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CCSU Counseling and Wellness Center |
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Booze Blues
Thinking
back to middle school and your D.A.R.E. days, you’ve probably learned
that alcohol is a depressant, meaning that it can slow down your body and
your brain and produce bad moods. This may not seem like it goes along with
the giddy feelings of getting bombed. That’s because the euphoric
booze buzz is a temporary effect.
It’s
pretty easy to go from buzzed to barfing. That initial high from the first
drink will fade quickly with more and more alcohol. Alcohol can make your
nerves super sensitive so every little sound feels like it’s piercing your
brain. And these uncomfortable side effects don’t even take into
account the “booze blues,” the edginess that can result from a lot of
alcohol in your system.
And
if you think alcohol reduces stress, Think Again. While some people might
tip one to “take the edge off”, this only works sometimes with
small amounts of alcohol (like one drink or less). Alcohol
actually
increases stress through its action on the brain. Alcohol
depletes the brain’s supply of chemicals, such as dopamine, that are
responsible for feelings of pleasure and relaxation. At the same time,
alcohol promotes the release of chemicals that produce feelings of tension
and depression (corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and adrenocorticotropin
hormone (ACTH)).
There are
other reasons why alcohol is not an effective stress remedy. Consider
the student that’s worried about an upcoming exam. Alcohol may
temporarily ease his anxiety, but it won’t make his problems go away. After
the drinks wear off, he’s still unprepared, and may be in even worse shape
because of a hangover! And if you sleep through an exam because you’re
hung over, you’ll get no sympathy from the prof!
While
alcohol may be attractive for temporary management of everything from
breaking up to breaking your grades to your parents, if you can’t handle
stress without it, you’re going to find yourself in trouble. In
fact, the longer drinking is used to ease worries and stress, the harder it
may be to stop using alcohol as a numbing device and the more likely
drinking will lead to long-term problems. Those booze blues
will only get worse. So if you’re already bummed out, it’s really not a good
idea to reach for the bottle. |
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