The Books That Helped Me Quit Drinking

How 'Quit Lit' Planted the Seed of Change

I didn’t wake up one day and suddenly decide to quit drinking. It was a slow unravelling, a quiet recognition, building over time, that my relationship with alcohol wasn’t what I wanted it to be anymore. And oddly enough, one of the first things that nudged me toward that realisation wasn’t a dramatic event or an intervention, it was a book.

Before I ever spoke the words “I think I want to stop drinking” out loud, I found myself quietly drawn to what’s known as Quit-Lit, memoirs, essays, and reflections written by people who had already walked the path of reevaluating or quitting alcohol. I didn’t seek them out consciously at first. One would pop up in a podcast recommendation, another on an Instagram story. I’d download one on my Kindle “just to see what it was like.” But every time I opened one of those books, I felt seen in a way I hadn’t experienced before.

These stories weren’t preachy or filled with shame. They weren’t about hitting a dramatic rock bottom or fitting into a rigid definition of addiction. They were about people like me - high-functioning, outwardly fine, but inwardly asking: Is this really working for me?

Reading those voices, people bravely telling the truth about their experience with alcohol planted a seed in me. They helped me name the nagging discomfort that I’d been pushing aside after every hangover or blurry evening. And perhaps most importantly, they gave me hope that there was another way to live, one that didn’t require alcohol to relax, socialise, cope, or feel whole.

When I finally decided to take a break from drinking and eventually to stop entirely, quit lit became a lifeline. In those early days when everything felt raw and uncertain, those books were like companions. I’d read a chapter in the morning before work, or curl up with one in the evening when I was tempted to pour a glass of wine. They reminded me why I was doing this. They reminded me I wasn’t alone.

There was something deeply powerful about reading someone else’s truth and seeing pieces of my own experience reflected back. It made the road ahead feel less daunting. It gave me the courage to keep going on the hard days. And it helped shift the narrative in my head from “I’m giving something up” to “I’m choosing something better.”

If you’re curious about your relationship with alcohol, or even just feeling a whisper of doubt, I can’t recommend Quit Lit enough. You don’t have to commit to anything. You don’t even have to tell anyone. Just start reading. Let those stories wash over you. Let them sit with you.

Sometimes, change begins not with a bold declaration, but with a quiet page-turn.

Some of my favourite and most inspiring reads:

• The Unexpected Joy of Being Sober - Catherine Gray

• The Sober Diaries - Clare Pooley

• How to Quit Alcohol in 50 Days - Simon Chapple

• Alcohol Lied to Me - Craig Beck