Isabelle He’s 31 and he’s never been in love the taste of alcoholic beverages. For this reason, from a very early age, he decided not to take them when he went out with his friends. The same thing happens with Daniela (not her real name), 30 years. She he never drank alcohol either.because, according to him, he does not see the point of “drinking just like that.” Martha, 41, admits to drinking for a while. However, in his early twenties, he quit smoking to start taking medication for depression and anxiety. In addition, alcohol had already made him nauseous before, and he did not tolerate it well. Relatively arnau, now 42, drank as a teenager to feel integrated. However, little by little he gave up alcohol and realized that he was having an even better time. His case is similar to the case VictorA 40-year-old who also drank in his teens, but the feeling of intoxication did not suit him, so he quit smoking.

They are all young people who, for one reason or another, have decided not to drink alcohol. Some have never tried. Others have changed their minds. But they all have something in common. The fact of acquaintance with a certain social rejection in some circumstances. It is a fact that although we are aware of the dangers of alcoholic beverages, their consumption continues to be normal. So much so that those who do not accept them look almost freaks. This leads to widespread public consumption.

This is how many people come into contact with alcohol who might otherwise never drink. But why? How can he be so strong? strength of society so that we start drinking something that maybe we don’t even like?

The strength of society

“But man, don’t be soft, drink something, huh?” “We want to see you drunk, and when you don’t look, I will add alcohol to your drink.” “Wet your lips at least for toast.” “You’re not going to have so much fun.” These are all phrases that the people who testified for this article have ever heard around them. This is what often causes us to start drinking when we are young. public pressure And need to fit in.

And that’s how he explained hypertext Carlos Serranopsychologist and director of psychologists Serrano and Martin, although each case is individual and should be analyze individually, there may be very similar patterns. “Alcohol use on social media can depend on public pressure that our friends, colleagues or even our family have,” he explains. “And also because of the need to belong and be accepted on a social level, which on a psychological level strongly affects us and our behavior.”

The positive consequences that we get in such situations”powerfully reinforce drinking behaviors“. This is so because we all like to feel like we belong to a group. “For this reason, if we get these types of benefits, as well as public approval, it is likely that social drinking will continue in our lives.”

alcohol brain damage

Drink alcohol to feel integrated

With all of the above, many people consider themselves social drunkards. That is, they never drink when they are alone or in the company of other people who do not drink. But if the social environment is conducive to this, they, without hesitation, take those drinks that are necessary.

In fact, even those who never drink sometimes have to give up. Arnau himself tells us that shortly after he stopped drinking, he started drinking again. feel integrated. “At first I did it from time to time, because I thought that maybe I was missing and that it a little fun, and that if I drink, I will better integrate into the group, ”he recalls. “But little by little I stopped doing that as my social appeal waned and I started caring less about the opinions of others.”

As for Victor, he admits that once he had to come to terms with the fact that in the past he alcohol problems so they don’t insist.

Anyway, hard to stand your ground with all the pro-alcohol irritants that constantly surround us. However, Serrano explains in a conversation with this medium that all this is not without an important cultural component, which varies from one place to another.

“There are countries where consumption is more normalized than in others. Or even the fact that he is a man or a woman. For example, it may happen that men drink more than women, not because of anything biological, of course, but because of how culture shapes our behavior in one way or another.

Carlos Serrano, psychologist

Who is the most vulnerable?

We have all seen ourselves at some point more or less compelled drinking alcohol on social media. Anyone is capable of doing it. However, as Serrano says, there may be people who are more or less vulnerable. “For example, if a person had family members with such behavior from whom he could learn, or if they poor assertive skills“. You may also be more vulnerable “if you are in depression or in a situation dangerous life“.

However, the psychologist gives us his personal opinion. “Personally, I think that instead of looking for dispositional variables at the individual level, we should focus on them. at the social level: lifestyle, particular economic situations, social resources that we may or may not have…”. That is, “to the social context in general and its influence on our behavior, which both medical and political models tend to neglect, no doubt due to personal interest“.

lemonade
Mariah Huines (Unsplash)

No access to soft drinks

We have already seen that many people are often pushed to drink alcohol by others. But the environment itself, apart from people, can be more or less favorable in this respect. And it’s that sometimes Either there are no other options, or there are very few of them.

