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Alcohol Lied to Me: The Intelligent Way to Escape Alcohol Addiction

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Craig Beck is a well-regarded family man with two children, a beautiful home, and a successful media career. A director of several companies & at one time the trustee of a large children’s charity. Craig was a successful & functioning professional man in spite of a ‘2 bottles of wine a night’ drinking habit. For 20 years he struggled with problem drinking, all the time refusing to label himself an alcoholic because he didn't believe he met the stereotypical image that the word portrayed. He tried countless ways to cut down; attempting ‘dry months,’ banning himself from drinking spirits, only drinking at the weekend & special occasions (and found that it is amazing how even the smallest of an event can suddenly become ‘special’). All these 'willpower' based attempts to stop drinking failed (exactly as they were destined to do). Slowly he discovered the truth about alcohol addiction & one by one all the lies he had previously believed started to fall apart. For the first time, he noticed that he genuinely didn’t want to drink anymore. In this book, he will lead you through the same fantastic process. The Craig Beck quit drinking method is No need to declare yourself an alcoholic. A permanent cure, not a lifetime struggle. No group meetings or expensive rehab. No humiliation, no pain and 100% no ‘willpower’ required. Treats the source of the problem, not just the symptoms. What people are saying about ‘Alcohol Lied To Me’: “I was so excited to find your method. I had never seen anything quite like it so of course I enthusiastically purchased it. I have to say I was blown away by the unique frankness. It REALLY hits home in a very good way. It's as if a very caring, non-judgemental friend can see right through me in a way that can only be known by someone who's been through it all. I am incredibly grateful to have found your book and your logical genius. Thanks from DP (Arizona, U.S.A)”

161 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 19, 2011

1473 people are currently reading
1023 people want to read

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Craig Beck

346 books20 followers

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5 stars
759 (43%)
4 stars
533 (30%)
3 stars
301 (17%)
2 stars
101 (5%)
1 star
40 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
1 review
January 26, 2020
I really wanted to like this book. It definitely has potential. I think Craig does a great job with his YouTube videos and he has some great points. I feel like he has created this book for the sake of having a book to sell. Unfortunately it is so poorly written, has grammatical errors, there is constant repetition & way too much sales pitching. If that isn’t bad enough - it is so poorly laid out that it is a challenge to read. I can’t understand how someone can spend $400+ on a bottle of wine, but can’t spend any money on an editor and designer to create a professionally produced book. If you must read it, go and watch his YouTube videos and he has a link to his free online seminar - once you watch this, you can then download his book for free.
Profile Image for DeAnn Christensen.
168 reviews3 followers
October 15, 2020
I listened to this on audiobook and it didn’t take a lot of time. Very interesting book. I also recommend Alcohol Explained and The Naked Mind- available on audio.

I have never put much thought into what alcohol was actually doing to my body. Between the three books this was a very informative journey on the influence of alcohol on my health, mind and it’s influence on society.
Profile Image for Jamie Van Nuys.
186 reviews6 followers
April 7, 2020
Eh.
This book is going to the bottom of my list of suggestions for sober lit. It has promise in some spots, but overall lacks so much. It took so long to get to the actual "method" he kept talking about throughout the first part of the book. When he finally got to the method it was a list of vitamins, and ways to socially avoid drinking. My biggest issue with his logic is that he tells you not to talk about your quitting drinking with friends and family. He tells you to avoid the questions, don't explain it, and basically deprive your friends and family of the reason you made a massive shift in your life. This is insanity to me! I am a few days out from 1 year sober, and I have talked openly and honestly about my struggle with alcohol since the beginning days of sobriety. I have had countless people tell me how much they appreciate the light I am shining on the alcohol industry, and how my talking so openly about my drinking has made them question their own drinking and even get sober themselves. That is no credit to me - that is credit to sharing mu truth and sharing what is going on in my life with people who love my. Beck's method encourages that one hides the liberating truth that alcohol is attractively packaged poison - and I will never understand that part of this book. Why hide the truth from the exact people who need to hear it? Who are we to say that it is 100% pointless to talk about it with people who continue to drink?

