Alcohol: Low Cost, High Price
The real damage of heavy boozing
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Before alcohol shoved me into the shadows. Before my addiction led me into isolation. Before drink drove me to ditch my friends. I used to enjoy going clubbing. In fact, I liked nothing more than spending time with my mates, getting drunk, going dancing and trying to score with the ladies!
However, I was never really a fan of going out at the weekend because it cost so much more than a midweek night out. I wanted to be able to spend my money on booze, not on entry to an overpriced nightclub.
I used to hate spending money on anything other than alcohol when I was on a night out so midweek clubbing was always my favourite. Places were usually free or cheap to get into and there were normally drink deals on so I could get smashed.
And if the drinks weren’t cheap or there were no drink deals on then I would normally sneak a hip flask full of rum into the club with me!
I also did A LOT of pre-drinking before a night out. I would buy the most amount of booze for the cheapest price and drink as much of it as possible before I went out. I always thought that would save me money but I would just end up drinking, and spending, the same amount anyway so it was just my body that paid the price!
I hunted for the best deals on drinks and I would drink anything as a result - apart from Gin because of a bad experience with it. If it was cheap, I would drink it. I was not a snob when it came to booze!
When I was earning well I’d sometimes splash out on better wine or nicer-tasting beer but predominately I tried to spend as little as possible while getting the most alcohol for my money.
I basically would let nothing get in the way of my drinking. Yes, I dabbled with drugs in the past but booze was always my favourite. I chose alcohol over the other substances because it was cheap and readily available and I liked the way it made me feel – until I didn’t!
“First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you.”
– F. Scott Fitzgerald
Towards the end of my drinking days, alcohol wasn’t giving me the same feelings it did when I had my first drink in my early teens, but it was causing more problems.
Alcohol will only serve the purpose of fun and freedom for so long before you start desperately trying to chase these unattainable feelings again with more frequency and quantity.
The more you chase those alcohol-induced feelings, the more damage you do to yourself.
Alcohol might be cheap to buy but the price you pay can be great.
It will most likely cost you your emotional, mental and physical well-being.
Once you realise that alcohol is a substance of dwindling returns, you have the chance to free yourself from it. Sadly, having recently lost an acquaintance to cirrhosis of the liver due to his excessive alcohol use, I understand the dangers of continuous heavy boozing.
His death speaks to the physical impact of excessive drinking, but what price do you pay mentally and emotionally for this addiction?
The damage excessive alcohol use can do to your mental and emotional health are areas worth discussing, especially for men - who are historically less likely to open up about such topics.
Below, I will outline some risks excessive alcohol intake has on men both mentally and emotionally and provide some ways to help mitigate the impact of booze overconsumption.
Mental health
There are many mental health issues associated with excessive alcohol use. I have chosen three to look at here but there are lots more. If you find any of these are creeping into your life, please continue reading as I will outline some solutions.
Depression and anxiety: According to many studies, excessive alcohol consumption can disrupt the brain's natural balance of chemicals. This can increase the risk of developing depression and anxiety. Once suffering from these moods it is hard to break the cycle of addictive behaviour.
Cognitive impairment: As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve struggled with my memory due to years of abusing alcohol, that’s because the liquid poison can impair cognitive functions. It can also lead to difficulties concentrating and reduced decision-making abilities.
Increased risk of mental illness: Long-term excessive alcohol use is associated with an increased risk of developing severe mental health conditions, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
If you’re struggling with your mental health, I recommend checking out Mind, Body & Sole on Twitter/X. They have some excellent resources to help.
Emotional health
Excessive alcohol use can have profound and negative effects on your emotional health. Here are some ways in which alcohol misuse can impact emotions:
Mood swings: Alcohol can lead to mood swings. It can cause rapid and unpredictable changes in emotions and cause irritability, agitation and difficulty in maintaining stable and positive moods. Alcohol also lowers inhibitions and impairs judgment. This can lead to increased aggression and hostility.
Emotional numbing: You may use alcohol as a way to numb or escape from unpleasant emotions. While this may provide temporary relief, it often exacerbates emotional issues in the long run, as the underlying problems remain unaddressed.
Guilt and shame: It’s important to remember that engaging in behaviours, while under the influence of alcohol, that go against personal values or result in negative consequences can lead to overwhelming feelings of guilt and shame. These emotions can feed into a shame cycle of drinking as a way to cope with these negative feelings.
Solutions
Here are three pieces of advice to help you protect your mental and emotional health and well-being. Whether you’re still drinking or in early/long-term sobriety, these will help you avoid any more pain.
Seek professional help and support:
Consult with a healthcare professional or therapist who specialises in addiction and/or mental health.
Join support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), where you can connect with others facing similar challenges and benefit from their experiences and guidance.
Get involved in a community such as the AFFathers Community to help you through your recovery journey. You can also reach out to me for a chat.
Practice mindfulness and self-care:
Engage in mindfulness techniques, such as meditation, yoga or deep breathing exercises. These practices will help you reconnect with your inner self and manage stress and anxiety.
