Step Away: NZ Edition

Step Away: NZ Edition is a smartphone-based intervention system designed to help you to either drink less or stop drinking altogether. It has numerous evidence-based interventions to help you to make a change to your drinking, such as how to manage cravings to drink, what to do if you feel distressed or anxious, and how to deal with times when you are at high-risk of drinking. The app also helps you to set a goal, track your progress, and it provides feedback on how you are doing over time. Step Away NZ will be there for you whenever you need help with drinking-related problems.


This app was developed and tested in the USA, and has been adapted for New Zealand with the support of research funding from the Health Research Council of New Zealand.

If you are a New Zealander whose drinking has become out of control and you want to make a positive change, this is your app. Step Away NZ brings the tools to make a positive change in drinking right to your smartphone. It will be your personal assistant to help you cut back or quit altogether. Step Away NZ will first help you to gain perspective on your drinking and awareness into your specific drinking triggers. It will also help you to set a goal and keep track of your progress through regular check-ins and weekly reports. It provides customization of many features so you can customize it to your specific needs, whether it is to help you stop drinking altogether or minimize your drinking to safer levels. With this app, there is no need to wait until your next meeting with your counselor to receive help; helpful strategies, feedback on your progress and immediate help with cravings and feeling stressed or down, will be with you all the time.

Step Away NZ was developed in collaboration with researchers at the University of Auckland who helped ensure that it was reflective of NZ culture and local support options. In a clinical trial of Step Away NZ in the Auckland region, this app was shown to help people reduce their drinking by around 60% over a 6 month time frame. It also helped to substantially reduce life problems stemming from drinking and it received high ratings from the research participants. Step Away NZ can be really helpful to you, but it does require that you put forward good effort and keep active with the app.

Step Away NZ will help you to:

Become more aware of your drinking patterns and triggers

Set an overall drinking objective (to either stop drinking OR moderate your drinking) as well as smaller intermediate goals to help you succeed in stages

Reward yourself when you meet your goals

Stay in control when you are feeling tempted to drink by providing immediately available tools

Learn new and helpful strategies for dealing with cravings, stress and boredom

Monitor your progress through weekly reports on your drinking, your triggers and your mood

Keep you on track during your personally defined “high risk times” for drinking

Remind yourself about your reasons for making a change when you are feeling like drinking or are in a tempting situation

Share your progress with others (family, friends or health care provider)

Help you prepare for “high risk events” in the coming week - and strategically avoid alcohol triggers

Identify alternate (non-drinking) activities and schedule them directly into your calendar

Connect with other types of support throughout New Zealand

New Zealanders can download Step Away: NZ Edition for free. When you register on the app, you have the ability to sign-up to participate in an anonymized study related to the use of the app in helping you overcome drinking issues.

If you choose to use Step Away NZ, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you allow the app to send you alerts and notifications. These are designed to keep you on track, particularly during times when you need help the most.