13 May Covid-19: Are You Drinking Too Much?

Coronavirus: Are You Drinking Too Much in Lockdown?

Quarantine drinking getting a bit too much? Glowing Up has enlisted alcohol reduction specialist Georgia Foster to get to the bottom of it. Clinical hypnotherapist to the stars, Georgia has hypnotised billionaires, politicians, actors and high-profile musicians.

Georgia is in constant demand for alcohol reduction seminars in the UK and Australia and her hypnosis CDs are a hit, especially with women. Read on for Georgia’s take on why we’re boozing much more in isolation, plus tips on curbing your cravings for the bottle.

Drinking a little bit more alcohol than we normally do at home has become a bit of a scary habit during lockdown. Which is okay for a while because we don’t have to go to work and we don’t have to drive the kids anywhere at the moment. So right now the pressure is off, allowing us to be that little bit more relaxed about that extra glass or two at night.

I guess the question we are now facing, is whether the excuse of stress, anxiety and boredom is wearing a bit thin now? Especially as the booze belly for some is causing grief! Then, lets not forget there is the lethargy and brain fog that the extra consumption of alcohol creates, and for many this leads to increased anxiety too.

Where’s my wine gone?

It can be a bit tricky though when you realise that just over half bottle of wine has already gone, just while chopping the veg for dinner! Then the other half while chilling out watching Netflix. It’s the auto pilot drinking that can increase so easily which worries a lot of people.

Worrying about drinking too much is very common but not discussed enough. This is because many drinkers feel shamed and embarrassed that they can’t seem to cut back.

The simple reality is that our tolerance to alcohol creeps up very quickly. The first glass which I often say is ‘emotionally medicinal’ is because our brain becomes comfortable with this and needs another to get the same fix.

Negative thinking is the problem!

An important point to remember and one that many doctors and therapists overlook is that alcohol shuts down the critical part of thinking or what I call ‘The Inner Critic’.

I believe being in isolation has given us a lot of thinking time. Unfortunately, statistics show too much thinking time can actually be unhelpful because when we are bored, stressed or feeling trapped by life we tend to think negatively. This negativity can create a wave of self-doubt, self-questioning and self-criticism and it doesn’t have to be much before we think about drinking when we don’t want to.

A history of drinking can hold us back

When we think negatively, it triggers feelings of being vulnerable which the mind and body simply do not like and we tend to try and run away from them. Without any conscious recognition, in less than a nano-second an internal question pings into our consciousness ‘When I last felt this what did I do to escape those feelings?’ If you have a history of drinking to escape the Inner Critic, boredom, loneliness or anything else it will demand that alcohol is the answer, because that is your history.

I believe ‘It is the thinking before the drinking that is the problem!’

The goal of drinking less is a great idea not just for the health of our liver and skin but also simple weight loss which naturally improves our self-esteem. Drinking in healthier ways improves intuition, clarity and better ‘alcohol free’ communication.

The 7 Days To Drink Less is an on-line, fully downloadable private method that creates healthier sober coping strategies. The domino effect is that drive to drink quickly and too much isn’t there, so when alcohol is consumed it is from a calmer, more logical and kinder space.

5 Drink Less Top Tips

1.Keep an emotional diary for a week to understand the feelings that drive you to drink in unhelpful ways

2.Drink a big glass of water before your first alcoholic drink to hydrate yourself.

3.Choose your audience when it comes to coming clean about wanting to drink less. Remember, there are some drinkers who don’t want you to drink less because they are secretly worried about their own drinking issues.

4.If you do want to drink less without question, feign a headache, claim you have a work deadline, taking antibiotics or whatever or even better tell them you have a hangover!

5.Before you have your first drink, get yourself into a good calm mood by putting on some relaxing music, read something positive or watch a funny video that triggers healthy endorphins.

Georgia Foster has sold more than 25,000 copies of her hit book The Drink Less Mind. Find out more about Georgia’s program here.

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