I knew I was drinking too much for a long time - and it was costing me all my money.

I had the tendency to stop, but after a few days I would find myself drinking again. Just one, then another. Finally a day came when I said enough is enough! I knew I had to stop my alcohol addiction for good.

I took a practical approach. I noted down factors that lead me to drink too much. One of the most important factors was that I was keeping company with bad friends who drank too much. I also had a lot of stress. I noticed I had poor thinking and I was ignorant on how addictive alcohol was.

After I noted the above I had to find solutions.

I told my beer friends that I had stopped beer for life. I avoided them and going to the places I used to drink. I ended up totally changing friends over a few months. I also had to develop self control. Then I found ways to avoid stress that did not involve drinking – I started watching movies or browsing the internet rather than going drinking.

That was three years ago and I haven’t had beer since. Looking back I think it was easy. And now I can see how much money it was sucking out of my pocket. I explained to others how I had stopped and inspired one of them to stop too.

Alcoholics Anonymous can help you. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. Find a support group near you by visiting www.alcoholicsanonymouszimbabwe.com.