Alcohol's Impact on Sobriety

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Welcome to the Catholic Sobriety Podcast Minisode . These shorter episodes provide quick tips and information that you can refer back to when you need it most so you can achieve and maintain your desired level of sobriety . I am your sobriety coach and host of this podcast , christi Walker . Let's get started . Christy Walker , let's get started On today's mini-sode . I'm going to be talking about five ways that alcohol is probably holding you back . So let's just jump right in , because this is going to be a super short episode .

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The first way that alcohol is holding you back is by keeping your mental clarity not clear . You don't have it . You're foggy , you're hazy , you're confused , you have trouble remembering different things . And then it also takes up a lot of time if you're thinking about alcohol , if you are wondering when you'll be able to drink , if you are trying to plan do I need to stop by the store ? Where do I get it ? Am I going to try to go out with my girlfriend so I don't feel so bad about drinking at home ? It's taking up space in your mind to plan that out effects that you get when you drink . Alcohol numbs the joy and it numbs the things that we're trying to buffer or , as I like to say pack snow around so there might be an irritant you're drinking , just pack snow around those things that are irritating you . But as soon as the buzz wears off , the snow melts and you're left with the irritant , probably some anxiety , maybe some depression , maybe some shame mixed in there , and that is no fun . It also keeps you from fully engaging , not only with the people and the world around you , but it keeps you from engaging in prayer , in mental prayer , in meditation , in reading scripture and those types of things . Not saying that you can't have a glass of wine and do your Bible study . You probably can , but it dulls your senses , it dims your intellect , and so you're not going to get as much out of it as you would if you are fully present when you are doing that activity .

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The second thing is your physical health and your energy . So alcohol takes a lot more than it gives in this department because , first of all , alcohol doesn't give you good health and alcohol doesn't give you energy per se . It is actually a depressant . Many people have it as a way of relaxing . Maybe they're thinking that it'll help them fall asleep . Alcohol is a depressant , it is a sedative , so it's going to do what it does and that is put you to sleep . But , as I've talked about many , many times and experts that I've had on the podcast have said , it is not going to help you stay asleep , it inhibits your ability to have that deep sleep and it disrupts your REM sleep . So it's not good for that .

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And then , as far as energy , if you drink the night before , then chances are probably good . Dependent on how alcohol affects you and then dependent on how much you drink , you might not be at your best form the next day . You're probably going to be a little bit tired , maybe you feel bloated , maybe you're just kind of fatigued or you again kind of coming back to that mental clarity in a haze or a fog . So that is the second way the alcohol may be holding you back . The third is the connection that you have with others , the stability in relationships , because when we drink or over consume , then sometimes we can say things that we wouldn't have said had we not had the alcohol . Sometimes we react in a certain way that we wouldn't have reacted had we not been intoxicated or buzzed . Be fully present and fully alive when you are having conversations with people , because I know if I'm talking to somebody who is intoxicated or very buzzed , I just assume they're probably not going to remember our conversation . It's like they have their phone up in front of them . You know , like they're talking to me with their phone up in front of them . It doesn't make you feel important . It doesn't make you feel like they understand you or that they're going to remember or that they even care what you have to say .

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The fourth way that alcohol could be holding you back and we talked a little bit about this in the first one is your spiritual growth . So alcohol can create a barrier between you and your spiritual growth because , quite honestly , growth comes in the discomfort . If you're able to root out that vice and then continue to resist the temptation , you are building not just your sober muscles , you are building your spiritual muscles as well . And when you ask God to come in and invite the Holy Spirit to strengthen your gifts and give you the gift of fortitude , help you to resist the urges that are put before you , the temptations , then every time you're able to do that , you will just grow in faith and maturity . So if you can , turn to other things that you know , seek things above . Keep your mind fixed on heavenly things instead of the worldly ones , and that is going to help you grow spiritually .

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Another way that alcohol inhibits your spiritual growth is you're not able to hear God's voice as clearly . So , again , alcohol darkens your will and your intellect and so that if you think of that as kind of putting a veil up between you and God , then that's kind of what it's doing , because you're not able to recognize God's voice or hear his voice more clearly . It goes along with what I was just talking about before , with having authentic and genuine connections with other people . If you are distracted while you're talking to the person and I think that being buzzed or certainly intoxicated is definitely being distracted while you're trying to interact with other people it just kind of keeps you from having that genuine connection and authentic relationships . And that goes for people and it definitely goes for the Lord as well . And then the fifth thing is just self-control and discipline . That also goes along with the spirituality . If you notice , there's kind of like a thread throughout all five of these things . But just being able to develop self-mastery , self-control .

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I'm not saying that you can have this willpower like I'm going to will myself not to have that glass of wine . What I'm saying is remember why you don't want it . What is your why ? Why do you not want to consume alcohol ? Or why are you endeavoring to reduce the amount of alcohol you're consuming ? And I have a feeling it's going to come back to the other four things that I talked about once you really get to the root of the

Building Self-Discipline for Sobriety

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why .

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So , just having that self-discipline , continually telling yourself no or training yourself when I have this urge , this is what I'm going to do . So having a plan , having a protocol and then following through on that will just build that muscle memory . It will just build that within you to be able to resist those urges . So I hope that this information has been helpful and given you some awareness about the five things that alcohol may be holding you back from , so that when you decide to take it or leave it , you can do so with full knowledge and a place of peace . Well , that wraps up today's episode of the Catholic Sobriety Minisode . Thank you so much for joining me and please be sure to subscribe to this podcast so you don't miss a thing . And remember I am here for you , I am praying for you , you are not alone .