Self-Medication with Alcohol (E214)
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We drink to cope because it seems to help us manage anxiety, depression, trauma, stress, etc., but self-medicating with alcohol only makes your problems worse. Drinking to cope increases our risk of developing a problem and in this episode I’ll explain why. You’ll learn how much more likely coping drinkers are to develop a problem, how this makes it harder to quit drinking, and how drinking to cope differs for men and women.
What to listen to next:
E111 - Drinking Alone
E206 - HALT
E212 - Resilience
Bonus Episode: 2 Ways to Reduce Chaos and Overwhelm in Your Life
Resources I offer:
Community & Meetings: Living a Sober Powered Life
Listen to the full episode in your podcasting app: Apple Spotify other apps
Cite:
Gillian Tietz. Gillian Tietz. Self-Medication with Alcohol (E214). Sober Powered. 2024.
Please respect my intellectual property and properly credit me if you share my work.
Sources
Turner, S. et al. Self‐medication with alcohol or drugs for mood and anxiety disorders: A narrative review of the epidemiological literature. Depress Anxiety. 2018
Crum, R. et al. A Prospective Assessment of Reports of Drinking to Self-medicate Mood Symptoms with the Incidence and Persistence of Alcohol Dependence. JAMA Psychiatry. 2014
Holahan, C. Drinking to Cope and Alcohol Use and Abuse in Unipolar Depression: A 10-Year Model. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. Vol 112, No1, 159-165. 2003.
Holahan CJ, Moos RH, Holahan CK, Cronkite RC, Randall PK. Drinking to cope, emotional distress and alcohol use and abuse: a ten-year model. Journal of Studies on Alcohol. 2001;62(2):190-198. doi:10.15288/jsa.2001.62.190
Peltier MR, Verplaetse TL, Mineur YS, et al. Sex differences in stress-related alcohol use. Neurobiology of Stress. 2019;10:100149.
