Stop beating yourself up

If you’ve ever questioned your drinking, and if you’re reading this post you probably have at one point or another, I want you to do one thing before you do anything else.

Stop.

Beating.

Yourself.

Up.

You are not broken. You are not powerless, and you sure as heck don't have an incurable disease.

Alcohol has been sold to us, our entire lives, as THE way to celebrate, relax, have fun, cope, grieve, be romantic and connect. Most of us have grown up watching our parents drink, we see every major movie and television protagonist drink, surround ourselves with girlfriends who drink, have connected with our partners over a bottle of wine- you name it. Alcohol is EVERYWHERE.

It’s also extremely addictive. The reason I say stop beating yourself up is we are conditioned to believe we are supposed to be able “take it or leave it” when it comes to alcohol. But this is extremely hard to do because of the addictive nature of ethanol, the toxic chemical in alcohol.

Ethanol screws with the decision making part of your brain and dulls your memory and senses. This is why it can be extremely difficult to stick to two glasses. It’s not that you have zero willpower, it’s that wine is super addictive.

It’s not your fault, it’s alcohol’s fault.

When I understood that it wasn't actually me that was broken, but the alcohol itself that was the problem, my understanding of drinking changed. The alcohol had done its job, it got me to drink more. I had been conditioned to believe that if I couldn't handle it, that I had a problem.

We are not supposed to go toe-to-toe with ethanol and prove ourselves stronger. I've learned that the better way is to give ourselves grace and compassion and figure out why we are drinking it in the first place.

You are not broken either my friend.