Evaluating Your Relationship with Alcohol
By Marta Cofone, MS
Therapist in Ardmore, Pennsylvania
Have you noticed that the way you consume alcohol has changed since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic? Now may be a good time to re-evaluate what you want your relationship with alcohol to look like.
Alcohol & COVID-19
Research demonstrates that people who are experiencing stress often report increased alcohol consumption. This trend of increased alcohol consumption with stressful times has been evident since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the first two months of the pandemic, alcohol sales increased by 21% for in-store purchases and 234% for online sales when compared to 2019 numbers. Have you noticed that your relationship with alcohol has changed since March 2020 as a result of stress, accessibility due to remote work and school, and/or boredom?
Questions to ask yourself about alcohol
Here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- How often am I drinking throughout the week?
- Has the quantity of alcohol I am consuming in a single period changed?
- How do you feel/what happens when you’re unable to drink?
- Have you been experiencing any adverse consequences as a result of your
drinking?
- How are your relationships?
- How important is it to you for alcohol to be present at social gatherings?
- Have you attempted to stop or limit how much you drink in the past? If yes, what
was the outcome?
- Have you found yourself wanting or needing to consume more alcohol to achieve
the same or desired outcome?
- Does drinking help you cope with stress, anxiety, loneliness, or boredom?
- Have you been spending more time, money, or other resources on alcohol than
you intended?
- Is my alcohol use interfering with the things that are most important in my life,
such as family, relationships, creativity, ambitions?
How is this serving me?
If you found yourself answering yes to any of these questions, it can be helpful to re-evaluate what you want your relationship with alcohol to look like! A good first step is to ask yourself, “how is this serving me?” when you want to go grab that drink. Are you stress, bored, or lonely? What other resources do you have available to help you manage these feelings? It can be helpful to connect with loved ones and others in your support system when you are feeling overwhelmed.
Building new coping skills such as mindful movement or engaging in an activity that feels grounding can help you make decisions that move you in the direction of those values that are most important to you. If you find that you are struggling to do this alone, seeking help from a professional and support groups are also available.
Article by Marta Cofone, MS, therapist in Philadelphia, PA and Ardmore, PA. Marta specializes in helping people who struggle with substance misuse/abuse, body image issues, anxiety, and depression. Marta is also trained in EMDR to support people who are healing from trauma.
Citation
Grossman, E. R., Benjamin-Neelon, S. E., & Sonnenschein, S. (2020). Alcohol Consumption
during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey of US Adults. International
journal of environmental research and public health, 17(24), 9189.