Ok. Rant over. I wanted to like this book but dang, that part completely ruined it for me!
Profile Image for Cameron.
233 reviews7 followers
April 16, 2019
Only sometimes do I think I have a drinking problem lol.... But as I grow older and wiser I look at drinking differently. More and more I think of it as a time-wasting, body killing, stupid drug. Not only does the process of drinking take time but its effects and after effects last much much longer. Craig Beck puts alcohol in a new perspective and made me think of why we glorify the poison. The book raises great points even for the casual drinker. Even if you never stop drinking alcohol this book will give you a new perspective this socially acceptable drug. If nothing else its a short and enjoyable book.
Profile Image for J..
71 reviews8 followers
April 14, 2021
Some good stuff in here but it's a frustrating book in need of a proof-reader. This is a barely-modified take on Allen Carr's Easy Way but much thinner on meat, and full of sales pressure to buy his stuff (bibliomercial?). There are also too many lazy and misguided pop culture ideas presented as science, even those that contradict each other - an editor with scientific grounding might have helped. The fact that the author has written seduction manuals for men also makes my bs alarms ring...sham-wow.
All in all it just feels rushed, uneven and a bit sketchy in places....yet with occasional nuggets of insight. I'm sure this book has/will help some people but it's too spotty to be a top recommendation from me (I'd suggest Allen Carr or The Naked Mind instead).
4 reviews
August 12, 2019
Craig Beck lied to me

Not very well written, repetitive and basically a sales pitch for the online course. I laughed when two thirds of the way through the book it was announced that now you should not feel like drinking ever again! And if you do it is not a problem with this method but with your own attitude towards it! On the plus side this was cheap so no loss....but I would look elsewhere if you truly want to quit...
Profile Image for Chloe Stone.
25 reviews
September 6, 2024
After becoming sober, I wanted something to not only give me advice on handling sobriety within the modern social pressures surrounding alcohol, but also something that could merely make me feel less alone in my experiences. Thankfully, this book provided me with that. While this definitely is not a “cure,” it is an additional tool for someone who already is determined to quit, and for me in my alcohol free journey, this reminded me of all the good I am doing for myself by not drinking. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone facing similar challenges and at a similar place in their sobriety journey.
Profile Image for Shelby.
5 reviews
January 24, 2022
Good book. Puts things into perspective of what alcohol is doing to your body, mind and how it impacts society.
3 reviews
March 10, 2020
Dangerously irresponsible outdated and unscientific information

The relationship between the chemical difference of an alcoholic's and non alcoholic's brain is not related to trytophan. That information is decades old and is incorrect; additionally, knowing that not enough GABA for alcoholics is a factor ( which is true, and not exprrssed) is not even helpful knowing for recovery. His self serving info about withdrawal is dangerous. Alcohol is one of two types of addicted substances that can cause death from DTs, and medical intervention is often necessary. The use of librium prevents heart attacks. This is an irresponsible book.
Profile Image for Mark Pearson.
2 reviews
March 5, 2019
Just a rehash of another well known recovery program.

Has the author had a bad experience in another well known recovery program, he seems to have rehashed the other program to suit his aims. He mentions his "on line recovery programe" many times so his aims ain't truly altruistic as there is a charge for his services. "This is the most powerful and effective alcohol cessation solution anywhere today" this is a big claim indeed with not a lot of evidence to prove it.
1 review
June 23, 2020
It’s an interesting read, but not well written and why has the author changed to becoming an American?

Craig is all about making money and wants to get £300-£400 out of you to basically allow you to join an online support group and downloaded some questionable hypnosis mp4 tracks. He tries to make money out of many variations of the same theme; even bereavement!
Profile Image for Sagar Chamoli.
216 reviews15 followers
November 6, 2020
3 stars

Craig beck was an alcoholic for many year's and after realizing how alchol is taking a toll in his life he decided to quit it. Though, initially difficult he was able to do this with certain techniques which he has shared in his books. There were few good points in the book like how alchol is a slow poison, how we can divert money spent on alchol for better cause & how there is a misconception of linking alchol with fun/relaxation. However baring that, I felt it was a typical self help book with no concrete solution but more of a generalised guidelines .

