Drinking When Bored? What It Could Mean Addiction Treatment

So, I remember when I quit drinking, my Coach said to me, what is it that you love more than wine? What would you get up at 5 in the morning to do that isn’t drinking, not that anyone got up at five in the morning to drink? I enjoyed a lot of things, but more than wine, an activity that I enjoyed more than the fuzzy buzzy feeling of drinking. Even before that first sip, I couldn’t think of anything. I had to give myself assignments of what I might enjoy.

Practice making new drinks

• Extend your to-read list using this website or by exploring glowing reviews on Goodreads.
• If bored drinking becomes a habit – or if it’s occasional – it can affect your ability to sleep soundly.
• They flood the brain with dopamine and produce strong feelings of satisfaction, happiness, and pleasure.

Looking into this kind question already, tons of answers end up suggesting sparkling waters, seltzers, and infused waters. Now normally I’m not a picky eater, but having tried all of these on several occasions, I just don’t like them for different reasons. I also tried coconut water a long drinking out of boredom time ago, and while I didn’t like it at the time, I think I’ll give it another shot now that I think about it. I’ve always enjoyed some cold teas or juices, but finding things that I can drink frequently throughout the day without overloading on sugar has been the main challenge. Warren is a Licensed Master Social Worker, who specializes in substance abuse and mental health treatment.

You’ve got this.

So, I’m going to give you some ideas, especially ones inspired by the Sober Book Club discussion. I just read about the book, The Sober Lush, but also about the topic, about how to live a decadent, adventurous, soulful life, alcohol free. And not only did Jardine Libaire and Amanda Eyre Ward were the authors contributing great ideas on this. And by the way, I did a podcast interview just with Amanda and Jardine about their book, and you can go back and listen to that if you’re interested.

The Dopamine Connection

Tired of battling alcohol with sheer willpower, only to fall back into the same cycle? You’re not alone—95% of people who try this approach struggle to succeed. Fucking around on my phone while drunk was so entertaining. Finding interesting articles and talking to my coworkers about them, or finding funny videos to share was fun.

Additional resources to fight boredom in sobriety:

I find walking is, for me, the elixir of everything. OnceOnce, I could be bored shitless and I’ll walk around the block, and it’s gone. It’s normally while your mind is glad let free or wonderingto wonder on its own, it’s only when you that you’ll get bored. So if you can’t accept the boredom then get up and do something.

• As a kid, whenever I was bored I would read a book, look for friends to play with, go for a walk, or make up my own games such as kicking rocks on the ground to see how far they could go.
• Recognizing and addressing personal triggers that lead to boredom drinking is crucial for maintaining a sober lifestyle.
• When you surround yourself with like-minded individuals who share your goals, you can feel less alone and more motivated to stay sober.

How to Stop Drinking Out of Boredom

• Her expertise encompasses group and individual work, with a particular focus on trauma.
• And I would be so grateful if you would take a few minutes to rate and review this podcast so that more women can find it and join the conversation about drinking less and living more.
• For those who didn’t work from home, only 12% were prone to excessive drinking.
• If you ever sit down to do that math, you will shock yourself with how much time went towards drinking.

It’s important to understand that achieving sobriety is possible. Not only is boredom a really uncomfortable emotion but we almost feel guilty about. We feel bad about being bored because if you compare it to other uncomfortable emotions, let’s say pain or nausea or disgust, we feel like boredom shouldn’t be a problem. If you’re in pain it is only natural to want to relieve or stop the physical pain. The decision to change these emotions is a good thing, whereas with boredom we almost feel embarrassed that we’re bored as if it’s something we shouldn’t be feeling.