Unfortunately, alcohol is a coping mechanism the temporary benefits of which are often outweighed by the long-term negative effects on health and relationships, poor decision-making under the influence, as well as increased dependency.
Compulsive behaviors are often unconscious and perhaps mindless choices. A coping mechanism is a method of dealing with unhappiness, stress, or other potential issues. It is whatever a person does to handle negative emotions or problems. Addiction can be an unhealthy coping mechanism.
If you experience anxiety, alcohol can give you a very short-lived feeling of relaxation – but this quickly disappears. If you rely on alcohol to cover your anxiety, you may soon find yourself drinking more and more to relax. Over time, this can lead to alcohol dependence.
One way that people may choose to cope with stress is by turning to alcohol. Drinking may lead to positive feelings and relaxation, at least in the short term. Problems arise, however, when stress is ongoing and people continue to try and deal with its effects by drinking alcohol.
Almost 60 per cent of adults are drinking alcohol in order to cope with the stresses of everyday life, a study has discovered.
You might think that alcohol helps you cope with stress, but it is not a good coping mechanism, as it is known to increase the symptoms of panic and anxiety disorders, depression and other mental disorders, and the risk of family and domestic violence.
Alcohol lowers your inhibitions, so you may say and do things more freely than when you're sober. If you're feeling nervous or anxious at a party, you might use alcohol to help you feel more confident and less afraid. It may feel like this helps in the short term, as you may feel more relaxed.
Summary of Using Alcohol as a Crutch
Whether you're using a drink as liquid confidence, to beat social anxiety, or ward off sadness, there is always a downside. The short-term boost can lead to long-term problems like tolerance, health concerns, and worsened depression, stress, or anxiety.
Over time, excessive alcohol use can lead to the development of chronic diseases and other serious problems including: High blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, liver disease, and digestive problems.
Alcohol abuse can cause signs and symptoms of depression, anxiety, psychosis, and antisocial behavior, both during intoxication and during withdrawal. At times, these symptoms and signs cluster, last for weeks, and mimic frank psychiatric disorders (i.e., are alcohol–induced syndromes).
In 1980, the third edition of the Manual, DSM-3, identified alcoholism as a subset of a mental health disorder. The current edition, DSM-5, classifies alcoholism, now referred to as Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) or Substance Use Disorder (SUD), as a mental disorder presenting both physical and mental symptoms.
The Three C's of Dealing with an addict are: I didn't cause it. I can't cure it. I can't control it.
There are many different conceptualizations of coping strategies, but the five general types of coping strategies are problem-focused coping, emotion-focused coping, social support, religious coping, and meaning making.
Like most habits, coping mechanisms have an addictive quality to them; we feel some degree of compulsion toward them, and we experience some level of difficulty in resisting them. We tend to use a coping mechanism as a distraction, a crutch that we lean on as a way of avoiding stress.
The higher the blood alcohol concentration is, the more likely you are to have bad effects. Alcohol intoxication causes behavior problems and mental changes. These may include inappropriate behavior, unstable moods, poor judgment, slurred speech, problems with attention or memory, and poor coordination.
Overall, quitting alcohol can cure anxiety, especially if addressed early on. Habitual alcohol use and continued abuse, on the other hand, may require addiction treatment and rehabilitation. The outlook with those who suffer from AUD is a little more complicated.
The Journal of the American Medical Association reports that approximately 50% of people with severe mental illness also struggle with some type of substance use disorder. In past estimates, 37% of people who misused alcohol or had an alcohol dependence also had at least one serious mental health disorder.
Overall, alcohol has a negative effect on mental and emotional health, even if it temporarily numbs emotions or creates feelings of euphoria. If you are struggling with an alcohol addiction and experiencing mental and emotional health concerns, The Recovery Village is here to help.
The three most common defense mechanisms used by those suffering from substance use disorders are denial, rationalization, and projection.
Researchers try to group coping responses rationally, empirically by factor analysis, or through a blend of both techniques. In the early days, Folkman and Lazarus split the coping strategies into four groups, namely problem-focused, emotion-focused, support-seeking, and meaning-making coping.