Alcohol: a cure for stress?

Figures from a recent NHS poll show that the reason almost half (42%) of drinkers drink is to unwind after a stressful day.

Had a bad day at work? Got some family worries on your mind? Having relationship problems? Are the pressures of Exams getting to you? Have your kids been running you ragged? Are you worried about money? Never enough time in the day?

Yes? Then it’s no wonder that stress relief is at the forefront of your frazzled mind when it comes to the end of the day or weekend. For many, it has become routine to get that relief in the form of a drink or three.

Stress relieving habits

A glass of wine can be the signal that “free time” has begun after a long day for lots of people.

“A lot of people I know drink after work,” says Rick Morris, a risk strategy analyst working in the City in London. “Drinking is how many people blow off steam after a long day. I would find it difficult to relax in the evening without a drink or two. I find it quite easy to go a bit overboard though, and having a hangover the next day can send my stress levels shooting upwards.”

It’s not just demanding jobs that make people reach for the bottle. A poll of 3,000 mothers by parenting website Netmums [www.netmums.com] found that half drank at home at least three or four nights a week. More than eight out of 10 of these mums said they drank to combat stress.

Siobhan Freegard is the founder of Netmums. She says: “Being a mum is really hard work – you have so much on your plate, juggling kids alongside jobs and other responsibilities like elderly parents. What I hear a lot is ‘I don’t have time to do two hours yoga each evening to wind down – alcohol is much easier’.

“A glass of wine in the evening is the demarcation between ‘being mum’ and adult time.”

 Adverse effects

However, when a drink after a particularly hard day turns into a nightly stress-relieving habit, you could be starting to run into trouble.

It can seem like alcohol makes you feel more relaxed in the short term. However, if you regularly exceed the government's daily unit guidelines of 3-4 units for men (equivalent to a pint and a half of 4% beer) and 2-3 for women (equivalent to a 175ml glass of 13% wine), you could actually end up exacerbating your stress. Alcohol is a depressant, which means that it slows down the brain and the central nervous system’s processes.

Eva Cyhlarova from The Mental Health Foundation says: “Many people find an alcoholic drink helps them to relax, and if this is limited to within safe guidelines then it shouldn’t cause problems. However, the persistent use of alcohol to cope with stress or associated problems like insomnia can be very damaging and counterproductive.

She continues: “Over time, heavy drinking interferes with the very neurotransmitters in the brain that are needed for good mental health.  So while alcohol may help deal with stress in the short term, in the long run it can contribute to feeling of depression and anxiety and make stress harder to deal with.  People who drink heavily are more likely to suffer from mental health problems.” 

Having a drink as soon as you get in the door could easily turn into two or three before you sit down to dinner. If you do decide to have a drink, why not wait and have a small glass of something with your meal? There is no evidence that one or two units of alcohol carries significant risk and there is evidence to suggest that a small amount of alcohol with food can have benefits in relation to heart disease. Alcohol with a meal can reduce the sudden rise of the chemical fibrinogen in the blood stream. Fibrinogen is a contributor to blood clots and there is a rise in fibrinogen after we eat.

Alternative relaxation

Whatever stress you’re facing, there are more effective ways to cope with it than with alcohol.

GP Dr Sarah Jarvis says: “Exercise is an excellent way to de-stress. Even a brisk walk can clear your head and make the worries of the day disappear. Running a nice warm bath and taking the plunge for half an hour is a great way to relieve tension from your body too.”

Professor Cary Cooper, Professor of Organisational Psychology and Health at the University of Lancaster, has some more advice: “Going out and getting drunk is basically an avoidance strategy – you’re not properly confronting the issues that make you feel stressed in the first place.

“The best way to deal with stress is to choose a trusted friend or colleague and tell them what’s worrying you. Then, together you can come up with some solutions. That’s often all people need to start feeling better.

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re having relationship problems or are facing redundancy at work – drinking alcohol is no good for dealing with stress.”

Page last updated by

Kate Prior, 31 Jan 2012.

Page checked on

24 Feb 2010