.
The idea of getting sober “fast” misses the point. Sobriety is a forever thing—it’s about embracing a healthier, happier lifestyle. So, don’t worry about how quickly you can achieve sobriety. Instead, focus on the small, daily actions that help you stay on track, and before you know it, sobriety will become your new normal.
