Harm Reduction

You’ve probably already used harm reduction.

Have you ever:

• Eaten a fast-food burger that didn’t fit your diet, but skipped the french fries, dessert, or sugar-laden drink that also looked good?
• Missed planned workouts, but used the stairs instead of the elevator?
• Had a couple of drinks in less-than-ideal circumstances, but made them lighter than usual, drank slowly, or ate well while enjoying them?
• Held off on starting a weight-loss program but taken steps to ensure you either wouldn’t gain weight, or would not gain weight rapidly?

We manage the risks of driving by buying auto insurance, and the risks of playing sports by wearing protective gear. Harm Reduction is another risk management tool: Understanding the risks and taking steps to reduce direct or potential harm.

An example of harm reduction with drinking.

December 2000 was one of the toughest months of my life. My best friend died quite unexpectedly, much too young, in November. My work situation was deteriorating rapidly. I had the support and love of friends, but my grief was raw and unavoidable.

The happiest, most joyous time of the year? Nope, at least not this time. Nothing I could do would make that month cheery or even peaceful.

My top priority was to survive, not thrive. Breathe in, breathe out. Put one foot in front of the other.

I’d been active in MM for six months, learned a lot, and taken significant steps toward drinking moderately. I knew that functioning optimally was simply not in the cards that month, though.

Lighter, slower, later.

I decided not to worry if I drank daily that December, but to look for ways to reduce harm. To me that meant drinking lighter, taking it slowly, and starting later in the evening (preferably after eating some sort of comfort food).

There were days when I drank more than 4 beers (the recommended daily limit for guys), and days when I didn’t.

When I set unrealistic goals for myself, it’s easy for me to get into rebellious aw-forget-it-I-don’t-care space and do the things that blow the goals apart. Harm reduction was a reasonable, gentle goal that helped me avoid that trap.

I didn’t get crazy drunk, didn’t drink and drive, didn’t wake up to extreme hangovers. When just getting through a day was a challenge, I looked forward to relaxing with a couple beers in the evening and fully enjoyed it when the time came.

In January I began taking small steps back toward my ideals. I abstained for 3 weeks, made necessary job changes, continued grieving yet looking forward instead of backward whenever possible.

Small steps forward are good steps.

Harm reduction is generally not the ideal long-term solution for a drinking problem. The healthiest approach to living with alcohol is one which causes us no harm.

Sometimes the long-term solutions are not within our reach, though:

• We may be working through early stages of change.
• If we’re living in crisis management mode, facing up to other challenges may take precedence for a while.
• We may need time to research our options to figure out which is a best fit.

When the “perfect” answer eludes us, or we’re not ready to put it in motion today, we can still empower ourselves by taking small steps in the right direction. Doing so nurtures our can-do spirit by:

• Reminding us that we can change our behavior.
• Showing us we can take credit for progress made.
• Proving we can add new tools to our skills tool box

Harm reduction: Do something simple. Do it today. Every tiny step forward is a good step.