Stress and Addiction | Stress and Secondhand Drinking
Readers who follow this blog know how much I write about stress, stress and addiction | stress and secondhand drinking. It’s because of the way stress works in the brain, and it’s that which sets up the brain to adopt unhealthy coping patterns, such as substance misuse, which in turn can cause secondhand drinking, and for the person experiencing SHD, can in turn set up unhealthy coping patterns, which in turn can cause a number of physical and emotional ailments, such as anxiety, depression, migraines, stomach ailments and the like, which in turn can cause a person to misuse substances. Whew! You see the vicious cycle here, which is why I’m writing this post to share some key information on stress, stress and addiction | stress and secondhand drinking, AND to share helpful information on how to better cope with stress and thereby heal the brain of its impacts.
Stress as it Relates to Secondhand Drinking (Codependency)
Stress and Addiction | Stress and Secondhand Drinking – sometimes knowing the connection provides the motivation to really reduce one’s stress.
For a brief overview on stress and secondhand drinking, check out this post, “Fight or Flight Stress Response System – Secondhand Drinking Connection.” Additionally, for those new to the concept of secondhand drinking, it’s a term to describe the negative impacts caused by coping with a person’s drinking behaviors. Typically, these impacts are wrapped in the term, “codependency.” Check out, “Reframing Codependency as Secondhand Drinking | Secondhand Drugging,” for the shift in terms.
But the articles I especially want to draw your attention to are those written by Clinical Psychologist and author, Tian Dayton:
- In this article of hers, “Adult Children of Alcoholics,” Dr. Dayton writes, “Adult children of alcoholics (ACoAs) can and often do suffer from some features of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that are the direct result of living with the traumatizing effects of addiction.”
- In this article, “Growing Up With Toxic Stress or Addiction and It’s Long-Term Impact,” Dr. Dayton writes, “When human beings are highly stressed, our muscles experience increased blood flow and we have spurts of adrenaline to enable us to flee for safety or stand and fight. When we can do neither, which is so often the case with children in highly stressful homes, those stress chemicals are left to boil up inside of us and they can cause anything from thinning hair to heart disease.”
- “How Modern Lifestyles Activate Ancient Stress Responses,” is another excellent article in which Dr. Dayton explains, “How does this cycle [fight or flight] get going? Fight/flight was designed to be used in times of danger, not throughout the day. But the body can’t tell the difference between real and fabricated fears, between the stress of a bad phone call, a traffic jam and an elephant charging — it will react to all with the same highly-geared stress response evolved by early man. Our stress response is inextricably tied up with our survival system, which is triggered into action through fear. Fear is what signals the fight/flight/freeze survival defenses to engage. It is one of evolution’s most adaptive emotions. Without it we might head straight into the middle of traffic or pet a mother lioness. We need our fear — it’s nature’s way of shouting at us to keep away from danger. But flipping the stress switch into the “on” position too often can devolve into anxiety, depression, adrenal burnout and compromised immunity. We start to process stress too acutely and have trouble finding balance. This is hard on our body, mind and relationships, to say nothing of our general peace of mind.”
Stress as it Relates to Addiction
For a brief overview of stress and addiction, check out this link to a short video in which Kathleen Brady, M.D., Ph.D., explains the connection, as part of HBO: The Addiction Project’s Understanding Addiction.
Coping with Stress
Stress and Addiction | Stress and Secondhand Drinking – sometimes knowing the connection provides the motivation to really reduce one’s stress. Here are a few resources that may help:
National Institute on Mental Health (NIMH) “Fact Sheet on Stress”
American Psychological Association “Healthy Ways to Handle Life Stressors”
And of course, if you do struggle with substance use and/or secondhand drinking, getting help for either is key, and for information and suggestions, please browse through the blog categories and resources on this website.
© 2014 Lisa Frederiksen
Lisa Frederiksen
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