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While governments around the world urge their citizens to stay in their homes as long as possible to prevent the spread of Covid-19 disease and since restrictions and containment measures can last for months, people are looking all kinds of methods. to adapt to this new type of “normality”. One of these methods is alcohol consumption, which, according to a BBC analysis, has increased significantly in recent times.
In the United Kingdom, alcohol sales increased 22% in March and 55% in the United States compared to the same period last year.
Therefore, many people, to fill the void left by the moments of socialization in the pub, before the pandemic, are now socializing in the online space, where glasses of alcohol virtually “collide” in front of the monitors.
Beyond the goodwill associated with alcohol consumption, psychologists point out that there is a darker reason for people to be more attracted to drinking during this period. A period characterized by much anxiety and many unknowns about when we can end this crisis.
Stress and anxiety increase the temptation to consume alcohol.
People turn to alcohol for various reasons. And when you’re stressed, whether you’re “on the front lines” fighting Covid-19 or working from home, having kids, or alone or worried about losing your job (or someone you love), alcohol helps relaxation. But it is a short-term relaxation.
“The moment you drink, you feel a sense of relief, you feel more relaxed, the better,” explains Annie Grace, author of “This Naked Mind: Alcohol Control.” “The more you drink, the higher your blood alcohol level is, and things around you seem to be declining. The mind relaxes, we become more disoriented, but also more euphoric,” says Grace.
But all this condition lasts only about 20-30 minutes, after which our body begins to find all kinds of methods to eliminate the alcohol consumed: it is a natural mechanism of action through which our body tries to eliminate any toxic substance. (such as, for example, alcohol).
From this moment on, we get even more stressed than we were before we started drinking, and the feeling of discomfort will increase even more.
Australian researcher: in the medium and long term, alcohol has a boomerang effect on the body
According to Michael Farell, director of the National Center for Drug and Alcohol Research at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, “people use alcohol to relieve stress immediately and relax in the short term.”
However, in the medium term, alcohol only increases anxiety levels even further. “Basically, it has a boomerang effect,” says the specialist.
On the other hand, for many people, drinking is just an attempt to socialize during the Covid-19 pandemic, says the Australian researcher.
However, the current medical crisis, caused by the coronavirus pandemic, is unprecedented, making some people increasingly tempted by the idea of consuming alcohol more frequently during this period.
Social isolation has blurred the line between weekdays and weekends.
The sudden change in daily routine is another reason for the increased consumption of alcohol. Many of us now work from home: we don’t waste time in traffic, we don’t stay in the office, we don’t go out to town. The days of the week have become identical to the weekends, with no specific social event to differentiate them.
And the so-called “social rules”, according to which some of us used to drink alcohol (only on weekends, after the end of the program, etc.), are no longer valid.
“Until now, I considered myself a responsible adult: I drank a maximum of one or two glasses on weekends,” said an official in England’s Midlands.
“Now, after a day of working from home, which can last up to 12 hours, I feel the need for a cold beer, even if it’s Tuesday night,” says the woman who declined to release her real name.
The World Health Organization has issued a warning that alcohol makes us more vulnerable to the coronavirus.
“Alcohol weakens the immune system and increases the chances of getting sick,” said the WHO.
Alcohol consumption is associated with a series of communicable and non-communicable diseases, which make the person suffering from this addiction more vulnerable to the new coronavirus.
Web editor: Mihnea Lazăr
