Nobody needs to know you're doing this. In twenty minutes you'll know what one drink really is, have a log started and a plan picked, and over the next thirty days you'll find out what your evenings look like with less of it.
Dad Field Manual editors · Drafted with AI help · Published Oct 15, 2026
A phone note or printed card for the drink logHave
Your calendar, to mark day 1 and day 30Have
Something else to drink in the evening: sparkling water, tea, a soda you likeHave / $5
Where: Set it up at the kitchen counter where the drinks get poured. The log lives in your phone or on a card in your wallet.
Read this first
If you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before you stop. NIAAA warns that stopping suddenly after long, heavy drinking can bring dangerous withdrawal, including seizures. A doctor can plan it safely.
Seizures or a racing heart after cutting back are signs of withdrawal. Get medical help right away, and call 911 for a seizure.
Take a break instead of cutting back if you take a medicine that interacts with alcohol, or have a health condition drinking makes worse. NIAAA strongly advises quitting then.
Don't drive after drinking, and keep a sober adult in charge whenever young kids are awake.
02Steps
Learn what one drink is
YouOne standard drink is about 14 grams of alcohol: 12 ounces of regular beer at about 5%, 8 to 10 ounces of hard seltzer or malt liquor at about 7%, 5 ounces of wine at about 12%, or 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor. Pour 5 ounces of water into your usual wine glass and 1.5 ounces into your usual glass for liquor. See what your normal pour really is. Five minutes.
Log every drink before you drink it
YouStart a phone note or card with one line per day: date, how many standard drinks, where, and who with. Write each one down before you pour it, not after. NIAAA says noting a drink first can help you slow down. Keep it for a full week before you change anything, if you like. Five minutes to set up.
Pick your 30-day plan
YouChoose one. Cut back: pick which days you'll drink, how many on those days, and some days with none. Or take a break: no alcohol for 30 days. If you've tried cutting back before and couldn't stay within your limit, choose the break. Write the plan at the top of the log and mark day 1 and day 30 on the calendar. Five minutes.
Clear the evening triggers
YouLook at the log for when you drink most. Often it's the hour after the kids are down, or while cooking. If drinking at home is the problem, keep little or no alcohol in the house this month. Put the other drink in the fridge where the beer was. Five minutes.
Fill the evening with something else
YouPlan what the trigger hour becomes: an after-dinner walk with the kids, a card game, a workout in the garage, a project, a call with a friend. When an urge hits, remind yourself why you're doing this, text someone, or ride it out. Urges pass. Have your line ready: “No thanks, I'm taking a month off.”
Look back on day 30
YouRead the log. Ask yourself: Did I stick to the plan? How did I sleep? How were the evenings with the kids? If you couldn't stay within your limit, a break or more help is the next step, not a second try at the same thing. Ten minutes.
Know when to get help
YouIf cutting back hasn't worked after two or three months, or you can't take a break, get help. Tell your doctor: “I want to cut back on drinking and it's harder than I thought.” Or call SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357, free and confidential, 24/7, for a referral near you, or search FindTreatment.gov.
03If it stalls
If you skip logging for a few days, don't start over. Fill in what you remember and keep going.
If a party or a game night is coming up, decide your number before you go and eat something first.
If you slip on a break, write it down and pick up again the next day. One night doesn't cancel the month.
If the log shows you're drinking more than you thought, that's the point of the log, not a verdict. Show it to your doctor.
04Variations
Your partner wants in
Each of you keeps your own log and picks your own plan. Compare notes on day 30 only if you both want to.
A month with a holiday or a wedding
Keep the plan and decide that day's number ahead of time. Write it in the log before you leave the house.
Just curious, not worried
Do steps one and two only, for two weeks. The log alone tells you whether to bother with the rest.
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What a standard drink is. NIAAA's Rethinking Drinking defines a US standard drink as about 0.6 fluid ounces or 14 grams of pure alcohol, such as 12 ounces of regular beer at about 5%, 8 to 10 ounces of malt liquor or hard seltzer at about 7%, 5 ounces of table wine at about 12%, or 1.5 ounces of distilled spirits at about 40%, and notes that alcohol content varies. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health Checked Oct 15, 2026
Tips to cut back. NIAAA suggests keeping track of each drink, noting it before you drink it to help you slow down, measuring drinks at home, setting goals for drinking days and number of drinks with some days off, finding other activities and ways to cope, avoiding triggers and keeping little or no alcohol at home if home drinking is a problem, riding out urges, having a polite “No, thanks” ready, and considering quitting or professional help if cutting down hasn't worked after two to three months. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health Checked Oct 15, 2026
Cut down or quit, and withdrawal. NIAAA strongly advises quitting rather than cutting down for people who have tried cutting down and can't stay within their limits, have alcohol use disorder symptoms, have a health condition drinking causes or worsens, or take a medication that interacts with alcohol. It warns that long-term heavy drinkers who stop suddenly may face painful or potentially life-threatening withdrawal, with symptoms such as seizures and rapid heart rate, and says to get medical help to plan a safe recovery. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health Checked Oct 15, 2026
SAMHSA National Helpline and FindTreatment.gov. SAMHSA's National Helpline, 1-800-662-HELP (4357), is a free, confidential, 24/7 treatment referral and information service in English and Spanish for people facing mental or substance use disorders. It refers callers to local treatment, support groups and community organizations, does not provide counseling, and points to the FindTreatment.gov locator. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Checked Oct 15, 2026
Nobody needs to know you're doing this. In twenty minutes you'll know what one drink really is, have a log started and a plan picked, and over the next thirty days you'll find out what your evenings look like with less of it.
Time
20 min to set up
Cost
$0
Ages
Any age
Where
Kitchen and phone
What you need
A measuring cup or shot glass
A phone note or printed card for the drink log
Your calendar, to mark day 1 and day 30
Something else to drink in the evening: sparkling water, tea, a soda you like
Read this first
If you drink heavily every day, talk to a doctor before you stop. NIAAA warns that stopping suddenly after long, heavy drinking can bring dangerous withdrawal, including seizures. A doctor can plan it safely.
Seizures or a racing heart after cutting back are signs of withdrawal. Get medical help right away, and call 911 for a seizure.
Take a break instead of cutting back if you take a medicine that interacts with alcohol, or have a health condition drinking makes worse. NIAAA strongly advises quitting then.
Don't drive after drinking, and keep a sober adult in charge whenever young kids are awake.
Steps
Learn what one drink is. One drink is 12 oz beer, 5 oz wine or 1.5 oz liquor. Measure your usual pour at home.
Log every drink before you drink it. Write down each drink before you have it: date, number of standard drinks, where, who with.
Pick your 30-day plan. Choose: cut back (set drink days, a number, and no-drink days) or take a 30-day break. Write it down.
Clear the evening triggers. Find your drinking times. Keep little or no alcohol at home this month and stock something else.
Fill the evening with something else. Replace the trigger hour with a walk, game or project. Ride out urges. Have a “No thanks” ready.
Look back on day 30. On day 30, read the log and ask: Did I keep the plan? How did I sleep? How were the evenings?
Know when to get help. If it isn't working, tell your doctor, or call SAMHSA at 1-800-662-4357 or search FindTreatment.gov.
If it stalls
If you skip logging for a few days, don't start over. Fill in what you remember and keep going.
If a party or a game night is coming up, decide your number before you go and eat something first.
