DO you find yourself cracking open a bottle of wine most evenings – relying on drink to help you unwind?
If you’ve had a productive day, do you regularly reward yourself with a rosé?
Are the weekends your time to let your hair down, and the only way you can do that is with a drink in hand?
If you answered yes to any of these, then you might have alcohol use disorder, or AUD.
Ailsa Frank, an alcohol reduction hypnotherapist specialist and founder of the Feel Amazing hypnotherapy app, tells Sun Health: “AUD describes a reliance on alcohol – from being mildly dependent to the other end of the scale, being a full alcoholic.
“It’s the inability to stop or control alcohol.”
According to Drinkaware, 16 per cent of adults reported binge drinking in the previous week, with eight per cent of men and five per cent of women admitting to drinking almost daily.
Dr Anita Raja, founder of House of Health, says: “Alcohol is a very common part of many people’s lifestyle; therefore alcohol disorders are very common.”
THE REASONS YOU CRAVE DRINK
WHEN we drink alcohol, it causes our brain to release the neurotransmitter dopamine.
This gives us a feeling of pleasure.
Ailsa adds: “When alcohol is not present, the brain craves the feeling and it’s this lack of alcohol to produce dopamine that causes the craving.
“Drinking alcohol releases the uncomfortable feeling of this craving.
“Over time the brain will produce less dopamine as it begins to rely on the fake dopamine burst from the alcohol.
“So then, by not drinking you are not only missing the alcohol dopamine but are also lacking the natural dopamine too.”
Plus, drinking can help you cope better with stress or anxiety, as the dopamine relaxes you.
Dr Raja adds that alcohol can also become a habit.
“When you de-stress, you may link this to a glass of wine for example. Breaking this habit is a very tedious and difficult process,” she says.
Alcohol is often associated with having fun too.
“Ultimately alcohol is like a drug; it is a depressant and something you can get dependent on,” adds Dr Raja.
Another sign could be reaching for a glass – and convincing yourself you deserve it[/caption]
THE SIGNS YOU MIGHT HAVE AUD…
1. You rely on alcohol to unwind
AT the end of a tough day in the office, you need a glass of red.
But, when this ‘need’ becomes a regular pattern of relying on alcohol, it may be AUD.
“Perhaps it repeats at the same time of the week,” says Ailsa. “Or it is now every week or even every day.
“When you look back over several years you can see it has crept up and it is something that is happening more regularly.
“Without alcohol you struggle to relax or switch off or you rely on it to help you get to sleep.
“It has begun to control you rather than you being in control of the alcohol.”
2. You reward yourself with alcohol
WHETHER you’ve worked hard and you’re wanting to celebrate, or something upsetting has happened and you feel like you need an escape, often, alcohol is top of the agenda.
“You might find yourself reaching for a glass and convince yourself you deserve it,” says Ailsa.
“The urge for the drink is stronger than your ability to say ‘no’.”
Instead of drinking at the end of the day, Ailsa recommends planning activities for each evening to keep you busy.
“Try Monday home spa evening, Tuesday cook a new recipe night, Wednesday movie evening with a pot of herbal tea, Thursday join a class to learn something new; by having a plan you are more likely to stick to it and avoid alcohol,” she says.
Alcohol: The guidelines
NO amount of alcohol is good for us.
But sticking to the NHS guidelines lowers your risk of harming your health.
The health service says adults should drink no more than 14 units of alcohol per week, spread across three or more days.
That’s around six medium (175ml) glasses of wine, or six pints of four per cent beer.
You can use Alcohol Change UK’s unit calculator to work out how many units you drink.
And try Drinkaware’s Drinking Check to understand how your drinking is impacting your health.
“If you are drinking heavily and want to reduce or take a break, making this decision is the first step towards a healthier lifestyle,” the charity says.
“Every unit we reduce our alcohol intake by helps. Stopping drinking entirely isn’t always right for everyone – and cutting back is a reasonable choice and can be a lot more sustainable for some.”
Ready to get started? Set some goals, ask for support and recognise situations where you might normally drink and do something else instead.
You can also try apps like Drink Less or Try Dry to track your units, calories and money saved.
“With a bit of initial effort and focus, you will find that your new healthier habits become more ingrained and second nature,” Karen Tyrell, CEO at Drinkaware, says.
3. You’ve tried to cut down, but failed
IF, despite trying to cut down or remove alcohol from your life, you’re still finding yourself caught up in a cycle of drinking, then you may have AUD.
But why is quitting alcohol so hard?
