Tales from a Bruised Mind

What’s your relationship with alcohol?

I ask myself that question from time to time, so I thought I’d write about it for a bit.

If you’re reading this and you live outside of Australia, we may know us Aussies like a drink. You also might not know, hence my thoughts here.

Alcohol for Australians is as much about socialising as it is the drink itself. We are one of the biggest consumers of beer on the planet, but we also know how to throw a good party!

We might come together for just a lunch or dinner, but we also love celebrating and drinking.

But that has a bit of a toll on things.

My story with alcohol

While my first sip of alcohol was probably as a little kid from Mum’s glass of red wine, my first actual drink was probably around 17. And while I did not grow up drinking alcohol, I grew up around my parents and parent’s friends who enjoyed a drink or five. No real harm in that!

Between the ages of 18 (the legal drinking age in Australia) until around 20, I drank pretty hard spirits, like scotch whiskey and vodka mixers.

But in those early years, I never liked the taste. I drank those mixers because it was a social thing to do and to fit in with my friends.

After I had my first mental episode in 2019, just before I turned 21, I still wasn’t that fussed on alcohol.

But then I discovered beer. Oh my.

My first bottle of beer was not a pleasant one. I didn’t get how a malty, tasteless beer could be so popular, but I drank it. And the more I drank, the more I understood the flavours and the different textures.

I loved it. But I paid the price.

Because of the medication that I’m on (and have been on for quite some time), alcohol is suggested to be drunk only in moderation. But I’ve had a few good parties, weddings and gathering since commencing medication and, let me tell you, you get drunk much quicker and is does hit you harder. It’s harder to come back from the next day. Ask me how I know…

Anyway, I got to the stage of loving beer so much that I found myself drinking more and more. And it was also a way for me to destress and unwind after a long day. Lots of people do this, but my story with alcohol got a bit out of control.

Where I had to draw the line with alcohol

When I was drinking one case of beer a week, or drinking a couple of beers each and every night, I knew it was too much. Along with an on and off diet, the drinking was getting bad.

It’s something I still struggle with to this day as I sit writing this with a beer beside me.

I’ve cut back my alcohol intake significantly. Last year, I didn’t drink for two months. Cold turkey. Not a drop.

And I most recently came out of a big beer cleanse that lasted close to 60 days. 60 days without drinking beer. And to tell you the truth, I felt like I could think clearer and I slept better, too.

It’s hard to avoid alcohol, but it doesn’t have to be something you drink every day, like old Zakary here.

Drinking to forget your sorrows

Let’s face it: a lot of Aussies (and people all over the world) have had a drink because it helped them to relax or de-stress from the troubles in their lives.

Alcohol is a depressant and relaxant, so it does a good job of this for us. It makes things feel a little better, even if it doesn’t forever.

I guess the point of this post is to spread the message that alcohol is totally fine from time to time, but don’t let it rule your life. Take control of it and drink wisely, because your mental health will likely improve because of it.

Take it easy and drink safe,

Zak