Friday, 3 February 2012

Stress and Booze - Cocktail for Disaster!

It's Friday, and you've arrived at another long, mundane week. You've been working against deadlines for what seems like forever, and though you do love your new position as a senior software engineer and all the new responsibilities it entails, it's been quite an adjustment for you. So, you gather your colleagues, shut down for the day, and head out for some fun on the town. One drink, two drinks, ten drinks, before you know it, you've blitzed out, it's 4am, and though you wake up in the comfort of your own home, you have no idea how you got there. Hey it happens right? Sure, once or twice. But when you're doing it every weekend, and then every day after work, and then you're sipping martinis at lunch, on your coffee break and any other time to make the stress go away, you've got a problem.

We can't deny that having a drink or two takes the edge off, because it does as alcohol acts as a sedative and relaxes the central nervous system. And after a few drinks, most people lose their inhibitions and feel a little less tightly wound, and for a moment or two, you feel worry-free. But when the fog lifts, and reality slams you in the face, it was all for not.

Drinking is not all bad. In fact, red wine has been proven to help in the prevention of heart problems, but drowning your sorrows at the bottom of bottle of wine every night is going to make your problems worse. As you well know, alcohol significantly impairs judgement. But the frightening reality is, combining stress and alcohol is a guaranteed recipe for alcohol addiction.

Work continues to spiral out of control, which in turn trickles into your home life, and before you know it, you feel like you feel like you're suffocating in your own misery. And for some, turning to a substance that takes the edge off is an obvious answer. There is no where else in the world that has more diagnosed cases of anxiety disorder than the United States. The answer isn't in the drink ladies and gents, it's in your head! There are a number of ways to combat stress like getting some exercise, massage, and making quiet time for yourself, none of which involve putting your lips to a bottle so you drink your life into oblivion. If you feel like you may have a problem with alcohol and you use it to deal with stress,  it's time to consult a medical practitioner to develop a plan to help you de-stress.