Do you ever ponder why alcohol gets such a grip on us?  Have you asked yourself “why can’t I stop drinking?”  (This question usually asked of ourselves after we’ve, once again, had more than we said we would in a given sitting.)  Well, the issue may be a lot bigger than you thought.

Alcohol has so many hooks to catch us with, it is just not fair!  We decided to take a look at the many ways in which alcohol has laid out a trap for us.  If you’ve neven given a thought to how many angles alcohol can come calling to you from, you’ll be surprised at the list we’ve compiled.

How many of these little tricks have you fallen for in the past?

1. The dopamine high

Not only does alcohol make us feel good (at least in the short term) it can actually convince our brain that we should keep on drinking.  Alcohol triggers the production of dopamine in the brain.  This is the “feel-good” chemical which sets off enormous reactions within the pleasure centre of the brain.  So when we drink alcohol, it stimulates the production of Dopamine.  The receptors in our brain pick up the Dopamine, and associate it with pleasure.  These receptors then produce more Dopamine, which results in a flood of feel good hormone.  The pleasurable sensations associated with this flood of Dopamine actually convince the brain that alcohol is somehow good for us, and that we should keep  on drinking.  Of course, we all know that can end rather badly, but it seems our brain is completely tricked.  Why can’t I stop drinking?  Dopamine.

2. The cravings cycle

Have you ever recognised the symptoms of cravings for alcohol?  Even though we might have suffered from the effects of drinking too much the day before, or even if we still felt sick from a hangover, there can still be a dreadful feelings of cravings for alcohol the next day.  A feeling of anxiety, lack of ability to focus on anything, a slight tremor, or nervous shivers?  All of these feelings could be put down to the effects of cravings for alcohol.  How can this be?  When just the day before, alcohol made us feel so bad?

Well, the answer is simple.  The desire for alcohol works on a roughly 24 hour cycle.  No matter how badly you might have felt from the effects of drinking too much, after 24 hours, you will begin to crave more alcohol.  Alcohol cravings can become almost unbearable, especially if you are unaware of what is happening.  This is yet another trick that alcohol is playing on our body and our mind.  It does this to make us drink more alcohol.  And for many people, the best way to make the cravings go away is to have more alcohol.  But beware the next round of alcohol cravings are bound to strike in another 24 hours or so!

3. Cultural acceptance

How you ever wondered why alcohol is considered to be an “acceptable” drug?  When we fundamentally think that a drug like alcohol is okay to drink, then we fail to understand that it might actually be doing us harm.  The problem with cultural acceptance is that the majority of our culture think alcohol is okay.  This cultural acceptance has been built over many generations who consume alcohol. Various cultures across the world consume alcohol.  Alcohol has been part of civilisation for thousands of years. Like anything else we do, because we’ve always done it, it’s always been there.

4. Social acceptance

When we see our friends and our family drinking alcohol, we tend to accept it is okay for ourselves also.  Some of our earliest memories of fun times with friends and family are often associated with drinking alcohol.  Even before we were old enough to drink alcohol ourselves, we will likely have observed others drinking.  Social acceptance of alcohol can seep into our subconscious without us even being aware of it.  Some of us have entire social networks for whom drinking alcohol is the norm, and there is very little cause to question why do we drink alcohol.  Indeed there is no cause to question our relationship with alcohol at all.  In some societies, alcohol just seems to be a ubiquitous part of everyday life.  And when we become old enough to drink alcohol, it is inevitable that we also take up the habit of drinking alcohol.

5. Social expectation

One of the biggest tricks that alcohol can play on us is that we think we need it to enjoy social gatherings.  Parties are always fun, so why do we think we need alcohol to make a party fun?  At least one of the reasons is that alcohol has been proven to be a social lubricant.  Alcohol makes us feel more connected with other people, and it enhances social bonding.  So when we share a drink together, the brain is stimulated to bond more closely, and to break down social barriers.  In actual fact, this is simply another way that alcohol tricks our brain to think that we can’t be social without alcohol.  Why can’t I stop drinking?  I’m expected to drink!

6. Habit

For many people, drinking alcohol forms part of their daily habit.  It’s part of their everyday routine, as it was for ours for too many years.

For example, a drink after work to relax, or a visit to the bar on a Friday night, or a drink while watching sport on TV.   All of these activities can form a habit, and especially after a period of time, drinking becomes a routine.  If drinking at the end of the day is the way we habitually relax, then this can be one of the ways that alcohol tricks us into forming a habit.  After a period of time, a habit develops into something that can be difficult to change.  Sometimes alcohol tricks us into a habit that we don’t even realise we have slipped into.  This can mean that it becomes difficult to break the habit, especially when alcohol has tricked us into acceptance.

7. Hiding emotional issues

When we have suppressed feelings and hidden emotions, we often turn to alcohol to suppress those painful memories.  Unfortunately, this is a yet another trick that alcohol plays with our emotions.  Even though we may find temporary solace from drinking alcohol, rarely does this actually solve any of the deeper issues.  In fact, the unresolved issues just come right back the next day, and sometimes those issues just get worse.  It is very tempting to continue to suppress our hidden emotions by drinking alcohol, but sooner or later, these unresolved feelings emerge.  The problem is that we may well have developed a problem with alcohol as well as a problem with hidden emotions, so now there are simply more problems to deal with.  The ‘escapism’ associated with drinking may also rob us of the time, energy, clear thought and resolve to actually address underlying issues.

8. Marketing

Have you ever seen an advertisement to promote alcohol that features someone drinking by themselves?  How about an advertisement about alcohol that doesn’t involve lots of laughter?  Never!  The whole premise of alcohol marketing is that alcohol makes us happy, alcohol involves lots of friends, and alcohol is the best way to have a good time.  But surely there are other ways in which we can be happy, meet with friends and have a good time without alcohol!  Unfortunately the fact that alcohol marketing is dominated with images of fun, friends and good times means that we associate all of those things very strongly with drinking alcohol.  In fact, there are some people who believe you can’t have those things without alcohol.  But this is simply another example of the tricks that alcohol plays on our minds.

Why can’t I stop drinking?

Plenty of reasons.  After reading this, you may just have an inkling why in our free, downloadable e-book titled “How to Stop Drinking on Your Own” we suggest an addiction to alcohol isn’t entirely our fault.  Download your copy here: