Bored Drinking: How to Defend Against the Sneakiest Trigger - tt-tcons

Many people underestimate the seriousness of these signs or fear stigma, which can delay getting help. It’s important to know that alcohol addiction is treatable and that early intervention can prevent worsening health and improve quality of life. Treatment plans are tailored to individual needs and may involve medical supervision during alcohol detox, counseling, and support through outpatient rehab or residential programs. Originally from Nashville, TN, Jordan moved to Colorado with her family at age five.

Remove Alcohol and Substances From Your Home

Various addiction treatment programs are available for those struggling with alcohol use disorder and boredom drinking. These programs should address substance use and any underlying co-occurring mental health disorders to ensure the most successful outcome. The best approach to treatment includes access to follow-up therapy, management of skills, group or peer support, strategies to prevent relapse and prescribed medications if needed. Such a comprehensive treatment is most effective in achieving recovery. Replacing boredom drinking with enjoyable and fulfilling activities can help you maintain a healthier lifestyle and improve your mental health.

How to Choose a Hobby

• If you have the time, sign on to a longer-term project like helping with this year’s charity bake sale or the big 5K race your city holds yearly.
• But at home, it’s easy to get a bit too comfortable… you can get a long way down a bottle when you are sitting in front of the TV half-watching some series to pass the time.
• Dopamine depletion can cause apathy, boredom, and lack of motivation.
• Drinking because of boredom happens because home is where we feel safe, unjudged – it’s where we can relax.
• Valuing and prioritizing yourself in recovery can be a powerful way to remove the hold alcohol has on you.

I have gone to bars with people I genuinely like as a sober person, and I don’t stay for longer than an hour or two if nothing is happening. It’s hard to fill that time, especially when dealing with alcohol cravings and triggers. Alcohol robs you of the ability to feel naturally motivated and inspired. So it’s not that sobriety is inherently boring; it’s that your serotonin and dopamine levels are now very low.

Start building healthier drinking habits today.

• So much of this list is not just about finding things to do, but treating the underlying causes of extreme boredom in sobriety.
• By implementing these strategies, you can effectively manage boredom and negative emotions without turning to alcohol, improving your overall mental health and well-being.
• One of the best ways to deal with bored drinking is to anticipate it — why is not always easy.

Hobbies occupy the mind and give you a sense of accomplishment. Bored drinking might elevate your mood briefly, but it won’t ever match the satisfaction of mastering a hobby. The reality is there are other, healthier ways both to celebrate that milestone and deal with the boredom trigger.

I drink because I’m anxious and I want to numb the feeling

Try and find ways to build other people into your daily patterns. Different activities will in turn create different thoughts and even the smallest change can start to make a big difference. If you are filling voids in your life with alcohol, then you need to decide what else can fill you up instead. Whatever the reason for your boredom, drinking can create a negative cycle around it. So whether you are an absent-minded drinker or a lonely or anxious one, what can you do to prevent drinking out of boredom?

Let’s address another reason life without alcohol feels boring. If you’ve created an entire social life around drinking, it is natural to be afraid of life without it. She typically works with people interested in taking a holistic approach to treating their addictions. This will include healthy eating, movement, meditation, mindfulness and spirituality. Outside of work, she’s a devotee of Krishna, and her friends call her Karunya Shakti, which means compassionate energy.

The Role of Habit in Boredom Drinking

Give us a call and we can help find the right treatment program for you or your loved one – even if it’s not ours! If you have someone you trust, let them know if you are feeling down or lonely – so they know you won’t mind if they check in with you more often. See if there are organisations around you where you could help out, that would love to use your skills and talents. Whether it’s your partner, friends or colleagues, ask those who know you for ideas of things you can experiment with to fill your time differently. Don’t assume people are too busy to see you, all they need is to know that you would like to meet up. If you always have a bottle open when watching TV, then it quickly becomes a very hard habit to break.

• But if you can spend time with those thoughts, you will be better prepared to make changes that can positively affect them.
• She is a trauma-informed clinician who prioritizes the relationship between clinician and client.
• Or you lose interest in an existing hobby because it’s easier to drink.
• It’s very common for people, especially those with additional mental health issues like depression and anxiety, to drink out of boredom.

This article dives into why boredom often leads to drinking, the risks it poses, and practical strategies to help you find joy and purpose without turning to alcohol. If you’re ready to take control and build better habits, you’re in the right place. Most people drink in order to fill a void of some sort, e.g. an unhappy relationship, an unfulfilling job, loneliness or feeling bored with your daily routine. If you take alcohol away, but do nothing to change those other factors, you’re probably going to feel it. Reflect on your drinking patterns and keep track of them to identify your boredom drinking triggers.

Melody is here to help as you adjust to a life with less (or no) alcohol. These stories remind us that boredom isn’t merely a state of inactivity or idleness — it can also be a time for reflection, creativity, and unexpected discovery. In such scenarios, our brain searches for something exciting or rewarding, leading us towards Sober living house behaviors that can stimulate and intrigue us. It’s why we might suddenly find ourselves reaching for that remote, a candy bar, or for some, a bottle of alcohol.