How can I quit drinking?

Dear Hadi,

Dear Want to Stop Drinking,

Thank you for your question. 

We’re very glad to hear you pray five times a day. 

Regarding having tattoos, please see our column, Tattoos and Islam 

We commend you for wanting to take the initiative to stop drinking. 

Following through on this to a successful conclusion has spiritual, intellectual, and emotional components.

We will treat these in some detail, beyond your question, since the issue of alcohol is a significant one for the American Muslim community. 

For example, in the Dear Hadi column, the question titled Alcohol Conundrum at Muslim Friends’ Gathering (https://www.islamicity.org/dearhadi/16), where we encountered a sobering statistic (pun intended) from the social science literature that 46% of US college students who identified as Muslim drink alcohol at least occasionally.

On the spiritual level, it seems that you are on track, as you have decided that you want to stop drinking. 

As Muslims, the spiritual part of our conviction stems from the Quran, where three verses talk about alcohol. The first verse revealed regarding alcohol is 2:219, stating, 
“They will ask thee about intoxicants and games of chance. Say: ‘In both there is great evil as well as some benefit for men, but the evil which they cause is greater than the benefit which they bring, …” 

This verse is informational but, if you will, lays the psychological groundwork for the later prohibition. 

The second verse revealed is 4:43, instructing the believers not to approach prayer while in the state of drunkenness, and begins the practical implementation of prohibition. Finally, verses 5:90-91 from surat Al-Maida were revealed to completely prohibit alcohol:

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا ٱلْخَمْرُ وَٱلْمَيْسِرُ وَٱلْأَنصَابُ وَٱلْأَزْلَـٰمُ رِجْسٌ مِّنْ عَمَلِ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنِ فَٱجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

O YOU who have attained to faith! Intoxicants, and games of chance, and idolatrous practices, and the divining of the future are but a loathsome evil of Satan's doing:'  shun it, then, so that you might attain to a happy state! (asad) 

 

إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ أَن يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ ٱلْعَدَٰوَةَ وَٱلْبَغْضَآءَ فِى ٱلْخَمْرِ وَٱلْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ ٱللَّهِ وَعَنِ ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ فَهَلْ أَنتُم مُّنتَهُونَ

By means of intoxicants and games of chance Satan seeks only to sow enmity and hatred among you, and to turn you away from the remembrance of God and from prayer. Will you not, then, desist?'  (asad) 

Now, let’s turn to the intellectual component.  Of course, relating to verse 5:91, the data has long been known regarding how alcohol is highly implicated in violent crime, child abuse, and spousal abuse.  

What is less well-known is that the latest medical research meshes nicely with verse 2:219. A plethora of medical data is now available regarding the harms of alcohol. 

In fact, the news coming from the medical world now says that even small amounts of alcohol are harmful, contrary to the popular opinion that small amounts have moderate health benefits. 

For example, an article from Medscape News in January 2022, titled No Amount of Alcohol Safe for the Heart, states: “The widely held notion that consuming small to moderate amounts of alcohol is good for cardiovascular health is not supported by the data … In fact, the evidence is clear that any level of drinking can contribute to the loss of a healthy life …”

The same sort of news has also come from the cancer world, where it has become clear that alcohol is a significant carcinogen linked to multiple cancer types. 

Finally, the emotional component. 

If one is convinced spiritually and intellectually, where does one get the willpower to stop drinking?  

In this regard, we advise taking advantage of the many resources our society has to offer to help people stop drinking, such as Alcoholics Anonymous.

You may be thinking, “That’s ridiculous. I’m not an alcoholic.”  You may even feel insulted by the suggestion.  Please don’t be.  Such organizations are there to try to help anyone find the willpower to modify their drinking behavior, even if they want to go from one drink a day to zero but can’t seem to do it. 

It will take some bravery and some humility to do that, but the reward of feeling that you are living up to the Quran should be well worth it insha’Allah. 

In addition to joining a group such as AA, there are other steps that the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) suggests (https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/11-ways-to-curb-your-drinking) some of which include: making a list of the reasons to cut back on your drinking; setting a goal; keeping a diary of your drinking; not keeping alcohol in your home; keeping busy; asking for support; making a plan to avoid people and places that tempt you.

We pray you will be successful in this endeavor insha'Allah.

 In peace.