Overall an average read.
Profile Image for McKenzie Smith.
44 reviews2 followers
April 7, 2025
Felt a call to read something that will help with a sober lifestyle and this was a good one! Interesting take on alcohol and how we’ve normalized a poison such as alcohol.
Profile Image for Michael Castile.
Author 1 book
June 12, 2020
Surprisingly helpful book. I did not like the way the author described himself, ‘Stop drinking expert’, somewhat egotistical I thought. But in spite of that I did find the book helpful as a way to cut down significantly on alcohol consumption, and hopefully give it up altogether.

Whether it was the style it was written in, with perhaps Nlp and hypnotic phases, and presuppositions repeated throughout the book, I am unsure. But I could feel a significant change within my mind regarding any perceived benefits of taking alcohol, and getting on board with the fact that alcohol is a registered poison presented in a very attractive publicity package to convince people that it enchances any situation. Whether to celebrate a victory or commiserate a loss, and everything in between.
Alcohol is only a temporary reprieve from uncomfortable feelings and situations, which will still be there, once the hangover is finished. Add to that alcohol is a documented carcinogenic, weakens the heart, and depresses the immune system, not what you need in the age of COVID 19. Bad skin, becoming aged and wrinkled, because of alcohol consumption, and possible liver damage to come. What is it that’s so great about alcohol again ? If anything ! A book to reread when and if urges to drink return.
2 reviews
December 3, 2018
A Cracking Read For New Starters

My first book on the subject of stopping drinking was by Jason Vale. This book is surprisingly similar. In between I have read various "personal story" books and more scientific styles. Craig's book gives you the opportunity to give yourself a hard look - with a self help strategy follow - up. I'm already on my journey and still find reading the odd book on the subject can serve as a reminder of why I came.
79 reviews
July 28, 2020
Okay but salesy

The content and core message in this book are brilliant. I really think it will make a difference and have changed my worldview.

However, the book seems to be selling Craig's programme all the time and it gets especially cringeworthy at the end. This does make you doubt the rest of the book, which is problematic.

I'd read it, but I'm certainly not buying anything else from this guy.
4 reviews1 follower
May 2, 2023
I found this audiobook to be engaging, intriguing, and thought provoking, until I reached chapter 13 and learned that the "cure" was largely based on combination of supplements.

I am wary of "miracle pill" cures and I think there's great potential for harm in them. The myriad warnings and disclaimers that came with every additional supplement speak to this danger. It continued to devolve from there, as I listened the other aspects of the "cure" and the strong sales pitches at the end for his other (paid) programs.

I'd have given it five stars based on the first 12 chapters. Instead, here we are.

I very highly recommend This Naked Mind by Annie Grace as an alternative to this book / method.
Profile Image for Min.
17 reviews
August 17, 2021
Read this to understand more about alcohol, it’s effects, and its industry. Not the best writing style and is a bit condescending at times. Not worth the read. If anyone’s looking for a quit lit type of a book, id recommend unexpected joy of being sober. It is engaging, well researched, and life changing.
10 reviews1 follower
November 21, 2018
Ok

I think there's some very valid points in his book. I don't buy the if you sleep with dogs you'll wake up with fleas. I don't want to shy away from others that drink. I am also not completely convinced about the ego or spirituality parts. Ok
1 review
June 16, 2020
I’ve read a lot of ‘quit lit’ unfortunately this was not one I would recommend. It feels like he is constantly selling his other platforms, website, boot camp... with a big vitamin shopping list added in!
Profile Image for Annabelle.
37 reviews3 followers
August 13, 2020
Was quite a chore to read the whole thing. I found myself looking at the words and realised I wasn't paying any attention to them. Also, skipped a few paragraphs when the author was repeating himself. Glad I didn't pay to read this book.
247 reviews21 followers
April 21, 2019
I listened to this book at work because a friend of mine said it was good. It was short so I decided to give it a shot and I'm very glad I did.