Prioritise self-care activities that nurture your mental and spiritual well-being. Much like
said, sometimes you need to ‘double down on nature, meditation, yoga and writing.’Rebuild your sense of connection to the world and purpose by exploring spiritual practices or belief systems that resonate with you. You can then incorporate them into your daily life.
Set clear boundaries and goals:
Establish clear boundaries around alcohol consumption. Create a plan to limit or quit drinking.
Set realistic goals for your recovery, both in terms of reducing or quitting alcohol use and improving your mental and spiritual health. Break these goals into manageable steps.
Regularly assess your progress and adjust your goals as needed. Celebrate your achievements, no matter how small they may seem, to maintain a positive outlook.
I hope this motivates you to start focusing on your mental and emotional well-being. I hope it gives you some actionable solutions to help pull you from the darkness and back into the light.
Your health should be at the top of your priority list. It might seem hard but these solutions should help. Remember, you’re doing this for yourself but your loved ones will also benefit.
Your overall well-being is paramount to a more peaceful and productive life.
Excessive alcohol use causes a huge challenge for your mental, emotional and physical health. Sobriety provides you with answers, a way of getting back on track and the tools to protect yourself.
Thank you for reading: “Alcohol: Low Cost, High Price.”
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Check out the last post: “The Multiple Lives of an Addict.”
Take care of yourself and your family,
Roscoe | @AFFathers
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Thank you for another great piece.
Hope you don't mind but am just gonna let some words out here, with regards the real cost of "just a few drinks" for me....
I often think or thought how just one beer, or whatever it was, wasn't that expensive really. Esp in contrast with other drxgs that come in 20s, 40s or 100s a packet. So it's ok right? Cheap and easy, available everywhere too. Acceptable, normalised by seemingly everyone in society and used at almost every event; music, clubs, weddings, funerals, meetings, dinners out.. etc etc. So it's ok, right. Just £10 from the shop and bamn, totally buzzed and wipeout. But it's only a tenner, right? WRONG. So wrong. That ten bucks, might have been the cost of the actual thing I bought that day. BUT, I realised it was the knock on effects. Less cooking, no cooking, get a take away! Sometimes a delivery.. Thats £25. Have 2 mouthfuls of curry / pizza whatever and crash out, waking up to half eaten empty boxes of oily salty crap. Then the next day, hungover to hell. I don't REALLY need to go into work, right? I can just about get by without today, right? That's another £80 lost. So we're up to £115 now. Then cos I'm not working that day, am full of anxiety, and an awful feeling generally. Heck might as well hit the shop and day drink today. Have a day off (another one?) I mean, in other cultures it's maybe normal, right? Beer is liquid bread in Germany I heard.. They drink wine in France and Italy all day and they're all healthy, right? Well, let's hit the shop. Another £15 on beer and wine or whatever. Get some easy cook crap from the supermarket while I'm at it. Which actually probably never got cooked. Get smashed again, drink all day at home alone. Maybe buy some unnecessary crap online, send crappy messages, lie around, no exercise. But it's ok, need a relax, right? Run out of booze, now totally pissed, hit the local much more expensive shop for more in the evening cos fxck it, am pissed now anyway. Another £20. In fact why don't I get some other stuff in. Call my old 'friend'. Order £50 of stuff. Invite another old 'friend' round. Whole thing gets messy. Still awake next morning, had no food at all. Just sat up talking all night about how we are so amazing, everyone else is stupid and make all the 'plans' to do great things..... Barely sleep, probably still clothed, even shoes on... wake up. So squibbled by it all, is it really worth going into work this morning, I can go in later........... etc
This account is an accurate description of many many days that have happened over the last 20 years or so. I now sit here, in debt, physical health in an absolutely terrible state. Esp in contrast with the yoga / gymnast / nutritionist / herbal tea person I have been before. Recently was in the police cells for a foolish action I don't even remember (luckily nothing will come of it, but still it was totally my bad and I easily could have lost everything), I was in hospital and an ambulance last week, for pains I can't understand....
My secret private excuse for the above actions? I was totally abandoned by my mother at a very young age, it has messed me up, just who I am now. I started at 10 years old and still look ok-ish, I am different, I am a kamakazi, I am a rebel, I don't follow any rules, I am perfect anyway, I am so clever I can do all this and still pull off a yoga pose and cook amazing food and have camomile tea in the cupboard, so I'm definitely perfect, right...?
Sorry for perhaps a ramble here. I just needed to let it out, and I thank anyone for taking the time to read this.
One beer might be cheap as chips, but man, it's the domino effect, can cost everything!!!!!
I am now over a week since I last drank, or did any altering substance.. Been sober on and off 5 years now, am 50. This time though, it's so different. I need to treat this return to myself with so much care, and realise that if I allow the voice to get me to the shop for just "a few beers after work", it can so very very easily take me back to the patterns above in a flash, as it has done many times.
Thanks for reading. J
I was a booze snob. Only my brands in the end days. I still found the returns diminishing. Go figure. Great piece. Thank you sir 💪🏻