According to a recently published study by scientists from the University of Cambridge, if people had more choice of soft drinks in supermarkets, they could consume less alcohol. The experiment in question was carried out in online supermarket simulator. Indeed, when the assortment was higher, people made a simulated purchase with less alcohol.

The same thing happens in some festive conditions. Arnau tells us about his own experience. In some events, for example corporate lunches, parties, etc., drink options tend to be all alcoholic, and to drink something like juice, cola or water, you have to specifically ask for it, and they tend to give you weird looks,” he explains. “Sometimes I also noticed that you go out to dinner, the menu includes alcoholic drinks, and when you ask if they can exchange alcohol for other drinks, they say no, so you end up paying unnecessary extra costs.”

In fact, another particularly vivid experience is told in this sense. “I remember once at a corporate event there was literally only alcohol,” he recalls. “I went up to the waiter and asked if they had soft drinkto which he said to me: “Of course not, this is not a chiqui park.”

Regional variation

This also happens in places where the customand put a lid on the drink. In some towns and some certain bars, there is still an old tradition that if you ask for water or a soft drink, the tapa is not included.

Instead, Arnau, who now lives in London, says he is no longer seen as often in these situations. “It’s a little easier here because there’s a lot of variety and they’re used to Muslims, for example, so there’s usually a lot of alternatives offered.”

Ververidis Vassilis | Shutterstock

It has nothing to do with fun

“Yes, you endured dancing and didn’t drink.” This is what Isabelle tells us that she had to listen to this after a while. night. This is not unusual, since there is still an opinion that alcohol is necessary for enjoy.

It is true that when we drink alcohol, we lose our inhibitions. This is because dopamine, which is released in response, suppresses some of the activity in the prefrontal cortex, which is an area of ​​the brain. responsibility for moral reasoning and adherence to social rules. Therefore, it can disinhibit us in many ways. This may lead us to believe that we will have a better time this way, but this is not always the case.

In fact, everyone we’ve spoken to admits to having a good time without drinking. Even Martha goes further and notes that people change a lot when they drink. “they are not funny”. However, she feels that this is also isolating her. “I feel discriminated against, not because I don’t drink, but because being sober when everyone is drunk isolates me. These are the ones who are in another world, which is only funny if you’ve had a drink too.

Generation Z and drinking

All people involved in the writing of this article millennials. After them comes Generation Z which, according to some studies, has a lower habit of drinking alcohol. In fact, with each time among them, the fact that a person is a teetotaler looks more and more attractive. This, again, has an explanation based on psychology.

“Perhaps there is more knowledge about the consequences of drinking alcohol than before, or that social networks have allowed us to disprove the rules that we previously learned so much about drinking in social situations“, Serrano explains. As an example, he cites a case that occurred recently on the networks. “Recently, a video went viral in which a girl makes fun of a guy she met for asking for a chocolate milkshake on a first date,” she says “Twitter was filled with people criticizing the girl’s attitude and supporting the boy, sharing experiences to show that people who choose to be teetotaler“.

In a word, in generation Z something is changing. But you have to be careful, because public consumption has not disappeared, but moved to other types of habits. “There is another type of consumption that is highly normalized and socially attractive,” recalls the psychologist. “Vapers or energy drinksfor example, despite the fact that we are still not very clear on the long-term consequences.

What we can do?

Nothing and no one should push us to drink alcohol. This is still an action that may entail certain losses, therefore, with sufficient information, it is each of us we decide if we want to do it.

But sometimes it’s hard. For this reason, Carlos Serrano recommends a simple exercise.

“First, analyze what your social environment is like, whether it coerces you or ridicules you when you want to behave the way you want. Is this a good place to hang out? Probably no. He believes that, even if it costs us, rejecting these types of people will help us be more consistent with ourselves and motivate us to make those decisions.”

Carlos Serrano, psychologist

You’re not cooler or more fun if you drink. You don’t even have to wet your lips if you don’t want to. Don’t let anyone look down on you for choosing to take care of yourself.

Source: Hiper Textual

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