“Do I have to take my addiction meds throughout my life?”

Not necessarily. It is possible to wean someone off a medication if they have identified all their triggers (what makes you drink) and fixed them. For example, if you drink more when you are stressed, once you get healthy stress coping techniques, you may be a candidate to be weaned off. Counseling is extremely helpful is addressing your triggers and helping you put up roadblocks to keep them from causing a relapse. Truth be told, the combination of counseling and medications is more successful than either alone. If you want to recover, I would strongly suggest not just medication but counseling as well.

Ultimately, this is a decision that you and your doctor will need to make together. Sit down with your physician and tell him or her your concerns.

Once you believe you have identified all your triggers and dealt with them, ask your doctor if he/she thinks it would be alright to go off the medication. Don't stop it yourself. I can't tell you how many times a person was sitting across from me because they stopped their medication and relapsed. Every time that happens, I would say, "Let me guess. You relapsed because..." and I was always right. The doctor may see something that you don't...an area that still needs to be addressed. Good luck!