Cutting It Out: How to get on the waterwagon and stay there

The author offers a candid personal account of deciding to stop drinking, describing his ordinary, non-addicted drinking habits and why he chose temperance for himself rather than from compulsion. He narrates the practical steps he took to quit and to remain abstinent, examines what exactly he surrendered and the social and emotional contexts of giving it up, and records the timing and immediate aftermath of the resolution. Interwoven are reflections on willpower, habit, and strategy, practical observations about relapses and temptations, and an emphasis on the individual, nonjudgmental nature of his experiment in abstinence.