Craig Beck does a great job of explaining the psychology behind drinking. Most people have performed mental tricks on themselves in regards to alcohol. Craig Beck pulls back the veil on a lot of the tricks you've done to yourself. For example, most people have tricked themselves into believing they enjoy the taste of alcohol but the reality is that we all remember our first sip of alcohol and being disgusted. The first time I sipped beer, it was from a glass and I was 5 yrs old thinking it was apple juice. I spit it out all over the wall. We all know that alcohol tastes terrible. Don't believe me? Imagine taking a swig of warm vodka. Did your face cringe? Has your face ever cringed when you took a straight shot of something? Of course it has because alcohol tastes awful. Yet we tell ourselves that we enjoy a nice craft beer or a good glass of wine but give that same drink to a child and ask how it tastes.

Beck reveals many of these mental hoops we've put ourselves through and gives a very fresh perspective on alcohol. He really enforces the point that alcohol is a drug but we don't talk about it like it is. Society has made alcohol so normal that when someone calls it a drug the first reaction is, "Eh well, technically I guess but not really." It is a drug. A powerful drug. A drug that can make you forget your own life (blacking out). A drug that can make you lose your own motor skills. A drug that can make you uncontrollably vomit. A drug that is responsible for terrible behavior, bad decisions, hangovers, and death, every day.

Beck does a great job of showing alcohol in its true light and it's not something we typically take time to reflect on but when you do and think about all the negative effects alcohol has it is hard to justify drinking it at all. Beck pushes for not drinking alcohol at all and after listening to his arguments I agree more with him than I don't. It's hard to make counterarguments to Beck because I think at some point we've all had an experience with alcohol that's made us say, "I'm never drinking again." The fact is that alcohol is bad for you and it's easy to abuse and any "good effects" can be replicated without its consumption. Having Beck shine light on things and reintroduce things that we already know to be true is pretty powerful and it made me want to reduce my consumption. I don't think it realistic to eliminate it but if I could just check a box and be sober than I would.

I think anyone who's ever wanted to slow down on booze or kick the habit completely should give this book a listen. Anyone who's wondered if alcohol is a problem in their life should give it a listen. Anyone who ever wakes up and says, "I'm not drinking again," should give it a listen. It's a good book and it's worth the listen.
Profile Image for Tiffany.
482 reviews8 followers
June 28, 2021
Stars for content only; the writing was poor to the point it was distracting.

I love “Quit Lit”.

There is so much conditioning and binary thinking about alcohol that can make it very challenging for a person who wants a different relationship with alcohol to make sustainable change.

The content in this book (and many others) reveals the truth about alcohol, underneath the pretty labels and the social pedestal. It’s valuable for anyone who wants to make a more informed choice.

This type of content was what I needed to resolve the cognitive dissonance that makes changing alcohol consumption a total (losing) game of will power.

At this point (over two years AF), I read quit lit when I feel the social conditioning start to seep back in—when I start feeling a sense that I’m missing out. Because the truth for me now is that my life and my health are 💯% better without it.

That does not make me an alcoholic or a person who has a problem with alcohol. I am not and do not.

It makes me a person who found value in conducting an inquiry around if alcohol was adding as much to my life as it took. (It wasn’t.)

Books like these helped me get clear and aligned so that I do not have to make daily decisions about alcohol. I simply know the truth about it for me.

I don’t have any opinions about other people’s choices with alcohol. I enjoyed it for many chapters of my life. I’ve simply arrived at a place where the cost benefit analysis points me clearly to the AF life.

Bottom line, I think the content in the book is super valuable for anyone questioning their relationship with alcohol. But there are far superior books in terms of the quality of writing. (I did read his YouTube videos are on point, so I’m going to check those out!)
Profile Image for Alicia.
256 reviews2 followers
May 22, 2023
I love quit lit books that challenge the Alcoholics Anonymous model of recovery in which sobriety is this torturous road of always having FOMO that you cannot throw back a bevy at the company party. Beck challenges the idea that you can quit booze on will power alone because it is literally impossible when your ego is screaming you are missing out on something important. He argues we must change our subconscious beliefs surrounding alcohol entirely before we can actually quit in a a permanent way.

