Let’s get right to the point on Fit as a Fiddle Friday. “Deaths from excessive alcohol use increased 26.8% between 2016 and 2021 among men, but 34.7% among women.” [Source: Wall Street Journal: I Was a Binge Drinker. This Is How I Stopped. By Ericka Andersen, Oct 11, 2024]
I’ve written about alcohol occasionally on nuggets through the years. Like many families, we have issues with substance abuse on both my side and Cathy’s, so I hope my children and their significant others are aware of the slippery slope.
After moving to England three years ago, I noticed my alcohol consumption increased in part due to the social nature of after-work gatherings and pub life. I also noticed how much better I slept and how much better I felt in mornings after I avoided alcohol in the evenings. So, I made a firm commitment to have a minimum of 15 days a month of zero alcohol. The selection of more and better non-alcoholic beers was a great thing for me. Tell me your favourite ‘zeros’, if you have one. Mine is Big Drop Brewing Co – Pine Trail Pale Ale.
A few other significant points from Anderson’s article:
- The author says addiction is in her genes, and she had an unhealthy attachment to alcohol from my first drink at 16. In moments of sadness, loneliness, stress or frustration, alcohol became her most loyal companion.
- She tried to convince herself that drinking wasn’t a problem. “Although I looked forward to my first drink of the day, I’d wait patiently until around 5:30. I rationalized that a little wine was a relatively innocuous way to overcome the dread of cooking dinner or lighten the drudgery of drawn-out bedtime routines.”
- Wine helped ease the tension of the witching hours, when the composure she had mustered throughout the day began to unravel. But one drink led to another, and she would wake up in a dark mood, with an aching head and a short fuse.
- She felt alone in quiet drinking at home but had plenty of company. Various studies and surveys have shown that binge-drinking is on the rise among middle-aged women.
- Men are more likely than women to overdrink, at 36% to 18.8% in 2023, but the rate of women aged 35 to 50 consuming five or more drinks in a row in a two-week period increased almost twice as fast as that of men between 2012 and 2022, according to nationwide surveys by the University of Michigan.
Another WSJ Article that might come into play here: The ‘October Theory’ of Changing Your Life – People are using the beginning of fall as the best time to reset their goals and values, inspired by a social-media trend. by Ann-Marie Alcántara October 10, 2024
October Theory is the latest “theory” social media has latched onto. Between the uneven job market, inflation, and the usual daily grind, people are looking for something they can control. Setting goals and improving their lives—whether it’s their health, finances or mindset—is something they are gravitating toward.
My Flat Ass Fitness Rules (12 of them)
October, the new January! Stay fit, friends.
