It’s not just about the drink
Tis not called the silly season for nothing. Grown adults, who we think should know better, sometimes do silly things in the lead-up to Christmas.
Sometimes it’s us and people we love who can fall into the silly season traps of unusual behaviour. This seasonal spike in not well-thought-out plans or decisions can impact severely on our wellbeing. I certainly notice it working in the Emergency Department. One of the major causes of things going wrong is alcohol and work parties and family barbecues over the holiday period.
Addiction specialist Tom Claunch once said to me on my radio show, where he was a regular guest, there are four types of drinkers. There are those who don’t drink, there are those who drink and never have a problem, those who drink and sometimes have a problem, and those who drink who always have a problem.
Claunch was a legend in the addiction industry before he sadly died at the age of 73 a few years ago. It has been reported he helped 10,000 addicts try to get well, both as the co-founder of the Auckland’s Capri Clinic and during his time at Queen Mary Hospital in Hanmer Springs.
So, for those of us who drink and sometimes have a problem, Christmas is a dangerous time of year. The consequences of a binge drinking problem are made worse by free booze, festive flush and the end of a busy year.
This can create a perfect storm for a range of behaviours that can affect your physical, mental and social wellbeing. These may range from saying something inappropriate at staff drinks, trying to snog the boss or a colleague over too many chardys or beers, drink-driving or ending the night at the Emergency Department or in Intensive Care. So what can you do?
Step 1 is to realise you have a drinking problem. The best predictor of human behaviour is what people have done before. If you are reading this you will know if you or your loved one falls into this category.
Step 2 is to plan how you will survive each Christmas function with your self-esteem, reputation, wallet and body parts intact. The problem with alcohol is that the pre-frontal cortex otherwise known as the ‘‘what could possibly go wrong?’’ function gets shut down by booze so we become disinhibited. Therefore, the trick is to control your drinking, rather than let it control you.
Here are a couple of tricks so you can become a person who drinks and seldom has a problem.
At the end of the busy day we are often dehydrated. All those salty chips, dips and peanuts at the event make us thirsty. We have been anticipating the first beer or glass of Champagne so we drink alcohol. That makes us even more dehydrated and thirstier so we drink more booze.
Soon the tequila shots and after party start looking like a fun idea. Then our good intention to go home at a reasonable hour goes out the window, and the damage begins. So, start with a lime and soda or a water and hydrate. Between each glass of alcohol, drink more water.
Have a plan and stick to it. Eat food, slow down, enjoy the party. Let those who drink sometimes and always have a problem overtake you, or slow them down by giving them water and food.
Have some festive season fun because we’d much rather you did that than end up in our Emergency Department. ● Dr Tom Mulholland is an Emergency Department doctor and GP with more than 25 years’ experience in New Zealand. He’s currently on a mission, tackling health missions around the world.