The more I read the more I realize drinking alcohol is literally no different than doing heroin. Harsh but 100% true. The only difference, Beck tells us, is the aspect of social acceptability and the withdrawal period is different. Heroin is much more "satisfying" for lack of a better term than alcohol, so if we did it because alcohol genuinely enhances our lives, maybe we should just all shoot up heroin instead! Yay for instant gratification!

I rated this book three stars because I did not like the portions where it felt like Beck was giving medical advice (this always rubs me the wrong way especially when geared towards vulnerable populations desperate for a cure for their ailments). However, his methods of altering our subconscious are logical and proven. Also, I need to do more reading on hypnosis, but I am not sure that section on its helpfulness sold me. He should have added way more elaboration on why he is such an advocate for this treatment instead of the three pages of saying "it works, just trust me."

Overall, a good, short read about why the entire alcohol industry is literally just one big, sexy lie propagated to get the entire population hooked on an addictive poison.
1 review
March 5, 2019
Full of helpful information, but a sale pitch at the same time.

I stopped drinking like 3 months ago, just to be more healthy and get outside of the drinking culture since I believe it's such a waste of time, energy and money, and just same thing again and again. I bumped to this book when I was checking free books at prime membership, decided to give it a go. It has lots of eye opening information, biological, spiritual etc which by itself should actually make anyone to stop drinking at all. But the motivational parts are a bit poor and repetitive. Also, includes lots of sale pitches as well. But overall easy to read and very helpful information put together. I am happy I read it through.
Profile Image for Lesley.
318 reviews6 followers
January 4, 2023
A useful book for those thinking about quitting drinking. As someone who has not drunk alcohol for years, not so pertinent. Any book that helps people stop drinking this poison and get their lives back on track and allows them to reach their full potential, is a success in my eyes.

He calls a spade a spade and tells it how it is, alcohol is dangerous, addictive poison that is mis-sold by the advertising industry as something sexy and desirable, when in truth it is a life shortening, carcinogenic drug, that does nothing positive in any of our lives.

If you are thinking about stopping drinking, I would definitely recommend it!
Profile Image for Elisabeth Brookshire.
528 reviews7 followers
July 17, 2023
Quite interesting, different

I read tons of alcohol and drug memoirs, the Big Book, and books on how to stop drinking as I have for 23 years. I tried AA, willpower, and other things but never understood or had heard of the concept of the ego doing anything to avoid pain. There was a lot of science in this book which I appreciated. Overall, I think this is a useful book for anyone who would like to stop drinking. If you read about Audrey Kishline, the founder of "Moderation Management" you will find out it never worked for her, she killed a father and a child in a drunk driving accident, and eventually killed herself. Food for thought.
13 reviews
January 14, 2024
What an eye opening

I started this book with with some trepidation as I have been drinking more and more and quite frankly I need to stop! I have really enjoyed the book, the author does not preach to you shuttle's his story, his reasons for giving up and I have really enjoyed it. I have not had a drink for a week and have not craved one either, which is what I have previously done most evenings prior to reading the book. I am starting a six week holiday and I am anxious about not drinking, but I have the book at hand to read if I need help. Please if you are on the cusp of giving up then reading this book will help you.
1 review1 follower
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January 9, 2022
Thank you for changing my life!

It's so interesting how this book explains the real traits of alcohol and it's impact on us in such a negative way. Nobody has shared the social pressure and the poison alcohol really is. The title of the book is perfect and true! And Craig explains well the subconscious mind and it's power over us. Everybody should read this book. Life is so much happier and healthier without the booze. Thank you Craig for all the research and sharing your life stories.
1 review
February 5, 2019
Interesting read

Didn't know i had a problem until i read this book. I learned how taught from infancy that we accept to social drink, I always enjoyed going out to pubs with my parents. I cannot do the suggested hypnotic room the website, but the book its worth reading too reinforce the right attitude too drink. I had given up smoking many years ago using self control, drink is a different matter so getting the right view its important to continue your resolve.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews

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