Ask a Therapist: How Do I Know If My Drinking Is a Problem?

Boredom can bring unwanted feelings of restlessness, irritation, and low self-esteem, and it’s important to learn and discover healthy ways to manage these feelings. The mental obsession that can accompany substance use also takes up a lot of space in the brain, so as the mental obsession fades the feelings of boredom may amplify.

In the “Ask a Therapist” series, I’ll be answering your questions about all things mental health and psychology. Whether you are struggling with a mental health condition, coping with anxiety about a life situation, or simply looking for a therapist’s insight,submit a question. Look out for my answers to your questions every Friday in the Healthy Mind newsletter. I cannot thank you enough for this article. I would have celebrated 2 years this coming November, but picked up last weekend because I was feeling bored, lonely, and really sorry for myself. Not only am I thankful for the ideas, but also to know I am not alone in this feeling.

How To Stop Being Bored After Stopping Drinking

I enjoyed watching movies much more when drinking, I was just in a better mood. I was able to drink moderately for 40 years, but after a horrible divorce started drinking much more every day. I would love to be able to go back and not be addicted, but after quitting a couple times I found myself going back and drinking to excess. I quit kidding myself, I became an alcoholic. I am retired and would like to find something to keep me more busy. I don’t want to work full time corporate again, just an easy going part time job that I would enjoy would be good.

If you are ready to kick this poison out of your life for good click here to get started or check out my live quit drinking seminars. A lot of people tell me that they are drinking so much just because they are bored or lonely. I understand this perfectly because as someone with a hyper-busy mind I too used alcohol to give me some peace from the monotony. Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over oniTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. If you’re in the beginning, yeah, everything you’re doing is just navigating life without alcohol. And you will take a lot of bass and go on a lot of walks and drink tea and go to bed early and take naps and need time alone.

Do Something Each Day To Build Your Sober Life

If you’re still not into it after 10 or 15 minutes, try something else. Finally, when nothing seems satisfying, try setting a timer for 10 minutes or so and sticking with an activity for the whole time, even if it feels tedious and pointless at first. Many activities, especially complex and productive activities, take a certain amount of effort and focus for them to be engaging. It may take a few minutes to get into a novel you’re reading or to remember where you left off on a project.

But if you’re committed to working through it, here are some things you can do to open up your world a little bit and work through this difficult time. But the fundamentals of our lives will pretty much stay unchanged until we actively try to improve them. If you are walking around saying that there’s nothing to do and everything about sobriety is boring and terrible, you are condemning yourself to misery. It’s why nothing seems fun or interesting, and you struggle to rally the motivation to have a good time. Alcohol artificially boosts serotonin and dopamine in your brain. Take control of the aspects of your life that you have some influence over and watch the world change around you. The Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations evaluates quality of care provided by healthcare organizations.

Default Behavior

Dopamine is another neurotransmitter that is responsible for feelings of pleasure and happiness. It is also responsible for regulating movement and emotional response. Dopamine depletion can cause feelings of apathy, boredom, and lack of motivation. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter responsible for feelings of happiness, well-being, and pleasure. It is also responsible for moderating moods and emotions. Serotonin depletion can cause feelings of sadness, anxiety, and irritability. I’ve been where you are, as have thousands of other sober people who had to learn to have a life again after sobriety.

It’s like relearning to have fun again, but actually the longer I’m sober the more supportive other people are of it. Instead I’m drinking coffee, listening to the birdsong and planning my day.

Is Sobriety Boring?

And it easily stopped them from being bored. So some of my clients have done things. And right now, a lot of the things that they do are online classes or solo activities or connections that don’t involve coffee drinking because of boredom shops and fancy French restaurants for brunch. And maybe you can’t go to the French restaurant for brunch. But you can get takeout and have a picnic in a beautiful park alone or with a group or with your family.