Will the Economy Turn More People Into Alcoholics?

                                                                                         

According to recent research from the University of California, roughly one in five of us will have problems with alcohol at some time in our lives. Researchers also found that roughly 50% of the reason for alcohol abuse is ‘environmental.’ What exactly does that mean? That in times of stress, one in five of us will hit the bottle. It’s an unfortunate fact that many of us do not have the ability to cope with stress without it. Or do we?

Alcohol is regarded as R & R – rest and relaxation. Arrive home after a tough day at the office – have a drink. Had a bit of a scare or traumatic experience – have a drink.

From there it progresses to having a relaxing night out with friends, with a drink. Or going out to dinner, and a few drinks.

Our culture is oriented towards drinking to relieve stress, to relax. Is it any wonder that it’s also become medication? Is it any wonder that people haven’t figured out how to cope with stress, how to address life’s problems so they can resolve them and make life less stressful?

Instead, we drink. Or take drugs. And it’s become accepted. Instead of changing our lives and environment so we can be happy, we drink or take a pill to cope with the fact that we’re unhappy.

Unfortunately, this habit, this American tradition, really takes its toll in times like these. People are losing their homes, their jobs, or worrying about both possibilities. They’re worried about their future, worried about whether the government will run out of social security money just when they’re ready to retire, worried about having the wherewithal to send their kids to college, or worried about being able to pay their rent next month.

Instead of figuring out how to fix the problems, how to survive the economic downturn, a lot of people will turn to drinking and drugs. But they’re not as capable of figuring out the right solutions because, well, they’re drugged or they’ve been drinking. If one night of drinking impairs critical thinking for a month, what does 20 years of ‘relaxing’ with a few drinks after a tough day at the office do? What does years of taking tranquilizers, sleeping pills and antidepressants do?

Being able to correctly assess situations and figure out the most viable options, maybe even figure out how to turn the current economy into an advantage, is something that clear thinkers can and will do. But a brain addled with alcohol or drugs doesn’t work like that. And it is definitely inhibited when it comes to execution of good ideas.

As human beings, we’ve got one thing over the animal kingdom. We have the ability to change our environment to suit us rather than having to adapt to what the environment dishes out. And we would feel far less hopeless about it if we applied some clear-headed thinking to our problems rather than escaping into alcohol or drugs and waiting it out, waiting until someone else handles the problems for us.

If you’ve ever thought you should quit drinking or taking drugs, now is the time to check out an addiction treatment center. In times like these, we need all the help we can get. And our brain power is our most valuable asset.

About the author:
Gloria MacTaggart is a freelance writer that contributes articles on health.

info@drugrehabreferral.com

http://www.drugrehabreferral.com


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