Why We Drink Too Much
Focusing all our energy only on “not drinking” isn’t going to work for the long haul.
As someone who’s personally lived through alcohol addiction and watched others cope with alcohol addiction, I know that this is not a simple problem that can be solved overnight. The reasons we drink are complex, much more than we once thought. Also as a former mental health nurse, I have a unique perspective and understanding on this topic.
I see so many people comment on alcoholism in a way that blames the alcoholic for their own misery. While it’s true that people need to take responsibility for their actions in life, it’s never simple to say, “well, you chose to drink so you can choose to stop.” Yes, we need to choose to stop, but the way we get there is a messy ride full of complicated socioeconomic, health-related, mental health, and cultural issues. If people were able to easily stop their addictions, then we wouldn’t even need to worry about it the way we do.
After going through my sobriety journey (and witnessing other journeys, too), I know that sobriety takes looking deeper into why we drink in the first place. Focusing all our energy only on “not drinking” isn’t going to work for the long haul. For example, you can’t just slap a bandaid on a wound and expect it to go away. You have to actually understand how the wound got there and work patiently to clean and extract infection before it can heal. The same goes for getting sober.