I don’t know about you, but I have found myself reaching for a soothing glass of wine every night this week.
In my normal life, a large glass of red wine is my antidote for a particularly stressful day. And I normally only resort to that once or, at most, twice a week… but these are unprecedented times, and nothing is normal.
Using alcohol as a stress-alleviator has never been less sustainable than it is right now. Our stress-levels are through the roof, our emotions are unstable, and with no end in sight, reaching for a bottle every time we have a wobble will likely have a really negative impact on both our physical and mental health.
Lois* 32, says she can’t believe how many empty bottles of wine she discovered next to her bin after just a week of lockdown.
She says she’s worried that her booze habit could become a problem, particulalry because she lives alone and doesn’t have anyone to help her keep it in check.
‘I have found this last few weeks incredibly scary, like everyone has,’ Lois tells Metro.co.uk.
‘I don’t like admitting this, but wine has been a comfort. I can’t do any of the normal things I do when I feel scared or stressed – like go see my friends, or go to my yoga class – so wine has been the thing I look forward to.
‘I know I have a bit of an addictive personality and I’m worried about how I’m going to manage this long term. At the moment I’m probably having two large-ish glasses of wine every night… enought to make me feel rough the next morning. It feels like a bit of a cycle.’
Ryan says he’s been shocked to find himself drinking every evening now that he’s working from home. He’s having a beer or two or a glass of wine, but says drinking every night is not like him at all.
‘I’m a journalist and working in this news environment, it just takes the edge of everything,’ he tells us.
‘Usually my relaxing time is in the car commuting home, but now I’m at home it’s hard to switch off.
‘You associate that drink at night with pleasure and after these last few weeks, having a couple of glasses with Netflix has been my escape. Also, because I’m not playing my football either, or going to the gym, so this is a factor also.’
Ryan says that because everything is so intense, having a drink has quickly become something he really looks forward to at the end of the day.
‘It’s kind of a reward for getting through it, and it is something that in normal times I definitely wouldn’t do,’ he explains.
‘But I do think to myself – surely this isn’t sustainable!’
As well as the stress, there’s the boredom.
Hours are melting into one another, weekends are barely distinguishable from weekdays. What even is ‘time’ during a lockdown?
All that extra time you would have otherwise spent commuting, meeting friends, or at the gym, is now empty space. And it’s tempting to fill that emptiness to the brim with boozing. A tipsy haze can blur the edges of even the most scary situations, and make the mundane seem much more fun.
Of course, if you do want to have a tipple at an unorthodox time, that’s totally fine every now and then. ‘It’s unprecented times!’ we will yell as we pour ourselves a glass of prosecco to wash down our cornflakes at 8 am.
But if you are regularly drinking at odd times of day, drinking more than normal, or drinking every day, you could be developing a problem. And a long-term reliance on alcohol can cause a whole host of medical problems.
‘Mentally, self-isolating will impact us anyway because we are not used to restricting our routine and spending so much time indoors,’ says Dr Aragona Giuseppe, GP and medical advisor at Prescription Doctor. ‘Adding a large consumption of alcohol into the mix will be even more detrimental to a person’s mental health and could promote anxiety, depression, and a feeling of mental isolation.’
He says the physical effects could be huge as well as the mental, particularly if we’re not getting as much exercise as we normally do.
‘You may feel hungover most days, have a headache from dehydration, you may feel tired all the time due to not being able to sleep at night, lethargic or have an inability to concentrate on work,’ he adds. ‘It may also make you irritable and cause arguments with those you are self-isolating with. Not to mention promoting conditions such as alcoholism and addiction.’
Brits tend to have a cavalier attitude when it comes to alcohol, and it is telling that the Government has added off-licences to the list of ‘essential’ shops that will remain open during lockdown.
There are also a range of companies and services offering alcohol delivery direct to your door. So even if you are self-isolating, it actually might be easier to access booze now than it was before.
Kate* 28 says she is spending most evenings on video chats with different groups of friends on Zoom or Houseparty, and she says it has become natural to have a drink every time she logs on.
‘It just makes it feel more sociable – like we’re meeting in the pub or something. It lets me pretend that some things are still normal, even if it’s just for an hour.’
Kate lives on her own, so these digital chats are her lifeline during lockdown, but she is worried about how much alcohol she is consuming.
‘I do worry about it because, although having a big gin and tonic feels great at the time, as soon as the chat ends, it makes me feel worse.
‘Sometimes I’ll have another drink after my video chat, because I feel like it will stop my mind racing. But often I just end up feeling upset and sleeping really badly anyway.’
That’s because alcohol is actually a depressant, which means it can disrupt the balance in our brains, affecting our thoughts, feelings and actions – and sometimes our long-term mental health.
Which is the opposite of what we all need at a time like this.
If you are worried that you’re consuming too much alcohol, Dr Giuseppe suggests trying to find other ways to fill the extra time.
‘Exercise is one of the best things you can do to help remain physically and mentally healthy, try to get outside at least once a day, read a book, focus on work,’ he suggests.
‘You could even try to substitute alcohol for a non-alcoholic beverage such as non-alcoholic beer or wine. It may also be a good idea to limit the amount of alcohol you have in the house so you aren’t tempted, this should be effective as it won’t be as easy to get to the shops.’
Psychotherapist Liz Horsman went sober to help her mental health two years ago. She says that if you were considering changing your relationship with alcohol, social distancing could provide a unique opportunity to help you do that.
‘For once, the pressure to drink socially is off and for most people peer pressure is the toughest part about quitting booze,’ Liz tells Metro.co.uk.
‘Your number one rule to giving up or cutting down is to take it one day at a time. All you have to do is stick to today’s rule. Set achievable goals and just focus on 24-hour time slots.
‘For example, if you decide not to drink today then that’s what you’re doing today. Let tomorrow take care of itself.’
She says that if you do decide to give up the booze during this period, it’s really impotant to have your favourite tea or other alcohol-free alternatives on hand, for when you have cravings. And she says to look for online resources to help you stay on track.
‘Create a great self-care routine,’ she suggests. ‘Take long baths, find a place in your home where you can have alone time. Eat nice things. Create a new workout routine – there is so much online right now.
‘You will want to replace your lost sugar from not drinking with sweets and chocolate. That’s okay, your new exercise routine can help with that too.’
You know what’s normal for you, and what’s excessive.
If you’re waking up every morning feeling hungover, or if you feel like you can’t get through an evening without having a drink, reach out for some help.
You can speak to your GP on a phone consultation, or use online resources, such as Talk to Frank. Even speaking to a trusted friend or family member could be a huge help and will remind you that you’re not alone.
All of our normal behaviours have been thrown off kilter by this pandemic and it will take us a while to settle into this new normal.
All you can do is try your hardest to develop positive, healthy routines that make you feel physically and mentally strong.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/03/27/worried-much-drinking-lockdown-12466362/?ITO=squid
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