“There could be reasons in your past or current life that you are escaping from that are making you drink, to mask those feelings,” says Ailsa.
“Having to face life without alcohol can be difficult. Plus there is the addictive side too.”
She suggests asking yourself exactly what unresolved issues could be causing you to drink.
“AUD can come down to childhood and family dynamics,” says Ailsa, who adds that you may be more likely to develop AUD if you had absent or alcoholic parents.
“It can come down to what you have seen growing up.”
4. You think about alcohol all day
DO you ever find it hard to stop thinking about when you’ll be having your next drink?
“This is a big sign that you are being controlled by alcohol,” says Ailsa.
Dr Raja says that in extreme cases, you may even go to sleep wanting a drink.
Ailsa says that changing your routine and breaking the cycle, could help you to cut down on alcohol.
“Change your habits around the time you would normally start drinking; go for a walk after work, go to the gym, sit and do a puzzle or play a board game, have a shower or bath and change into comfy clothes, drink sparkling water in a wine glass instead of wine, or an alcohol free beer or herbal tea,” she adds.
5. You have to drink more than you used to, to get the same buzz
DR Raja says that an increase in your tolerance can cause one glass to turn to four or five, then all of a sudden a whole bottle is gone.
“As you are not getting the effect you want from alcohol, you have more and more.”
Ailsa suggests keeping a drinks diary to log how many drinks you are actually having.
If you notice that it’s going up, seek help.
6. You keep drinking, even though it’s causing you problems
PERHAPS you always wake up hungover which leaves you grouchy and unable to be a good partner or parent, or you turn up late to work.
Dr Raja says when alcohol interferes with healthy relationships, making you moody, agitated, aggressive, unable to perform at work or it interferes with daily responsibilities, it can be another sign of AUD.
“If your roof had a leak or your car was missing a door you would get it fixed,” says Ailsa.
“You need to see that the alcohol needs fixing in a practical way and you can no longer ignore it.”
SEEKING HELP
IF you or someone you know is experiencing any of the above signs, it’s important to get help.
“The rule of thumb we use in general practice is when an individual has to drink every single day and/or is drinking first thing in the morning, that is a huge red flag to seek help,” says Dr Raja.
“Access to help is scarce on the NHS and people can suffer for a long time.
“I would advise that you speak to a GP. Every person is unique and different and we have to appreciate that one size doesn’t fit all.”
Ailsa suggests hypnotherapy as a direct and quicker approach to get to the root of the problem.
“Hypnotherapy is the perfect tool to help release cravings and reprogram your relationship with alcohol, breaking you free from old behaviours,” she adds.
“It helps you to socialise without drinking with more confidence, it helps you to switch off from work pressure or family stress, it helps you to sleep better and it helps you to cope and deal with anxiety.”
Try the Stop Drinking Go Sober hypnotherapy program (£14.99 for one-year access).
Talking therapies can also be useful. You find find a list of UK-based therapists on the Counselling Directory or by using the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) search tool.
If you feel like you’d benefit from regular meetings, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) might be good for you. You can find your local group online or by calling free on 0800 917 7650.
Do you have AUD? Take the quiz
ARE you worried about your alcohol intake?
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) as “a problematic pattern of alcohol use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress”.
It is diagnosed as mild, moderate, or severe based on the number of symptoms, out of a possible 11, in the past 12 months. These include:
- Alcohol is often taken in larger amounts or over a longer period than was intended.
- There is a persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control alcohol use.
- A great deal of time is spent in activities necessary to obtain alcohol, use alcohol, or recover from its effects.
- Craving, or a strong desire or urge to use alcohol.
- Recurrent alcohol use resulting in a failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, or home.
- Continued alcohol use despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems caused or exacerbated by the effects of alcohol.
- Important social, occupational, or recreational activities are given up or reduced because of alcohol use.
- Recurrent alcohol use in situations in which it is physically hazardous.
- Alcohol use is continued despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by alcohol.
- Tolerance, as defined by either of the following:
- A need for markedly increased amounts of alcohol to achieve intoxication or desired effect.
- A markedly diminished effect with continued use of the same amount of alcohol.
- Withdrawal, as manifested by either of the following:
- The characteristic withdrawal syndrome for alcohol.
- Alcohol (or a closely related substance, such as a benzodiazepine) is taken to relieve or avoid withdrawal symptoms.
Two to three symptoms indicates mild AUD, four to five indicates moderate, and six or more suggests it is severe.
Source: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
