Robert T. Fancher

Aug 27, 2023 | quillette.com | Frank Celia |Gregory Clark |Robert T. Fancher

Quitting alcohol is easy. People do it all the time. Staying sober long-term, however, is a different story. The average substance abuser quits 5.4 times before achieving prolonged sobriety, and that number is likely much higher among those who never get sober. Eighty-five percent of alcoholics relapse within the first year of abstinence. Forty to 60 percent relapse within a month. Even problem drinkers who receive liver transplants relapse at rates reported as high as nearly 50 percent.