And on your vision board, you can literally put pictures of things that you want to do or things that you’re excited to do in your future. Even though we’re not traveling right now, I rented a farmhouse two hours away from me that I’m just going to go to just for a change of pace. I’m going to sit on the front porch, and rock. I’m going to make a picnic and go to the waterfront.
Why am I So Bored After Giving Up Alcohol?
We have raspberries and I’ve made jam out of them. And I have to tell you, I am not a crafty person. Before sobriety, I killed literally every container gardener plant of anything that I’d ever grown. I literally killed basil and oregano, drinking out of boredom which by the way, is very hard to do. You need to figure out the cheese and crackers sitting in your favorite chair and reading a book.
How can I identify my boredom drinking triggers?
Whatever the reason for your boredom, drinking can create a negative cycle around it. So whether you are an absent-minded drinker or a lonely or anxious one, what can you do to prevent drinking out of boredom? Here are 5 tips to help you make changes to your drinking habits that could help you feel better, for good. Specializing in diverse mental health challenges, including depression, addiction, and trauma, Christy embraces a person-centered approach.
Quitting Alcohol Timeline: What Happens When You Stop Drinking?
Use Sunnyside to track your drinks and better understand the connection between how much you drink and how you feel. Also, if you have that extra drink, Sunnyside lets you interact with others who struggle with bored drinking. You’ll feel empowered to resist the urge next time. If bored drinking becomes a habit – or if it’s occasional – it can affect your ability to sleep soundly. And if you routinely drink on other occasions too, you’ll experience worse sleep disruptions. Moderate alcohol consumption has the potential to enliven social situations.
Ever feel like half the reason you drink is out of boredom?
Talk to other family members and tell them of your boredom so that they can support and work with you in determining other paths to fulfillment. This might help to deter you from turning to alcohol or substance use in order for you to alleviate your own boredom in a self-destructive, detrimental way. It also makes you accountable to others and them to you, if you’ve extended your hand for help. Boredom is totally natural and we all feel it, but it can be hard to find a way out of your rut. So seek the help of other, non-judgy supportive people to help you stop drinking out of boredom.
- See if there are organisations around you where you could help out, that would love to use your skills and talents.
- I often think that the word being in recovery is misused.
- If “for no reason” pops up frequently in your list, it might help to seek a CBT professional to understand your why in those situations.
Your relationships are strained, either because you’re irritable, which is so normal, or because your spouse is adjusting to navigating you without drinking or because they’re still drinking. This can be a huge hurdle to overcome for many, as it is honestly quite uncomfortable to do something outside of our norm to make a change. Change can be hard, as habits are ingrained in our psyche. And one has to be willing to feel uncomfortable to make those changes happen for oneself. I would like to invite anyone reading this to be patient with themselves, and to find ways to adjust to their boredom and discomfort with doing something different.
Seeking Professional Help for Boredom Drinking
If you’ve created an entire social life around drinking, it is natural to be afraid of life without it. Ignoring the harmful effects of alcohol consumption and regularly indulging can have short-term and long-term effects on your health. If you find yourself reaching for a drink whenever you’re bored or looking to kill time, you should stop and take measures to correct these tendencies early before they become problematic. Regularly consuming alcohol when you’re bored has both short-term and long-term effects on your health, even if it doesn’t lead to a drinking disorder. People often use alcohol to enhance experiences, but this kind of drinking is problematic because it makes you dependent on alcohol to not feel bored or to have a good time.
Drinking Out of Boredom
When I was in very early sobriety, maybe 30 days in, 60 days, and I joined sort of a photo of the day contest. And now, I want to talk about life after early sobriety after the law when you start to look around and try to imagine what your life is going to look like without alcohol. This is when it’s time to look backwards to the things that gave you joy when you were 12. And when you were 14 and 16 and 18 the time before you started drinking and that was the center of your life. And it’s time to look forward to what is hiding underneath what you’ve been doing.
- Boredom no doubt played a role in this scenario.
- So often, our lives are full of distraction, social interaction, entertainment, and things we consider fun.
- But oh my god, pets, and taking care of a pet is so joyful and wonderful to be able to cuddle them and to have a physical being that loves you and amuses you and that you have to play with.
- Having a list of supportive contacts is beneficial because it can provide you with immediate access to people who will encourage and support you on your journey to recovery.
Your ability to manage stress and regulate mood changes.
But it will lift little by little and new interests and joy will come into the picture. And part of the important work is to actually sit with feeling blah for a little while. And to actually be forced to think about things other than drinking that might possibly amuse you, might bring you joy, or occupy your time. You know, after you get through the days when you are so tired. And you just need to not talk to people and feel like you have the flu, you can look around and see those activities and that people are hiding in plain sight.