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Over the last twelve months, the way in which we live our lives has drastically changed.
No longer are we able to see our loved ones, attend face-to-face meetings and participate in fitness classes.
Instead, we have been forced to self-isolate, minimise contact with others and work from home.
Although many individuals have adjusted to the new normal relatively well, others have experienced increasing bouts of anxiety and sought comfort in alcohol to help them cope with the impact of COVID-19.
As alcohol alleviates the anxiety individuals struggling with the impact of COVID-19 feel, a sense of relief is often experienced.
However, turning to alcohol in a bid to manage anxiety is not recommended. In fact, doing so could see the number of people struggling with alcohol addictions drastically increase.
If you have recently found yourself overwhelmed with anxiety, and have increased your alcohol consumption as a result, we would highly recommend that you take advantage of the support that we can provide you with.
The Impact of COVID-19 On Anxiety
Mental health charity Mind recently stated that 60% of adults in England have confirmed that their mental health has become significantly impaired during the last twelve months.
Contributing to this, 49.6% of adults have reported that they have felt a surge in their anxiety levels in the last year.
Why Are Individual’s Experiencing Greater Levels of Anxiety?
Every single day, news outlets, including social media, share the somewhat grave statistics that have sadly come hand-in-hand with COVID-19 in a bid to raise awareness of the impact that the pandemic continues to have.
Although it is vital that the general public remain up-to-date with this information, this constant stream of information leaves many feeling extremely anxious.
It should also be noted that heightened anxiety levels have been associated with feeling lonely, stress regarding work and finances and uncertainty when considering the future.
Alcohol Consumption Has Increased in Recent Months
As touched on above, in a bid to alleviate the adverse effects that COVID-19 has had on mental health disorders including anxiety, individuals have turned to alcohol and increased their drinking habits.
While 46% of adults in the United Kingdom reported that their alcohol consumption had remained the same throughout the national lockdowns, a study conducted by the University of Cambridge in May 2020 determined that one in three adults consumed more alcohol than usual in the first nationwide lockdown.
Additional studies highlight that an increase in drinking was a result of anxiety, loneliness and stress.
Sadly, an increase in drinking can cause anxiety to become significantly worse, and can also cause a more significant number of individuals to develop alcohol addictions.
Drinking and Anxiety
As individuals across the world turn to drinking to mitigate the anxiety they feel as a result of COVID-19, many overlook the fact that drinking can cause anxiety to become somewhat unbearable. Drinking to manage anxiety can also lead to the development of alcohol addictions.
At first, drinking provides a sense of euphoria to those struggling with anxiety and the impact of COVID-19. However, as this feeling wears off, the repercussions of anxiety are once again experienced. In many cases, drinking alcohol can make anxiety worse as the toxins administered wear off.
In a bid to seek relief, alcohol is once again consumed. After a while, greater volumes of alcohol will be required as the brain and body adjust to the toxins administered.
Sadly, this is how the cycle of addiction commences.
Drinking and Anxiety – Impact of COVID-19
As determined above, the impact of COVID-19 has heightened anxiety, which has ultimately seen a wealth of individuals consume more generous amounts of alcohol.
While many deem this to be relatively harmless, it has been ascertained that doing so will significantly increase an individual’s anxiety levels and cause addictions to arise when support is not sought.
What Support Is Available?
If you have consumed greater quantities of alcohol in the last twelve months in an attempt to manage your anxiety and the impact of COVID-19 on your mental health, there is support available to assist you.
At Nova Recovery, we can provide you with dual diagnosis treatment. Our dual diagnosis treatment will help you overcome your struggles with alcohol and alleviate your anxiety through the employment of detoxification and rehabilitation.
Should you have become reliant on alcohol, we will first administer a medically induced detoxification. Throughout detoxification, you will withdraw from alcohol with our support. The process of detoxification will essentially remove any harmful toxins and alcohol from your body and brain.
Upon completing detoxification, you will be subject to rehabilitation. Our rehabilitation programme typically comprises of various forms of psychological and well-being therapy that will enable you to come face-to-face with the factors that have caused you to become reliant on alcohol.
If you are struggling with anxiety, we will also ensure that you address the factors that have caused your anxiety to heighten. In doing so, you will have the opportunity to develop various coping strategies and methods that will prevent your anxiety from impairing your life in the future.
As you complete one of our rehabilitation programmes, we will provide you with aftercare support to ensure that you are able to make a long-term recovery and successfully manage your addiction and anxiety.
Contact Nova Recovery Today
If you are struggling with the impact of COVID-19 and have turned to alcohol to ease the repercussions and anxiety you feel, you are not alone.
Although the thought of contacting us and discussing your drinking habits and anxiety may leave you feeling somewhat uneasy, at Nova Recovery, we can offer you support, irrespective of your location in the United Kingdom, whether it be our drug and alcohol rehab hospital in Scotland, or our many other locations across the United Kingdom.
From providing guidance over the telephone to offering you a place in our residential rehab, we are here to ensure that your alcohol consumption and anxiety does not consume your every waking moment.
If you have recently increased your alcohol consumption in a bid to alleviate your anxiety as you face the impact of COVID-19, please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss how we can assist you.
Sources
https://www.mind.org.uk/media-a/5929/the-mental-health-emergency_a4_final.pdf
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/wellbeing/articles/coronavirusandanxietygreatbritain/3april2020to10may2020
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1118716/alcohol-consumption-due-to-coronvirus-uk/
https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/one-in-three-increased-alcohol-consumption-during-lockdown-cambridge-study-finds-9146617/
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John Gillen
- Author
- Last updated: July 24, 2024
John has travelled extensively around the world, culminating in 19 years’ experience looking at different models. He is the European pioneer of NAD+ (Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide) treatment to Europe in 2010; and recently back from the USA bringing state of the art Virtual Reality Relapse Prevention and stress reduction therapy. His passion extends to other metabolic disturbances and neurodegenerative diseases. The journey continues. In recent times, John has travelled to Russia to study and research into a new therapy photobiomudulation or systemic laser therapy working with NAD+ scientists and the very best of the medical professionals in the UK and the USA, together with Nadcell, Bionad Hospitals own select Doctors, nurses, dieticians and therapists. Johns’ passion continues to endeavour to bring to the UK and Europe new developments with NAD+ Therapy in preventive and restorative medicine and Wellness. In 2017 John Gillen was made a visiting Professor at the John Naisbitt university in Belgrade Serbia.