Why Alcohol Will RUIN Your Life!
Sam is a student-athlete (crew) in college.
He wakes up at 5AM to train with the crew team, he follows an optimal diet, and he barely has time to go out with his friends.
When he does get around to joining his friends at the bowling alley downtown, he refuses alcohol. He has to be up at 5AM the next day to train, he has a chemistry exam three days later and has meetings with his advisors all week.
“Go on, just one drink,” urged his friends
“No thanks, I’m good with soda,” Sam replied.
They respond by saying “Oh lighten up and have some fun, don’t be so boring!”
Sam understands the effects alcohol has on his body, understands the long-term effect of short-term gratification, and understands what alcohol will cost him (not just in terms of money, but health-wise and time-wise).
He declines his friends’ offer and sticks to his guns, but unfortunately, many people are easily lured into the trap of peer-pressured drinking. This happens every single day, all around the world.
All too often alcohol has become a prerequisite to fun in the Western world, yet it causes a lot more damage than most would think. I’m not referring to only excessive drinking, it refers to all levels of alcohol consumption from light/occasional drinkers to full-fledged “habitual drunkards.” Alcohol is a drug at the end of the day. Sure, it doesn’t carry the reputation of substances such as Heroin or Cocaine, nor does it affect the body that those substances do.
But, it follows the same pattern:
1) Consume the drug.
2) Instantly boost dopamine levels.
3) Feel better.
4) Soon enough, suffer the consequences (in the case of alcohol this looks like being drunk/hungover, for Cocaine this looks like being “high.”
Alcohol has become one of the most destructive forces in our society today.
The worst part is that it is difficult to escape. There is a bar on almost every street corner, just about every restaurant serves it, and every grocery store. It is everywhere!
It’s also concerning that in recent years, since the pandemic, alcohol consumption has been at record heights. One source reported that alcohol consumption increased more during the pandemic than at any time during the past 50 years. Recently, a study showed that one in six US adults binge drinks — with at least 25% of those binge drinking weekly. These numbers are shocking and something has to be done about it. That is why I am writing this newsletter, to help spread awareness of how toxic alcohol is and unfortunately how common it is in our society.
Now, I want to make one thing very clear…
I am in no way trying to encourage you to live a dull, boring life with no “fun.”
That is not how anybody’s life should be nor is it a life that anybody deserves to live.
But, the unfortunate truth is that there is a notion in many societies that “fun” requires the consumption of this toxic substance. It is more prevalent among young people and college students — a recent study showed that over 50% of college students believe that “getting drunk will ensure they have a good night out.”
I get it, though.
Alcohol fulfills so many human needs in such a short amount of time at such a high level of intensity. Human beings fundamentally crave feeling more comfort on a biological level and substances like alcohol help accelerate that process. As do many other “instant gratification” activities such as drug use, video gaming, and eating junk food. The radical supply of dopamine and serotonin fulfills our need to feel good in a short amount of time. This justifies why alcohol is both popular and notoriously hard to give up. Therefore, many people continue to consume it, particularly in states of distress.
But at what cost?
A MIND-BLOWING one!
I’m gonna present some scientific facts about alcohol to show you just how destructive it is (some of these may come as a surprise):
1) Alcohol will SHRINK your brain!
Recent studies showed that “regular drinking” can cause brain cells to die and result in “shrinkage” of the brain tissue. This will show up as a decline in cognitive performance, poor memory, and possibly reduced ability to engage with others.
2) Alcohol will SKYROCKET your feelings of depression and anxiety.
As mentioned, alcohol prompts the release of feel-good chemicals such as dopamine and GABA, causing temporary relaxation feelings. As consumption increases, the brain produces less natural endorphins since more units of alcohol are required to yield normal levels of dopamine. In other words, your body becomes dependent on alcohol to feel good the more you consume it, so when consumption stops/reduces you feel more depressed and anxious.
3) Alcohol will DESTROY your sleep.
Consumption of alcohol can shorten sleep onset latency and increase slow-wave sleep in the first half of the night. REM sleep (the stage of deep sleep) is suppressed and it takes your body longer to achieve REM sleep, and it is maintained for shorter periods.
4) Alcohol will EAT your time and your body.
Research shows that an average hangover lasts between 14 to 23 hours, sometimes more. That could be more than ONE DAY OF YOUR LIFE! The reason behind this is that alcohol irritates your stomach lining and causes inflammation which elongates the time for alcohol to clear the body.
These facts* are real!
I remember when I was younger I used to see adults drink alcohol and think “Man, I can’t wait until I’m allowed to drink and have fun!” But I had fallen for the societal lie: you reach a certain age, you’re allowed to drink, and you can start having “fun!”
But, I reached that age and never even looked at alcohol because I became aware of what it does to you.
The science above is not my opinion, it is facts.
A lot of people ask me, as well as others who choose to stay 100% sober questions like:
“Why don’t you just have one drink?”
Or, “Why don’t you drink on special occasions only?”
The reality is, that drinking one drop of alcohol or one gallon of alcohol doesn’t change the fact that you are consuming alcohol. Sure, a drop (or a few dozen drops) will barely make any difference to my current state of being, but it is still alcohol entering my system and the destructive forces still exist (on a lesser scale of course).
With all of this in mind, I have some great news!
There are some incredible activities you can do to fulfill your inner needs that are met by drinking alcohol.
They are all healthy, natural, fun, and easy to pursue!
They won’t shrink your brain, increase anxiety, destroy your sleep, or eat away your time in a toxic manner.
The only problem is this…
They do not supply the level of dopamine at the same speed as substances such as alcohol. In other words, it will take longer for you to feel happy and elevated by pursuing these activities compared to having a glass of wine.
So what can you do?
The fundamental activity needed to feel better in any situation: get to the root of the problem!
Then, when triggered fill your time with these activities:
- Exercise: this will flood your body with endorphins and improve your overall health.
- Breath-work: this stimulates the vagus nerve and causes the body to relax, helping you feel better in states of distress.
- Spend time with good people: the right people around you will uplift you and support you, this is a fundamental biological need.
- Eat healthy food: you are what you eat at the end of the day, consuming whole natural foods will lead to overall better health and better moods.
- Spend time in nature: science shows that spending time in our natural habitat, nature reduces cortisol levels and improves our health overall.
I hope this newsletter has helped you become more aware of the dangers of substances such as alcohol. Alcohol has become so normal within societies and has been for decades, but just because it is normal does not mean it is healthy. There are so many natural and easy ways to fulfill our basic human needs that benefit us in the long run. I cannot wait to go into more detail about these in the coming newsletters!
Thank you for reading, see you in the next one!
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*FACTS/STATISTICS: all facts, statistics, and mention of “studies” in this issue are NOT my work, they originate from sources cited below.
**CITATIONS (disclaimer: these sources are NOT chronologically ordered, some metrics/facts have been used multiple times from one source):
https://mountainside.com/blog/alcohol/25-reasons-to-stop-drinking-alcohol-for-good/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5821259/
https://www.physio-pedia.com/The_influence_of_alcohol_on_physiologic_processes_and_exercise
https://www.cdc.gov/alcohol/fact-sheets/binge-drinking.htm
https://alcoholchange.org.uk/alcohol-facts/fact-sheets/alcohol-statistics
https://www2.hse.ie/living-well/alcohol/dependence/psychological-dependence/
https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/young-people-and-risks-alcohol
© Theo Anthony 2024
