Controlling Your Drinking: Tools to Make Moderation Work for You

by William R. Miller, Ricardo F. Muñoz

How many glasses of wine can you have with dinner before blowing your diet, your cool, or your budget? When it comes to alcohol use, many of us find it difficult to draw the line between problem-free enjoyment and harmful overindulgence. Studies show that 10 percent of Americans--nearly 30 million of us--drink more than we should. If you suspect it’s time to cut back but aren’t sure you want to abstain, Controlling Your Drinking provides an alternative opportunity to reflect on your habits and adjust unhealthy behaviors. Drawing on 30 years of research and nearly three dozen clinical trials, recognized experts William R. Miller and Ricardo F. Muñoz supply hard facts and current data you can use to evaluate your alcohol consumption and judge its impact on your physical and emotional health. Armed with a fresh perspective on your drinking and its consequences, you decide whether moderation fits your needs. Without resorting to labels or moralizing, Miller and Muñoz help you establish a simple, pragmatic, and adaptable plan for meeting your goals and achieving the results you want. Set apart by its science-based approach and straightforward advice, this book is the thinking person’s guide to sensible alcohol use.

226 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

William Richard Miller is an American clinical psychologist, an emeritus distinguished professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Miller and Stephen Rollnick are the co-founders of motivational interviewing.

Reviews

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great tool for anyone who teaches about alcohol. Also a great read for anyone who uses alcohol. Not preachy in the slightest. Includes detailed scientific information on the negative (and some positive) effects of alcohol on the body. A divergence from the "all or nothing" approach so many take to alcohol. This is the only self help book that I've ever heard of that has completed a full study on folks who've used its tools and strategies, then published a second edition with results from the study and tweaks based on what worked and what didn't. I got it at the library, and though I almost always prefer to support public libraries, I wish I had purchased this book (and still might). There are a lot of concrete workbook-like exercises and quizzes that will be easier if you can write in the book.

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful.