How to reduce stress with progressive muscle relaxation
A simple but effective technique to reduce stress and increase relaxation.
Read moreWhile many of us like a drink from time to time, for some of us, the effect of alcohol is negatively impacting our day to day lives. Understand how alcohol can effect your wellbeing.
While many of us like a drink from time to time, for some of us, the effect of alcohol is negatively impacting our day to day lives.
Alcohol can affect your body, as well as your mental health and emotional wellbeing.
Alcohol is a depressant that distorts the chemical messaging processes in your brain, making it difficult to predict how you will feel and react to it.
“Alcohol can lower serotonin and norepinephrine levels, both of which help regulate mood.”
Alcohol can lower serotonin and norepinephrine levels, both of which help regulate mood. Lower levels of these chemicals can make a depressed person more depressed. Alcohol can also leave you feeling, anxious, agitated, unmotivated, sad, moody and angry.
When you drink alcohol, you may fall asleep faster, but as the night goes on you get more restless. Alcohol can interrupt your circadian rhythm and block rapid eye moment (REM) sleep often considered the most restorative type of sleep. When you wake up the next day, you can feel tired and unfocused (read more on why sleep is good for your mental health).
The mental and emotional effects of alcohol vary from person to person. This depends on how much a person drinks, for how long and any pre-existing mental illness. Sometimes people with depression or anxiety turn to alcohol as a way to try and cope. Some people use alcohol to mask their symptoms or to help make them feel better, not realising it can leave you feeling worse.
If you are concerned you are drinking too much alcohol, ask yourself the following questions:
It may be difficult to admit that you have a problem, but recognising it is a good first step.
It is easy to fall into bad habits, and change can be hard. We’re creatures of habit, and we often underestimate the process of change (see our article on why change is hard).
Reducing and changing your consumption of alcohol can take time.
Some ways you can start include:
If you are concerned about how alcohol affects mental health and think that you might need help, you can call SuicideLine Victoria on 1300 651 251 or visit your GP.
If it is an emergency, call 000.
A simple but effective technique to reduce stress and increase relaxation.
Read moreAchieving a meaningful work-life balance is essential for our mental health. Without clear boundaries and healthy habits, work-related stress can significantly affect our wellbeing. So, how do we proactively reduce the risk and set ourselves up for success?
Read moreAnger is a completely normal emotion to experience, but when does anger start to become a problem?
Read moreWe may all feel sad or in a down mood at some time in our life, but when you have depression, these feelings last for a long time and can be quite intense. There usually isn’t one single event or factor that can cause depression, but rather a combination of several factors. Here we look at key these factors that can lead to depression.
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