Addiction and Mental Health
For most people with alcohol or drugs problems, they often have a number of unresolved difficulties with life generally.
Over-use of drink or substances is often a symptom of other problems. Some of these may be minor of course, like an aversion to being bored, or a lack of confidence socially, or just a limited variety of ways to relax.
Some people have more deep-rooted problems behind their addictions - like anxiety, depression, lack of self-esteem etc. These can all be addressed with cognitive counselling techniques however.
Then there are many people with more serious mental health problems who end up having difficulties with alcohol or drugs. ‘Self-Medicating’ they call it in the medical profession. Basically, if life is unbearable and beyond your ability to cope with it, then people will try anything to feel better, even if it’s only for a few hours. And never mind what happens later.
Say what you like about drugs or alcohol, but one thing’s for sure - they can certainly take your mind off things if you’re feeling distressed. So if you’ve been trying to live with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia for years and nothing the medical profession has suggested has really helped that much, it’s no surprise when people turn to the bottle or to illegal drugs.
However, once that ’self-medication’ turns into dependency, then the situation can spiral out of control. And this is where it becomes more difficult to help people solve their addiction issues. It’s not impossible of course, it just takes more work and perhaps a little more motivation.
November 5th, 2007 at 11:19 pm
I think you may be on to something I can use. I’ve never heard of drinking out of boredom but I have clearly seen it with myself. I like to keep high paced busy days. The more work,exercise ,entertainment and social stimulation I can pack in a day the better I feel. Though I generally turn to alcohol at night to shut my brain down I also feel less bored when I add a few drinks to the pre-bedtime wind down. Without the drinks my insomnia is unbearable and I suffer the next day due to lack of sleep. If I limit the drinks to 4-5 in the evening(2 before dinner and 3 a couple hours later before retiring I sleep great and feel great the next day,often getting up at 5:30 am to go on a 5 mile run. Unfortunately as of late it takes more like 6 or 7 drinks per day to reach that feeling of being ready to retire. Since I was a kid I’ve walked and talked in my sleep. If I drink past 6 drinks I sleep walk several hours later and have had some falls at home including some injuries. My tolerance to alcohol has clearly increased. I’ve ordered the herbal medicine on your web site in hopes that it will help.
December 4th, 2007 at 12:57 am
I have many things useful in this article. I have realized that I am addicted to many things. Pills, alcohol, marijuana, and nicotine. I use all of them to numb my pain that I feel everyday. Everyday I have a hard time getting out of bed. I’m exhausted but yet I haven’t done anything. My drinking has several problems and now I can’t even socially drink without freaking out over something stupid, like a certain comment. I get violent and incoherant. The next day I don’t remember but I can see by all the broken stuff I had another one of those nights. I don’t know what to do. I have been in therapy and am on medication for depression and anxiety already.
January 28th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Like Tim, I was a terrible insomniac as a young child. I find my mind really races when I need it to calm down. It isn’t about worry as such, more that I just don’t switch off very easily.
The same is probably true physically…I used to be very active, running, dancing, riding etc. Perhaps some of us are just ‘higher geared’. When I have stopped in the past, I have had the most enormous rush of energy. Perhaps if I learn to welcome the chance to just wear myself out, I will stand more chance of being sober. The problem is that I am looking after my husband who was disabled by a stroke two years ago. He now suffers from epilepsy and I don’t feel happy leaving him alone. There surely must be a balance I can find here. I feel lousy at the moment though (after months and months of drinking far too much every evening) so I don’t think I’ll be dragging the dog out for a midnight walk!
March 1st, 2008 at 9:07 am
I too have my problem days and I think most people do otherwise there wouldn’t be so many liquor stores. My solution is meditation. I found it hard to meditate until I began using audios to help me stay focussed. Meditation really does help to kep you calm and you feel better.
November 28th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
It’s true — the drinking has a root cause but the alcoholism will get you. The root cause is the issue that needs to be dealt with; and some self exploration is going to help you to discover what that is. I think my root cause of drinking was initially the means to “get high and have fun — I was bored!” I also didn’t have a positive influence seeing my mother drinking all the time either, so it was second nature. Throughout the years in High School; drinking and getting wasted was fun! Until I got older; and the issue stemed from not having the awareness to build healthy relationships in social situations with men. I would drink to cover up anxiety and I suppose a sense of inadequency. A means to escape and “let loose”… literally. It lead me to “hook-up” when drunk and that became a compulsion. I realized because my father never gave me positive messages about sexuality—and was sexually abusive in an understated way with his words and the way he spoke about it. I didn’t learn about healthy boundaries; self love—etc. It caused my self esteem to keep lowering—to the point of numbness of sex after a while. I yearned for that healthy relationship—yet I struggled to feel that wholesomeness within myself. It wasn’t until divorcing both my parents for their unfitness to be parents even as me as an adult (I’m 27) now… going to therapy, alot of self reflection, setting goals and even if failing getting back up again to try… learning alot about healthy relationships, etc… and then finally admitting I was an addict and my goal for being sober that I started feeling my feelings of healing more deeply and I finally feel a sense of freedom. It’s hard, especially when you are a young adult trying to figure this all out! But, you can do it!